China has set a gross domestic product growth target of around eight per cent in 2005, much lower than the searing 9.5 per cent achieved last year, while striving to ensure sustainable economic growth, employment generation, curbing inflation and social stability, Premier Wen Jiabao said on Saturday.
"Maintaining steady and rapid economic development is an important issue that the government must successfully handle. This is a period of important strategic opportunities for China, and the economy should grow rapidly, but not allowed to overheat," Wen said in his annual state-of-the-nation address to the National People's Congress, the Chinese parliament.
Taking the domestic and international factors into account, the government has set a GDP growth rate of around eight per cent, nine million new jobs for urban residents, registered urban unemployment rate within 4.6 per cent, rise in the consumer price index of no more than four per cent and basic balance in international payments, Wen said in his nationally-televised address from the cavernous Great Hall of the People.
It would be a "key job" for the government to keep the world's fastest-growing economy developing on a "fast and stable" track, Wen said adding that "neither a big up nor down in the economy is conducive to economic growth, reform and opening-up drive and social stability."
The premier told provincial governments to engineer economic growth and social progress with a scientific outlook on development, shifting the government's development philosophy from growth-centred to people-centred.
According to the perquisite norms, cars hired or owned by the employer and used for official purposes are not treated as perquisites in the hands of the employee if proper documents are maintained.
So is the case if an employee owns the car and the actual running and maintenance charges are for official purposes and are reimbursed by the employer.
A car owned or hired by the employer and partly used for official and partly for personal purposes, is treated as a perquisite. Perks are benefits over and above the normal salary received by an employee and these are taxable under the income-tax law.
Perquisites also cover entertainment expenses stock option plans, personal attendants, gas, electricity and water, concessional education, concessional journeys, interest free loans, gift vouchers, free meals etc.
In this year's budget, the FM has proposed levying a fringe benefit tax on the employer on the grounds that there is an inherent difficulty in isolating the "personal element" where there is collective enjoyment of such benefits and attributing it to the employee.
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