IMF chief says China faces balancing act as it seeks to maintain growth

NUSA DUA, Indonesia (Reuters) - International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde said on Thursday that she believes Chinese authorities are trying to maintain growth and stability in the face of a trade conflict with the United States, but added that this is a "complicated" balancing act.

"The Chinese authorities are certainly looking at options, I would think, in order to maintain a level of growth that would keep the economy under control, and we are seeing recent decisions from the PBOC to that effect," Lagarde said during a discussion at the IMF and World Bank annual meetings in Bali.

"I think that it's a complicated equation, where they have to both use the flexibility that is available, but at the same time be very attentive to their fiscal position," she added.

(Reporting by David Lawder; Editing by Shri Navaratnam)