2009 GDP growth to hit 8.3% - think tank

BEIJING--China's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth is expected to drop to 8.3 percent in 2009, the country's major think tank said Monday.

The report, issued by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), predicted China's economy slowdown in the first half year due to the unfavorable international economic environment.

The report also said that the unprecedented stimulus package of 4 trillion yuan (US$586 billion) will poise China for an early recovery in the third quarter.

The government set the goal of 8 percent growth this year at the Central Economic Work Conference held on December 8.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) predicted last week that China's GDP growth would slow to 8.4 percent in 2009.

The CAS report also predicted that the primary, secondary and tertiary industries will expand at 5 percent, 9.8 percent and 9.5 percent, respectively.

The Chinese economy will face heavy pressure in terms of exports this year due to the recession, the report said. The growth rate of exports and imports is expected to drop to 6.5 percent and 4.6 percent respectively.

Total trade for 2008 was US$2.56 trillion, up 17.8 percent from 2007. The total included US$1.43 trillion in exports, up 17.2 percent, and US$1.13 trillion in imports, up 18.5 percent, figures from the General Administration of Customs (GAC) showed.