Xi stresses efforts to win "three tough battles"

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday urged solid efforts to win the "three tough battles" of preventing financial risks, reducing poverty and tackling pollution.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks at the first meeting of the Central Committee for Financial and Economic Affairs.

Preventing and defusing financial risks is relevant to national security, overall development, and the security of people's property, and is a key threshold that the country must cross to achieve high-quality growth, said Xi, head of the Central Committee for Financial and Economic Affairs.

Premier Li Keqiang, who is also deputy head of the committee, and Wang Huning and Han Zheng, who are members of the committee, attended the meeting.

Wang Yang, chairman of the CPPCC National Committee, was also present.
The country has made progress in its fight against poverty, a battle that must be won, according to Xi.

Environmental issues are a major concern for the public, and are decisive to Chinese people's judgment of the success of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects, according to Xi.

To prevent and defuse financial risks, China should reduce the leverage ratio of local governments and companies, especially state-owned enterprises, according to a statement released after the meeting.

Tailored policies should be used to control risks in different financial markets, the statement said.

Financial supervision at the state and local level should be better coordinated, while local governments should be responsible for controlling local financial risks.

To reduce poverty, authorities should stick to the current poverty relief standards, and should not make arbitrary decisions to raise or lower the standards.

China should also encourage the use of clean energy and reduce the use of coal in its fight against pollution, according to the statement.

The meeting also approved work rules of the Central Committee for Financial and Economic Affairs, and stressed the CPC Central Committee's leading role in the country's economic work.

Editor: John Li