China reformer says asset disclosure under study

BEIJING (AP) - A rising political star with a reputation as a reformer says asset disclosure for Chinese officials will likely be slowly phased in as China's Communist Party seeks ways to tackle corruption.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a party congress in Beijing on Friday, Mr Wang Yang said the province he oversees, Guangdong, is looking into asset disclosure requirements. He believes all officials will be required to disclose their assets in the future.

Mr Wang's comments highlight the handwringing over the party's inability to tamp down on the corruption by officials and their family members that has deepened public disgust and fed many of the tens of thousands of protests that hit China yearly.

At the congress's opening on Thursday, President Hu Jintao warned that unrestrained corruption threatened the party's continued rule.