China to hold key political meeting July 15-18: State media

BEIJING - China will hold a key political meeting historically watched for signals on economic direction from July 15 to 18, state media reported on June 27.

A year and a half after crippling Covid-19 restrictions ended, China’s recovery has lost pace, sending ripples of unease through the country’s leaders and citizens.

The Third Plenum, originally expected last autumn, is highly anticipated in the hope it will resolve uncertainty and reveal details of the Chinese leadership’s strategy going forward.

Announcing the dates, state news agency Xinhua said the meeting would “primarily examine issues related to further comprehensively deepening reform and advancing Chinese modernisation”.

Authorities have been clear they want to re-orientate the economy around high-tech innovation and domestic consumption.

But economic uncertainty is fuelling a vicious cycle that has kept the latter stubbornly low.

So far, President Xi Jinping’s government has resisted any big stimulus, and last week the head of China’s central bank warned that was not on the cards.

The economy still faced many challenges, he said, but authorities would exercise moderation. AFP