Chinese premier Li Keqiang sought at the weekend to balance conflicting goals of stimulating China’s economy and reforming it, as he presented economic targets at the country’s parliamentary meeting.
The annual session of the National People’s Congress comes as Beijing faces questions over its stewardship of the economy, amid slowing growth and rising debt burdens, and after a series of stock market crashes roiled global markets.
Mr Li announced a growth target range for this year of 6.5 per cent to 7 per cent, above what many international economists believe is realistic. At the same time he projected the fiscal deficit to rise to 3 per cent — a sharp increase but below expectations — as the government struggles to shift from an inefficient, capital-intensive growth model while cushioning an economic slowdown.