– China, Growing Superpower

China's economy poised to overtake Japan sooner than expected
Monsters & Critics

Beijing - China is expected to take Japan's spot as the world's second-largest economy sooner than expected, as Beijing revised its 2008 growth numbers upwards.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics, China's gross domestic product (GDP) in 2008 grew 9.6 per cent, up 0.6 per cent from previous estimates, due to the role of the service sector, which was bigger than originally estimated.

The new calculations show China's GDP in 2008 was 31,405 trillion yuan (4.6 trillion dollars), the China daily reported Saturday.

China expects GDP growth of at least 8 per cent for this year and the next, despite the global downturn, and is set to overtake Japan in 2010 as the world's second-largest economy, after the US.

Japan's GDP of 4.9 billion dollars in 2008 has shrunk in 2009.

According to the latest statistics, China's energy intensity per unit of GDP shrunk more than expected. It used 5.2 per cent less energy, which was less than the 4.6 per cent predicted earlier.

Energy consumption was down 17 per cent since 2005, making China's five-year plan of lowering energy intensity by 20 per cent by 2010 more easily achievable.