Chinese President Xi Jinping said Sunday the global economy has entered a period of profound readjustment and its recovery remains elusive.

He made the remarks when delivering a keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) Annual Conference 2013 held in Boao, a coastal town in south China's Hainan Province.

The international financial sector is fraught with risks and protectionism of various forms is on the rise, Xi said.

Countries still face many difficulties in adjusting economic structure and the global governance mechanisms call for improvement, he said.

"Achieving common development for all countries remains an uphill battle," Xi warned.

Meanwhile, he said countries have become increasingly inter-connected and inter-dependent and the trend of peace, development, cooperation and mutual benefit is gaining momentum.