ese economic advances in 2004 "to the correct leadership of the Central Party Committee and the State Council," which achieved "results in strengthening and improving macroeconomic regulation." In addition, Deshui cited a number of factors which , in 2004, led to significant increases in GDP in China over the previous year, including:
. A favorable turn for agricultural production with good
. Stable and rapid industrial production growth and
continuous improvement in enterprise efficiency
. Stable and brisk consumer markets
. Higher increases in market prices and rapid increases
in urban and rural household income
. Rapid development in foreign economic relations and
A somewhat later National Bureau of Statistics of China report cited enhanced and improved macroeconomic regulation as leading to remarkable economic achievements and noted that "unstable and unhealthy factors in the economic performance were put under control. Those weak links existing in agriculture, infrastructure construction, and social undertakings had been strengthened.
In addition, this same Chinese government agency stated that reform in various fields progressed steadily as China opened to the outside world and "new headways were made in employment, re-employment, and social security programsà. The main targets set forth for the economic and social development had been achieved." In 2004, about 9.8 million new jobs were provided in cities, and 5.1 million laid-off workers were re-employed. The urban unemployment rate was 4.2 percent at the end of 2004 or 0.1 percentage points lower than 2003. At the same time, China's foreign exchange reserves at the end of 2004 reached US $609.9 billion, "an increase of 206.7 billion US dollars as compared with that at the end of the previous year."
Other economic data released by the National Bureau of Statistics of China, presented below, are of significance in identifyi...