China may set a moderate growth rate of 8 percent in the next five years to allow for more investment to promote social progress, said a top Chinese lawmaker at the World Economic Forum on Wednesday in Davos.

China's annual growth rate has been around 10 percent in the past three years.

"We can keep a relatively high growth rate but not as high as in the double digits," said Cheng Siwei, vice chairman of the Standing Committee of China's National People's Congress.

"We would like to lower our growth rate to 8 percent if possible and to devote more energy to social progress."

He defined as China's main development challenges improving the living standards for a large population of 1.3 billion, dealing with resource and environmental constraints, remedying uneven development across regions and between urban and rural areas, and alleviating poverty.

On the value of the Chinese currency, Cheng said full convertibility remains a long-term goal.

"Our goal is to make the renminbi float, but it will take some time," he said. "The renminbi will be fully convertible in the future."

Source: Xinhua