Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao toured the cities of Tangshan and Qinghuangdao in north China's Hebei Province over the past two days to find out how manufacturers and ordinary people are coping with the financial crisis.

Wen said China's economy is at a critical moment as it begins to recover "steadily", and the government should continue a pro-active fiscal policy and moderately relaxed monetary policy, repeating his comments made last week.

Wen visited Tangshan Railway Vehicle Co., which makes trains for the country's high-speed lines, in Tangshan, 154 km from Beijing. He urged the train maker to rely on technologies and innovation for future growth.

At the Tangshan Iron and Steel Co., one of the nation's leading steel makers, Wen asked the steel firm to promote a technological upgrade and cut back on outdated capacity to deal with the sector's overcapacity.

In Qinghuangdao, about 280 km from the capital and a major port for coal, the premier was told that coal throughput at the port had steadily climbed in recent months, and he called it a proof of the country's economic recovery.

Wen also walked into local job fairs in Tangshan to inquire about people's employment. He urged some job seekers there to persist and reassured them that employment would expand on a recovery in the economy.

The Premier also visited the Tangshan branch of Mengniu Dairy, a domestic dairy giant, to see how dairy makers are doing after the melamine contamination scandal.

Only 80 percent of the country's original capacity has been recovered since the scandal broke last September.

He called on the firm and the staff to be extremely thorough in food safety controls and try to win a good reputation via quality products.

(Xinhua News Agency June 21, 2009)