(Yicai) Jan. 10 -- China’s economy is likely to expand by around 5.3 percent in 2024 as employment improves, people become more willing to spend and thanks to a proactive fiscal policy, CCTV News reported, citing a report issued by the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Center for Forecasting Science.

China’s GDP growth for the first quarter will be about 5 percent, the CAS report said, which was released yesterday. This should then expand to around 5.3 percent, 5.5 percent and 5.4 percent growth for the remaining three quarters, respectively.

The country will experience restorative growth from the real economy to the services sector, said Hong Yongmiao, director of CAS’ Center for Forecasting Science. The services sector should see the fastest expansion. While the manufacturing sector as well as green and emerging sectors such as new materials and new energies will also experience rapid growth.

There are, though, some challenges, the report said. First, the outlook for global demand is not good. The possibility of a downturn in commodity transactions will increase the uncertainty of China’s exports. But technological innovations and new products, such as new energy vehicles and their parts, will help boost China’s exports. And secondly, in recent years, the US has become less dependent on imports from China.

Editor: Kim Taylor