Shaanxi's economic growth is increasingly reliant on coal and energy industries as its auto sector contracts sharply, data from the provincial statistics bureau showed on July 22.

Industrial value-added output by large enterprises in the northwestern province rose 4.9% in the first half of the year from the same period last year. Mining sector output grew 9.1% year on year, manufacturing rose 0.9%, and production and supply of electricity, heat, gas and water increased 1.2%.

Coal mining and washing sector output surged over 11% year on year, becoming the main pillar of industrial growth, according to Hu Qingsheng, deputy director and spokesperson of the Shaanxi Provincial Bureau of Statistics.

Hu said the province's earlier high industrial growth was driven by both energy and auto manufacturing, but manufacturing has weakened in the first half, leaving coal as the primary support.

Shaanxi's auto output totaled 493,000 units in January-June, down 47.7% from 943,200 units in the same period of 2025, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, dragging on manufacturing growth.

Shaanxi is also rich in oil and gas resources, with energy serving as the backbone of its economy. Raw coal output rose 3.4% year on year in January-June, while natural gas output increased 6.4%, with both ranking third nationally. Coal mining and washing sector value-added output rose 11.1% year on year, and oil and gas extraction grew 8.3%.

At a provincial government meeting on July 18, Shaanxi Governor Zhao Gang stressed the need to stabilize industry in the second half, leveraging energy as a "ballast stone" for the economy while strengthening targeted support for key manufacturing sectors and enterprises.

Shaanxi's gross domestic product reached 1.75 trillion yuan in the first half, up 3.8% year on year at constant prices. The primary sector contributed 81.98 billion yuan, up 4.3%; the secondary sector 706.22 billion yuan, up 3.8%; and the tertiary sector 965.14 billion yuan, up 3.7%.

Hu said the 3.8% GDP growth, though slower than the first quarter, was broadly in line with the national trend and reflected a transitional phase in the province's supply-demand restructuring and shift from old to new growth drivers.