China removes five generals from national lawmaking body

Chinese lawmakers have stripped five People's Liberation Army generals of their membership in parliament, a statement from the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress showed on Thursday.

Li Qiaoming, who has been commander of the PLA Ground Force, and Shen Jinlong, former PLA Navy commander, were dismissed as NPC deputies.

Also removed were the current or former political commissars of the PLA Navy, Air Force and Information Support Force — Qing Shengxiang, Yu Zhongfu and Li Wei.

Several other military officers and a number of provincial officials — including Sun Shaocheng, the former party chief of the Inner Mongolia region — were also removed, the statement showed.

Removal of top financial regulator

Beijing has become increasingly worried about the sell-off on markets in Shanghai and Hong Kong, which has wiped trillions off valuations, and has unveiled a string of measures to try to staunch the rout.

On February 7, the state broadcaster CCTV said the top leadership of the ruling Communist Party removed Yi Huiman from his position as chief of China's Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), the country's top financial regulator.

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That came a day after, according to Bloomberg, leader Xi Jinping was due to meet with regulators to discuss efforts to lift the markets.

Yi, a former chairman of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, was appointed to the top job at CSRC in January 2019.

Yi had replaced Liu Shiyu, who was dismissed and investigated for "violations of laws and discipline", according to state media.

Last year, China recorded one of its lowest growth rates in three decades -- 5.2 percent -- according to an official figure that some economists are sceptical of.

The country has been hammered by a crippling property crisis, sluggish consumption and global turmoil, and officials have been under pressure to unveil more stimulus measures to kickstart business activity and get consumers spending again.