China's economy grew a faster than expected 9.8% last year, the country's tax bureau said Jan. 17, after a major revision upwards last month of the size of the economy in 2004. Xie Xuren, director of the State Administration of Taxation, said at a briefing in Beijing that the Chinese economy grew at 9.8% while industrial production was estimated to have expanded by 19%.
Ou Xingqian, vice-director of the National Development and Reform Commission, also said this month that gross domestic product (GDP) last year grew by 9.8%.
The government recently revised 2004 GDP growth up to 10.1% following a year-long survey aimed at rectifying the reporting of inaccurate economic statistics. That revision showed the total value of China's economy at the end of 2004 was in reality 16.8%, or $284 billion, more than previously estimated. The miscalculation, mainly in the service sector, meant China passed Italy to become the world's sixth largest economy with total GDP of more than $1.97 trillion. The revised 2005 growth figure of 9.8% from Xie and Ou is not the final official number, which will be released by the National Bureau of Statistics when it reports the annual economic data late this month.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2006
