The $586 billion economic stimulus(刺激)package that China announced on Sunday may not be quite as large as it seemed at first sight, but it shows just how seriously the authorities in Beijing take the threat of a slowdown following the international financial crisis. On the face of it, the package of tax cuts, higher public spending, and easier credit makes up the largest such stimulus in history.
The new policy gives President Hu Jintao something to show fellow world leaders at the Group of 20 summit in Washington on Saturday as they seek ways out of the financial crisis.
“We must carry out the measures to ensure fast and stable economic development ,” Premier Wen Jiabao told government leaders on Monday. “They are not only for the needs of our own development but also our biggest contribution to the world.”
At first, stock markets(股市) jumped on news of the package, in the hope that if China’s economy continues to grow, it might help other nations go through the expected global decline in economy by offering a market for their exports.
The stimulus package is designed to reduce the effects of falling exports on China’s own economy, encouraging investment （投资）and consumption （消费）at home. That, the government says, should keep the world’s fastest-growing economy on a “steady and relatively fast” growth track despite the depressing international climate.
The State Council（国务院），China’s cabinet， said it would target spending over the next two years on low-income housing, rural construction, water and electricity supplies, technological innovation(创新)，and recovery from disasters such as the May 12 earthquake. If the plan is carried out, its focus on projects benefiting China’s poorer citizens, rather than on traditional large-scale industrial development, will strengthen the government’s policy of building a “harmonious society” that bridges the present gap between the rich and the poor.
72. China’s economic stimulus package ______ .
A. shows its serious attitude towards the international financial crisis
B. has stimulated the world’s economy greatly
C. mainly focuses on higher public spending
D. is as large as it seemed at first sight
73. According to Wen jiabao, China’s measures will ______.
A. make the world’s economy grow faster
B. ensure fast economic and cultural development in China
C. be only needed for China’s own development
D. be its biggest contribution to the world
74. How can the new policy reduce the effects of falling exports on China’s own economy? ______
A. By keeping China’s economy one of the world’s fastest growing ones.
B. By making China’s economy the fastest growing one in the world.
C. By encouraging investment and consumption at home.
D. By getting rid of the depressing international climate.
75. What’s the final aim of the new policy? ______
A. To build traditional large-scale industries.
B. To reconstruct the earthquake-hit area.
C. To build a harmonious society throughout China.
D. To provide housing for low-income people.
