Both Inflation and deflation factors exist in China's economic situation, which should not be judged simply as "over-heated", a senior official said in Beijing Friday.

Qiu Xiaohua, deputy director of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), said that inflation changes and the supply-demand relationship are the major indicators to judge whether an economy is "over-heated".

China's overall supply still surpasses its overall demand currently, and the consumption, especially that of rural residents, is growing relatively slowly. In addition, China's trade surplus amounted to US$9.1 billion, down US$10.9 billion year on year, in the first three quarters of this year, Qiu said.

Therefore, the conclusion that China's economy is "over-heated" cannot be drawn from the supply-demand aspect, he said.

The same is true with inflation, he said. The price of consumer goods has maintained stable, moderate growth since the beginning of this year, with a 0.7 percent year-on-year increase during the January-September period.

The 0.7 percent growth rate was relatively low and showed that the prices for most goods were actually dropping.

In response to a question on relations between the rapid investment growth and the economic growth, Qiu said the current investment growth rate is "basically normal", and blind or repeated investments exist only in some fields and industries.

(Xinhua News Agency October 18, 2003)