Hu calls on industry to maintain stable growth

Source: Xinhua  |   2008-12-15  |     NEWSPAPER EDITION

PRESIDENT Hu Jintao called for the maintenance of a stable and healthy economic growth amid the challenges facing industrial restructuring, exports, employment and people's lives during his visit to northeast China's Liaoning Province over the weekend.

"Our top economic target next year is to maintain a stable and healthy growth," he said at a meeting with provincial officials. "We should be clear about the serious challenges and difficulties from home and abroad but also realize the great opportunities and favorable conditions in them."

He listed several things the country would do, such as to implement a macroeconomic policy, boost economic restructuring, foster creativity of industries, control pollution and protect the environment and deepen reform and opening-up.

Hu also stressed that maintaining social stability was very important when there were problems facing economic development.

At a new assembly line of Angang Steel Co Ltd, the first steel producer founded by the People's Republic of China, Hu inquired about its business perspective.

"As a leading company in our steel industry, we hope you take advantage of your technology and scale to contribute to the country's economic growth," he said.

Hu expected state-owned enterprises to focus more on research and development so that they could develop more core technologies, maintain a technical advantage and catch up with the world leaders in their fields.

Export-oriented enterprises have been widely affected by the global financial crisis. The president was concerned about their condition and visited two such companies.

At a joint-venture clothing manufacturer in Yingkou City of Liaoning, he learned that the number of overseas orders it received for next year had dropped month after month.