Middle-income group can be a bridge to sustainable growth

The authorities' latest call for efforts to expand the middle-income group is much needed, because China's sustainable growth in the long run is dependent on the formation of a significantly larger middle-income group who will increase consumption and reward supply-side reforms that best serve their needs.

At a meeting of the Central Leading Group for Financial and Economic Affairs on Monday, President Xi Jinping particularly stressed efforts to expand the middle-income group and improve the income distribution mechanism.

This newly-found sense of urgency to further increase the number of middle-income workers is surely related to the role that consumption is now playing in ensuring the stable, moderate growth of the world's second-largest economy.