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Chinese officials and economists at World Economic Forum try to restore confidence in mainland’s economy

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China's Minister of the National Development and Reform Commission Xu Shaoshi speaks during a session at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in China's port city Dalian. Photo: Reuters
Wendy Wuin Beijing

As the World Economic Forum meeting began in China on Wednesday, mainland government officials and economists were quick to try restore global confidence in the world’s second-largest economy – days after the release of dismal economic data.

It is normal to see volatility of economic indicators ... We are able to hit this year’s growth target
Xu Shaoshi,  head of the National Development and Reform Commission

Xu Shaoshi,  head of the National Development and Reform Commission, repeated the official line about the economy on the sidelines of the forum’s meeting in Dalian, in northeast China's Liaoning province.

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He said that the mainland’s economic fundamentals were good and the economy remained within reasonable range, while jobs and prices were very stable.

His comment came in the wake of poor trade data for August and the record monthly fall of foreign exchange reserves last month amid concerns about staggering economy and capital outflows.

“It is normal to see volatility of economic indicators,” Xu said. “Expectations and confidence must be held firmly. We are able to hit this year’s growth target.”

The stock market correction is a bit overshot ... Now the price-earnings ratio is comparable to that of the United States. Speaking objectively, there are shells in the beach that can be collected
Li Daokui, economist at Beijing’s Tsinghua University

His remarks echoed the comments of Liu He, the commission’s deputy director and a key policy adviser to President Xi Jinping, who said during a meeting in Zhejiang province that reforms in state firms, finance and fiscal sectors were the key to weathering hard times.

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