Premier Li Keqiang has urged newly-appointed members of the State Council’s Counselor Office to step up studies on major economic issues as geopolitical tension complicates the global situation and adds to the challenges posed to the Chinese economy.

New subjects are a challenge for the country as its economic growth slows amid the changing international order, Li said at a seminar with new members of the State Council’s Counselor Office and the central literature and history research office in Beijing on Feb 9.

He told members of the two offices to conduct studies on encouraging high-tech innovation, balancing growth with restructuring and pushing ahead reforms in key sectors.

“Only if you understand the global situation can you point out the way for a future China,” Li said.

[Photo/China Daily]

The two offices, both consultant agencies affiliated to the Chinese government, were established soon after the founding of New China in 1949.

Most of the counselors are selected from members of non-Communist parties in China, while the rest are senior experts or retired government officials with vast experience in their field. A counselor should aged between 55 and 70 and serves a single term of a maximum of five years.

Justin Yifu Lin, former World Bank chief economist and a State Council’s counselor, suggested the government announce more pro-growth measures to counteract the economic slowdown and ensure that growth does not slip under 7 percent.

[Photo/Xinhua]

[Photo/Xinhua]

[Photo/China News Service]

[Photo/China News Service]