Analysis: Balance of power between Xi's top two aides is tipping

After more than a decade of wielding unprecedented strong powers, Chinese President Xi Jinping now has just two notable aides whom he deeply favors within the Chinese Communist Party.

The two, national security czar Cai Qi, 68, and Premier Li Qiang, 64, are respectively ranked No. 5 and No. 2 in the Politburo Standing Committee. The committee is the party's top decision-making body and has seven members, with 70-year-old Xi at the top.