Global ratings agency Standard & Poor's said it is "encouraged" by China's move to a "more realistic growth target" of about 7 percent, but still sees potential turbulence from a sharp downturn in the property market as the biggest risk to the region.
S&P predicted China's gross domestic product will grow 6.8 percent in 2015 as a base forecast, slowing to 6.6 percent the following year.
"The risks around our baseline forecast have become more balanced owing to our weaker central scenario and the latest actions from the Chinese government to manage growth expectations downward," S&P Asia-Pacific chief economist Paul Gruenwald said.
The S&P report noted that China's property market continues to look soft. "We continue to view a disorderly adjustment of China's real property sector, if not managed by the Chinese government, as a risk that might adversely impact consumer and economic sentiment, growth, and funding," the report said.
