The fundamentals of China's economy are unscathed by the financial meltdown sweeping the world and the mainland would see relatively stable and fast growth next year, the government's top think-tank said.
The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) forecast that gross domestic product would grow 10.1 per cent this year and 9.5 per cent next year with the consumer price index, the main gauge of inflation, rising 6.5 per cent this year and 4.5 per cent in 2009.
Although the academy's projected 2008 GDP growth was down from its previous forecast of 11 per cent, it was still more optimistic than a market consensus of 9.9 per cent this year and 9.1 per cent in 2009.
'The slowdown ... should be read as a normal fluctuation in growth,' it said in a report yesterday. 'There's not enough evidence to say that an economic downturn is taking place.'
Last night, state television quoted Li Chao , a People's Bank of China spokesman, as saying China would work closely with foreign central banks to deal with the global financial crisis.
'At the same time, we will - in accordance with changes in international and domestic markets - adopt changes to our policies,' he said.