Second, maintaining a proper balance between ensuring steady growth and making structural adjustments.

　　In its current stage of development, China has to deal simultaneously with the slowdown in economic growth, making difficult structural adjustments, and absorbing the effects of previous economic stimulus policies. As resource-related and environmental constraints grow and costs for labor and other factors of production rise, a model of development that draws on high levels of investment and energy consumption and is heavily driven by quantitative expansion becomes difficult to sustain. China must therefore improve the economic structure while ensuring steady growth. The growth rate must be kept steady to ensure that economic performance is stable, and that employment and personal incomes continue to increase, thus creating a favorable environment for making structural adjustments and transforming the growth model.

　　At the same time, structural adjustments must be made to consolidate the foundation for ensuring steady growth. China needs to increase research and development spending, raise total factor productivity, improve quality, standards, and brand-building, strengthen the service sector and strategic emerging industries and increase their share of the economy, improve the overall structure of economic growth, and work harder to foster new areas of growth. With these efforts, China can ensure that economic upgrading and development reinforce each other.

　　Third, nurturing and hastening the birth of a new force for driving economic and social development.

　　As the force that has traditionally driven economic growth is weakening, it is imperative that China intensify structural reform, boost efforts to implement the strategy of pursuing innovation-driven development, and upgrade traditional engines while creating new ones for driving development.

　　China will increase the supply of public goods and services, increase government input in areas like education and healthcare, and encourage non-governmental participation to improve the efficiency of supply. This will bolster weak spots and benefit the people, as well as increase demand and promote development.

　　At the same time, China will also encourage people to start their own businesses and innovate, which will not only create more jobs and increase personal incomes, but also improve social mobility, social equity and justice.

Economic and Social Development Targets for 2015

　　Increasing the GDP by approximately 7 percent

　　Keeping the increase in the consumer price index (CPI) at around 3 percent

　　Creating over 10 million jobs in urban areas

　　Ensuring that the registered urban unemployment rate does not rise above 4.5 percent

　　Increasing imports and exports by around 6 percent

　　Achieving a basic balance of payments

　　Ensuring that personal incomes increase in step with economic development

　　Cutting energy intensity by 3.1 percent, and continuing to reduce the emissions of major pollutants

　　Areas for Further Reform And Opening Up

　　Streamlining administration and delegating more powers to lower-level governments and to society in general while improving regulation

　　Taking multiple measures to reform the investment and financing systems

　　Taking timely action to accelerate price reform

　　Making progress in the reform of the fiscal and tax systems

　　Moving ahead with financial reform to better serve the real economy

　　Deepening the reform of state-owned enterprises and state capital

　　Transforming and upgrading foreign trade

　　Taking a more active, more effective approach to using foreign capital

　　Speeding up the implementation of the "go global" strategy

　　Fostering a new environment in all-round opening up

　　Promoting multilateral, bilateral and regional opening up and cooperation

(Source: Report on the Work of the Government)

Source: Beijing Review