China's gross domestic product grew by 7.4 percent in the third quarter, the lowest in 14 quarters, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Thursday.

The growth rate declined by 0.2 percentage points compared with the 7.6 percent figure in the second quarter. In the first three months, the figure stood at 8.1 percent.

In the first nine months, the world's second economy grew by 7.7 percent to 35.3 trillion yuan.

The increase in industrial output went down by 0.5 of a percentage point to 10 percent from three months earlier by the end of September, according to the bureau.

China's economic growth has started to stabilize and show positive changes, Premier Wen Jiabao said during discussions on economic conditions held on Friday, Saturday and Monday.

The government is confident of achieving its full-year economic growth of 7.5 percent although the country is faced with considerable challenges in the fourth quarter, said Wen.

"China's economy is turning the corner and the rebound should be more apparent in the fourth quarter as the effects of past stimulus measures become more apparent," said Alaistair Chan, a Sydney-based economist at Moody's Analytics in a research note.

In September, the industrial output increased by 0.79 percent month-on-month and export growth accelerated to 9.9 percent from 2.7 percent in August — the fastest pace in three months.

In the first nine months, fixed-asset investment went up by 20.5 percent year-on-year, 0.1 of a percentage point higher than that of the first half. In September, such investment grew by 1.63 percent month-on-month from August.

The data mosaic suggests that economic activity has stabilized but not yet recovered, said Jeremy Stevens, an economist at Standard Bank, adding the new leadership perhaps will move more aggressively to bolster growth.

wangxiaotian@chinadaily.com.cn