Centralising power: Xi to tighten party grip over economic life in China

Chinese President Xi Jinping is preparing to extend a sweeping government overhaul that would give the Communist Party greater control over everything from financial services to manufacturing to entertainment in the world’s second-largest economy, two people familiar with the matter said.  

The changes are part of a proposed “CPC leadership system” approved by the party on Feb. 28, the people said. Details of that document, which called for merging more than a dozen state agencies, are due to be revealed by March 17 when the National People’s Congress -- China’s rubber-stamp legislature -- votes on the plan.

The leadership expected