China's Xi nominates Li Qiang to become premier

Li Qiang is a close ally of Xi, having served as his chief of staff between 2004 and 2007, when Xi was provincial party secretary of the Zhejiang province in eastern China

Li Qiang, one of Chinese President Xi Jinping's most trusted allies, was confirmed as premier on Saturday, as Xi asserts his influence on the country's top leadership.

Li, the former Shanghai party chief who oversaw the city's gruelling two-month lockdown last spring, was named the successor of outgoing premier Li Keqiang at a meeting of the country's rubber-stamp parliament.

The 63-year-old received nearly all votes from the more than 2,900 delegates at the National People's Congress a day after Xi was unanimously selected by deputies for a norm-breaking third term as president.

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Xi's motion nominating Li Qiang as premier was read out to the chamber on Saturday morning.

Journalists were asked to leave the chamber as deputies, mostly dressed in dark suits, marked their votes on their ballots in a tightly choreographed process.

Delegates later applauded as Xi ceremoniously deposited his votes in the ballot box while cheerful traditional music played from speakers.

An electronic screen in the hall displayed 2,936 votes for Li, with only three delegates voting against his appointment and eight abstaining.

Li's ascension had previously seemed in doubt after his handling of the Shanghai lockdown, in which residents struggled to access food and medical care.

But Li's record, as well as widespread protests last winter over Xi's 'zero-Covid' policy, has been brushed aside as Xi cements his grip on Chinese politics.

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Unlike almost all previous premiers, Li does not have experience working at the central government level.

He was put on track for premier in October when he was appointed to the number-two role on the Politburo Standing Committee during the once-in-five-year Communist Party Congress.

Li, who started his career as an irrigation pump station worker near his hometown, rose steadily through local government ranks and was promoted to the affluent Zhejiang province's top job in 2012.

He was Xi's chief of staff from 2004-2007 when the Chinese leader was Zhejiang's party chief.

In 2017, Li was appointed the party secretary of Shanghai -- a sign of the president's high degree of trust in him.

Now, in his capacity as premier and head of China's cabinet, the State Council, he will be responsible for the day-to-day running of the country, as well as macroeconomic policy.

Outgoing premier Li Keqiang last week announced a growth target of "around 5 per cent" for 2023, one of the lowest in decades, as the world's number two economy fights stiff headwinds.

Last year, the Chinese economy expanded just three per cent, one of its weakest performances in decades on the back of the Covid-19 pandemic, lockdowns and a real estate crisis.

China's housing market, which along with construction accounts for more than a quarter of GDP, remains in a slump, having been dealt a hefty blow since Beijing started cracking down on excessive borrowing and rampant speculation in 2020.

Given the challenges, Xi is installing a slate of loyalists in key positions amid the biggest government reshuffle in a decade. As a generation of more reform-minded officials retires, Xi is further consolidating power after being elected president for an unprecedented third term on Friday.

(With inputs from Reuters)