Beijing (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao warned today of the threat to the world's second largest economy, of having to face "new hard times" in the future. Speaking during a visit to Chengdu, in Sichuan, the prime minister said: "The economic growth rate is still within the government target range set at the year's beginning, and stimulus policies are working to land the country on the route toward stabilization. However, we should be clear that China's economic rebound is not yet stable, and economic hardship may continue for a period of time".

In the second quarter of 2012, Beijing recorded its lowest growth rate of the last three years. The data on industrial production fell for the seventh consecutive month and the balance of trade with foreign countries does not bode well, however, the gross domestic product is stable.

According to Wen "at the time, economic growth holds. But government officials and businesses need to take stock of the complexity and severity of current economic difficulties in a bid to reach China's economic and social development targets this year." Last March, the Prime Minister had announced a 7.5% target for the year: the eighth goal to decrease in a row.

According to several analysts, Chinese growth can not resist a dictatorial one-party system. Without a democratic opening, economists and political scientists argue, China will not be able to respond to the shocks of the current financial crisis.