CHINA / National |
Premier: Economy to grow by 11.5%By Le Tian (China Daily)
Updated: 2007-11-21 06:58
SINGAPORE: China's economy is expected to grow 11.5 percent this year, Premier Wen Jiabao said Tuesday. Wen, in Singapore on a four-day official visit and to attend a series of Association of Southeast Asian Nations meetings, made the forecast when meeting embassy staff and representatives of Chinese entrepreneurs and students. China has enjoyed 9 percent year-on-year growth for 30 consecutive years while growth surpassed 10 percent in the past five years, he noted. But he stressed that the government must prevent the economy from overheating; and make sure that structural price rises do not move toward high inflation. "Only by achieving that can we enable the economy to grow in a stable and healthy manner," he said. The consumer price index reached a decade-high 6.5 percent last month, matching the peak in August, with prices of foodstuffs rising 17 percent year-on-year. Wen also called for efforts to transform the economic development mode to emphasize efficiency. "An important task for us is to continue our efforts in energy conservation and pollution reduction." |
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