China's GDP growth reached 6.8 percent year-on-year in the first half of this year, beating general market expectations, according to official data released on Monday.

Growth in the second quarter was 6.7 percent, compared with 6.8 percent in the first quarter, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

Retail sales increased by 9.4 percent year-on-year in the first half of this year, 0.4 percentage points lower than the first quarter, the data showed.

The industrial output posted steady growth in the first six months, up by 6.7 percent year-on-year, 0.1 percentage point lower than the first quarter, the data showed.

Fixed-asset investment growth was 6 percent in the first half of this year, 1.5 percentage points lower than the first quarter.

Mao Shengyong, spokesman of the bureau, said the data showed that the country's economic growth remained stable.