World organization chiefs at roundtable are upbeat about China's performance

Premier Li Keqiang attends a roundtable dialogue with the heads of six major international organizations in Beijing on Friday. [Wu Zhiyi/China Daily]

The fundamentals of the Chinese economy remain positive for the long run, the chiefs of major international organizations such as the World Bank and International Monetary Fund agreed on Friday.

The consensus was reached at a roundtable dialogue that Premier Li Keqiang hosted in Beijing, the first of its kind in China.

The participants believe that China's economy will achieve strong, sustainable and balanced growth, and will make a continuous contribution to global economic growth, according to a statement issued after the dialogue.

The task will be achieved by deepening reforms, reducing overcapacity, destocking, reducing costs and shoring up weak spots, it said.

IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde, who attended the dialogue, said the IMF has increased its forecast for China's GDP growth for this year by 0.1 of a percentage point, to 6.6 percent.

"We did so ... because we witnessed China's determinant and decisive implementation of reforms and the support given to encourage growth going forward," Lagarde told a joint news conference after the dialogue.

China "did not take the form of vast fiscal stimulus, but simply some solid and steady support, in order to make the growth indeed sustainable", she said.

Premier Li called the participating organizations important rule-makers for the international community, leading think tanks for the world's development and pillars for the global economy. "This dialogue not only boosted cooperation but also contributed to recovery of the world economy," he said.

During the first half of the year, the country's exports declined and put a drag on GDP growth, Li said.

However, according to the statement, China's economic structure has improved, with domestic consumption and the service sector being major driving forces.

The new economy, featuring new technology, new products, new industries and new business models, is growing rapidly, and industrial transformation and upgrading are quickly advancing, the statement said.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics, the country maintained steady growth, with a year-on-year increase of 6.7 percent during the first half of the year.

Amid the global economic slowdown, such a goal was very difficult to achieve, the premier said.

Therefore, China has been a driver for the world economy within a reasonable range of growth between 6.5 and 7 percent, he added.

The new economy has helped to create new opportunities for employment and to increase incomes while the GDP rose, Li said.

The country saw 12,000 newly registered market entities each day during the first half of the year, the premier said.

Also present at the dialogue were World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim, World Trade Organization Director-General Roberto Azevedo, International Labour Organization Director-General Guy Ryder, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Secretary-General Angel Gurria and G20 Financial Stability Board Chairman Mark Carney.