China has reported a 7.9 per cent year-on-year growth in its estimated gross domestic product (GDP) for the second quarter, spurred by a government economic stimulus package.

The April-June figure was up from 6.1 per cent in the first quarter and took China’s GDP growth to 7.1 per cent for the first six months of this year compared with the same period last year, according to the country’s National Bureau of Statistics.

In another sign of improvement, China’s industrial output grew by 10.7 per cent year-on-year in June, the first double-digit figure in nine months, the bureau said.

The World Bank last month raised its forecast for China’s annual GDP growth to 7.2 per cent, saying the country was posting ‘respectable’ growth fuelled by the government’s four-trillion-yuan (590- billion-dollar) spending package.

The infrastructure-centered spending package promoted government-related investment this year, accompanied by a surge in new bank lending and continuing growth in domestic consumption, the World Bank said. China’s forex reserves also exceeded the US$2 trillion mark for the first time.