China's economic growth rate hit a six-year high of 8.5 per cent in 2003 as it rebounded from the country's outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome

China's economic growth rate hit a six-year high of 8.5 per cent in 2003 as it rebounded from the country's outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome, a senior official said Tuesday. Xie Xuren, commissioner of the State Taxation Administration, gave the figure during a news conference to discuss tax revenues. The government's official growth figure for 2003 is to be released on Jan. 20. Trade and investment drove China's growth last year, despite a slump in domestic consumption due to the SARS outbreak, which cut sharply into spending in travel and other industries. Tax revenues jumped 20.3 per cent in 2003 to a record two trillion yuan ($242 billion US), driven by a surge in investment, corporate profits and imports, Xie said. Jun Ma, an economist for Deutsche Bank, said exports were the main driving force in China's economic expansion, with industrial output rising by more than 17 per cent in the final three months of the year. "Exports were growing in the last few months at an average of 40 per cent, which is tremendous," Ma said. "Investment was also another factor behind the very strong growth."