President Xi Jinping called on Monday for more reform and innovation ahead of the introduction of China's 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20).

The spirit of reform and innovation must be strengthened and the country's governance system should be modernized, said Xi, who also heads the Central Leading Group for Comprehensively Deepening Reform.

"Reform and development have achieved a high degree of integration. Further development needs to be based on reforms, while progress on reforms gives a strong impetus for development," Xi said during the 18th meeting of the group.

Last week, the Communist Party of China Central Committee announced a comprehensive proposal for the country's development over the next five years, starting from next year.

The importance of creating a network of high-standard free trade areas was highlighted at Monday's meeting, as these "could better mobilize domestic and international resources".

The leading group stressed that the market should be allowed to play a decisive role in allocating resources, and the government should play a better role. In addition, China should widen access to its service sector.

Innovation was called for in the processing trade so that China could gain a new edge in international competition while not losing its traditional advantages. Consistency of government policies in this regard was needed to help the processing trade to develop and move up the global value chain.

A statement issued after the meeting said China will attach greater importance to the quality rather than the quantity of its foreign trade, with the aim of becoming an international trading powerhouse.