On October 25 and 26, China and the United States held economic and trade consultations in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. In one sense, these were routine talks between the trade representatives from Beijing and Washington – just like the previous four rounds of negotiations held this year following U.S. President Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs in April. But the just concluded fifth round of trade talks between the two countries served two urgent purposes: to try to extend the “tariff truce” beyond November 10 (when the last 90-day truce would have expired) and to serve as a prelude to the summit meeting between China’s Xi Jinping and Trump in South Korea on October 30.

With the world’s attention focused on the fracas between the United States and China over the ongoing trade war – first involving tariffs and now expanded to rare earths – all eyes were turned to the summitry in South Korea. But that overlooks a key moment that took place in China just ahead of the trade talks: the Fourth Plenum of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Central Committee, held in Beijing during October 20-23.

CCP plenums are always mostly political affairs, but this year’s Fourth Plenum is notable for its focus on the upcoming 15th Five-Year Plan. As revealed in signalling documents, including the Fourth Plenum’s communique and recommendations, the 15th Five-Year Plan’s agenda is to intensify China’s “high quality” development in the