China to complete formation of new government departments by mid-April

BEIJING (Reuters) - China will complete by mid-April the formation of new government departments announced as part of a sweeping restructuring plan ratified by parliament, state television reported late on Saturday citing comments from Vice Premier Han Zheng. In March, China’s parliament passed the restructuring plan that merged several ministries and regulators in a bid to streamline the organizational structure and increase the ruling Communist Party’s control. The biggest moves included the merger of the country’s banking and insurance regulators and increasing the central bank’s financial sector oversight. Seven new ministries and eight new administrations are under the state council, including a new market regulatory administration with a broad remit ranging from anti-monopoly and pricing supervision to product quality and safety. China is also consolidating film, news and publishing regulation under the Communist Party’s publicity department, signaling tighter media control.