China unveils omnibus plan to narrow income gap

China revealed a slew of planned reforms on Tuesday – including changes to the tax, banking and household registration system – in a bid to reduce the increasing wealth gap, Reuters reported. Among the many reforms approved by the State Council is a measure to raise the taxes paid by state-controlled companies to the government by 5% by 2015. Another key point of the plan would expand the allowed range of interest rates on deposits and loans, which will give households greater returns on their savings. The reforms will also permit rural migrants to more easily switch their household registrations to urban areas, allowing increased access to city services and wages.