Beijing Sunday announced a four trillion yuan (586 billion dollars) deal to counter the global financial crisis, which involves tax cuts and increased spending and is equal to some seven percent of gross domestic product over the next two years.

Rudd told parliament it represented "an extraordinary fiscal stimulus package, which I believe is not just of significance to this economy, but also to the economy of wider east Asia and the world."

Rudd said while the package reflected fears in China about domestic growth, it also paralleled the degree of effort Beijing showed in the late 1990s after the Asian financial crisis.

"I regard that as very good news for this economy, very good news for the regional economy, very good news for the global economy," he said.

China is Canberra's largest trading partner and demand for resources has driven the mining boom in Australia.

Australian officials have said they expect the country to weather the global financial crisis better than the economies of Europe and the US because of expected continued growth in China.

But fears have arisen that slowing growth in the Asian powerhouse will result in falling prices for key Australian exports such as iron ore and coal and could affect the national economy.

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