China's economy will grow steadily and will not soar above the
first quarter level, said Zhang Liqun, an economist with the State
Council Development and Research Center?on Thursday.
Zhang made the statement after the China Federation of Logistics
and Procurement (CFLP) released the April Purchasing Management
Index (PMI) -- 58.6 percent, up 2.5 percentage points over the
previous month.
The PMI is an indicator of the economic health of the
manufacturing sector. A PMI of more than 50 percent represents
expansion of the manufacturing sector, compared to the previous
month.
China's PMI has been more than 50 percent since January
2005.
Zhang said export drove up industrial growth in the first
quarter while most exports came from energy-consuming,
heavy-polluting and resource-processing industries.
The economist said the current situation shows such exports have
been cooled down and will not continue to expand because the
government has adjusted relevant policies.
In the meantime, consumption plays a more important role in
driving economic growth, said Zhang, adding that investment has
maintained stable growth.
China's gross domestic product, or GDP, totaled 5.03 trillion
yuan (US$653 billion) in the first quarter of this year.
The rapid economic growth was driven by investment, consumption
and import and export, Li Xiaochao, spokesman with the National
Bureau of Statistics, said previously, warning of a risk for the
economy to evolve from fast growth to overheating.
(Xinhua News Agency May 4, 2007)