Xi Jinping's extensive consolidation of power within the Chinese Communist Party, including the 2018 removal of presidential term limits and his precedent-breaking third term secured in 2022, underpins trader expectations that he will remain in office through the 21st Party Congress in late 2027. No designated successor has been elevated to the Politburo Standing Committee, while recent military leadership changes and ongoing rectification campaigns in early 2026 have reinforced centralized control rather than signaling instability. With the next major leadership transition widely anticipated only after a potential fourth term extending into the 2030s, the implied probability reflects the absence of institutional mechanisms or internal challenges capable of prompting an earlier exit.