Focus

Across the business community theres a recognition that we need to talk about trade in a more sophisticated way – that global value chains cant be boiled down to three words ‘made in China or ‘made in America,

said John Murphy, vice president of International Affairs of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. He was quoted in a Wall Street Journal report on the feeling among some U.S. politicians over the manufacture of the American Olympic uniform in China. The article also referred to research by the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco that estimates that in 2010 goods labeled “Made in China” accounted for just 2.7 percent of U.S. personal-consumption expenditures on goods and services. If the proportion of this figure that goes to U.S. businesses who transport, sell and market those Chinese goods is accounted for, the percentage attributed to the actual cost of Chinese imports stands at just 1.2 percent.

China has been doing extremely well in terms of addressing environmental degradation.

Amina Mohamed, deputy executive director of the UN Environment Programme, said on July 20. She noted China is now at the forefront of building capacity for ecosystem management among developing nations. UNEP and China have collaborated very closely on South-South cooperation, which she hoped would benefit the global ecosystem, the cornerstone of sustainable development. Ms. Mohamed mentioned that China is putting a lot of resources toward environmental protection in its 12th Five-year Plan period. “Its efforts are admirable and appreciable.” She stressed that addressing environmental degradation is a long-term process. “What is always important is that the right measures are taken. The result may not be evident immediately, but will definitely be discernable in very near future. I think its important that steps are taken to correct the situation.” Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao announced in June at the Rio+20 UN Conference on Sustainable Development that China would contribute US $6 million to a UN Environment Programme trust fund.

The second China-Africa Peoples Forum opens on July 10.

Xi Jinping Hopes for New china-africa Exchange opportunities

Chinas Vice President Xi Jinping delivered a keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the second China-Africa Peoples Forum, a non-governmental exchange platform between China and Africa, which opened on July 10 in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province. “I hope that political leaders and delegates from various social sectors can make full use of this platform to freely air their opinions and have thorough discussions on the three principles of ChinaAfrica people-to-people exchanges that began in the Nairobi Declaration of the first China-Africa Peoples Forum. We need new and greater contributions for a new type of China-Africa strategic partnership.” Xi said that the Chinese people and government are always eager to support peopleto-people exchanges, and would like to see NGOs on both sides become more actively involved in China-Africa cooperation. This years forum, themed“Peoples Voice, Peoples Friendship and Cooperation for the People”, will focus on “new ideas of win-win cooperation,”“new measures of common development” and“new mechanisms of NGO exchanges” between China and Africa.

China plans to set up 10 state-level training centers for ASEAN members.

china-aSEaN New Energy Training center opens

A technological training center on new energy and renewable energy was opened on July 18 in southwest China. The center in Kunming, capital of Yunnan Province, was launched after Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao proposed last November to set up 10 training centers targeting personnel from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members. The center will host two to three free training sessions a year covering solar energy, biomass energy, wind energy and small hydropower. It will recruit trainees from civil service workers, staff at universities and research institutes, as well as company employees from ASEAN member countries. The center will help promote regional cooperation on science and technology as well as regional technological transfer. Other recently established ChinaASEAN training centers include one on conferences and exhibitions, one on art education, one on Chinese language study, one on financial and tax professionals and one on vocational education. Yunnan Province in southwest China borders Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam. In recent years it has conducted extensive and effective cooperation with ASEAN countries in agricultural technology, new energy, bio-pharmacy, environmental preservation and other fields.

Michael Posner and Chen Xu.

china, U.S. agree to continue Human Rights Dialogue

Both China and the United States are willing to continue their talks about human rights “on the basis of equality and mutual respect,” according to the Chinese delegation to the latest round of China-U.S. human rights dialogue. The two-day dialogue (July 23 and 24) in the U.S. capital was co-chaired by Chen Xu, director-general of the Department of International Organizations and Conferences of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, and Michael Posner, U.S. assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights and labor. During the talks, the two sides briefed each other on the new progress they have achieved in the human rights field, and exchanged views on issues like international human rights cooperation, the rule of law, freedom of expression, media responsibilities, racial discrimination and discrimination against aboriginal peoples. The Chinese side introduced its recent efforts to improve legislation, judicial justice and peoples livelihoods. The U.S. side elaborated on recent measures to fight racial discrimination and other topics. It also spoke positively of Chinas new progress in the field of human rights, and expressed readiness to enhance communication and understanding with the Chinese side on human rights issues through continued dialogue.

