BOAO, Hainan, April 10 (Xinhua) -- Over the past 40 years, China's GDP has averaged an annual growth rate of around 9.5 percent in comparable prices, Chinese President Xi Jinping said Tuesday.

The country's foreign trade has registered an annual growth of 14.5 percent in U.S. dollar, Xi said at the opening ceremony of the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference.

"The Chinese people have emerged from a life of shortages and poverty and are now enjoying abundant supply and a moderately prosperous life," Xi noted.

According to current UN standards, more than 700 million Chinese people have been lifted out of poverty, accounting for more than 70 percent of the global total over the same period, he said.