China´s economy grew 11.1 percent year-on-year to hit 17.28 trillion yuan ($2.55 trillion) in the first six months, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said Thursday.

The gross domestic product (GDP) rose 10.3 percent in the second quarter over a year earlier, slowing from the 11.9 percent growth in the first three months, according to the NBS.

"A slowdown in the growth rate will benefit the economy because it will prevent it from growing too fast and being overheated," said Sheng Laiyun, a NBS spokesman.

The consumer price index (CPI), a main gauge of inflation, increased by 2.6 percent year-on-year during the January-June period.

The consumer inflation ease to 2.9 percent in June from May´s 3.1 percent.

Source: ChinaDaily