BEIJING -- A number of foreign media issued reports on the occasion of the 17th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), hailing the progress China has made since it adopted the reform and opening up policy, especially in the past five years.

Vietnamese party daily Nhan Dan (People) reported that under the leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Hu Jintao as general secretary in building socialism with Chinese characteristics, China has enhanced its economic strength, significantly improved the livelihood of its people, and made new progress in promoting democracy and the rule of law in the past five years.

Vietnam Economic Times commented that while China maintains continuous high-speed economic growth, the coordinated development between various regions as well as between the urban and rural areas has been greatly strengthened, and revenues and enterprise profits have continued to increase by a big margin.

Economic figures have shown that the Chinese economy has landed on the track of sound and fast development, the paper said.

The People's Army daily of Vietnam said in an article that the CPC's 17th National Congress is of great significance as it will sum up the experience and lessons accumulated in building socialism with Chinese characteristics and set the direction for political development in the next five years and a series of important guidelines and policies.

Japan's Kyodo News Agency said Monday that CPC General Secretary Hu Jintao's work report at the congress laid emphasis on the Scientific Outlook on Development and adhered to the principle of putting people first, thus shifting development from simply pursuing economic growth toward raising people's living standards and achieving social equality with a view to realizing a harmonious society.

The Mainichi Shimbun daily reported earlier that Hu's Scientific Outlook on Development deals with the challenges china is facing now, such as the growing income disparity, corruption and pollution.

The Financial Times issued an eight-page special report Tuesday on the CPC's national congress, using 16 articles to depict an overall picture of China.