China's exports to improve in August, economy stable - NDRC

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's economy is growing at a reasonable rate with exports improving in August from the previous month, the country's top economic planning body said on Tuesday. Ning Jizhe, Vice Chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission(NDRC), told a briefing that recent pick-up in the housing market would help stabilise investment in the coming months. He suggested that investors should not only focus on China's GDP growth rate but also should pay attention to China's reform progress. Persistent economic weakness and a 40 percent plunge in share prices since their peak in mid-June have stoked concerns of a hard landing for the Chinese economy. The softness in China's economic indicators in July mirrored normal fluctuation in activity as the economy is still stable, Ning added. (Reporting By Koh Gui Qing)