China's economy grows 10.7% in first three quarters
By Zhao Huanxin (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2006-10-19 09:56 China's economy grew by 10.7 per cent in the first
three quarters of this year, the National Bureu of Statistics said on
Thursday.
Li Xiaochao, NBS
spokesman | "According to preliminary estimation,
the gross domestic product (GDP) of China in the first three quarters of this
year was 14,147.7 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 10.7 per cent," Li
Xiaochao, spokesman of the NBS, said.
The GDP growth was 0.8 percentage
point higher than that in the same period of last year, Li told a press
conference held by the State Council Information Office.
In the third
quarter, GDP growth was 10.4 percent, down 0.9 percentage points from the
second quarter he said.
"The tendency of the economy growing a little bit
too fast has been brought under check," Li said.
The Chinese Academy
of Social Sciences predicted earlier this month that the country could post a
GDP growth of 10.5 per cent for the whole year.
Trade surplus
rising
Li said China's imports and exports increased nearly one
fourth in the first nine months of this year to hit US$1,272.6 billion,
generating a trade surplus of US$109.85 billion.
"China's foreign trade
enjoyed rapid growth with a further increase of trade surplus," Li said.
China Daily reporter raises a
question about China's imports and exports at the press conference.
| He said the total value of imports and exports for the
first three quarters of this year was US$1,272.6 billion, up 24.3 per cent
year-on-year, or 0.6 percentage point higher over the same period last
year.
Of the total, exports was US$691.23 billion, up by 26.5 per
cent or 4.8 percentage points lower than the same period of 2005; and the
imports was US$581.38 billion, up 21.7 per cent or 5.7 percentage points
higher.
Therefore, in the first nine months
of this year, the trade surplus was US$109.85 billion.
Former NBS chief sacked for fund
scandal
Qiu Xiaohua, former chief of the National Bureau of
Statistics (NBS), is suspected of involvement in the pension fund scandal in
Shanghai, Li Xiaochao, an NBS spokesman, said on Thursday in Beijing.
Qiu's case is still under investigation, he told a press conference held by
the State Council Information Office in Beijing.
The Shanghai pension fund scandal led to the sacking of the municipality's
top Party official Chen Liangyu.
This is the second press conference the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS)
held at the State Council Information Office within five weeks, the first one
was given by Qiu himself.
The State Council removed Qiu Xiaohua from the post of director of the
National Bureau of Statistics last week, replacing him with Xie Fuzhan, former
deputy director of the cabinet's think-tank Development Research Centre.
The removal sparked widespread speculations about why Qiu was sacked. No
explanation has been given since then.
Qiu served the position only half a year. He was appointed director of the
National Bureau of Statistics this March to replace Li Deshui.
Born in 1958, Qiu Xiaohua is a native of East China's Fujian Province. He
graduated from the department of Economics of Xiamen University in Fujian in
1982.
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