President Xi Jinping said on February 28 that this year, in order to achieve healthy development, China will stick to the basic economic theme of “seeking progress while maintaining stability.”

Xinhua News Agency reported Xi’s outline for this year’s economic work: to improve the quality and efficiency of the economy, to deepen supply-side structural reform, and to make major headway in economic restructuring. Xi gave this speech at the 15th meeting of the Central Leading Group on Finance and Economic Affairs, which he heads.

Three other politburo standing committee members, Li Keqiang, Liu Yunshan, and Zhang Gaoli also attended the meeting.

Xi urged that more effort be put into reducing excessive production capacity and that government departments firmly solve the problem of zombie enterprises, as they are unprofitable, debt-laden, and tie up public resources. As for people affected by the reduction in excessive capacity, Xi said that they should receive training for new job skills as well as social aid.

Xi reiterated the necessity of establishing long-term methods to promote the stable and healthy development of the real estate market. He again affirmed that “houses are built to be inhabited, not for speculation.”

Xi also said that the decisions made at all meetings of the Central Leading Group on Finance and Economic Affairs must be implemented.

Source: Xinhua News Agency, February 28, 2017
http://news.xinhuanet.com/politics/2017-02/28/c_1120545454.htm

Well-known Chinese news site Sina recently reported on newly released official economic statistics that showed a 23 percent decline in Liaoning Province’s 2016 GDP number. The surprising number reflected the adjustments needed because of the province’s illegal activities in faking the province’s official statistics. The governor of Liaoning acknowledged his predecessor’s wrongdoing. However, the adjusted new number also reflected an economic decline resulting from debt defaults, production reductions, and massive layoffs in this industrial province that relies heavily on producing steel. Last April, Liaoning became the first province in seven years to report a negative growth rate. Many economists expressed their belief that political manipulation of economic data has been a widespread issue across China. Liaoning is not an isolated case. For many years, China’s national GDP total has always been less than the sum of GDP numbers from all provinces.

Source: Sina, February 23, 2017
http://finance.sina.com.cn/stock/usstock/c/2017-02-23/doc-ifyavvsk2920406.shtml