China Economy Stabilizing, Investment and Consumption Rise

飞雪寒冰

China's economy is stabilizing with a number of indicators pointing to rising investment and consumption, the central government announced following a State Council meeting presided over by Premier Wen Jiabao on June 17.

At the meeting, the State Council, China's cabinet, resolved to carry on with an active fiscal policy and a moderately loose monetary policy, while implementing measures to tackle the financial crisis, according to a summary of the meeting posted on www.gov.cn, the central government's official website.

China's urban fixed-asset investment for the five months to May rose 32.9 percent year-on-year to 5.352 trillion yuan, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics.

Retail sales in the first five months were up 15 percent from a year earlier to 4.9 trillion yuan.

The State Council also said China is at a critical point in its recovery with the remaining challenges  including plummeting exports and excess production capacity.

Exports for the first five months totaled US$426 billion, down 21.8 percent year-on-year, the General Administration of Customs said.

The State Council said the central government will further adjust China's economic structure to expand the role of domestic consumption.

The central government aims to further boost home electrical appliance, auto and agricultural machinery consumption in rural areas, the State Council said.

In the first quarter, China's GDP grew by 6.1 percent year-on-year to 6.57 trillion yuan, the weakest since 1992. GDP slowed from 6.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008 and 9.0 percent in the third quarter.

The government has set its 2009 target for GDP growth at 8 percent.