On Sunday, Xi was confirmed for a precedent-breaking third term as president and introduced a Politburo Standing Committee stacked with loyalists including Li Qiang, the Shanghai Communist Party chief who is now in line to succeed Li Keqiang as premier.
Li Qiang will have the job of driving growth to fend off widespread job losses that could undermine social stability, at a time when Xi is putting ever more emphasis on security.
He will inherit an economy, the world’s second-largest, that has been dragged down by strict COVID curbs and a deepening property crisis, while hopes for any meaningful reforms have diminished as the ruling Communist Party tightens its grip on the economy.
On Monday, Hong Kong stocks tumbled, Chinese stocks fell and the yuan weakened after the new line-up of China’s top governing body heightened fears that Xi will double down on ideology-driven policies at the cost of growth.