Beijing, Sep 6 (IANS): China's top economic planning agency has approved 25 urban rail projects that could be worth more than 800 billion yuan ($126 billion).
The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) Wednesday announced the approvals of project plans and feasibility reports for the 25 projects in cities including Shijiazhuang, Taiyuan, Lanzhou, Guangzhou and Xiamen, reported Xinhua citing NDRC's website.
The move marks the government's latest effort to stabilize economic growth when external demand remains weak as the US economy has been struggling to gain traction and Europe is slipping toward a recession, said Xu Changle, professor of regional economics at the East China Normal University.
China's economy grew by 7.6 percent year on year in the second quarter of 2012, its slowest pace in three years, official data shows.
Forty Chinese cities will have subway systems by 2020, bringing the total track length to 7,000 km, 4.3 times the current length, according to the China Association of Metros, an organization under the direct supervision of the NDRC.
Railroad equipment manufacturers and construction companies will be the major beneficiaries of the approved infrastructure spending, Xu said.