Chinese government vows to advance state-owned enterprise, asset reform

Senior officials from the Chinese government have pledged continued efforts to promote the reform of state-owned assets and enterprises.

These officials, including Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing and others from several government ministries and commissions, made the pledge on Monday at a meeting held during an ongoing session of the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee.

Lawmakers deliberated a report on state-owned assets held by non-financial enterprises for 2024. They also launched a joint inquiry at the meeting, which was attended by Zhao Leji, chairman of the NPC Standing Committee.

At the meeting, lawmakers raised questions about measures taken in recent years to deepen the reform of state-owned assets and enterprises, the results achieved, and key tasks to be focused on in the next steps, among others.

Addressing their questions, Zhang said that the reform of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) has been continuously deepened, significantly enhancing their vitality and efficiency, ensuring stable and improved production and operations, and enabling them to play a vital role in critical situations.

The State Council and relevant government bodies will continue to optimize the layout of the state-owned sector, improve the regulatory system, promote the high-quality development of SOEs, and better leverage the strategic supporting role of the state-owned economy, Zhang added.

Presiding over the meeting, Xiao Jie, vice chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, called on the State Council and relevant departments to conscientiously study and address the suggestions raised by lawmakers, and submit a report on their follow-up actions to the NPC Standing Committee in accordance with the law.