China says crisis also means opportunity

China: Chinese President Hu Jintao said the current international economic crisis might also mean an opportunity for changing the country's development patterns and implementing structural adjustments.

Hu made the statement when joining a panel discussion with deputies of the National People's Congress (NPC) from south China's Guangdong Province.

Challenge and opportunity always come together. Under certain conditions, one could be transformed into the other, Hu said. According to the President, China should make full use of its advantages to break the bottlenecks of development.

He also called for efforts to promptly and creatively implement the policies and plans of the central government to create conditions for solid and rapid development in the future.

The impact the international financial crisis is having on China, as well as the measures proposed by government to confront it in 2009 are the main topics of discussion in the agenda of the current parliamentary session.

China is planning to have an eight percent increase of its GDP (Gross Domestic Product) in 2009.

Beijing, Prensa Latina