China's economy expanded by an annual 9.2 per cent last year, narrowing from 10.4 per cent in 2010, and is widely expected to slow further this year, raising the spectre of more social unrest as the contraction takes hold.
"It's worth paying close attention to the economic situation in January and the first quarter," the official Xinhua news agency late Sunday quoted Wen as telling a government meeting.
He added the government would "pre-emptively adjust and fine-tune starting from the first quarter", but gave no further details.
Analysts widely expect Beijing to further trim the amount of money that banks must keep in reserve, following a cut in December last year, to counter slower economic growth due to global turmoil.
"The most basic requirement is to maintain the continuity and flexibility of policy," Wen said.
The country's trade activity fell in January from a year earlier, as the domestic slowdown and weaker overseas sales hit demand, though factory closures from a long holiday also played a role.
Exports fell 0.5 per cent year-on-year in January to US$149.94 billion while imports plunged 15.3 per cent to US$122.66 billion, the government said, marking the worst performance since during the global financial crisis in 2009.
The slowdown has resulted in large-scale strikes in recent months, as workers resentful about low salaries or lay-offs face off with employers juggling high costs and exports hit by lower demand from the debt-burdened West.
However, Wen ruled out loosening the government's grip over the property sector, citing the need for "reasonable" housing prices.
China has introduced a range of measures aimed at curbing the real estate market over the last year, such as bans on buying second homes, hiking minimum down-payments and introducing property taxes in select cities.
"For the purpose of promoting fairness and stability, the government's controls cannot be relaxed," he said.
One small city, Wuhu in the eastern province of Anhui, said last week it would offer subsidies for apartment purchases in a sign of easing, but it retreated from the policy over the weekend, state media reported.
- AFP/ck
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