China should stop setting annual GDP targets, central bank adviser says

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - China should stop setting annual economic growth targets and instead focus on stabilising employment and controlling inflation as its main macroeconomic policy goals, an adviser for the country's central bank said.

Ma Jun, in a transcript of remarks he made at a forum in China published on Monday, said the central bank should also actively consider relaxing some measures on foreign exchange outflows to alleviate the upwards pressure on its currency and further efforts to internationalise the yuan.

The world's second largest economy grew 2.3% in 2020, when the country decided not to set an annual growth target due to the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Growth is expected to accelerate to 8.4% this year, according to a Reuters poll, which would mark the fastest rate expansion in a decade.

(Reporting by Brenda Goh; writing by Se Young Lee; Editing by Aurora Ellis)