China’s Vice Premier He Lifeng has assumed a leadership role at a top economic decision-making body, further cementing his position as the successor to US-China trade war-era policy aide Liu He.
He — a close confidante of President Xi Jinping — was described in a Chinese state media report as the office director of the Communist Party’s Central Financial and Economic Affairs Commission, the first public record of that appointment since the government finished reshuffling its key leaders in March.
Xinhua News Agency used the title for He in a report about his meeting with Emmanuel Bonne, the diplomatic adviser to the French president, in Beijing on Sunday. It had in the past been used to describe Liu, a US-trained economist who was former vice premier and led Beijing’s trade negotiations with Washington under the Trump administration.
He, 68, has been tasked with shoring up the nation’s embattled property industry as well as the $61 trillion financial sector. His purview includes all financial regulators — including a recently created super financial watchdog — as well as the housing ministry.
The vice premier has also been widely seen since the leadership shakeup as succeeding Liu as a top policy aide — though even after that changing of the guard concluded earlier this year, Liu met with foreign officials visiting China including US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen.
The office director position at the financial and economic affairs commission has evolved over the years. In 2013, Liu was appointed to a fairly equivalent position at an agency called the Central Financial and Economic Leading Group, as more policy setting power was moved under such groups directly overseen by Xi. The organization was revamped in 2018 to its current iteration.
The Xinhua report referencing He’s new title comes as Xi on Monday and Tuesday hosts a closed-door, twice-a-decade Financial Work Conference. Financial stability is likely a top priority as authorities seek to prevent a sluggish economy and troubles in the property industry spreading deeper into the banking sector.
