China parliament to sell Party's economic remedy

By Chris Buckley and Simon Rabinovitch

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's leaders will seek a disciplined show of resolve from an annual parliament gathering this week, hoping a display of unity will help dispel economic gloom and social unease.

Nearly 3,000 delegates to the National People's Congress (NPC) will meet for just over a week starting on Thursday, when Premier Wen Jiabao gives his yearly work report and spells out broad economic, social and foreign policy goals for 2009.

Analysts expect Wen to restate the government's goal of 8 percent growth this year. That number has been China's formal annual target since 2005, one repeatedly outstripped by double-digit expansion. But achieving it now will be tested by shrinking exports, disheartened investors and rising joblessness.

"Reiterating the 8 percent target could be seen as a way to demonstrate the government's determination to achieve a favourable growth outcome and rally confidence," Tao Wang, of UBS bank in Beijing, wrote in a comment on the congress.

Major breakthroughs are unlikely in the scripted meetings in the grandiose Great Hall of the People, especially after officials raised eyebrows by cutting the duration of the gathering even though China is facing major challenges.

For China's ruling Communist Party, the part-time parliament dominated by carefully vetted officials and Party members is a chorus to promote policies and draw some ideas.

Unrehearsed drama may come from any oblique debate and lobbying over the economy among provincial leaders, central officials and executives.

Slowed growth is squeezing revenues, stoking social strains and stirring debate about how much should be spent on stimulus efforts and where it should go. These pressures could eventually open the way to more fractious political competition, said Andrew Mertha, a political science professor at Cornell University.