Investing 4 trillion yuan to expand domestic……

Recently, Premier Wen Jiabao of the State Council presided over the State Council executive meeting to study and deploy measures to further expand domestic demand and promote steady and rapid economic growth. The meeting identified ten measures to further expand domestic demand and promote economic growth.

First, speed up the construction of affordable housing projects. Increase support for low-rent housing construction, accelerate the transformation of shantytowns, implement nomadic settlement projects, and expand pilot projects for the renovation of dilapidated houses in rural areas.

The second is to accelerate the construction of rural infrastructure. We will increase rural biogas and drinking water safety projects and rural road construction, improve rural power grids, speed up the construction of major water conservancy projects such as the South-to-North Water Diversion Project, and strengthen the danger-removal of dangerous reservoirs, and strengthen the water-saving renovation of large-scale irrigation districts. Increase poverty alleviation and development efforts.

The third is to speed up the construction of major infrastructure such as railways, highways and airports. Focus on the construction of a number of passenger dedicated lines, coal transportation channel projects and the western trunk railways, improve the expressway network, arrange the construction of the central and western trunk airports and regional airports, and accelerate the transformation of urban power grids.

The fourth is to accelerate the development of medical and health education and cultural education. Strengthen the construction of primary health care service system, accelerate the transformation of rural junior high school buildings in the central and western regions, and promote the construction of special education schools and township comprehensive cultural stations in the central and western regions.

The fifth is to strengthen the construction of the ecological environment. Accelerate the construction of urban sewage and garbage treatment facilities and prevention and control of water pollution in key river basins, strengthen the construction of key protection forests and natural forest resources protection projects, and support the construction of key energy conservation and emission reduction projects.

The sixth is to accelerate independent innovation and structural adjustment. Support high-tech industrialization construction and industrial technology advancement, and support the development of service industry.

Seventh is to speed up the work of post-disaster reconstruction in the earthquake-stricken areas.

Eight is to increase the income of urban and rural residents. We will raise the minimum purchase price of grain next year, increase the standards of comprehensive direct subsidies for agricultural materials, subsidies for improved varieties, and subsidies for agricultural machinery and equipment, and increase farmers' income. We will raise the level of social security coverage for low-income groups, increase urban and rural subsistence allowances, and continue to raise the basic pension level for corporate retirees and the living allowances for special care recipients.

Nine is to implement full-scale VAT reform in all regions and all industries across the country, encourage technological transformation of enterprises, and reduce the burden of enterprises by 120 billion yuan.

Ten is to increase financial support for economic growth. We will abolish the credit scale restrictions for commercial banks, rationally expand the scale of credit, increase credit support for key projects, “agriculture, rural areas and farmers”, small and medium-sized enterprises, technological transformation, mergers and acquisitions, and cultivate and consolidate consumer credit growth points in a targeted manner.

Initially, the implementation of the above-mentioned project construction will require an investment of 4 trillion yuan by the end of 2010. In order to speed up the construction progress, the meeting decided that in the fourth quarter of this year, the central government will increase the allocation of 100 billion yuan. Next year, the post-disaster reconstruction fund will allocate 20 billion yuan in advance to promote local and social investment, with a total scale of 400 billion yuan.