The government plans to take further steps to slow down some rapidly-expanding industries, a senior government official was quoted as saying Monday.

The government will start issuing June economic data this week, which analysts will watch for any hints on how recent policies to rein in credit and investment are working.

"Currently, fixed-asset investment, money and credit are growing at a fast clip while trade imbalances are striking," the China Buiness News quoted Jia Yinsong, an official at the National Development and Reform Commission, as saying.

"Relevant government departments are discussing and formulating measures for macro-economic adjustments," Jia was quoted as saying.

A recent investigation by the commission, the country's top planning agency, showed that investment growth in a dozen industries, including automobile, steel, copper and cement, had accelerated, Jia said.

As a result, the commission had raised its forecast of annual fixed-asset investment growth for the whole of 2006 to 18 percent from 16 percent, Jia said.

The agency would tighten its controls on new investment projects and push outdated factories toward closures and take steps to stabilize raw material prices, Jia added.

The newspaper quoted Wang Yanxiu, an official at the country's banking regulator, as saying the central bank might raise interest rates and let the yuan strengthen gradually.

The central bank, worried that a flood of liquidity could fuel economic overheating, raised bank lending rates in late April and increased banks' reserve requirements from July 5.

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