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The ruling party's growth target for the year is 7.5 percent -- stronger than forecasts for the United States, Europe and Japan, but China's weakest performance since 1991. Finance Ministry Lou Jiwei appeared to try to lower expectations last week when he told reporters in Washington that growth as low as 6.5 percent would be tolerable. Trade in June plunged abruptly, falling by 3.1 percent, well below forecasts of an expansion in the low single digits. A decline in Chinese economic activity could have global repercussions, denting revenues for suppliers of commodities and industrial components such as Australia, Brazil and Southeast Asia. Lower Chinese demand already has depressed global prices for iron ore, copper and other raw materials, cooling an economic boom for exporters.
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