China sets 6.5% to 7% growth target, first range since the 90s

New target: A poster explaining the design of the new 100-yuan banknote at a commercial bank in a business district in Beijing. A China top official says the country can meet the goal despite ‘relatively big’ downward pressure on the economy in the first quarter. – Reuters

HONG KONG: China set a range for its economic growth target for the first time in two decades, saying the world’s second-largest economy would expand 6.5% to 7% this year, slower than last year’s goal of about 7%.

While downward pressure on the economy is “relatively big” in the first quarter, China can meet the goal, National Development and Reform Commission chairman Xu Shaoshi said at a briefing in Beijing.