China's year-on-year GDP growth reached 6.6 percent in 2018, compared with 6.8 percent in 2017, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Monday.

Growth in the fourth quarter of 2018 was 6.4 percent, compared with 6.7 percent in the first three quarters.

The country achieved its goal of around 6.5 percent GDP growth set for 2018.

Despite the easing, growth of the national economy remained within a reasonable range last year, said the NBS.

The country registered a 6.2 percent industrial output growth last year, compared with 6.6 percent in 2017.

Fixed-asset investment growth was 5.9 percent last year, 0.5 percentage point higher than the first three quarters of the year.

Retail sales increased by 9 percent in 2018 year-on-year, down from 10.2 percent in 2017, the NBS said.

Despite the easing in growth, China's surveyed unemployment rate was 4.9 percent in December and was kept between 4.8 percent and 5.1 percent for the year, the bureau said.

The economy faces downward pressure and there would be targeted solutions to the challenge, the bureau said in a statement.