China Focus: Xi stresses implementing central economic policies

Chinese President Xi Jinping presided over a key economic meeting on Tuesday, calling for central policies in this field to be carried out to ensure positive effects.

The policies discussed at the ninth meeting of the Central Leading Group on Financial and Economic Affairs included urbanization, innovation, development of Asian trade infrastructure, as well as food, water and energy security.

Xi demanded stable urbanization, saying that the priority of this process is to attract suitable people to urban areas. They must be capable of maintaining steady jobs and comfortable in cities, he said.

Urbanization does not mean making urban and rural areas alike, the president stressed, saying that development should be steered according to differing local requirements.

Xi urged faster reform and innovation in investment and financing to explore the huge potential in public infrastructure construction.

He also demanded agricultural modernization and industrial transformation, aiming at stable, sustainable and competitive grain production.

Saving water must be made a priority in future work for water security, and the government will make better plans for disaster prevention and environmental protection, Xi vowed.

He also called for close monitoring of the global energy market, improvements to oil reserve systems, accelerated development of unconventional energies and reforms to gas, oil and energy pricing.

The president said red tape needs to be cut in order to smooth the way for the country to become more innovative.

Regarding Asian infrastructure, Xi highlighted policies related to his proposed "Belt and Road" initiatives, saying the primary task of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank is to provide capital for these schemes.

During the Beijing APEC summit, Xi announced a fund of 40 billion U.S. dollars for the land-based "Road" infrastructure. "Only when there is a road can people and things flow," he said here.

Meanwhile, he cited the huge project to transfer administrative functions of Beijing to neighboring areas, and push forward the integration of Beijing, Tianjin Municipality and Hebei Province. It needs definite targets to help map out and accomplish this time-consuming work, he said. Endi