Banking official sees no post-Olympics downturn

A central bank adviser predicts that China’s property and stock markets will not suffer a post-Olympic slump because prices have already fallen sharply, Reuters reported. Fan Gang, a member of the central bank’s monetary policy committee, told Xinmin Weekly that corrections in the stock market, the housing market and energy prices have been completed, and that stock prices might begin trending upward. The Shanghai stock market and property prices in some markets, notably Shenzhen, have fallen dramatically in recent months. "We needn’t worry about the post-Olympic economy at all. How could (stock) prices drop any further?" Fan said, adding that infrastructure development would continue to promote economic growth. Fan said it is in China’s interest for the yuan to rise gradually.