( Financial Times ) -- With dark clouds gathering over the Chinese economy , the government has started to talk about the importance of supporting growth and speculation is mounting about what actions it will take . Some analysts predict that it will dust off its 2008 playbook and announce a large-scale stimulus package . But others say this is unlikely because Beijing is both less perturbed by the current slowdown and more wary of the dangers of another spending spree . Here is a look at China 's policy options , with an assessment of their likelihood . 1 . Stick to the original plan . Concerns about fallout from a shaky domestic property market and Europe 's debt woes are hardly new in China . These concerns have been around for nearly a year , during which time officials have been very cautious in loosening monetary policy and increasing fiscal spending . Beijing has cut the portion of deposits that banks must hold in reserve twice since November , injecting more cash into the economy . It also has stepped up efforts to construct 36m units of affordable housing by 2015 , a big investment programme . On the currency front , it has let the renminbi fall a touch against the dollar this year to aid struggling exporters . At the same time , the government has started to implement longer-term tax and financial sector reforms that are part of its strategy for shifting the economy away from a reliance on investment towards consumption . Until recently , Beijing was content to continue down this gradualist path . The economy has clearly slowed , but at 8.1 per cent annual growth in the first quarter , it has hardly collapsed . Importantly , unlike 2008 when 20m blue-collar workers lost their jobs virtually overnight , there are few signs of labour market distress . Without a more serious plunge in domestic economic growth or a crisis in Europe , the original plan -- gradual monetary easing , some additional fiscal spending , especially on affordable homes , plus longer-term structural reforms -- still looks compelling . `` For Beijing , the first thing it should do is to seriously deliver what it has scheduled for 2012 instead of rushing to announce any new massive stimulus plans , '' says Lu Ting , an economist with Bank of America Merrill Lynch . 2 . Stimulus-lite . Confidence in the strength of the Chinese economy has wobbled over the past few weeks . April data , from power output to bank lending , were disappointing and indicated that the economic slowdown , far from abating , was worsening . One month does not make a trend , but the government appears to be taking out insurance against the signs of trouble . Premier Wen Jiabao said last week that the government should `` give more priority to maintaining growth '' , a comment that was seen as the starting gun for bolder fiscal spending plans . There has been a flurry of headlines in recent days in official media about investment projects , from airport expansions to new steel plants , which have been approved by the National Development and Reform Commission ( NDRC ) , a powerful central planning agency . The government has also unveiled or is set to unveil a number of small measures to encourage consumption , including subsidies for energy efficient appliances and another cash-for-clunkers car initiative . However , in contrast to 2008 , the government has played down expectations about the size of the potential stimulus -- and even denied that there is really any stimulus in the works at all . The Guangming Daily , a newspaper published by the Communist party , said this week : `` Even if the NDRC is busier than usual , this does not mean there is a new economic stimulus plan . '' In this scenario there would be no official `` stimulus package '' , and no significant easing of monetary policy or property market restrictions . Instead the government would rely on economic `` fine-tuning '' , such as accelerated investments and consumer subsidies , in order to provide a clear boost to growth . `` All these signs indicate to us that a new round of fiscal stimulus has started , although its scale remains to be seen , and is not likely to be comparable with the 'shock and awe ' stimulus in 2008-09 , '' says Liu Na with CNC Asset Management . 3 . Re-run of 2008 . The 2008-09 stimulus -- about 10 per cent of GDP at Rmb4tn ( $ 630bn ) -- left China with a double mess of soaring debt levels and stubbornly high inflation that the government spent much of last year trying to clean up . This experience has made Beijing extremely hesitant to crank up another big stimulus . But such reluctance would easily dissipate if the growth downturn becomes much more severe . China International Capital Corp , a top domestic investment bank , warned last week that the economy could slow to 6.4 per cent this year without policy stimulus , well below the 7-8 per cent level that Beijing believes is necessary to create enough jobs for new entrants into the labour force . So some analysts are beginning to discuss the potential for a replay of the 2008 `` big bang '' spending programme , albeit with some modifications . This time around , investment might be directed towards power production , clean energy , and water infrastructure rather than transport networks , as was the case in 2008 . Dong Tao , an economist with Credit Suisse , said the headline figure could be as much as Rmb2tn , half as much as three years ago but much bigger than anything that has been officially mentioned this time around . Beyond fiscal stimulus , the government has other big levers within its grasp . In 2008 it aggressively cut interest rates and also sharply reversed course on its tight property policy . These moves were integral to the Chinese recovery in 2009 , but they also fuelled a surge in housing prices . Similar moves would again be powerful -- if potentially dangerous -- medicine for the Chinese economy . Some economists think it 's too early for such a strong prescription . `` We do not currently look for interest rate cuts or explicit central government loosening of real estate policy , but these will come in the third quarter if the economy is not responding , '' Standard Chartered economists wrote in a note . © The Financial Times Limited 2012 .
The government has started to talk about the importance of supporting growth . But it is not clear how much support there will be for this kind of growth. Will Beijing stay the course , have 'stimulus-lite ' , or a re-run 2008 boost ?