Chinese provinces lower growth targets after Xi Jinping says don’t just chase higher figures
Chinese provinces – including those that have admitted cooking their books in recent months – have rushed to lower their GDP targets for this year after China’s President Xi Jinping stressed that local governments should be aiming for sustainable economic growth rather than just chasing higher figures. Among the 19 provinces and municipalities that have released their growth targets for 2018 as of Thursday, 12 have lowered their goals, with figures for the other six unchanged. Only Shanxi, the coal-rich northern province, has set a higher growth target for this year. Tianjin in northern China set its GDP target at five per cent in 2018, a stark contrast to last year’s eight per cent. The moves comes after the Binhai New Area, the city’s economic zone touted as China’s future version of Manhattan, admitted this month that it had inflated its GDP figure by a third in 2016. HABARI KWA HISANI YA SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST. KWA HABARI ZAIDI BOFYA HAPA...