Xi joins calls for financial risk control

The top leadership in Beijing vowed to crack down on financial irregularities to ward off risk, hinting at policy priorities ahead of the upcoming annual ­parliamentary sessions, the South China Morning Post reports. In a financial work meeting on Tuesday, Communist Party chief and Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a message about establishing a system to coordinate financial regulation, to safeguard against systemic risks. Xi also ordered that the pace of economic reform be sped up. The message came ahead of annual sessions that begin on ­Friday, in which lawmakers and advisers will gather in Beijing to discuss key policies at a time China is facing economic and financial headwinds that could send ripples through global markets. Xi called for an examination of the defects in the nation’s financial regulations, and for changes to them that would make “reference to international standards.”