Riots hit economic growth

The Lhasa violence in March and its aftermath reduced Tibet's economic growth by 6.6 percentage points in the first quarter, Qiangba Puncog, chairman of Tibet's regional government, said.

Tibet recorded a GDP of 7.6 billion yuan ($1.1 billion) in the first quarter, up 10.4 percent year-on-year, the official told a teleconference on Tuesday.

In the first quarter of 2007, Tibet's economy grew 17 percent year-on-year, the highest in a decade.

(China Daily 05/08/2008 page4)