CHINA has approved construction of four railway lines worth 66.2 billion yuan (US$10.8 billion), the top economic planning agency said Tuesday.

    It is the third time this month that China has signed off on new railway investment, signaling that the government is lifting investment to tackle slackening economic growth.

    The infrastructure projects should foster investment, the biggest driver in China, which has sagged this year as a cooling manufacturing sector and a softening housing market discouraged spending.

    The new lines would run in the northeastern province of Jilin, the western city of Chong-qing, the northwestern province of Shaanxi and the northern region of Inner Mongolia, the National Development and Reform Commission said.(SD-Agencies)