The general level of consumer prices in China of the year was up by 3.9 percent over the previous year (Table 1). Of this total, the prices for service items were up 2.3 percent. The retail prices of commodities were up by 2.8 percent, while the producers¡¯ prices for manufactured goods increased by 6.1 percent, and the purchasing prices for raw materials, fuels and power went up by 11.4 percent. The prices for investment in fixed assets were up 5.6 percent. Producers¡¯ prices of farm products were up by 13.1 percent.
Table 1: Change in Consumer Prices in 2004 over 2003 (%)
Item
National
average
Urban
Rural
General level of consumer prices
3.9
3.3
4.8
Food
9.9
9.1
11.5
Of which: grain
26.4
25.7
27.7
Tobaccos and alcohols
1.2
1.2
1.3
Clothing
-1.5
-1.5
-1.6
Household appliances and services
-1.4
-1.9
-0.3
Medical, health and personal articles
-0.3
-0.8
0.5
Transportation and telecommunications
-1.5
-2.1
-0.2
Recreational, educational, cultural articles and services
1.3
0.8
2.1
Housing
4.9
4.3
5.8
In 2004, about 9.8 million new jobs were provided to urban residents, 800,000 more than the expected target, and 5.1 million laid-off workers were re-employed. Urban registered unemployment rate was 4.2 percent at the end of 2004, or 0.1 percentage point lower than that in 2003.
By the end of 2004, China¡¯s foreign exchange reserves reached 609.9 billion US dollars, an increase of 206.7 billion US dollars as compared with that at the end of the pervious year. The exchange rate of RMB remained stable, the year-end exchange rate was 8.2765 RMB to 1 USD, which was 2 basic points higher over that at the end of the previous year.
Tax income of various forms for the whole year reached 2,571.8 billion yuan (excluding tariffs and agricultural taxes), up by 25.7 percent, an increase of 525.6 billion yuan over the previous year. The profits made by industrial enterprises above designated sized stood at 1,134.2 billion yuan, an increase of 38.1 percent over the previous year.
Main problems that existed in the economic and social development included: the unstable basis for agriculture, the difficulties in keeping the growth of grain production and rural household income; large number of newly started projects or projects under construction, high impulse of blind or overspread investment; high price rise for energy and raw materials; the tight relation between the supply and demand of energy and transportation, the occasional occurrence of severe accidents in production; the prominent phenomenon of resource waste and environmental pollution, and the relatively difficult life of some households.
|