Official predicts 7.6 percent GDP growth

China's GDP growth rate is expected to hit 7.6 percent this year, slower than 2012's rate of 7.7 percent, said the head of the country's top economic planner on Wednesday.

It is the first time a senior Chinese official has given a prediction about the 2013 growth rate.

National Development and Reform Commission Minister Xu Shaoshi said the economic slowdown cannot be ignored and added that risks in the financial and banking systems are rising, during a meeting of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.

In the first three quarters, the world's second largest economy achieved a GDP growth rate of 7.7 percent from the previous year, unchanged from the 2012 growth rate but a retreat from the 9.3 percent rate in 2011.

"China is in a period of shifting its growth rate, as both the international and domestic development conditions are changing," Xu said.

He said that over the next two years, the global economic recovery will be unstable, with weak demand remaining in overseas markets. Domestically, rising labor costs and severe environment problems will challenge traditional growth patterns for businesses, he said.

He also stressed that the massive debts accrued by local governments and the shadow banking system are now concentrated in low-return, long-term infrastructure and property projects, which will create a "systematic financial crisis if the problems are not solved".

chenjia1@chinadaily.com.cn