New college Graduates Earn less Than Migrant Workers

A report by the China Data Center of Tsinghua University fi nds that the starting monthly salary of fresh college graduates averaged RMB 2,719 in 2011. As many as 69 percent of them earned less than RMB 2,000, and only three percent could take home RMB 5,000 or more at the end of the month. However, the range of salaries received varied immensely, from RMB 500 to RMB 100,000. A college degree alone is no longer the asset it once was in the employment market as the Chinese population receiving higher education has exploded over the past decade at an annual rate of 30 percent. In some regions up to 80 percent of high school graduates go on to attend college. In contrast, the escalating shortage of factory workers has pushed up wages for migrant workers. Figures from the National Bureau of Statistics show that last year for the fi rst time in history the average monthly wage of migrant workers broke the RMB 2,000 mark to reach RMB 2,049, 21.2 percent higher than 2010, and some skilled workers can make more than RMB 10,000 a month in peak seasons.

Mobile Virus Rampant

A report by mobile security company NetQin revealed that Chinas mainland has suffered the worlds worst mobile phone virus infection. Its monitoring platform based on a cloud-computing model detected 17,676 cell phone malwares in the fi rst half of the year, affecting 12.83 million handsets, up 177 percent over the same period of last year. The report predicts that over 100 million handsets could be compromised by 2017.

Slower Gains in profits of Major industrial Enterprises

In the fi rst half of this year Chinas major industrial enterprises, defi ned as those whose core businesses have an annual revenue of at least RMB 20 million, reported profi ts of RMB 2.3117 trillion, down 2.2 percent over the same period of 2011. Profi ts for state-owned and state-holding companies were RMB 690.5 billion, slipping 10.9 percent, and that of collective-owned enterprises rose 10 percent to RMB 37 billion. The proceeds for shareholding companies dipped 0.4 percent to RMB 1.3582 trillion and businesses funded by foreign, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan investors earned profi ts of RMB 522.1 billion, 13.4 percent less than last year. Profi ts of private enterprises had a strong 16.5 percent growth, with a handsome receipt of RMB 694.7 billion. Of the 41 industrial divisions 27 showed profi t increases and 13 suffered falling growth. Only one division –petroleum processing, coking and nuclear fuel processing– went from being in the black to the red.

New coal Deposits Found in Xinjiang

A three-year survey has fi nally confi rmed 55.8 billion tons of coal reserves in the Ili Basin, an oasis in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Of these deposits most are located in Yinan, Yibei, Nilka and Zhaosu coalfi elds, and 9.73 billion tons lie in shallow lodes no more than 1,000 meters underground. Ili is a major coalchemical base and home to one of Xinjiangs fi ve largest coal reserves. Its deposits are estimated at 300 billion tons. Exploration has been picking up in recent years. By 2011 over 30 big companies had set up 64 coal-based power generation, coking and olefi n projects with a total investment of RMB 536.6 billion. By the end of this year the fi rst high-voltage transmission lines will cross the Tianshan Mountains, transferring electricity generated from Ili to other regions.

388 Billion KWH

The State Electricity Regulatory Commission disclosed that in the first half of this year China consumed 388 billion KWH of electricity generated from clean energy, accounting for 16.9 percent of power in the state grid, up 0.93 percent over the same period of last year. By the end of June, Chinas hydropower generation capacity stood at 202.31 million KW, an increase of 6.4 percent year-on-year. The capacity of wind power was 52.58 million KW, soaring 41.8 percent, and that for nuclear power was 12.57 million KW, an increase of 16.2 percent year-on-year.

RMB 507 Billion

Figures from the Ministry of Housing and Urban-rural Development show that in the first six months of this year China started construction on 4.7 million low-income housing units and completed 2.6 million units. The total investment in these projects stood at RMB 507 billion. The ministry aims to add seven million such units, with five million of them completed within the year. The central budget for subsidized regional public housing projects doubled annually from 2008 to 2011, during which time the total sum stood at RMB 320 billion.

52 Percent

Data from the National Bureau of Statistics show Chinas 2011 GDP of RMB 47 trillion was composed of RMB 22.5 trillion of consumption, RMB 22.9 trillion of capital formation and RMB 1.2 trillion of net exports. Chinas saving rate stood at an impressive 52 percent, which is unrivaled worldwide and unprecedented in history.

56.1 Years

The Human Resources Development Report 2011-2012, released by the Social Sciences Academic Press and the Chinese Academy of Personnel Science, shows that retirement age in urban China averages 56.1 years, with that for men standing at 58.3 years and women at 52.4 years. The report also says that leaving employment at this age is too early, as most people at this stage of life exhibit good health. The result is waste of the nations talent and labor resources. In contrast the average retirement age in the U.S is 64 years for men and 62 years for women, and Germany plans to increase its pension age from 65 years to 67 years before 2029.

