emirates7 - China's service sector remained a bright spot in the first half of the year, as steady expansion in modern services and accelerating growth in service consumption helped underpin overall economic stability, official data showed on Wednesday.

The value-added output of the service sector rose 5.2 percent year-on-year in the first half, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), exceeding the 4.7 percent growth in China's GDP during the same period. Meanwhile, retail sales of services increased 5.3 percent, outpacing the 1.1 percent growth in goods retail sales.

According to a Global Times report, analysts said the latest figures indicate that service demand has gradually improved, while modern services linked to technological development and industrial upgrading have become increasingly important drivers of growth.

The national service production index rose 4.7 percent year-on-year in June, accelerating by 0.3 percentage points from May. Business activity in sectors including telecommunications, internet software and IT services, finance and insurance remained robust, with business activity indexes above 55 percent.