BEIJING - Chinese President Hu Jintao has said China should develop a modern industrial system that is structurally optimized, clean and safe, and that features advanced technologies.

Speaking at a Monday meeting of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, Hu said the nation needs to raise both its quality and cost-effectiveness in these areas in order to become an industrial powerhouse.

According to Hu, the country has become a major industrialized nation following the reform and opening-up policy initiated more than 30 years ago; however, mounting pressure on resources and the environment, a lack of core technology, as well as imbalanced regional development could impede healthy industrial growth and bring risks to the economy.

He said that solving these problems would be an "important assurance" in further enhancing the country's economic power and lifting its global competence.

The president called for intensive efforts to make progress in industrial upgrades, promoting emerging industries of strategic importance and expanding the service sector.

Work should also be undertaken to push forward innovation and implement strategies that seek to revitalize the country through science and education, he urged.

Hu also said that information technology should be further applied, and that the country needs to consolidate industries so as to prevent "blind expansion" and unnecessary construction.