SARS impact to GDP growth estimated 0.8%
( 2003-10-17 21:46) (Xinhua)
The impact of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) to China's gross
domestic product (GDP) growth is estimated at 0.8 percentage points, Qiu
Xiaohua, deputy director of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), said
Friday.
The figure is lower than which was predicted by experts.
Qiu said economic loss caused by SARS did not influence the rapid growth of
China's economy. Since industries affected by SARS began to recover in June,
China's economy has recovered in the third quarter. The main reason was that the
service sector has evidently resumed in the third quarter, with an increase of
7.6 percent. Farmer's income is also recovering, with a growth rate of 6.5
percent in the third quarter despite a decrease of 3.3 percent in the second
quarter. The main reason was that the number of farmers who had gone to work in
urban areas had resumed its normal level, an increase of 5 million in the third
quarter over the second quarter.
He noted that SARS had also affected the foreign trade sector, but the impact
was not distinct. Foreign trade had maintained rapid progress in the third
quarter, he said.
The fact that the SARS impact on China's national economy had almost been
wiped out in the third quarter, however, did not mean the country could neglect
the continuing threat. China should continue to enhance the construction of its
public sanitary system and implement all related policies to maintain overall
development, he said.
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