(Yicai) Oct. 23 -- The International Monetary Fund lowered its economic growth forecast for China this year to 4.8 percent in a projection that does not take into account the better-than-expected third-quarter expansion and recently announced fiscal stimulus measures.

The new growth forecast does not include the latest fiscal measures introduced by the Chinese government, said IMF Chief Economist Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas. Future updates will factor in third-quarter growth and the effects of the stimulus package, he pointed out.

In its World Economic Outlook report released on Oct. 22, the IMF lowered its forecast for China's gross domestic product growth from a 5 percent prediction made in May and July. The Washington-based international lender kept its global growth forecast at 3.2 percent for this year and next.

China’s new fiscal measures are going in the right direction, and they have done a good job of improving the situation in the real estate market, including lowering borrowing costs and improving developers’ balance sheets, Gourinchas said.

The report noted that since late last month the People's Bank of China and the Ministry of Finance have unveiled a series of measures to stabilize expectations and confidence. In addition, the country’s third-quarter GDP growth rose 4.6 percent from a year earlier, above market expectations of 4.4 percent.

In addition, the IMF predicted that advanced economies will likely grow at a 1.8 percent clip, while emerging and developing ones are projected to expand by 4.2 percent. However, global downside risks are increasing, including escalating regional conflicts, a shift toward more restrictive trade and industrial policies, and overly prolonged monetary policy tightening, it added.

The global consumption shift from goods to services is expected to boost service sector activity in advanced and emerging economies but dampen manufacturing, according to the IMF, which highlighted the significant shift in manufacturing production to emerging markets such as China and India, as advanced economies lose competitiveness.

Editor: Martin Kadiev