BEIJING - China's economy is expected to revive in the second half of this year as the country retains huge market potential and ample policy room, experts said Thursday.

It takes time for major economic indicators to fully recover, but positive signs like narrowing power-use decline have surfaced, said Liu Huan, a counselor with the State Council, China's cabinet.

The country's economy will restore in the second quarter as COVID-19 wanes, and see robust growth from the third quarter onwards, he forecasted.

The consumer market has a 1.4 billion population, showing China's potential to mitigate the impact of the epidemic and pursue development in the long term, said Wang Zhaoxing, another counselor with the State Council.

Wang called for measures to focus on increasing high-quality products and services, as well as stabilizing employment and supporting low-income people, to stimulate consumption.

Comparing thinking inside the GDP box, more attention should be paid to whether enterprises truly benefit from government policies, said Liu.

Wang suggested that efforts be made to ensure funds from fiscal and financial policies such as tax and fee cuts, lower interest loans and market liquidity injection directly go to the real economy.

The country still has sufficient policy room, since inflation is not that serious and the interest rate still permits adjustment, he said.

Against the backdrop of a potential recession of the world economy, China can call it a victory as long as its economy withstands the tempest and maintains moderate growth this year, Liu said.