GDP accounting to be consistent

Local officials often inflate figures, causing unreliable data

China could wave goodbye to its GDP data discord as the national statistics bureau chief claims that he will unify provincial and central GDP calculation methods and improve grassroots statistical quality this year.

Ma Jiantang, head of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), has criticized some local officials who inflate the GDP figures they report to the NBS. The problem has affected the nation's statistical credibility and produced disunity between central and provincial data, Ma said.