National People's Congress

China’s Inner Mongolia seeks to avoid economic, security impact of ‘hollowing out’ amid population pressure

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China’s northern Inner Mongolia autonomous region would prioritise addressing the “hollowing out” of its border areas amid population concerns that could hinder its economic development and add to security risks. “Inner Mongolia … has more than 4,000km (2,485 miles) of borderline, shouldering a major political responsibility in safeguarding national security and border peace,” said Wang … Read more

Xi Jinping’s hi-tech push steals the spotlight at China’s ‘two sessions’ as Li Qiang scales back presence

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He then took part in a discussion with the NPC delegation of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) and the People’s Armed Police Force on Thursday. Xi, who is also China’s top military commander, called on the military representatives to integrate hi-tech development with the PLA’s war capacity to “comprehensively enhance strategic capabilities in emerging areas”. … Read more

As it happened: China’s ‘two sessions’ 2024 – Foreign Minister Wang Yi says those who ‘play with fire’ over Taiwan ‘will get burned’

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This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing in our spring flash sale. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is holding a press conference, one of the most-watched events during the annual “two sessions”. Top diplomat Wang will face the media during the … Read more

China’s ‘two sessions’ 2024: economic heavyweights face press on ambitious 5% GDP growth target

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This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing in our spring flash sale. China’s finance and commerce ministers, as well as the heads of the People’s Bank of China, National Development and Reform Commission and China Securities Regulatory Commission, face the press … Read more

Chinese Premier Li Qiang raises threat of ‘external interference’ in Taiwan during first ‘two sessions’ work report

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Former premier Li Keqiang also mentioned foreign interference in his remarks at the NPC session in 2022, but the topic did not appear in any other government work report in the past decade. 02:40 Chinese Premier Li Qiang delivers his first work report amid concerns about state of the economy Chinese Premier Li Qiang delivers … Read more

China’s ‘two sessions’ 2024: did Premier Li Qiang’s speech move the needle for foreign, private business?

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Beijing is angling to revive confidence in private entrepreneurs and foreign investors via a renewed campaign for a unified national market and better business environment – an essential task to fulfil its ambitious expansion target of around 5 per cent and ensure economic stability in 2024. In his maiden government work report on Tuesday, Premier … Read more

As it happened: China’s ‘two sessions’ 2024 – Premier Li Qiang sets GDP target of around 5% for the year

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This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing in our spring flash sale. Premier Li Qiang will deliver his first government work report at the meeting, offering a glimpse into the central government’s economic goals and foreign policy as well as its … Read more

China’s top legislators weigh changes to state secrets law

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China’s move to amend state secrets law fuels concern among businesses One area of change is the “work secrets of government departments”. CCTV quoted Luo Yuan, an NPC official in charge of the amendments, as saying lawmakers, government officials and legal experts had suggested these matters were already largely considered as state secrets but they … Read more

Pressure grows on China for big policy moves to fix sagging economy

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This photo taken on February 21, 2024, shows an employee working on a new energy vehicle assembly line at a BYD factory in Huai’an, in China’s eastern Jiangsu province. | Photo Credit: AFP As the annual meeting of China’s Parliament approaches next month, its leaders are facing the greatest pressure in almost a decade to … Read more

China price wars help spark US$157 billion rout in mainland consumer stocks as Alibaba, Yum China and BYD drag the market

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Gauges of consumer stocks have been the worst performers on the MSCI China Index since the end of September, after the real estate measure. The aggregate market value of companies included in the two consumer indexes has fallen by about US$157 billion since. Consumer stocks have been the worst performers on the MSCI China Index … Read more