China lowers its GDP target for first time in 7 years

Facing an economic downturn due to steady fall in exports, China, the world's second largest economy, for the first time in seven years on Monday scaled down its GDP growth target to 7.5 per cent this year from last year's eight per cent.

The lower growth target was projected in the annual government work report delivered by Premier Wen Jiabao at China's Legislature, the National People's Congress at Beijing on Monday.

This is the first time for the Chinese government to lower its economic growth target after keeping it around 8 per cent for seven consecutive years.

"Here I wish to stress that in setting a slightly lower GDP growth rate, we hope to make it fit with targets in the 12th Five-Year Plan, and to guide people in all sectors to focus their work on accelerating the transformation of the pattern of economic development," said Wen, who retires at the end of this year after a decade long stint.

Making economic development more sustainable and efficient, so as to achieve higher-level, higher-quality development over a longer period of time, he said.

Previously, China has announced to target a seven per cent GDP growth from 2011 to 2015, the country's 12th Five-Year Plan period.

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The Asian powerhouse' economy expanded by 9.2 per cent in 2011 to 47.16 trillion yuan (USD 7.49 trillion) from a year earlier after it grew 10.3 per cent in 2010.

China's exports fell 0.5 per cent in January, the first drop in more than two years, as a sluggish global economy hurt demand for Chinese products.