China has ratcheted up efforts in both COVID-19 control and economic improvements during the pandemic outbreak, which have yielded fruitful results in socio-economic results, the head of the National Bureau of Statistics said on Friday during a press conference held by the 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) to introduce the guiding principles of the fifth plenary session.

Ning Jizhe, who is also deputy head of the National Development and Reform Commission, said the COVID-19 pandemic wreaked havoc across the globe, including China. But through its efforts in pandemic prevention and socio-economic development, China not only took the lead in controlling the contagious disease, but also became the first major economy to resume positive economic growth.

"During the period, China refined the coordination mechanisms for stable performance in six key areas, namely, stability in employment, finance, foreign trade, foreign investment, domestic investment, and market expectations, to promote both effective outbreak response and steady economic and social progress," said Ning.

First, China's timely control of the pandemic created a normal environment for socio-economic development, laying a foundation for potential growth, he noted.

Secondly, the government quickly organized the resumption of work and production to promote the steady recovery of the industry, which maintained the stable operation of the industrial chain and supply chain.

"Thirdly, an array of timely policies stimulated the vitality of market players, including tax cuts and fee reductions, the issuance of special treasury bonds to fight the pandemic, an increase in the fiscal deficit, as well as the issuance of local government special bonds."

Furthermore, prioritizing employment and ensuring people's livelihoods stabilized the overall socio-economic situation. And the continuous development of new growth drivers promoted the growth of new business forms and new models.

"Last but not least, adherence to reform and opening-up mobilized domestic and foreign production factors. In the first three quarters, China's fixed-asset investment increased by 0.8 percent year on year, total imports and exports climbed by 0.7 percent from a year earlier, and actual use of foreign capital went up by 5.2 percent from the year-earlier period, all achieving positive growth," noted Ning.

In the first three quarters, the annual target for new employment in urban areas was basically completed. The official urban surveyed unemployment rate edged lower to 5.4 percent in September. From January to August, 7.81 million urban jobs were created. 

Chinese authorities will carefully balance efforts to control the pandemic and minimize its impact on the economy in the future, Ning added.