China to put $240 bln into city

In a bid to fight a relative slowdown in economy, China plans to pour $240 billion to boost basically autos, electronics and petrochemicals industries, in Chongqing, a southwestern metropole. These city initiatives might help drive an economic rebound, an economist says.

The three-year plan is the fifth Chinese city to announce multibillion-dollar investment plans. The others are Changsha in central China, Guangzhou in the south and Nanjing and Ningbo in the east.

China’s economic growth slowed to a three-year low of 7.6 percent in the quarter ending in June despite government stimulus efforts. The International Monetary Fund is forecasting 8 percent growth for the year but revenues for some companies in industries such as shipbuilding are down 50 percent.