WASHINGTON -- The International Monetary Fund said on Thursday that it welcomes China's greater focus on high-quality growth over speed.

"The absence of a specific range for a growth target in 2021 is welcomed. And should reinforce this focus in high-quality growth, and rebalancing, which is a discussion we've been engaged in with Chinese authorities quite constructively for the last several years," IMF spokesperson Gerry Rice told Xinhua at a virtual press briefing.

China aims to expand its gross domestic product by over 6 percent in 2021, with more efforts on reform, innovation and high-quality development, according to the government work report approved by the national legislature Thursday.

"In our January WEO (World Economic Outlook) forecast on China, we had projected 8.1 percent growth for this year. And that suggests that the above 6 percent that has been mentioned should be easily reached, given China's fast recovery, and the large base effects from the impact of the pandemic on growth last year," the IMF spokesperson said.

In 2020, China emerged from the epidemic-induced slump with a 2.3-percent GDP growth, making it the world's only major economy to attain positive growth.

In terms of the just-concluded annual sessions of China's national legislature and top political advisory body, Rice said that the IMF welcomes China's continued commitment to medium-term reform to strengthen what he called as "high-quality, more consumption-driven growth" as well as the confirmation of China's efforts in tackling climate change and reaching carbon neutrality by 2060.

"And we think this should help reinforce China's quest to rebalance this growth model toward greener and more consumption-oriented growth," he said.