Chinese leadership vows stable macro economic policies to sustain growth

BEIJING -- China's top leadership on Monday pledged that it would stabilize and improve macro policies to create an amicable environment for economic growth and ongoing structural reforms.

In a meeting convened to discuss the draft of the annual government work report and proposals for the 13th Five-Year Plan, the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China's (CPC) Central Committee said enhancing growth quality and efficiency will be the focus of the 2016-2020 period.

China will continue to implement proactive fiscal policies and prudent monetary policies, while stepping up supply-side structural reforms to power growth, according to a statement released after the meeting, chaired by President Xi Jinping.

More should be done to make the most out of domestic demand potentials, the statement said.

The leadership also pledged it would speed up the development of modern agriculture and push forward a new round of high-level opening-up. Green development will also be made a priority, they added.

Eyeing 2016 as a critical year for China to deliver the country's social and economic targets, the leadership listed the cutting of industrial capacity, destocking, de-leveraging, lowering corporate costs and identifying weak links as major tasks for the year.

China's economy grew by 6.9 percent year on year in 2015, its lowest annual expansion in a quarter of a century, but well in line with government target of around 7 percent.

Reviewing China's economic performance for the 2010-2015 period, the meeting said China had achieved "landmark progress" in economic restructuring.

Consumption contributed 66.4 percent of China's gross domestic product (GDP) in 2015, up 15.4 percentage points from 2014.

The meeting came ahead of China's annual two sessions in March, during which lawmakers and political advisors will gather in Beijing to discuss the social and economic policies for the year.