Economy Touted in Year-End Speech
Chinese President Hu Jintao touted his country’s booming economy in a televised year-end speech, calling for a larger role for Beijing in world affairs in 2005 and vowing never to allow Taiwan to become independent.
Hu is head of both the government and the Communist Party of China, which holds a monopoly on power in this nation of 1.3 billion people. Hu characterized China as a peace-seeking nation that shared the world’s hopes for an end to war and poverty.
China’s economy, buoyed by huge exports to the United States and Europe, led the developing world in 2004 with a growth rate forecast to end the year at 8.8%.
“Our national economy achieved stable development ... and people’s livelihoods got further improvements,” Hu said in his address.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
