CPC leaders analyze economy, to convene Central Committee plenum in October

The fifth plenary session of the 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) will be held in Beijing in October, according to a decision made at a CPC Central Committee Political Bureau meeting on Thursday.

Photo taken on May 28, 2020 shows a view of the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China. [Photo/Xinhua]

Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, presided over the meeting.

The Political Bureau will present its work report to the CPC Central Committee at the plenary session, where attendees will also assess the proposals for formulating the 14th Five-Year (2021-2025) Plan for Social and Economic Development and future targets for 2035, according to a statement issued after the meeting.

The CPC Central Committee Political Bureau also studied the current economic situation at Thursday's meeting and made arrangements for the economic work for the second half of the year.

The 14th Five-Year Plan period is the first five years after China has completed building a moderately prosperous society in all respects and achieved the first centenary goal, according to the meeting.

The period will also mark the time for the country to build on this achievement to embark on a new journey toward the second centenary goal of fully building a modern socialist country, said the statement.

Going forward, China will still be in a period of strategic opportunity for development, facing new opportunities and challenges, it said.

Aerial photo taken on June 28, 2020 shows a bullet train running on the Shangqiu-Hefei-Hangzhou high-speed railway in Anji County, east China's Zhejiang Province. [Photo/Xinhua]

The meeting stressed the need to hold high the great banner of socialism with Chinese characteristics to promote China's economic and social development in the period of the 14th Five-Year Plan, and to secure a good start in fully building a modern socialist country.

The meeting also underscored upholding and improving systems and mechanisms for the Party to lead economic and social development to offer a fundamental guarantee for high-quality development.

Efforts were also stressed to stay committed to deeper reform and wider opening-up, and to continuously increase the impetus and vitality for development.

The meeting stressed that, in the face of the serious impact of the COVID-19 epidemic, China has prioritized the lives and health of the public.

Highlighting the major progress in coordinating efforts to contain the outbreak and promote economic and social development, the meeting said economic growth in the second quarter was significantly better than expected, which fully demonstrated the correctness of decisions and arrangements made by the CPC Central Committee, the strong leadership of the Party, and the resilience of China's economy.

It said that the current economic situation remains complicated and challenging with unstable and uncertain factors.

Since many problems we face are long- and medium-term, resolving such problems is like fighting a protracted war, said the meeting.

Stressing the need to follow the general principle of pursuing progress while ensuring stability over the second half of this year, the meeting underscored promoting high-quality economic development, maintaining social stability, and striving to fulfill the targets and tasks for economic and social development of this year.

While requiring full implementation of macro policies, the meeting called for pursuing a more proactive and effective fiscal policy that delivers solid outcomes, and a more flexible and appropriate monetary policy that targets sound results, according to the meeting.

The meeting demanded unremitting efforts in improving regular epidemic prevention and control measures, increasing reserves of medical materials, and strengthening anti-epidemic international cooperation to build a global community of health for all.

It urged efforts to keep expanding domestic demand, counteract the impact of COVID-19, boost final consumption, and create conditions for consumption upgrading.

The meeting also stressed efforts to ensure people's livelihoods, eradicate poverty, prevent and control pollution, and step up flood control and disaster relief measures.

The meeting called for the implementation of a number of major projects on the ecological protection along the Yangtze River and the Yellow River, as well as the 10-year fishing ban in key areas of the Yangtze River.

Safety should be ensured along rivers across the country, the meeting added, noting that the restoration and reconstruction after the floods should be carefully planned.