WASHINGTON — Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson says the economy is healthy, inflation seems under control and the U.S. should not perceive China as an economic enemy.

After a week in which the Dow Jones industrials posted their worst weekly performance in more than four years, Paulson said in a television interview broadcast Sunday he felt good about the economy and discounted the chance of an economic downturn.

“Markets never move in any one direction forever in a straight line. And so I look at it and put it in perspective and say, over the last year, the Dow’s up almost 11 percent, the S&P’s (the Standard & Poor’s 500 index) up 9 percent, and I’ll take it,” Paulson said.

U.S. stocks dropped 416 points last Tuesday after big declines in China and other countries. Wall Street’s tumble rattled investor confidence about the state of the U.S. economy.

The sell-off followed comments a day earlier by former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan that the economy might slip into recession by year’s end.

Just weeks ago, the current chairman, Ben Bernanke, gave Congress a mostly upbeat assessment of the economy’s prospects.

“Clearly, no one’s got a crystal ball. So there’s always a possibility that there will be a downturn, always a possibility,” Paulson said. “But I don’t see it. I think we have a healthy economy in the U.S.

“You know, a year ago, when the growth rates were much higher, I was concerned. I said, ‘Is this going to be sustainable?’ Now I’m looking at it and I’m seeing a situation where it looks like we’re successfully making the transition.”

Paulson, who this week makes his third visit to China as treasury secretary, said it is essential that both countries have strong economic ties. The former head of the investment company Goldman Sachs has said China is moving too slowly in overhauling its currency system and cracking down on copyright piracy. U.S. businesses blame these factors for the soaring U.S. trade deficit with China.

“I would say that our relationship with China is multifaceted and it’s a very important relationship for the U.S. And I don’t believe we need to make China an enemy,” Paulson said.

The chairman of the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee has said Congress was ready to take a hard line against Beijing.

“The Congress, Republicans and Democrats, are going to start getting tough on China,” said Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y.

The U.S. trade deficit reached $763.6 billion in 2006, the fifth straight year with a record. The imbalance with China climbed to a record as well — $232.5 billion, the highest trade gap ever recorded with a single country.