CANBERRA — China’s domestic economy has enormous potential, said Australian experts while talking about China’s buoyant economic growth for the first quarter of this year.

“The growth was solid and perhaps surprising,” said James Laurenceson, deputy director of the Australia-China Relations Institute (ACRI) at the University of Technology Sydney.

“The buoyancy of retail sales was a standout. This is crucial as China transitions to consumption-driven growth,” he said.

The Chinese economy got off to a good start in 2019 as more indicators showed positive signs of stabilization for the first quarter (Q1) of this year.

China’s economy beat market expectations to advance 6.4 percent year-on-year in Q1, remaining flat with the GDP expansion in the previous quarter, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics.

The sturdy expansion was mainly driven by a striking 8.3 percent growth in retail sales of consumer goods year-on-year, which constitutes an overwhelming 65.1 percent in the quarterly GDP, among major indicators that fared better than expectations.

Laurenceson, who was former president of the Chinese Economics Society of Australia, saw potential in China’s economy.

“This can be unlocked with further opening-up and market reform,” he said.

Dr Shi Xunpeng, principal research fellow at the ACRI, said the growth rate is “good news for both China and the world”.