>From a Wall Street Journal article (Toronto Globe and Mail, Jan 1/98) discussing the slowdown in Chinese economic growth: "China's growth slows, casting pall on reforms" by Kathy Chen (WSJ) "Slower growth-8% in '98, 7.7% in '99) could hamper Beijing's plans to overhaul its ailing state sector and streamline its bloated government bureaucracy within three to five years, economists said. A high-growth economy is essential to absorb the surge in layoffs that is expected to ensue from such reforms. Already, some 12 million workers have left jobs at state-run enterprises in exchange for a monthly minimum living allowance, according to state data." To generate jobs for this growing army of unemployed, '9-per-cent growth or a little higher would be best,' said Fan Gang, director of the private Chinese Reform FRoundatiomn in Beijing."
