BEIJING, May 29 Reuters China39;s economy is set to grow 5 this year, after a strong first quarter, the International Monetary Fund said on Wednesday, upgrading its earlier forecast of 4.6 expansion though it expects slower growth in the years ahead.

The global lender39;s new projections come as Beijing steps up efforts to shore up an uneven recovery in the world39;s secondbiggest economy, which has stumbled in the face of a protracted property crisis and its ripple effects across investors, consumers and businesses.

The IMF said it had revised up both its 2024 and 2025 GDP targets by 0.4 percentage points but warned that growth in China would slow to 3.3 by 2029 due to an ageing population and slower expansion in productivity.

It now expects China39;s economy to grow 5 in 2024 and to slow to 4.5 in 2025.

The upgrade that we have for this year mainly reflects the fact that first quarter GDP growth came in stronger than expected, and there were some additional policy measures that were recently announced, IMF39;s First Deputy Managing Director Gita Gopinath said in Beijing.

Gopinath was speaking at a press conference to mark the conclusion of the fund39;s annual review of China39;s economic policies.

The IMF39;s upgrade for 2024 is in line with Beijing39;s growth target of around 5, which the economy appears to be on track to reach after it blew past expectations to post growth of 5.3 in the first quarter. But deflationary pressures continue to loom large and a…