China's economy grew at a slightly faster than expected pace in the latest quarter, according to official data released by Beijing on Wednesday.

中国星期三公布的官方数据显示，中国经济上季度的增长速度略高于预期。

The second quarter growth rate of 7 percent is equal to that of the previous quarter, but is China's slowest quarterly rate of expansion since early 2009 following the global financial crisis.

中国今年第二季度的经济增长率为7%，与上季度持平。自2009年初世界金融危机后，这是中国经济最低的季度增长率。

"China's national economic performance in the first half of this year is within a reasonable range, with major indicators improving gradually and trending a stable and healthy development," said National Bureau of Statistics spokesman Sheng Laiyun.

中国国家统计局发言人盛来运说，中国国民经济今年上半年的表现是在合理范围内，各项主要指标逐渐改善，趋于稳定和健康的发展。

The world's second-largest economy has seen an unexpectedly quick economic downturn in recent years, following three decades of breakneck, double-digit growth.

近年来，作为世界第二大经济体的中国经过连续30年的两位数增长后，经济增长速度迅速下滑。

Most recently, China had to take drastic measures to reverse a stock market crash that had wiped out nearly 30 percent of market value in a matter of weeks.

最近，中国被迫采取重大措施来稳定股市。仅在数周内，中国股市缩水将近30%。