Press briefing on H1 economic data

Beijing TV Station:

My question concerns the micro stimulus policies that the State Council adopted to ensure the smooth running of the national economy after the economic index data issued in the first quarter of the year. What impacts did those micro stimulus policies have and what new measures did the government take in the first half of the year?

Sheng Laiyun:

Confronting the complicated internal and external conditions as well as pressure from a downward economy, the Central Party Committee and the State Council adopted preliminary adjustment and micro adjustment based on the continuity and stability of policies. Meanwhile, on the basis of the interval adjustment and control, the government has put more emphasis on direct adjustment and control, carrying out a series of policies to sustain economic growth, deepen reform, adjust the economic structure and improve the people's livelihood. Those policies, which are interconnected, can both promote reform and sustain growth, and to some extent respond to the structural adjustment. The policies, which incorporate structural adjustment, promoting reform and stabilizing economic growth, are good both for the present and future.

Based on this, the impacts of the policies have been positive. They have been working especially well since the second quarter of the year. Take the June data for instance. Some indexes changed positively. Besides, the economy in the second quarter has operated better than in the first quarter. Take the indexes in June for example. The market expectation has continued to improve, as the PMI (Purchase Management Index), which continued to rebound for four consecutive months, reached 51 percent in June. Fixed assets investment growth stopped declining and grew by 17.3 percent from January to June, registering a growth of 0.1 percentage points compared with growth from January to May. Secondary industry also experienced a rebound. The added value of industrial output above the designated size grew by 9.2 percent year on year in June, 0.4 percent higher than May. The other indexes, including electric power output and freight volume, all took increased in the second quarter. Therefore, in my opinion, the series of policies adopted by the central government to sustain growth and promote reform are both timely and effective. To me, the most important issue in the next phase is how to implement them. Thank you.