Driven by flourishing real estate development and car manufacturing, China's annual economic increase will stay above seven or eight percent for the next decade, a top economic advisor claimed at an enterprise forum in Beijing Thursday, Xinhua reported.

China's GDP has been expanding at a double-digit growth rate over the past four years, and Development and Research Centre of the State Council vice president Liu Shijin said the fast pace will be sustained by assets construction and auto production in the future.

A developing economy, Liu said, usually has a leading industry to haul along correlative businesses, thus pushing the whole society to advance. In the early 80s this leading role was played by light industries and textiles; during the early 90s it was the infrastructure, home appliances and real estate industries. Real estate development, cars and telecommunication production emerged from the Southeast Asian economic crisis to become a major driving force for economic growth in the new millennium.

The current economic structure of China is much like that of the US in the early 20th century, Liu said. According to the experiences of developed countries, housing development will expand rapidly for about twenty years, while a buoyant car production growth could continue for thirty years. Thus Li predicted they will still keep Chinese industries prospering for a decade.

Looking back on the past year, National Statistics Bureau data shows China's gross domestic product increased by 10.7 percent in 2006 from the previous year. The car manufacturing industry far outpaced the whole economy, with production and sales of cars both growing by 25 percent, fueled by a robust family car market, which is expected to continue to grow in the coming years.

Apartment development, which has been the focus of attention among city dwellers due to rocketing prices, will also be a hot sector in 2007, experts say, though the housing price increase is to be moderated.