Xi Jinping showcases policy priorities on first trip to Shanghai since 2020, as Chinese leader promotes his agenda
- The Chinese president’s itinerary included a futures exchange, technology fair and affordable housing project signalling some of the main items on his agenda
- It was his first visit to the city, one of the country’s key economic hubs, since last year’s prolonged Covid lockdown brought it grinding to a halt
Chinese President Xi Jinping is making his first visit to Shanghai since 2020, state media reported on Wednesday, on a trip that highlights some key aspects of his policy agenda in areas such as finance, technology and welfare.
State broadcaster CCTV reported that the Chinese leader was in the city on Tuesday and Wednesday, visiting the Shanghai Futures Exchange, the ongoing Shanghai Science and Technology Innovation Exhibition and an affordable accomodation project.
Footage from the innovation exhibition showed Xi examining a display of semiconductor integrated circuits – a technology that lies at the heart of China’s tech competition with the US – and watching a walking, human-shaped robot in the artificial intelligence section.
He also visited a project providing affordable rental accomodation for migrant workers in the city’s Minhang district and gave a speech to the tenants outside.