China sets new priorities for central state-owned enterprises

by HAOYU ZHANG
BEIJING, (CAJ News) — CHINA’S top leadership has set out fresh expectations for centrally administered state-owned enterprises, urging them to anchor their growth in national priorities and play a stronger role in advancing Chinese modernization.

President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, delivered the guidance in an instruction conveyed to a two-day meeting of heads of central SOEs held in Beijing.

Xi recognized the central SOEs as pillars of the national economy and called on them to align more closely with high-quality development goals.

He stressed that enterprises should better serve economic and social progress, contribute to improving people’s livelihoods, deepen reform, and strengthen their capacity to identify and mitigate risks.

Emphasizing long-term competitiveness, Xi urged central SOEs to consolidate their strengths in the real economy, accelerate breakthroughs in key and core technologies, and steadily move toward building world-class enterprises.

He also highlighted the need to reinforce Party leadership within SOEs, improve governance structures, tighten oversight, and maintain a firm stance against corruption.

Premier Li Qiang, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, attended the meeting and delivered remarks outlining priorities for the next planning cycle.

During the 15th Five-Year Plan period from 2026 to 2030, Li said, central SOEs should provide solid support for major national infrastructure projects while pushing forward digital and intelligent upgrades of traditional infrastructure.

He called for faster development of emerging industries aligned with each enterprise’s core functions, alongside efforts to safeguard energy and resource security.

Li urged SOEs to strengthen applied basic research, serve major national strategies more effectively, and deepen reforms of state capital and state-owned enterprises.

The meeting was chaired by Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing; Wu Zhenglong attended.

– CAJ News