Chinese Vice Premier Zeng
Peiyan urged local governments to carry out macroeconomic
control measures adopted by the central government to rein in the
galloping economy.
Fixed assets investment should be in tight control and more
efforts be made to lower energy consumption and improve
environmental protection, said Zeng during his recent inspection
tour in southwest China's
Yunnan Province.
As China's economy reported a 10.9 percent growth in the first
half of the year, Chinese top leaders have warned of possible
overheating and emphasized better macroeconomic control.
The central government has made explicit requirements on
economic work in the second half, said Zeng, urging local
governments to keep in accordance with the central government and
strengthen implementation of policies on macroeconomic control.
Local governments played an important role in pushing the
economy.
Official figures show investment projects approved by local
governments contributed 90 percent of the total fixed asset
investment, with the remainder initiated by the central government.
China's fixed assets investment rose 29.8 percent in the first half
of the year, still at a breakneck growth rate.
Despite high-level warnings, local governments strove to gain
more GDP growth driven by local interests.
A report of the National Development and Reform Commission, the
country's economic planning body, claimed that the GDP of 31
provincial areas on the Chinese mainland had grown at an average
rate of 12 percent during the first six months. The gap between the
average GDP growth reported by local governments and the figure
published by the National Bureau of Statistics has widened since
2000.
(Xinhua News Agency August 13, 2006)