Zhu Zhixin, vice minister of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), China's leading economic policy body, mentioned "innovation" and "environmentally friendly" in his Thursday statement regarding China's economic forecast in relation to global projections.
The briefing occurred at the Information Office of the State Council in Beijing.
Zhu said on Thursday that the Chinese economy will still grow steadily this year, provided that restructuring is properly implemented to effectively offset downward pressure that is continually building.
Additionally, the limited revival of the world economy in 2014 was underestimated by analysts and governments. The vice minister made it clear that China's authorities will respond promptly and assertively if circumstances jeopardize the stability of the economy.
Zhu's statement was delivered at a significant moment in time, as the World Bank's Chief Economist, Kaushik Basu, announced the scaling down of the global financial organization's forecast for the economies of both the world and China this week. The former will expand by 3 percent in 2015, instead of the 3.4 percent announced last year, while China's growth was reduced from 7.5 percent to 7.1 percent.
While Basu described the status of China's current economy as a "carefully managed slowdown," President Xi Jinping spoke of a "new normal" in May 2014. Statements from the Chinese government thus far indicate that it is expecting more sustainable growth throughout the duration of the next, more gradual period.
According to Zhu, "the economy grew at about 7.4 percent last year, a hard-won result given so many unexpected uncertainties from home and abroad."
Zhu expects more "external uncertainties" in the forthcoming year, which makes the Chinese economy more vulnerable during this period.