China has announced a corruption investigation into Jiang Jiemin, the head of the commission that oversees state-owned companies.

The supervision ministry said Jiang Jiemin was suspected of a “serious violation of discipline”.

The term is used to refer to corruption by managers of state companies.

President Xi Jinping has vowed to eradicate corruption in China, warning that it threatens the Communist Party.

Jiang Jiemin was suspected of a serious violation of discipline

Recent months have seen several high-profile corruption cases against high-ranking officials, including disgraced senior party official Bo Xilai, who was put on trial for bribery, embezzlement and abuse of power in August.

The verdict in his case is expected “at a date to be decided”. Bo Xilai denies all charges.

Until March Jiang Jiemin was head of the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), which has faced a number of corruption allegations.

Last week it was announced that another four CNPC executives were under investigation for corruption.

Earlier in August the general manager of state-owned phone company China Mobile Ltd was detained in the southern province of Guangdong. He too is being investigated for discipline violations.

Internet users are also increasingly pursuing those perceived as having done wrong through online exposes and campaigns.

In recent weeks there have been signs that this has worried the authorities, with a number of journalists arrested for “rumor-mongering” and a high-profile blogger arrested.

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