Chinese premier looks to reassure as growth pressure mounts

BEIJING (AP) — Chinese Premier Li Keqiang delivered his annual address before China's parliament on Saturday, laying out the government's development agenda for the next five years and covering a broad variety of topics ranging from boosting the Internet industry and urban employment to cutting steel production and carbon emissions.

Li highlighted China's pollution crisis for the second year in a row and promised a tougher response from the central government against companies that flout environmental protection laws.

The government will also direct universities to provide more applied skills training and encourage its 7.65 million college graduates in 2016 to start more businesses.

In rural areas, a recent focus for the top leadership, the central government will raise funding for poverty alleviation by more than 40 percent.

In one of the biggest stories of the past year, China's stock market plummeted 40 percent last summer after a prolonged bull run fanned by the government, sparking public outrage and prompting an all-out government effort to prop up shares.

Li also made no mention of China's currency policy, a subject of intense scrutiny after Beijing suddenly devalued the renminbi in mid-2015 to boost sagging exports.