We will take timely action to accelerate price reform.

This reform is aimed at ensuring the market plays the decisive role in allocating resources and significantly reducing the number of categories and items of goods and services for which prices are set by the government. In principle, we will lift pricing controls over all goods and services that can viably compete in markets. The government will stop setting prices for most pharmaceuticals and delegate to lower-level governments the power to set prices for certain basic public services.

We will expand the trials of pricing reforms for electricity transmission and distribution, carry out pricing reforms for water used in agriculture, and improve pricing policies to make them more conducive to energy conservation and environmental protection. We will improve the pricing of resource products and fully implement a system of tiered pricing for electricity, water, and natural gas used for household purposes. At the same time, we must strengthen oversight over pricing, improve market order, and ensure the basic living standards of people on low incomes.

We will ensure that progress is made in the reform of the fiscal and tax systems.

We will put in place a comprehensive, well-regulated, open, and transparent budgeting system. With the exception of cases where classified information is involved, all central and local government departments must release their budgets and final accounts for public oversight. We will increase the percentage of funds transferred from the budgets for state capital operations to general public budgets. We will introduce medium-term fiscal planning. We will design effective measures to make good use of government funds at hand.

We will devote serious energy to completing work to replace business tax with VAT across the board, adjust and improve policies on consumption tax, and extend price-based resource taxes to cover more types of resources. We will submit a proposal to the NPC Standing Committee on revising the Law on the Administration of Tax Collection.

We will reform the transfer payments system, clearly define the respective powers and spending responsibilities of the central and local governments, and make appropriate adjustments to the division of revenue between them.