EXPLORING OPPORTUNITIES AMIDST CHALLENGES.docVIP

EXPLORING OPPORTUNITIES AMIDST CHALLENGES 　　China’s economy grew by 6.8 per- cent in the fourth quarter of 2016， following a 6.7-percent expansion in the previous three quarters. Meanwhile， the annual growth rate stood at 6.7 percent， accompanied by structural improvement， transformation of development models and the emergence of new growth engines. 　　“As the world’s second largest economy， China’s economic aggregate has reached$11 trillion， which means there is a significant increase in economic aggregate for every 1-percent increase in the GDP，” said Ning Jizhe， Director of the National Bureau of Statistics （NBS）， at a press conference held on January 20. 　　As calculated through a constant determined by the 2010 dollar， China contributed 33.2 percent to global growth in 2016， remaining the world’s top driver of growth， according to a statement released by the NBS on January 13. 　　China also regained its position as the world’s fastest-growing major economy in 2016， as India， another major developing economy， registered a growth rate of 6.6 percent， according to the International Monetary Fund. 　　Furthermore， the country’s economic structure is continuously optimizing. In 2016， the service sector continued expanding faster than other sectors and consumption contributed roughly two thirds to total growth. Hi-tech industries also saw accelerated development， and industrial energy consumption per unit of GDP decreased 5 percent， according to the NBS. 　　China’s overall economic growth continued to slow down in 2016 compared to previous years as the country has entered a“new normal” economic state. Nonetheless， as ongoing supply-side reform keeps generating positive results， and as infrastructure investment， housing， and automobile demand picks up， the macroeconomy has shown signs of stabilizing， said Yan Yan， Deputy Director of the School of Economics of Renmin University of China， in an interview with National Business Daily. 　　Yao Jingyuan， a research fell