China’s anti-graft body investigates statistics bureau chief

Just hours after Wang delivered a press conference on the state of the Chinese economy, the Central Commission on Discipline Inspection announced that he is under investigation for “serious violations of party discipline,” which usually refers to corruption.

That compared with 3.3 percent growth in 2014. Worldwide economists for years have questioned the veracity of Chinese economic data, suggesting officials have systematically fudged the nation’s massive growth totals in order to save face and bolster standing domestically and internationally.

Wang reiterated on Tuesday that the country’s gross domestic product calculations were reliable, Chinese media reported, despite widespread criticism of the data.

Wang was deputy finance minister from 2012 until April 2015, when he took up the powerful post of statistics bureau chief, according to details on the CCDI website.

It remains unclear, however, whether the statistics chief is being investigated for his current role or his former role at the finance ministry. The head of the antigraft agency reported that some 282,000 officials were punished past year for infractions of party rules, 82,000 of them severely.

A sustained depreciation of the yuan exchange rate could fuel capital outflows and affect the pace of yuan internationalisation, Wang said.

[Wang] said that a year ago 200,000 party members received light punishment, while 82,000 faced severe punishment.

Mr. Wang couldn’t be reached for comment, and it wasn’t clear whether he was represented by a lawyer. The commentary said anyone who can’t see how the anti-corruption fight is actually beneficial to the economy “can’t see the forest for the trees”.