China's economy grew slightly faster than expectations in the second quarter of 2016, holding steady from the first quarter and fueling hopes that the economy has entered a steady but slower period of development.

The country's GDP grew 6.7 percent year on year in the second quarter, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Friday.

The figure, though the lowest quarterly rate since the global financial crisis, remained within the government's targeted range of between 6.5 and 7 percent for 2016.

On a quarterly basis, the economy increased 1.8 percent from the first quarter.

GDP expanded 6.7 percent year on year in the first half of 2016 to reach 34.06 trillion yuan (5.08 trillion U.S. dollars).