Chinese leadership vows to avoid pomp

BEIJING - Chinese leaders must avoid pomp and circumstance, and take concrete actions to win public trust, said a statement issued Sunday after a two-day central economic work conference.

The meeting urged officials to work hard, practice a thrifty lifestyle and understand the real situation facing the nation through deep involvement with the general public.

It also called for an improvement in officials' work style and a down-to-earth attitude so as to shore up public trust in the ruling party and the government, according to the statement.

The resolution echoes a meeting of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee earlier this month, at which participants vowed against formalism, bureaucracy and extravagance.

Xi Jinping, newly-elected general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, soon delivered the goods as his recent trip to south China featured no traffic controls or red-carpet arrangements.