The current national poverty line is RMB 2,300, 92 percent higher than that of 2009.

poverty line Raised in 14 provinces

So far 17 provinces and autonomous regions set their regional poverty lines above the national level of RMB 2,300. Most of these are in the better-off East China. The poverty line has been set at RMB 4,600, for example, in Zhejiang Province, RMB 4,000 in Jiangsu Province and RMB 3,200 in Liaoning Province. The RMB 2,300 mark was drawn last year, a massive 92 percent higher than the 2009 level. Local governments are allowed to decide their own higher poverty lines in line with local conditions. According to Zheng Wenkai, vice director of the State Council Poverty Alleviation Leading Group Office, the Chinese government and general public have both increased the assistance they give to the poor since the release of the Outline for Poverty Reduction and Development of Chinas Rural Areas (2011-2020). The central government earmarked RMB 27 billion in poverty aid in 2011, and this year the sum is expected to top RMB 33 billion.

Building a Society Friendly to people with Disabilities

The Regulations on the Construction of Accessible Environments was adopted by the State Council and came into effect on August 1. The statute aims to promote equal participation of citizens with disabilities in public life. It stipulates that all public roads, buildings, transport facilities and residential districts to be built must meet accessibility requirements, and those existing whose designs dont consider the needs of the disabled people should be adapted by governments at county level and above. When releasing important information to the public, governments at county level and above are obliged to provide audio services or other forms of assistance for the blind and deaf-mute. Stateorganized exams for school enrollment, professional qualifications and government posts should be available in Braille or electronic versions of papers or other aid to be offered to vision-impaired participants. TV stations must run at least one signed news broadcast in every week. Public libraries are encouraged to open facilities for readers of no or impaired sight. Governments at prefectural level and above should modify their website design to ensure visitors with disabilities can browse their sites more easily and election organization authorities must provide services for electorates of special needs, such as offering the ballot papers in Braille.

Sansha city Established

The State Council decided to abolish the Administrative Office of the Xisha, Zhongsha and Nansha islands and establish Sansha City. The Sansha Municipal Government is seated on the Xisha IslandsYongxing Island. The city has jurisdiction over an area of more than two million square kilometers, which is strewn with over 200 islets, reefs and beaches. Xiao Jie, 52, was elected as the first mayor of Sansha. The Administrative Office of the Xisha, Zhongsha and Nansha islands under the jurisdiction of Guangdong Province was set up in March 1959. It was handed over to Hainan Province in April 1988 when the province, formerly part of Guangdong, was established.

Underwater cultural Relics Found in Xisha

A survey of cultural heritage in the waters surrounding the Nansha Islands concluded recently, confirming 12 more ancient sites in the region. It was conducted by a team comprised of archaeologists from multiple provinces and municipalities across China, who sailed more than 400 kilometers and spent 220 hours underwater to inspect the 12 previously discovered submerged remains and look for new ones. In the process they collected antiquities including porcelain and pottery wares, bronze coins, glass vessels and ship segments dated to different periods of the history. The researchers were alarmed that the seabed, which was strewn with ancient items, was also pockmarked with holes dug by treasure hunters.

The South China Sea was a critical shipping route for trade between China and the rest of the world in old times.

The CSIC turbine is erected in Rudong, Jiangsu Province.

Five-megawatt offshore Wind Turbine

A five-megawatt offshore wind turbine has been unveiled by CSIC (Chongqing) Haizhuang Windpower Equipment Co., Ltd. The company independently developed the breakthrough design for the turbine and owns the intellectual property rights for its manufacture. The CSIC turbine has a longer wind wheel diameter, is lighter and produces more power than other offshore wind turbine designs. Its blades are 75 meters in length, making them the largest blades ever developed for offshore power generation. The blades create an increased swept area that significantly enhances its wind utilization ratio. The turbine is to be first installed in Jiangsu Province, and power from it should flow into the grid no later than the end of this year.

china Unveils First optical clock

Scientists in central Chinas Hubei Province said they have assembled the countrys first optical clock, which measures time more precisely than traditional timekeepers. Hubeis clock, based on a single calcium ion, can remain accurate to within one second for more than 10 million years. The breakthrough has made China the seventh country in the world to build such a clock following the U.S., Germany, the UK, Canada, Austria and Japan. Scientists used electric and magnetic fields to “trap” a calcium ion for more than 15 days, which allowed them to pinpoint the passage of time by tracking the ions atomic movement.“Unlike microwave clocks, which track atomic movement in the microwave range, optical clocks observe the optical range, which can reduce uncertainty 100 to 1,000-fold,”said Gao Kelin, a researcher at the Hubei Academy of Sciences. Atomic clocks, including microwave and optical clocks, can be used to provide extremely precise measurements of time that are used in fields ranging from telecommunications to the manufacture of precision instruments.

