China calls stimulus plan its best contribution against crisis

BEIJING: China said on Tuesday its economic stimulus plan was the best way it can help the world fight the financial crisis, but would not say if the package precluded Chinese funding for future global efforts.

China on Sunday announced that four trillion yuan (USD 586 billion) would be spend on infrastructure and other projects to 2010 to help the country weather the global finance crunch.

"China will make the biggest contribution to the world by maintaining the sound and steady development of its own economy," foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang told reporters, referring to the package.

Qin declined to answer whether committing so much money at home would lessen China's contributions to any global rescue efforts that may be agreed on, possibly during a world summit on the crisis next week in Washington.

He said the world must remember that China is a huge country with major development challenges of its own.

"From the beginning we have proposed coordinated efforts to overcome this crisis. But first, we should put our own house in order and stabilise our own financial markets," he said.

China's stimulus package calls for tax cuts and increased spending corresponding to about seven percent of its gross domestic product over the next two years.

The package comes amid rapidly worsening predictions for the impact of the financial turmoil on China's export-dependent economy.