Zhu Rongji, who helped turn China into a trading giant, dies at 97

Zhu Rongji, former Chinese Premier, died at the age of 97. He served in the country's second-highest office from 1998-2003 and played a leading role in securing China's entry into the World Trade Organization. He was an important economic reformer who moved local tax powers to the central government, closed or privatised failing state firms, and promoted home ownership. In 1998, he said China was facing "many potential crises that could erupt at any time…Ordinary people are discontent about us in many ways. Especially, there is corruption among officials, the gulf between rich and poor and the way some local officials act like tyrants."

He labelled rogue bankers as "half-wits" and said the dams and flood dykes lining the Yangtze River were as "flimsy and porous as tofu dregs". Under his leadership, China began transforming into a manufacturing powerhouse. His reforms led to 30 million lay-offs over five years and increased inequality. Chinese state media describe Zhu Rongji's life as one of "revolution, struggle and brilliance". He was born in the central province of Hunan in 1928 and earned a degree in electrical engineering before joining the civil service. He joined the Communist Party in 1949, but was purged twice.