China’s Politburo Vows to Strengthen Anti-Monopoly Efforts

(Bloomberg) -- China’s Politburo, the top decision-making body of the Communist Party, vowed to strengthen anti-monopoly efforts next year as it seeks to rein in what it called “disorderly capital expansion.”

The comments came after a Politburo meeting on the party’s economic work for 2021, and were reported by the official news agency Xinhua.

The Politburo also said it will implement targeted macroeconomic policies in 2021, while keeping the economy’s performance in a reasonable range. The focus will continue to be on expanding domestic demand, and providing stronger strategic support to the science and technology sector, according to Xinhua.

Beijing last month unveiled draft regulations aimed at rooting out monopolistic practices in the internet industry, seeking to curtail the growing influence of corporations like e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and WeChat operator Tencent Holdings Ltd. The new rules will establish a framework for curbing anti-competitive behavior such as colluding on sharing sensitive consumer data, alliances that squeeze out smaller rivals and subsidizing services at below cost to eliminate competitors.

The Politburo’s comments are a likely prelude to the Central Economic Work Conference, which usually takes place in December, and is expected to give further detail about the party’s five-year and 15-year economic plans.

China will also promote a healthy development of the property sector and continue to improve the quality of the ecological environment, according to Xinhua. It will also seek more high-quality opening up of the economy in 2021.

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With assistance from Bloomberg