BEIJING, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- China has made great strides in completing the building of a moderately prosperous society, or "Xiaokang," in all respects, said an official with the country's top economic planner.

The country has laid a solid foundation for reaching such a centenary goal with mounting nationwide efforts, Ning Jizhe, deputy head of the National Development and Reform Commission, told Xinhua in an interview.

Ning, also head of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), said that China's economy has been greatly strengthened amid solid steps of supply-side structural reform and opening up.

In 2019, China's gross domestic product exceeded 99 trillion yuan, or 14.4 trillion U.S. dollars, ranking second in the world, NBS data showed.

Despite mounting complexities, China reversed an economic downturn and forged ahead with economic growth in the first half of this year, said Ning.

China's economy showed great resilience and potential by expanding 3.2 percent year on year in the second quarter, up 10 percentage points from the first quarter, he added.

Improved infrastructure has offered strong support for the completion of the "Xiaokang" goal, with advancements in the transportation and communications sectors, said Ning.

Speaking of the importance of innovation, Ning said China's expenditure on research and development last year more than doubled from that in 2012.

However, China must take measures to tackle certain weak links amid the final push in completing the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects, the official said.

According to him, difficulties remain in areas such as poverty eradication and public services, while the COVID-19 epidemic brought new challenges.

China's sound economic fundamentals remain unchanged with the COVID-19 strains overall controllable, Ning added. Enditem

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