The U.S. economy will keep a slow growth in 2008 instead of slipping into a recession, a famous Chinese economist said in Davos on Wednesday.
Some American experts forecast a 2.8 percent growth of the U.S. economy in the coming year, said Cheng Siwei at a panel session of the World Economic Forum annual meeting.
"I cannot comment whether that target can be met, but I believe the U.S. economy will keep growing," said the Chinese economist, who is also vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of China.
But Cheng also expressed concerns about the U.S. economic performance this year, as uncertainties rise because of the sub-prime mortgage loan crisis.
"The U.S. economy has a strong impact on the world, and the influence of the sub-prime loan crisis is still there," he said.
He added that the weak dollar and the U.S. general elections this year would both have influence on the country's economic prospects.
Cheng also played down expectations that China's economic growth can, in some way, offset the impact of a possible U.S. recession to the world economy.
"China's GDP accounts for only 5-6 percent of the world economy, and that proportion is much smaller than the United States," Cheng told Xinhua.
It's true that China's contribution to world economic growth is increasing, but its capability should not be overestimated, he said.
According to the economist, China's major task in 2008 is to avoid economic overheating and inflation.
He expected China's economic growth to slow down to below 10 percent this year as the government would use more resources for social security and public services.
China's foreign trade surplus is also likely to decrease, maybe as far as 20 percent, to some 90 billion U.S. dollars due to the contraction of exports, he said.
Source:Xinhua
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