ADB chief Nakao says China's economy to avoid hard landing

[TOKYO] China's economy is unlikely to suffer a hard landing as there is room for fiscal and monetary stimulus to manage growth, the president of the Asian Development Bank said on Wednesday.

"There won't be a hard landing," Takehiko Nakao, a former Japanese vice finance minister for international affairs, told a news conference.

The regional lender has forecast the world's second-largest economy will grow 6.7 per cent this year, but Nakao said that projection might be modified slightly later this month, indicating the possibility of a downward revision.

China's government has set a growth target of 6.5 per cent to 7 per cent this year, following a 6.9 per cent expansion in 2015.

REUTERS