china Makes Technical Breakthrough in oil Exploitation

A pilot project on obtaining oil from complex geological structures achieved satisfactory results in northwestern Chinas Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, according to China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC). Data showed that the oil-recovery rate in the testing block was raised by 10.3 percent and would be further lifted by up to 12.1 percent, according to the countrys largest oil and gas producer. This marks a breakthrough in the application of polymer flooding in conglomerate layers, a key technique that will bolster oil production, said a spokesman for CNPC. Following the project, the oil giant will expand the test zone and strengthen efforts to develop the Jungarian Basin, Chinas major oil and gas reservoir with an estimated 8.6 billion tons of crude oil reserves and 2.1 trillion cubic meters of gas reserves. The pilot project, initiated in 2005, aimed at solving technical problems occurring in drilling and production, and researchers have patented four technical inventions so far in the experiments, according to the CNPC. Xinjiang is CNPCs major focus for oil and gas exploitation. The energy-rich region accounts for over one-quarter of Chinas total onshore reserves.

china launches its largest patrol Vessel

China launched its largest and most advanced patrol vessel, Haixun01, on July 28 in Wuhan, a city in central Chinas Hubei Province, in a move to maintain its marine sovereignty and enhance its rescue efficiency. It is expected to enter service by the end of this year. Haixun01 is the first Chinese patrol vessel to simultaneously incorporate marine inspection and rescue functions. It will carry out missions such as maritime inspection, safety monitoring, rescue, oil spill detection and handling, said Xu Guoyi, head of the Shanghai Maritime Bureau, which will manage the ship. The 5,418-ton Haixun01 is 128.6 meters in length. Its maximum cruising speed is 37 kilometers per hour and it boasts a range of 10,000 nautical miles (18,520 kilometers), said Tang Gongjie, general manager of Wuchang Shipbuilding Industry Company Ltd, the builder of the ship.

arc Mouse

The Arc Mouse is for those who find the desk just that little bit too far away. Everyone knows how hard it is to control the direction of the arrow on a computer screen when the mouse is resting on legs, laps, or sofa armrests. The problem is that your mouse needs a flat surface for its laser to function properly. Not the Arc mouse. Use it anywhere with a curved surface, and the arrow moves smoothly and accurately across the screen. Theres only one place it wont work– on your desk.

acupuncture Socks

No, theyre not socks full of needles. When we walk, we apply a lot of pressure to our feet. These socks take that pressure and channel it through small bumps in the sock fabric to gently massage acupuncture points on the soles of your feet. This eliminates fatigue, helps blood circulation, and makes you feel pretty nice, too.

Safety pin Flash Drive

A USB flash drive in the shape of a functioning safety pin -- keep your data pinned to you at all times. USBs that resemble other things have been all the rage in recent years. Can openers, animals, cigarettes – you name it, theyve made a USB that looks like it. But the safety pin flash drive is different. Its design means the USB – surely one of the most notoriously lose-able things we carry– stays literally pinned to you. Wear your data proudly, but make sure you take it off before you wash your clothes.

august 10, 2012

The Third innovation lighting Beijing culture and art Festival opens at the Temple of Earth in central Beijing. a colorfully lit chess board mesmerizes visiting children.

august 10, 2012

The chinese womens synchronized swimming team at the free routine final of the london olympic Games. The chinese team took silver.

august 1, 2012

construction of the 1,776-km lanzhouUrumqi High-speed Railway proceeds smoothly in Hami in Xinjiang Uygur autonomous Region. on completion it will be the worlds longest high-speed railway built as a single project.

august 4, 2014

a cohort of ships take shelter in Shenjiamen Harbor, Zhoushan city in Zhejiang province, in anticipation of Typhoon actinia.

July 26, 2012

a rare downpour inundated downtown districts of Tianjin. a driver trapped in the flood sits on top of his car waiting to be rescued.

august 10, 2012

The yi ethnic minority in Xilin county, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous Region celebrate their annual Torch Festival.

august 4, 2012

a shopping mall in downtown Guangzhou, Guangdong province, stages a space technology show. Shoppers enjoy a simulated zero gravity experience. Photos by CFP