BEIJING: China will deepen financial reform and improve its regulatory regime to guard against risks to the economy, and further open up to foreign investment, Premier Li Keqiang said on Sunday (Mar 5).
The government will fend off risks for high-quality property firms and reduce the burden of interest payments for local governments, the outgoing premier said in his work report to the opening of the annual meeting of China’s parliament.
“We need to deepen reform of the financial system, improve financial regulation, and see that all those involved assume their full responsibilities to guard against regional and systemic financial risks,” the premier said.
China has stepped up its efforts to cope with financial risks as the economy grew by just 3 per cent last year, one of its worst showings in decades. The economy was squeezed by three years of COVID-19 restrictions, a crisis in its property sector, a crackdown on private enterprise and weakening demand for Chinese exports.
The premier also gave greater emphasis to institutional reform compared with last year. This came after state media reports on Tuesday that President Xi Jinping plans for an “intensive” and “wide-ranging” re-organisation of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and Communist Party entities.