China to Set Long-term Employment Goal

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Wednesday, August 28, 2002

China to Set Long-term Employment Goal

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China is aiming to limit registered unemployment rates in urban areas to 4.5 percent this year as part of its long-term employment policy, said State Development Planning Commission Vice-Minister Wang Chunzheng Tuesday.

In a report on the national economy and social development to the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC) of China, Wang said unemployment was a major challenge to the Chinese economy.

Official figures show the rate of urban unemployed remained within four percent in the first half of this year.

Meanwhile, the number of workers laid off from state-owned enterprises was 4.64 million at the end of June, down by 510,000 from the end of 2001. The monthly average figure of registered unemployed was 3.48 million.

Wang said the rising number of new workers and unemployed outweighed the number of new jobs.

He said China would pay special attention to the resettlement of workers laid-off from bankrupt military factories, over-exploited coal and nonferrous metal mines.

The government would make great efforts to develop the labor-intensive service industries, such as catering and tourism, concentrate on training programs and offer job aid for the unemployed with special difficulties.

Strives to Ensure 2002 Financial Target

The Chinese government will find ways to regulate the national tax market, and strengthen the tax management of individuals, companies and some commercial products, so as to ensure its 2002 national financial target.

Wang said the central government's income increased by 5 percent in the first seven months this year, while the targeted growth rate was 7.7 percent.

Official statistics show that China's national income grew 10.6percent during the first seven months this year, a slower rate than last year. While the targeted growth rate of the national financial income was 10 percent.

According to Wang, national expenditure increased 18.7 percent year-on-year, which is higher than the growth rate of its earnings.

The slowing income increase was a new phenomenon in China's economic situation, said Wang, contributing the reasons to the lowered tariff of China after the entry of the World Trade Organization, as well as to the adjusted tax rates in the securities exchanges and financial insurance business.

Wang said during the second half of the year, the government will strengthen the taxation management in all aspects, especially the management of income taxes, so as to increase its income.

At the beginning of this year, the Chinese government planned to keep the central target deficit within 309.8 billion yuan (about 37.43 billion US dollars).

Adopt Policies to Stimulate Consumption

The Chinese government is to adopt a series of policies to encourage the people to spend more, according to the Vice-Minister.

Wang said China would maintain a rapid growth of investment and consumption so as to sustain a healthy development of the economy.

Wang said the government would accelerate the issuing of new policies on the purchase of automobiles and expansion of the automobile market. The government would also rectify irrationally high charges on education so as to provide more educational opportunities.

The government would encourage the development of a modernized logistic service to a larger and more standardized scale.

He said the government would expand construction of low-income housing so as to gradually ease the housing shortage for poor urban residents. At the same time, it would further relax controls on the housing market by issuing ownership certificates to privately owned buildings.

The government would also continue to improve the infrastructure of tourism industry, and improve standards of service in the tourism industry.

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