Li Keqiang’s big day: Chinese premier set to push his reform plan as he takes questions from the media

China’s growth is still on track and Beijing isn’t giving up its reform agenda.

That’s the key message Premier Li Keqiang is expected to deliver at his annual post-National People’s Congress press conference in the Great Hall of the People on Wednesday.

The event is the closest most of the media can get to questioning the premier on China’s economic, diplomatic and social issues and there is much to cover.

Analysts said Li was expected to use the show to reassure the world that the Chinese economy was safe and sound, and Beijing had learned from last year’s stock market rout and exchange-rate missteps.

But whether Li, now in his fourth year in the job, can convince is open to debate, with angry coal mine workers protesting over unpaid salaries, local cadres complaining about the huge task of restructuring industry, and speculators pushing up housing prices in major cities.