Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji said here Friday that China's fiscal deficits and government debts are both controlled below internationally accepted warning line.
Answering a question from the press following the conclusion of the Fifth Session of the Ninth National People's Congress, Zhu said that most countries in the world have deficits and the problem lies not on whether or not you have deficits, but on whether or not the deficits are within your bearing capacity and what causes the deficits.
He said that China's has budgeted deficits of 309.8 billion yuan for 2002, about three percent of the GDP while the amount of treasury bonds planned to be issued will be 2560 billion yuan, 16 percent of the GDP, both below the internationally accepted warning line.
Most of the deficits are attributable to spending on infrastructure construction, he said, adding that his government will leave to the next government 2.5 trillion yuan of quality assets that will go a long way to promoting social and economic development.
(Xinhua News Agency March 15, 2002)
