Institute lowers China GDP forecast to 7.3%  

社科院报告预计2014年中国经济增长7.3%左右

(ECNS) – The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences has lowered its forecast for China's 2014 GDP growth to 7.3 percent, citing a slowdown in the growth of real estate investment.

According to the academy's economic report released on Friday, China's 2014 GDP growth will be 0.4 percentage points lower than last year's, but will remain in the reasonable range.

The number is 0.1 percentage points lower than the academy's forecast in spring. Weaker real estate investment, which accounts for nearly a quarter of overall investments, is the main reason, according to the report.

Increasing government investment in infrastructure, which generally amounts to one fifth of total investments, wouldn't be able to offset the effect due to restricted financing, low return on investment, and other factors, the report said.