On the morning of February 17, Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee, President of the State, and Chairman of the Central Military Commission, attended a symposium on private enterprises in Beijing and delivered an important speech. He emphasized that the Party and the country's fundamental policies on the development of the private economy have been incorporated into the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and will be consistently upheld and implemented without change. The private economy has broad prospects and great potential in the new era and new journey, and it is the right time for private enterprises and entrepreneurs to fully demonstrate their capabilities. It is necessary to unify thinking, strengthen confidence, and promote the healthy and high-quality development of the private economy. He hopes that private enterprises and entrepreneurs will have a patriotic ambition, focus wholeheartedly on development, operate legally and well, and promote common prosperity after becoming wealthy, making new and greater contributions to advancing Chinese-style modernization.

Li Qiang, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Premier of the State Council, and Ding Xuexiang, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Vice Premier of the State Council, attended the symposium. Wang Huning, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, presided over the symposium.

At the symposium, six representatives of private enterprise leaders, including Ren Zhengfei, CEO of Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd., Wang Chuanfu, Chairman of BYD Co., Ltd., Liu Yonghao, Chairman of New Hope Group Co., Ltd., Yu Renrong, Chairman of Shanghai Will Semiconductor Co., Ltd., Wang Xingxing, CEO of Hangzhou Yushu Technology Co., Ltd., and Lei Jun, Chairman of Xiaomi Technology Co., Ltd., spoke in turn, offering opinions and suggestions on promoting the development of the private economy under the new circumstances.

After listening to the speeches, Xi Jinping delivered an important speech. He stated that private enterprises have flourished alongside the great process of reform and opening up. Over the decades, the Party's theory and practice regarding the status and role of the private economy in reform, opening up, and socialist modernization have been consistent and progressive. The Party and the country adhere to and improve the basic socialist economic system, unswervingly consolidate and develop the public ownership economy, and unswervingly encourage, support, and guide the development of the non-public economy. The Party and the country ensure that all types of ownership economies use production factors equally according to law, participate fairly in market competition, and receive equal legal protection, promoting complementary advantages and common development among all ownership economies, as well as the healthy development of the non-public economy and the healthy growth of non-public economic actors.

Xi Jinping pointed out that China's private economy has now reached a considerable scale and holds significant weight, providing a solid foundation for promoting high-quality development of the private economy. In the new era and new journey, China's social productive forces will continue to leap forward, people's living standards will steadily improve, reform and opening up will be further deepened comprehensively, especially with rapid development in education and science and technology, a large and high-quality talent and labor force, a well-matched industrial and infrastructure system, and a huge market potential with over 1.4 billion people, bringing many new opportunities and greater development space for the private economy. The socialist system with Chinese characteristics has many significant advantages, and the socialist market economic system and the socialist rule of law system with Chinese characteristics are continuously improving, providing stronger guarantees for the development of the private economy.

Xi Jinping emphasized that the current difficulties and challenges faced by the private economy generally arise during the process of reform, development, and industrial transformation and upgrading. These are localized rather than overall, temporary rather than long-term, and surmountable rather than unsolvable. It is necessary to unify thoughts and actions with the CPC Central Committee's judgment on domestic and international situations and its decisions on economic work, to see prospects, light, and the future amid difficulties and challenges, maintain development resilience, strengthen confidence, and keep the fighting spirit of striving to win.

Xi Jinping pointed out that solidly implementing policies and measures to promote the development of the private economy is the current key task. All decisions made by the CPC Central Committee must be resolutely implemented without compromise. Obstacles to the equal legal use of production factors and fair market competition must be firmly removed. Efforts should continue to open competitive infrastructure sectors fairly to all types of business entities and vigorously address the difficulties and high costs of financing for private enterprises. Efforts should focus on resolving arrears owed to private enterprises. Law enforcement supervision should be strengthened, and issues such as arbitrary fees, fines, inspections, and closures should be rectified to effectively protect the lawful rights and interests of private enterprises and entrepreneurs. At the same time, it should be recognized that China is a socialist rule-of-law country, and illegal acts by enterprises of all ownership types cannot evade investigation and punishment. All relief policies should be earnestly implemented with improved precision and comprehensive measures, treating enterprises equally. Further efforts should be made to build clean and close government-business relations. Party committees and governments at all levels should base their work on actual conditions and coordinate the implementation of policies and measures to promote the development of the private economy.

Xi Jinping emphasized that enterprises are the main business entities, and their endogenous development momentum is paramount. Private enterprises and entrepreneurs should be full of entrepreneurial and patriotic passion, continuously elevate their ideals, deeply cultivate a sense of national responsibility, be grateful and progressive, promote the spirit of entrepreneurship, focus on strengthening, optimizing, and expanding their enterprises, and firmly be builders of socialism with Chinese characteristics and promoters of Chinese-style modernization. They should unswervingly follow the path of high-quality development, adhere to their main business, strengthen real industries, enhance independent innovation, transform development methods, continuously improve enterprise quality, efficiency, and core competitiveness, and strive to contribute more to promoting technological innovation, cultivating new productive forces, building a modern industrial system, comprehensively advancing rural revitalization, promoting regional coordinated development, and ensuring and improving people's livelihood. According to the requirements of the modern enterprise system with Chinese characteristics, enterprises should improve governance structures, regulate shareholder behavior, strengthen internal supervision, improve risk prevention mechanisms, and continuously improve the use, management, and protection mechanisms of production factors such as labor, talent, knowledge, technology, capital, and data, paying attention to cultivating successors. They should adhere to honest and lawful operations, establish correct values and ethics, and promote the healthy development of the private economy through practical actions. They should actively fulfill social responsibilities, build harmonious labor relations, focus on ecological and environmental protection, participate in public welfare and charity within their capacity, and contribute love to society.

Wang Huning, while presiding over the meeting, stated that General Secretary Xi Jinping's important speech fully affirms the significant achievements of the private economy and its important contributions to the country's economic and social development. It emphasizes the correct understanding of the opportunities and challenges faced by the private economy and makes comprehensive arrangements for promoting the healthy and high-quality development of the private economy in the current and future periods. The speech is lofty in purpose, profound in thought, incisive in argument, and rich in content. We must earnestly study, comprehend, and resolutely implement it. We should strengthen development confidence, enhance overall awareness, systematic thinking, and the spirit of the rule of law, implement all policies effectively, and strive to create a new situation for the development of the private economy.

Shi Taifeng, Li Shulei, He Lifeng, Wu Zhenglong, and Mu Hong attended the symposium.

Relevant departments of the central and state organs, responsible comrades from the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce, and representatives of private enterprise leaders participated in the symposium.