Zhu Rongji, former Chinese premier and reform architect, dies at 97

The Story in Brief

Zhu Rongji, the former Chinese premier who drove the country's economic transformation, died on Wednesday in Beijing after an illness, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported. He was 97. Zhu served as premier from 1998 to 2003, during which he restructured state-owned enterprises, recapitalised banks, privatised housing, and led China's entry into the World Trade Organisation in 2001. An official obituary praised him as an 'excellent Party member' and 'loyal communist fighter'.

Zhu visited India in 2002 as premier, the first such visit in 11 years, and met then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to push closer economic ties. His reforms, however, also caused widespread layoffs and growing inequality. The economist Arthur Kroeber called Zhu the 'most effective economic leader in the history of the People's Republic', as reported by The Hindu. Livemint noted that supporters credit him with building the institutional foundation for China's rise.