BEIJING: China has issued a set of directives aimed at boosting household consumption, a weakness weighing on growth in the world’s second-largest economy, with the plan targeting sectors including child and elder care, and food and beverage.

Leaders including President Xi Jinping pledged last month to help boost domestic consumption and ease pressure on China’s ailing property sector, following a gathering of the ruling Communist Party’s top brass.

The State Council, China’s cabinet, published a list of 20 general directives on its website on Saturday evening, constituting a general roadmap for ministries and local authorities as the economy recovers after the lifting of strict pandemic measures at the end of 2022 that had hindered growth.

The plan, which does not include proposed budgets, urges authorities to “increase the supply of care services for the elderly”, a sector with growth potential in a country with an ageing population.