Communist Party leadership warns of "austere" year for China

The ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) said Monday the country will launch a comprehensive economic package to tackle an "austere and complicated" year ahead.
"We will increase large-scale government investment, implement and readjust a plan to revive industries, make great efforts to boost innovations, and greatly enhance the level of social security," said a press release issued after a meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee.The meeting was presided over Hu Jintao, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee.The Political Bureau warned that 2009 would be the most difficult for China's economic development so far this century as "it is crucial for implementing the 11th Five-Year Plan (2006-2010), and the tasks of reform, development and stability are austere and complicated."The meeting participants discussed a government work report which would be submitted to the forthcoming second annual session of the 11th National People's Congress, the national legislature.In 2008, "a very extraordinary year", China experienced serious challenges and tests for economic and social development, and made great achievements in the country's reform, opening up and socialist modernization drive, the press release said. In the past year, the government readjusted macro-economic policies promptly and decisively to cope with the serious impacts of the global financial crisis; maintained stable and relatively fast economic and social development; pushed forward reform and opening up; accelerated the development of social welfare; improved people's living standards; made great achievements in dealing with extraordinary natural calamities; succeeded in hosting the Beijing Olympics and Paralympics; and accomplished theShenzhou-7 manned space flight.The Political Bureau called for greater awareness of the austere and complicated nature of the international and domestic economic situation and for active response to the challenges.Efforts should be made to increase domestic demand, change the development mode, accelerate the strategic readjustment of the economic structure; deepen reforms; and improve living standards and promote social harmony, said the Political Bureau.Source: Xinhua