China's gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to expand more than 9 percent in 2010, Yi Gang, head of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), said Friday.

Yi, also deputy governor of the People's Bank of China, the central bank, made the remarks in an interview with China Reform magazine, which is posted on the SAFE website Friday.

China's GDP grew 11.1 percent in the first half of 2010 from the same period of last year.

Yi said China's economic growth rate will eventually slow down because its economic base is expanding, while the country's development faces huge pressure in fields of environmental protection, resources and energy.

"The restriction caused by environmental factors has been unprecedented, such as underground water, air, and carbon emission," Yi said.

Yi said the priority of China's economy is the quality of the growth.

"That's why we have to restructure and transform growth modes -- for improving the growth quality and the efficiency," Yi said.

(Xinhua News Agency July 31, 2010)