Will take forceful measures to ensure high-end manufacturing: Xi Jinping

This comes against the backdrop of shifts of production capacity to US, neighbours

China will take forceful measures to support the development of high-end manufacturing, President Xi Jinping said in first comments at the closely watched National People’s Congress.

The manufacturing industry must always be a pillar of strength for China, Xi told delegates from Jiangsu province. The country must ensure its self-reliance in technology, foster small and medium-sized enterprises and build global centers for innovation, state-run CCTV cited Xi as saying on Sunday. The commentary, also conveyed in a Xinhua report Monday, comes against a backdrop of accelerating shifts of production capacity from China to neighboring nations like India and Vietnam.

Big electronics assemblers