President Xi calls for deeper reform and faster development in Shanghai

Chinese President Xi Jinping joins a panel discussion with deputies to the 12th National People's Congress (NPC) from Shanghai Municipality at the annual session of the NPC in Beijing, capital of China, March 5, 2017. (Xinhua/Wang Ye)

President Xi said that Shanghai should remain at the forefront of China's reform and opening-up, and should continue to make progress in the fields of science and technology innovation and social governance. Xi added that Shanghai's free-trade pilot zone remains of significant importance to the country as a whole in the context of the current global instability.