Xi calls for "putting quality first" in economic development

Xi Jinping on Wednesday called for putting quality first and giving priority to performance in the country's economic development.

Xi made the remarks in a report to the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) at the Great Hall of the People in central Beijing.

The 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China opens at the Great Hall of the People in central Beijing, October 18, 2017. [Photo: Xinhua]

"China's economy has been transitioning from a phase of rapid growth to a stage of high-quality development," Xi said, calling this a pivotal stage for transforming growth model, improving economic structure, and fostering new drivers of growth. 

Stressing it is imperative that China develop a modernized economy, he described supply-side structural reform as the main task, and urged more efforts for better quality, higher efficiency, and more robust drivers of economic growth.

Xi called for raising total factor productivity and accelerating the building of an industrial system that promotes coordinated development of the real economy with technological innovation, modern finance, and human resources.

"We should endeavor to develop an economy with more effective market mechanisms, dynamic micro-entities, and sound macro-regulation," he said.