(April 30): President Xi Jinping will convene senior party officials in July for a closed-door conclave that will be watched for signs of long-term reforms to the world’s second-largest economy.

The Communist Party’s Central Committee will hold its third gathering since Xi broke China’s de facto two-term limit in 2022, according to the official Xinhua news agency. The date was announced as part of a regular monthly meeting of China’s 24-member, decision-making Politburo.

The event — known as the third plenum — is one of the most important in China’s political calendar, bringing together about 400 state leaders, ministers, military chiefs, provincial bosses and top academics for the better part of a week.

The conclave typically should have taken place in October or November, one year after China’s new leadership team was set, according to a Bloomberg analysis of meeting readouts. Delaying the gathering to 2024 marked the first time it’s been held in an off-schedule year in over three decades, adding to the uncertainty around China’s already-opaque political system.

The Xinhua report said the third plenum will discuss comprehensively deepening reforms and pushing forward Chinese-style modernisation, without providing the exact dates of the gathering.

According to the report, the Politburo also hinted at measures to prop up the ailing property market and cut interest rates, signalling more policy support ahead for the economy.

Between each party congress, the Central Committee convenes seven times in meetings called plenums that cover different topics. Sessions at this point in the five-year cycle tend to focus on broad economic and political goals, a legacy of the 1978 meeting where Deng Xiaoping unveiled changes to open up China’s economy.

During a meeting with US business leaders in March, Xi said the country is planning “major measures to comprehensively deepen reforms,” raising expectations that more policies could be unveiled at the plenum.

In 2013, for example, Xi used the third plenum to introduce plans to change China’s one-child policy, household registry system and the set tone for putting more emphasis on national security.

Although detailed economic policies are usually not discussed at such gatherings, the conclave will be scrutinised for any sign of major policy shifts as China attempts to stabilise its economy. Like most things in elite Chinese politics, the meeting takes place behind closed doors, with the outcome revealed in a communique afterward.

The plenum can also deal with personnel changes within the elite Central Committee. Former defence minister Li Shangfu and former chief diplomat Qin Gang both sit on the body, even though they have been removed from their government positions amid reports of a probe last year.