Meanwhile, the Chinese government would strive to boost demand for petrochemical products in order to maintain the stable development of the sector.

Measures would also be taken to guarantee the supply of farming materials, such as fertilizers, and to push forward technological innovation and construction of major petrochemical projects.

It was decided at the meeting to give more policy support to the petrochemical sector, such as accelerating the building of finished oil product reserves, better tax policies and more credit access for firms.

The government will not approve coal chemical projects, such as coke and calcium carbide, that are merely meant to increase production capacities. It's an effort to control the overall capacity of the sector.

China said it would unveil support plans for 10 industries to stimulate the economy. So far, similar plans for six sectors - auto, steel, shipbuilding, textile, machinery-manufacturing, electronics and information industries- have been made public.

(Xinhua News Agency February 20, 2009)