China to Invest RMB 700 bln for High-Speed Railway This Year

BEIJING, June 9 -- China will invest RMB 700 billion to build high-speed railways in 2010, the official Xinhua News Agency reported He Huawu, chief engineer of the Ministry of Railway, as saying.

China, which has 6,552 km of high-speed railways in operation, will build up to 4,613 kilometers of new high-speed lines connecting China's major cities. 10,000 km of high-speed railways are under construction.

The Chinese government has agreed to maintain a large portion of investment in the railway section on a national scale. Last year, China spent a total of RMB 700 billion on railway construction, including high-speed railways.

In 2008, the State Council approved a stimulus package to invest as much as RMB 4 trillion by the end of 2010 to spur the domestic demand, a move for economic recovery amid the global financial crisis. Premier Wen Jiabao stressed that the investment expansion should be carried out swiftly and forcefully.

The new spending will be channeled to ten areas, ranging from budget housing, rural and key infrastructure construction, medical system improvements, environmental protection, industrial innovation and raising people's incomes.