Slowing but better economy ahead: Caterpillar

BEIJING - The slowdown in economic growth will lead a healthy development in a longer term in China as the country is pushing forward all-round reforms, a senior executive of Caterpillar, a United States-based construction equipment maker, said on Saturday.

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"Every developing country that has grown quickly usually faces an adjustment period," said Douglas Oberhelman, Caterpillar Inc Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, during an interview by Xinhua.

He applauded that the new leadership of China lowered the economic growth target to 7-8 percent, which is rational after a tremendous boom in the last decade.

China has targeted its GDP growth at around 7.5 percent this year, generally in line with last year's target, according to the government work report delivered by Premier Li Keqiang on March 5.

"The target should allow the urbanization to occur, and so much reform the government did will put China onto a more sustainable path," Oberhelman said.

He encouraged the endeavors in market orientation, environmental sustainability and development of capital markets including exchange rate, debt and equity issuance.

"There are always winners and losers," Oberhelman said, "the companies with low technology and less competence should be allowed to fail, which is extremely healthy for an economy to follow a market-oriented development."

The CEO specially stressed the work to improve air and water quality, which weigh even more in a country like China with such a huge population.

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