Chinese leaders concluded a high-profile annual economic
conference on Wednesday and decided a slew of tasks facing the
country's economy in 2008.
They are as follows:
-- The primary task of macroeconomic control is to prevent the
economy from overheating and the current price rises led by
foodstuff from evolving into "evident inflation".
-- The meeting decided to shift the country's monetary policy
from "prudent", an approach China has followed for the last ten
years, to "tight". But the change of policy must be made to secure
a steady economic expansion.
-- Monetary policy should play greater role in the macro-control
policy. China will strictly control the volume and granting pace of
loans, so as to better regulate domestic demand and balance
international payments.
-- Fiscal expenditure must be optimized to facilitate industrial
restructuring and coordinate regional development. Fiscal input in
social security, medicare, sanitation, education and household
benefits will see concrete increase, while low-income families will
receive more stipends as an offset of price rises for basic living
necessities.
-- Consolidate the fundamental role of agriculture in China's
economic growth so as to secure grain crops, and supply and enrich
rural China.
-- Technical innovation should be based on market demand and be
centered upon core technologies that can break the bottlenecks of
China's economic and social development. Enterprises should be put
at the core of technical innovation to enhance national competence
and facilitate emission reduction and energy conservation.
-- Prices, taxations and financial policies should be used as an
incentive to stimulate energy conservation while
environmental-friendly and compulsory market access criteria must
be put into place.
-- Environmental protection and emission reduction should serve
as a crucial criterion for the evaluation of local authorities so
as to promote the application of advanced technology and curb the
development of high-polluting and high-energy-consumption
industries.
-- Channel more financial aid to undeveloped regions, especially
the interior revolutionary bases, habitats for people of ethnic
groups, border regions and poverty-stricken areas.
-- Urbanization must be advanced in a sustainable manner and not
at the costs of land waste.
--Deepen economic reforms, especially in fiscal and taxation
systems as well as pricing and investment mechanisms so as to
facilitate the transfer of economic growth mode from quantity to
quality.
-- Advance the Free Trade Area strategy and strengthen bilateral
and multi-lateral cooperation. Open up China wider to the outside
world and improve the quality and added value of export
products.
-- Double efforts in improving the livelihood of the people and
facilitate social harmony, including expanding the social benefit
and medicare for urban and rural residents, increasing education
capital input and boosting low-rent house construction.
(Xinhua News Agency December 6, 2007)
