News >China

Containing prices top task in macro-control policies

2011-07-22 23:00

BEIJING - The top leadership of the Communist Party of China (CPC) on Friday listed a group of issues it seeks to address in the second half of the year, among which the stabilization of prices will top the agenda in the nation's macro-control policies.

Top officials of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee agreed at a meeting that the country will continue to implement its proactive fiscal policy and prudent monetary policy in the second half of this year, with stabilizing prices as a priority.

More efforts should be made to strengthen market supply, reduce logistics costs, correct market irregularities, and offer more help to the needy in the second half, according to the meeting presided over by President Hu Jintao, also general secretary of the CPC Central Committee.

China's consumer price index, the main gauge of inflation, jumped 5.4 percent year-on-year in the first half, well above the government's target of 4 percent for the whole year. The index even soared to a 3-year high of 6.4 percent in June.

The top leadership agreed that great attention should be paid to grain production so that the nation can reap another bumper harvest this year, meanwhile, the pig-farming industry, animal husbandry and fishery sectors should be boosted.

The nation will beef up construction of water-related infrastructure in efforts to fight floods and droughts.

The officials stressed that the nation will accelerate the construction of affordable housing in the second half, while keeping tight control in the property market to prevent prices from growing excessively.

Meanwhile, the nation will boost domestic demand, optimize credit structure, and enhance financial supervision to boost economic restructuring. It will also encourage and develop emerging industries of strategic importance, push forward upgrades in traditional industries, and support the service sector.

In the second half, the nation will continue to promote energy savings and emissions reduction. The leaders also said the country will improve its opening-up policy and keep its foreign trade policies stable, which means exports will continue to grow while imports expand.

The officials agreed that more efforts should be made to create more jobs, and improve education and hygiene services for the public.

Further, the Political Bureau decided that the Sixth Plenary Session of the 17th CPC Central Committee will convene in Beijing in October.

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