The Asian Development Bank (ADB) asserted that the Chinese Government's macro-control measures will not have a negative impact on the bank's business in the nation, Friday's China Daily reported.

Tang Min, deputy country director of the bank's resident mission in China, said investment backed by a majority of the bank's loans was in sectors such as infrastructure, agriculture and rural development.

These are areas that the government is encouraging investment in, he pointed out.

Meanwhile, investment backed by the bank's loans, between 1.2 billion US dollars and 1.5 billion US dollars annually, accounted for less than 0.2 percent of the country's total fixed asset investment.

Toru Shibuichi, country director of the bank's resident mission in China, said the figures indicate that China is the largest borrower and the ADB's most important client.

The bank plans to lend 1.5 billion US dollars for six projects in China in 2005, Shibuichi said.

The bank's planned annual lending of 1.5 billion US dollars in China between 2005 and 2007 will focus on projects in the less-developed central and western regions.

More than 80 percent of the lending will be earmarked for projects in those poorer regions.

The Chinese economy is likely to grow 8.5 percent this year, Tang said, adding that the country should take more measures to maintain healthy international trade.