Expert lauds economic change

Nicholas R. Lardy, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, has observed positive signs on China's economic front since the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China held in Beijing in October.

While many observers outside China noted the emphasis on the Party's role, Lardy pointed out that President Xi Jinping also mentioned the importance of market forces in his speech.

Most observers have focused on the revision of the Party's Constitution to include some of General Secretary Xi's thoughts, but Lardy said the Constitution also was revised to enshrine the phrase that the market must be the decisive force in the allocation of resources, which he said goes back to the Third Plenum of the 18th Party Congress in November 2013.