Public Security Minister Meng Jianzhu said police "should be fully aware of the challenge brought by the global financial crisis and try their best to maintain social stability," according to the China Daily.

His statement came as thousands of people attacked police and government offices in Wudu, in Gansu province's poverty-stricken region of Longnan, where 1.8 million people were made homeless by the Sichuan earthquake in May. Although the unrest was triggered by a plan to resettle residents rather than a slowing economy, it has alarmed officials.

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At least 60 people were injured when security forces used tear gas to put down protests by thousands of people who attacked police on Monday and Tuesday, witnesses and officials said.

The rioting follows strikes by taxi drivers and labor protests in major export regions, where thousands of factories have closed, prompting fears the financial crisis could stir wider popular unrest.

Wudu was calm yesterday, after a curfew was imposed and major streets and businesses closed.

Gansu Communist Party chief Lu Hao wants to strike hard at a "small minority with ulterior motives," but said lessons should be drawn from the incident and suggested the unrest stemmed from frustration over post-quake reconstruction.

IMA Asia, a business intelligence provider, raised its political risk rating for China from low to medium.

"We are concerned about the potential for unrest within a massive pool of migrant workers who face layoffs in the construction and export manufacturing sectors," it said.

REUTERS, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE