Chinese authorities say the country's economy grew at 11.4 percent last year, the fifth year in a row growth has surpassed 10 percent despite ever greater efforts to slow it down. And, with inflation at an 11-year high in 2007, the government says controlling price increases will be one of its key priorities this year.
中国当局表示，中国经济去年增长11.4%。这是中国连续第五年经济增长率超过10%，尽管中国不断加紧努力，试图将经济增长速度放慢一些。中国的通货膨胀率在2007年达到11年来的最高水平，中国政府表示，今年的当务之急之一是控制物价增长。
The 11.4 percent growth in China's economy last year was the greatest in 13 years.
中国经济去年增长11.4%，这是13年来最高的增长率。
Xie Fuzhan, the commissioner of the National Bureau of Statistics, announced the annual economic figures in Beijing Thursday.
中国国家统计局局长谢伏瞻星期四在北京宣布了中国一系列年度经济数字。
Xie says the second quarter last year saw the highest growth, of 11.9 percent. That eased to 11.2 percent in the fourth quarter, indicating a modest slowdown.
他说：“从季度上看，第一季度的增长为11.1%，第二季度的增长为11.9%，第三季度的增长为11.5%，四季度增长11.2%。”谢伏瞻说，去年第二季度的增长最高，到了第四季度，增长率稍微放缓。
The government has been trying for the past few years to moderate economic growth. But a number of measures, including several increases in interest rates last year, have failed to make much of an impact on the roaring economy.
中国政府在过去的几年里试图放缓经济增长。但是，政府采取的一些措施，其中包括去年好几次提高利率，都没有能够对高速增长的经济起到多少作用。
Xie says one of the government's core economic goals this year will be to control widespread inflation, which reached 4.8 percent for the year.
中国国家统计局局长谢伏瞻说，政府今年的核心经济目标是控制通货膨胀扩散。中国去年的通货膨胀达到4.8%。
He says one cause of rising prices is an "excessive" money supply. China is also influenced, he says, by higher world prices.
谢伏瞻说，物价攀升的一个原因是货币供应过量。他说，中国也受世界市场物价增长的影响。
Xie points to oil as an example. China is an oil-importing country, so he says there is an inevitable influence from higher prices for oil on the world market.
他说：“我们进口石油应该说比较多，对国内的油价上涨，对国内的物价上涨是有推动作用的。”
Total trade volume rose 23.5 percent, and the already huge trade surplus - which has prompted heated disputes with the United States and the European Union - rose by almost 50 percent to $262 billion.
中国去年的贸易总量上升23.5%，中国本来就已经是巨额的贸易顺差增长了将近50%，达到两千六百二十亿美元。中国的巨额贸易顺差在美国和欧洲联盟引起了激烈的争议。
Overall, the economy totaled $3.4 trillion in 2007. Asked whether China has yet surpassed Germany as the world's third largest economy, Xie said the German figures are not out yet, so he cannot compare the two.
从总体来看，中国经济规模在2007年达到三万四千亿美元。有记者问中国是否已经超过德国成为世界上第三大经济体，谢伏瞻回答说，德国的数字还没有公布，因此他无法比较。
He says whether China is the third or fourth largest economy, it is still a developing country. Because it has far and away the largest population, at 1.3 billion people, per capita GDP remains low.
他说：“原因是，中国的经济总量即使是排在了德国之前，我们仍然是一个发展中国家。我们仍然是处在、并且将长期处在社会主义初级阶段。我们的人均水平仍然比较低。” |