(Yicai Global) Jan. 17 -- China's mainland stock markets retracted their morning gains after the National Bureau of Statistics said that the country's economy expanded by 6.1 percent last year, which is at the lower end of the government's target range.

The Shanghai Composite Index went into lunchtime 0.09 percent higher at 3,076.90. The Shenzhen Component Index was at 10,972.98, up 0.05 percent. The ChiNext Price Index, which tracks growth enterprises in Shenzhen, rose 0.25 percent to 1,934.87.

The central government expected the country's gross domestic product to widen by a point between 6 percent and 6.5 percent. In 2018, the GDP grew to the tune of 6.6 percent. 

Editor: Emmi Laine