Spending by govt may boost economy

Possible option if global outlook remains sluggish in coming year

BEIJING - The government has room for maneuver on the economic front if the US outlook does not improve and Europe remains mired in the debt crisis, a deputy chief of the World Bank said.

"Government spending, rather than bank lending, may be used to boost the infrastructure and manufacturing sectors to ensure economic expansion in 2012," Lin Yifu, the World Bank's senior vice-president and chief economist, said in an interview with China Daily.