国内英语新闻:China lays out blueprint as parliament session starts amid concerns over economic recovery

BEIJING, March 5 (Xinhua) - Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao warned Friday the nation still faces "a very complex situation" in the wake of the "most difficult year for economic development" since the new millennium.

Delivering his work report to the National People's Congress (NPC), the parliament, Wen set the economic growth target for 2010 at "about 8 percent."

China's economy expanded 8.7 percent in 2009, staging a faster-than-expected recovery after being hit by the worst global financial crisis in decades thanks to a raft of stimulus measures.

ECONOMY

Putting the economy "on a sound footing," the government needs to guide all sectors to focus on transforming economic growth pattern and restructuring economy, Wen said in the report.

He acknowledged that 2010 is a "crucial year" for continuing to combat the global financial crisis, maintaining "steady and rapid" economic development, and accelerating the transformation of growth pattern.

It is also an important year for achieving all the targets of the 11th Five-Year Plan (2006-2010) and laying a solid foundation for the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015), he said.

"Although this year's development environment may be better than last year's, we still face a very complex situation," Wen told nearly 3,000 NPC deputies at the Great Hall of the People in downtown Beijing.

Other key economic and social targets included creating more than 9 million jobs in cities, keeping urban registered unemployment rate under 4.6 percent and keeping the rise in consumer prices at about 3 percent.

Wen said while the foundation for economic turnaround becomes stronger, he cautioned it should not be interpreted as "fundamental improvement."

Listing key government tasks, Wen said it will continue to implement a proactive fiscal policy and continue to implement the stimulus package which was unveiled in late 2008 that included a 4-trillion yuan (585.5 billion U.S. dollars) two-year investment.

Lawmaker Li Dongsheng from Guangdong Province, chairman of China's largest color TV producer TCL Corporation, said the proactive fiscal policy is in line with the company's current business development and it demands more "implementing techniques."

Li said more flexibility is needed in carrying out the economic policy as China still faces "extremely complicated economic picture," including unclear export prospect.