China can manage inflation expectations: Vice Premier
China has the ability to manage inflation expectations and will seek a balance between containing price pressures while maintaining strong growth and restructuring the economy, Vice Premier Li Keqiang said on Tuesday.
January 12, 2011 / 08:34 IST
China has the ability to manage inflation expectations and will seek a balance between containing price pressures while maintaining strong growth and restructuring the economy, Vice Premier Li Keqiang said on Tuesday.
"We have the capability ... to maintain price levels and to manage inflation expectations," Li said, answering questions from the audience after giving a speech at a London dinner hosted by the China-Britain Business Council."For the Chinese government, we want to strike a balance of ensuring steady and rapid economic growth, restructuring the economy and also to manage" inflation expectations, Li said, according to an interpreter.Li, widely tipped to become the next Chinese premier, is on a four-day visit to Britain that ends on Wednesday.Chinese consumer inflation is growing at its fastest rate in more than two years, prompting the government to step up efforts to rein in rising prices to try to head off public discontent.Li said there had been property sector overheating in parts of China, but added the authorities had taken timely measures to strengthen their macroeconomic control of the sector."We are really determined in controlling speculative demand and investment ... We have rolled out a series of measures to regulate the property sector and those efforts have started to pay off," he said.Pro-Chinese demonstrators as well as members of the Falun Gong spiritual movement and Tibetan supporters gathered outside the ornate Royal Courts of Justice where the banquet was held.Li repeated longstanding Chinese calls for the European Union to recognize China's market economy status and to lift an embargo on high-tech exports to China "at an early date."If China was given market economy status, it would be harder for trading partners to accuse it of dumping goods.Immigration capIn an apparent allusion to the British government's plans to introduce a cap on immigration, Li said: "We hope the UK will enable Chinese business people to travel more conveniently."Chinese policymakers have previously raised concerns with British officials about the eight-month-old ruling coalition's plans to cap immigration. They fear it could limit visas for business executives and the 85,000 Chinese students in Britain.Answering questions from business executives at the dinner, Li defended the openness of the Chinese economy."The Chinese market is open and will be increasingly so in the future and we will engage all the parties to create a level playing field for businesses of all kinds ... Our aim is to create a market environment with stability, transparency and predictability," he said."Our drive to develop the service sector in China will also mean greater opportunities for the development of service sector businesses of other countries, not least those from the UK," he added.Britain and China signed business deals worth 2.6 billion pounds (USD 4 billion) on Monday, as well as an agreement that will bring a breeding pair of giant pandas to Edinburgh Zoo.Britain is the last stop on a tour which has taken Li to Spain and Germany. Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
