China has decided to set energy and resource conservation as one of its primary tasks in optimizing the country's economic structure.

The decision was made during the three-day central economic conference which ended Sunday in Beijing.

China will develop a resource-efficient mode of development through attaching importance to natural resources and paying close attention to resource and energy conservation.

A circular economy will also be gradually developed to promote highly efficient industrial and consumption structures.

The meeting also called for more attention to be paid to the role of market mechanism in regional development.

(CRI December 6, 2004)