CHINA will continue a prudent monetary policy while ensuring credit growth for the real economy, agricultural sector and small enterprises, said a statement issued after a State Council meeting yesterday.

Participants at the meeting, chaired by Premier Li Keqiang, planned a set of measures designed to increase the financial sector's support to the country's economic restructuring.

During the meeting, the participants noted that the economy is generally stable at present, but also faced some difficulties and challenges.

While maintaining the stability and continuity of China's macro-economic policy, efforts should be made to promote reform in a step-by-step, orderly and non-stop manner, according to the statement.

China will stick to its prudent monetary policy, keep monetary supply at a reasonable scale and proceed with the reform of interest rate liberalization, the statement said.

Greater credit support will be directed to advanced manufacturing, strategic emerging industries, labor-intensive sectors and the service industry, as well as the upgrading of traditional industries, it said.

Credit support will also be given to the agricultural sector and small and micro-sized enterprises, it said.

The government will support Chinese enterprises' "going abroad," use foreign exchange reserves in an innovative way and promote export credit insurance, the statement said.