MNI China Press Digest, Dec 24: IP Rights, Deficit Ratio

     BEIJING (MNI) - The following lists highlights from the Chinese press for

Monday:

     China's draft foreign investment law stipulates that Chinese authorities

shall not force foreign investors to transfer technology by administrative

means, Xinhua News Agency reported on Sunday. The new law will encourage

technical cooperation on a voluntary basis, and protect the intellectual

property rights of foreign enterprises investing in China, Xinhua said.

     China must keep macroeconomic control at an appropriate level and not let

it be too rigid or loose, Wallstreetcn reported on Saturday citing Han Wenxiu,

deputy director of the General Office of the Leading Group for Financial and

Economic Affairs of China. Han also pointed out that China's total GDP in 2018

is expected to exceed CNY90 trillion, or about US$13.7 trillion, with GDP per

capita at US$9,990. The total new jobs created this year was 13 million, with

urban unemployment rate below 5%, Han was cited as saying.

     China should temporarily let the deficit exceed the 3% ratio of the GDP to

stabilize economic growth, said China Business News on Sunday citing Huang

Yiping, a member of the PBOC's Monetary Policy Committee. The health of the

balance sheet is more important than the deficit ratio, Huang was reported as

saying. The balance sheet of the central government is healthy, but that of

local government is not, the newspaper reported Huang as saying.

--MNI Beijing Bureau; +86 (10) 8532-5998; email: wanxia.lin@marketnews.com

--MNI Beijing Bureau; +86 10 8532 5998; email: william.bi@mni-news.com

[TOPICS: M$A$$$,M$Q$$$,MBQ$$$]