IMF revises up China's GDP growth forecast

The IMF said, in its Regional Economic Outlook for Asia and the Pacific, that the near-term growth outlook in China has improved. The Fund expected the world's second largest economy to grow 6.5 percent this year and 6.2 percent in 2017, better than its October outlook. SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH): CHANGYONG RHEE, Director, IMF's Asia and Pacific Department "We believe that in China, this corporate debt problem is manageable. China has a very large fiscal spaces, at this moment, it is not a issue of the immediate financial distress, but it has implication for its productivity growth rate, means the medium term growth rate really depends on how you handle this corporate debt problem wisely. But the good news is Chinese authority knows very well, they already announced several plans to reduce over capacity problems in certain sectors." Meanwhile, the IMF noted that Asian growth will remain strong, as domestic demand takes up the slack from weak global trade.