Premier calls for vigilance on inflation

Source: Xinhua  |   2008-7-7  |     NEWSPAPER EDITION

Premier Wen Jiabao (center), accompanied by Shanghai Party Secretary Yu Zhengsheng (right) and Mayor Han Zheng (second from right), pays a visit to workers at the Yangshan Deep-Water Port in Shanghai on Saturday afternoon. More in photo gallery

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PREMIER Wen Jiabao has called for continued vigilance against the inflation that has reached a 12-year high, saying the government should ensure that price increases are "acceptable" for both industry and the public.

Wen made the remarks during a three-day research trip to Jiangsu Province and Shanghai from Friday till yesterday.

Although the country's economy was developing in the expected direction after overcoming challenges from home and abroad, fighting inflation remained a major task, Wen said.

The premier urged governments at all levels to further improve macroeconomic controls and optimize economic structures to avoid serious fluctuations in the country's economy.

Wen said the country will step up its efforts to keep economic development fast and steady. He also called for more efforts to protect arable land to ensure the security of supplies of grain and for more efforts to create jobs for low-income families and college graduates.

He asked Jiangsu to coordinate the development of the relatively backward northern part and the prosperous southern part of the province.

In Shanghai, he asked the city government to boost growth of the services industries and focus on building an international financial center and an international shipping center.