The national economy continued to grow rapidly with good
performance and low inflation in 2001, with GDP increases 7.3
percent hitting 9.5933 trillion yuan, said China's top planner Zeng
Peiyan on Wednesday.
Zeng, minister in charge of the State Development Planning
Commission, made the remark in his Report on the Implementation of
the 2001 Plan for National Economic and Social Development and on
the Draft 2002 Plan for National Economic and Social Development,
to the second plenary meeting of the Fifth Session of the Ninth
National People's Congress (NPC).
Fixed-asset investment in the country totaled 3.6898 trillion yuan,
up by 12.1 percent. Market prices were stable and the consumer
price level rose by 0.7 percent. Imports and exports totaled
US$509.8 billion, an increase of 7.5 percent, according to
Zeng.
Government revenue grew rapidly. The financial deficit was kept
below the budgeted figure. The financial situation remained stable.
The net amount of cash put into circulation amounted to 103.6
billion yuan. The balance of international payments was
satisfactory and China's foreign reserves totaled US$212.2 billion
at the end of 2001. The registered unemployment rate in cities and
towns was 3.6 percent. The natural population growth rate was held
at 0.695 percent.
The successful convocation of the Ninth APEC Economic Leaders
Meeting and other major international conferences in China, the
country's accession to the World
Trade Organization and Beijing's successful bid to host the
2008 Olympic Games are all indicators that China has further raised
its international position and expanded its influence in
international affairs.
In
general, targets set in the 2001 plan for national economic and
social development were basically met, and implementation of the
Tenth Five-Year Plan got off to a good start, Zeng Peiyan said. The
minister then gave a detailed account of the country's economic
conditions in 2001.
The proactive fiscal policy and the prudent monetary policy were
continued, with treasury bonds playing an important role in
promoting economic and social development. A total of 150 billion
yuan worth of long-term treasury bonds was issued in 2001 as
approved at the Fourth Session of the Ninth NPC. The investment in
projects financed through treasury bonds totaled approximately
three trillion yuan. This played a vital role in boosting economic
growth, improving the economic structure, increasing employment,
improving the people's living standards and enhancing the quality
of bank assets.
Industrial restructuring was vigorously promoted, resulting in
improved economic growth and better performance of the national
economy. The distribution of agriculture continued to improve as
production of major crops was gradually concentrated in areas with
the best conditions. Fresh progress was made in industrial
restructuring. High-tech industries developed rapidly and the
electronic information industry grew by 28 percent. Total profits
of state-owned and large non-state industrial enterprises hit 465.
7 billion yuan, a rise of 8.1 percent.
Reforms related to the reform of state-owned enterprises continued
to deepen and the institutional environment for economic and social
development improved. The reform to introduce the shareholding
system in state-owned enterprises was gradually standardized, and
efforts were intensified to reform and reorganize enterprises that
were performing poorly. Progress was made in reform of the
management system in monopoly industries, with reform plans for
telecommunications, power and civil aviation completed and
inaugurated. Initial steps were taken to set up a system open to
the participation of all sectors to provide credit and financial
guarantees, mainly for small and medium enterprises. Establishment
of a social security system was accelerated.
There were initial results in rectifying and standardizing market
order due to efforts to implement temporary solutions while seeking
permanent solutions and focusing on the most crucial problems. The
work was concentrated on the fight against smuggling, production
and marketing of fake and shoddy goods, fraudulent export tax
rebates, evasion of foreign exchange repayment, obtaining foreign
exchange under false pretenses and other special cases.
Vigorous efforts were made to develop a more open economy, creating
more space for economic growth. Despite an unfavorable
international trade environment, the total volume of imports
increased by 6.8 percent and exports by 8.2 percent. Imports of
advanced technology and key equipment urgently needed domestically
and raw and semi-finished materials in short supply continued to
grow rapidly. Foreign direct investment in 2001 amounted to US$46.8
billion, a record high and an increase of 14.9 percent. Foreign
investment in integrated circuits, computers, telecommunications
products and other high-tech projects increased and the number of
large projects financed by multinational corporations grew.
More steps were taken in the program to extensively develop the
western region with improvements in planning and policy. Fixed-
asset investment in the western region increased by 19.3 percent,
six percentage points higher than in the eastern region, and in the
central region, by 16.3 percent, three percentage points higher. A
number of major projects were also launched last year.
(Xinhua News
Agency March 6, 2002)