China's fixed asset investment in the first quarter rose 28.8 percent year on year to 2.81 trillion yuan (US$411.4 billion), the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) announced on Thursday.

The growth rate was 4.2 percentage points higher than the year before, said NBS spokesman Li Xiaochao.

Urban fixed asset investment stood at 2.36 trillion yuan in the first quarter, up 28.6 percent year on year, or 2.7 percentage points higher. The growth in March was 30.3 percent, Li said.

Fixed asset investment in rural areas was up 29.4 percent to 456.7 billion yuan, or 11.1 percentage points higher year on year.

The growth rate in the primary sector (farming, fishing, forestry and the like) remained the highest, up by 85 percent. The secondary sector saw investment rise by 26.8 percent and the tertiary sector by 29.1 percent, Li said.

(Xinhua News Agency April 16, 2009)