China's new accounting regime, shifting focus from GDP to a more balanced development outlook, signals the end of the era of "GDP supremacy".

 

The regime, announced earlier this month by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), is a multi-faceted assessment of the economy that equally weighs structural optimization, industrial upgrades, innovation, the environment, improvements to people's livelihoods, etc.

 

To assess these fields, over 40 economic indicators--consumption, urbanization, debt-to-fiscal revenue ratio, research and development spending, pollution--will be regularly published by statistical authorities.

 

The NBS believes that government statistics used to overemphasize GDP and the new standards will be a better reflection of the quality and benefits of economic development.

 

Double-digit growth may have propelled China to become the world's second-largest economy, but to a large extent it was pursued by government officials simply because it determined their promotions, and had many undesirable consequences: industrial overcapacity, environmental damage, uneven development.

 

With a slowing economy aiming for 7.5 percent growth this year, the government has concentrated on reform, restructuring and improving people's livelihoods. The government will not be distracted by minor fluctuations of individual indicators, Premier Li Keqiang said during Summer Davos in Tianjin this month.

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