China’s Communist Party to hold top-level meeting in October

The fifth plenary session of the 20th Central Committee — an elite party body — will be held from October 26 to 29 in Beijing, state news agency Xinhua reported. — Reuters file pic

First Published: Monday, 21 Sep 2026 4:38 PM MYT

BEIJING, Sept 21 — Top leaders of China’s ruling Communist Party will gather for a major meeting in October, state media said today.

The fifth plenary session of the 20th Central Committee — an elite party body — will be held from October 26 to 29 in Beijing, state news agency Xinhua reported.

The dates were set on Monday at a meeting of the 21-member Politburo, chaired by President Xi Jinping, who is also party general secretary.

The closed-door meetings, known as “plenums”, of the Central Committee — composed of around 200 members — are held roughly once per year and typically affirm the party’s key policy objectives.

October’s meeting will be the fifth time the committee has convened since it began its most recent term in 2022 following the 20th national party congress.

It will likely also be one of the last times the committee meets before the next such congress, scheduled for autumn 2027, where Xi is expected to secure a fourth term as leader.

The previous gathering, in October 2025, focused on the economy and China’s 15th Five-Year Plan for development. — AFP