FACTBOX: China's central economic work conferences in recent years

The Central Economic Work Conference opened Wednesday, as Chinese leaders began to review the country's economic performance in 2016 and map out plans for 2017.

The following is a review of previous conferences in the last five years.

Dec. 18-21, 2015

Basic tone: making progress while maintaining stability, with a priority on structural reform

Major tasks: China vowed to stabilize growth, make structural adjustments, improve people's livelihoods and guard against risks in 2016; ensure the economy operates within a reasonable range; appropriately expand aggregate demand while promoting supply-side structural reform; move ahead on five major tasks: cutting overcapacity, destocking, deleveraging, lowering costs and improving weak links; advance reform in key sectors, including state-owned enterprises, fiscal policy and taxation, finance, banking, pensions, as well as health.

Dec. 9-11, 2014

Basic tone: making progress while maintaining stability, centering on quality and efficiency of economic growth

Major tasks: China strived to keep economic growth and policies steady in 2015; actively adapt to the economic "new normal" of slower but higher quality growth; continue targeted and structured control policies to maintain medium-high growth; strengthen proactive fiscal policy; ensure prudent, balanced monetary policy; accelerate reform in administrative approval, investment, pricing, monopolies, franchising, government purchased services, and outbound investment; improve the investment environment and market access in the service sector; further open up manufacturing sectors; promote the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone (FTZ); stabilize inbound overseas investment and seek higher quality investment.

Dec. 10-13, 2013

Basic tone: pushing forward reform and innovation

Major tasks: China vowed to push forward reform and innovation in economic and social development; make progress while maintaining stability; continue proactive fiscal and prudent monetary policy; enhance quality and efficiency of economic growth; stimulate market vitality; accelerate structural adjustment; push forward interest rate liberalization and exchange rate reform; keep reasonable growth of the money supply and social financing; ensure national food security; resolve industrial overcapacity and advance innovation; contain local government debt risks; promote regional coordinated development; improve people's livelihoods; enhance the sound, transparent and fair environment to protect investors; strengthen the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road.

Dec. 15-16, 2012

Basic tone: enhancing quality and efficiency of economic growth

Major tasks: China vowed to make quality and efficiency of economic growth a central task; fully deepen reforms in its economic system and promote opening up; expand domestic demand as a strategic basis for development; implement proactive fiscal and prudent monetary policy; keep property market under control; push forward urbanization; protect foreign investors' rights and interests, and their intellectual property rights; avoid pomp and circumstance, and take concrete actions to serve the people; encourage private and public investment.

Dec. 12-14, 2011

Basic tone: making progress while maintaining stability

Major tasks: China vowed to enhance and improve macroeconomic regulations to maintain steady and relatively fast economic growth; boost farm production through agricultural development; accelerate economic restructuring to coordinate economic development and entrpreneurship; deepen reforms in key areas and open up; improve people's living standards and innovate social management mechanisms. Endi