China’s ruling Communist Party pledged a “decisive” role for the market as it outlined sweeping reforms at the close of a conclave intended to map China’s direction for the next decade.
In a rare policy pronouncement from China’s secretive ruling elite, a communiqué at the conclusion of the four-day meeting reinforced the reformist rhetoric of President Xi Jinping, signalling an eventual end to state-mandated prices in the world’s second-largest economy.
A further potentially radical step pledged to address the “two-tier” system of land ownership that prevents farmers from selling their land. This has hampered them as they try to embark with their families on new lives in the country’s burgeoning cities. “Farmers should participate equally and enjoy the fruits of modernisation,” the communiqué said.