Chinese economy to see double-digit growth this year

A government-run think tank predicted that China's economy will return to double-digit growth this year, state media reported on Sunday, dpa reported.

Gross domestic product (GDP) could expand 11 per cent in the first quarter and see a moderate slowdown later in the year, the official Xinhua news agency said, quoting a new report by the Centre for Forecasting Science at the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Investment was expected to increase as a result of the government's economic stimulus package, but overall growth in investment for the year would fall to 25 per cent, the report said.

The annual GDP growth rates for the second, third and fourth quarters were projected at 10.2 per cent, 9.5 per cent and 9.8 per cent, respectively.

The centre also forecast that foreign trade would recover as the global economy rebounds.

China's economy expanded by 8.7 per cent last year, Xinhua said, citing data from the National Bureau of Statistics.