Goldman sets GDP growth forecast at 6.5%

The Chinese mainland's accelerated structural reform and efforts to cut debt levels might lead to a mild slowdown in gross domestic product expansion this year, investment bank Goldman Sachs said, setting its growth forecast for the year at 6.5 percent.

Andrew Tilton, managing director of global investment research at Goldman Sachs, said the mainland had performed well last year. A credit-growth slowdown normally held the economy back, but GDP continued to grow despite the deleveraging.

China's GDP grew 6.9 percent last year, up from 6.7 percent in 2016, the National Bureau of Statistics said.