China shifting economy from exports, official says

BEIJING — A senior Chinese official reaffirmed Saturday a national goal of shifting China’s economy away from its dependence on investment and exports and toward a more sustainable emphasis on consumption spending.

In doing so, the official, Zhang Ping, chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission, glossed over recent data that suggested the reverse might be happening.

Zhang, whose agency oversees economic planning and coordinates the country’s economic ministries, said in a news conference held in conjunction with the 18th Party Congress that the Chinese economy is growing again, crediting government policies aimed at moving China away from its reliance on capturing an ever greater share of overseas markets for its exports. He also claimed success in easing the economy’s dependence on enormous investment, which has become less efficient and less productive as many industries struggle with overcapacity.

“Starting from August, the turn toward a slower economy has been effectively curbed,” Zhang said.

But independent economists question whether any such conclusion is justified. China’s General Administration of Customs announced Saturday that the country’s trade surplus in October had soared to $32 billion. Exports surged 11.6 percent from a year earlier, while imports rose 2.4 percent.

Chinese officials are acutely aware of the frictions that their trade surpluses create with importer nations like the United States, and have argued that the surpluses are temporary and should not be an issue because they might disappear soon.