ADB: China's Economy Up 9.6%

China's economy will continue growing rapidly, but it must boost domestic consumption to achieve more sustainable growth, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said Tuesday.

The economy was expected to grow by 9.6 percent this year, and 9.1 percent in 2011, predictions unchanged from the ADB's April projections, said Paul Heytens, ADB country director for China, at a press conference in Beijing.

In the first half this year, China's economy registered double-digit growth, as the world economy was recovering and the country's fiscal and monetary stimulus program was being implemented, said Heytens.

He expected the Chinese economy to continue to rebound strongly in the second half although the growth rate would slow as the effects of the stimulus program gradually abated.

Heytens described rebalancing the economy and achieving more sustainable growth as long-term challenges for the country, and pointed to domestic consumption as a possible solution.

"For the longer term, policymakers will need to consider fiscal policy adjustments and other measures to step up private consumption and to help rebalance the economy and sustain growth," said Heytens.

Measures to encourage consumption and promote a rebalancing included allocating more fiscal resources to public services to raise disposable household income, strengthening social safety nets, increasing the supply of low-income housing, expanding property taxes, and boosting fiscal transfers from the central government to the provinces.

(Xinhua News Agency September 28, 2010)