Hohhot, capital city of North China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Hohhot, the capital city of North China’s Inner Mongolia autonomous region, reported economic growth in the first half of 2020, with the gross domestic product (GDP) hitting 134.33 billion yuan ($19.34 billion), according to the city’s statistics bureau.

In the first half of this year, the secondary industry became the driving force of the city's GDP.

During the six months, the added value of the primary industry was 3.06 billion yuan, a decrease of 4 percent; the added value of the secondary industry was 39.62 billion yuan, an increase of 5.2 percent; and the added value of the tertiary industry was 91.65 billion yuan, a decrease of 4.9 percent.

Officials said that as the novel coronavirus outbreak wanes, the vast majority of businesses in Hohhot have resumed work and production. The output and operation of service industry companies above a designated scale -- those with annual revenue of 20 million or more -- have also gradually resumed.

The added value of industries above a designated scale showed year-on-year growth of 9.4 percent. The growth rate was 3 percentage points higher than that of the first five months, which was 6.4 percent.

Also, the city is promoting consumption by issuing electronic consumer vouchers, improving the business environment, actively promoting the night economy, culture and entertainment, and other consumer promotion measures to enhance the vitality of the city.