Gray Skies

A tourist takes a picture of Shanghai from the Bund while the city remained shrouded in smog on December 9.

Since December 5， Shanghai， and many other cities around the Yangtze River， have been enveloped in smog. Shanghai in particular saw PM2.5 density surge past 600 micrograms per cubic meter， more than eight times the nations limit of 75.

A third of government vehicles were taken off the road. Large-scale public activities and sports events were suspended. The haze lasted until December 10.

Disaster Aid

Chinas ministries of finance and civil affairs allocated 111 million yuan（$18 million） on December 5 to three regions as aid for residents affected by disasters.

The fund will be used for urgent resettlement， basic living needs and the reconstruction of houses in Jilin and Hainan provinces and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

A series of earthquakes with measured magnitudes over 5.0 hit the city of Songyuan in northeast Chinas Jilin in late October and November， leaving 12 people injured and causing extensive damage to buildings.

Five people in Hainan and two in Guangxi were killed after Typhoon Haiyan hit south China on November 10. Direct economic losses from the typhoon are estimated as being close to 4.5 billion yuan（$750 million）.

The National Disaster Reduction Commission and the Ministry of Civil Affairs sent thousands of tents， quilts， coats and heaters to the three regions.

Water Project

A key section of Chinas water diversion project across arid Hebei Province has been completed， according to the construction committee.

The project is one of Chinas largest infrastructure projects and will take water from relatively waterrich southern regions to dryer areas in the northern part of the country， including Beijing.

The new section， spanning nearly 600 km， attracted investments of 42 billion yuan （$6.9 billion） and connects Beijing with Shijiazhuang， capital of Hebei， and includes a portion near the port of Tianjin.

The new section is part of the first stage of construction for the middle of three routes of the southto-north water diversion project. The whole route is expected to be completed by the end of the year and will supply water to 19 major cities and more than 100 smaller towns in north China starting in 2014.

Massacre Record

An encyclopedia recording the history of the Nanjing Massacre in 1937 is being compiled and is expected to be published next year， academics writing it announced on December 10.

The encyclopedia， featuring more than 18，000 entries so far， will reveal historical facts relating to the crimes committed by Japanese troops in Nanjing from late 1937 to early 1938， said Zhu Chengshan， curator of the Memorial Hall for the Victims of the Nanjing Massacre by Japanese Invaders.

Experts from China， Japan， the Republic of Korea， the United States， Canada， the United Kingdom， the Philippines and Bangladesh have contributed to the compilation.

Japanese troops occupied Nanjing， then Chinas capital， on December 13， 1937， and carried out a six-week massacre. Chinese records show more than 300，000 people—most of them civilians—were brutally murdered and thousands of women were raped.

Pollution Fines

Governments in eight cities of northeast Chinas Liaoning Province have been fined a total of 54.2 million yuan （$8.9 million） for contributing to air pollution， the provincial department of environment protection said on December 10.

The fines， the first the provincial agency has imposed on lower-level governments， sends a clear message that the provincial government is becoming more serious about tackling air pollution.

The tough penalties come as a response to severely polluted air becoming a major source of complaints and frustration， as well as raising health concerns among urban residents.

The dense smog attracted wide attention again last week as it blanketed 100 cities across over half the country. Many rushed to buy face masks and air purifiers to ward it off， and primary and middle schools in the eastern Chinese city of Nanjing were even forced to close for two days.

Live Court Broadcasts

On December 11， China launched a website for the live broadcasting of court trials， so as to allow the public to better supervise proceedings.

The website， sponsored by chinacourt.org， a portal website for courts administered by the Supreme Peoples Court， will act as a platform for local courts at all levels to air live trials online， according to a statement from the chinacourt website.

The public can view the broadcasts via the website. The site will also provide notices in advance of broadcasts and video clips of previous trials， the statement said.

The website is expected to increase the publics knowledge about the countrys judicial work， help better regulate court practices， enhance judicial justice and serve the publics rights to know， to participate in and to supervise the judiciary system， the sponsor said.

Champion City

Shanghai overtook Hong Kong for the first time to become Chinas most competitive city this year， mainly due to the establishment of its pilot free trade zone， according to a ranking by the China Institute of City Competitiveness on December 10.

With a score of 16，163.08， Shanghai topped the list， which measures the comprehensive competitiveness of a city based on their economy， social stability， as well as environmental and cultural conditions.

Shanghai was still closely followed by Hong Kong， however， the champion for the past 11 years. They scored 16，099.80 this year.

Beijing， Shenzhen and Guangzhou took the next three spots respectively.

Rare DNA Discovery

Chinese doctors reported the discovery of an abnormal karyotype in human chromosome 5 on December 10. This is the first recorded case ever， and it was observed in northwest Chinas Shaanxi Province.

Baojis Mmaternal and Child Care Service Center diagnosed a girl with dwarfism， as she lacks a chromosome， and the long arm of chromosome 5 in her DNA had a kink.

Tang Kai， director of the centers genetics and heredity diseases lab， said the abnormality was first of its kind ever seen.

Clinical manifestations of the girls disease are growth retardation and insufficient development of gonads.

The case was reported to the State Key Lab of Medical Genetics， and entered the Database of the China Human Chromosome Abnormality Catalogue.

New Aquanauts

China has recruited six aquanaut cadets， including two women， as a reserve force for its future submersible missions， the State Oceanic Administration （SOA） announced on December 10.

The newly recruited cadets， who are between the ages of 23 and 28， were selected from candidates across the country in a public recruitment campaign that kicked off on July 2.

The cadets are Chinas second cohort of aquanaut cadets. They will begin a two-year training program in 2014 and graduate as aquanauts if they pass their examination in 2016， according to the SOA.

A New Baby Home

The first baby drop-off in northwest Chinas Shaanxi Province， located near Xian Children Welfare Center is recently opened in Xian.

The haven received an abandoned infant on December 4. Setting up baby hatches has been a hotly debated topic in China as many believe the“baby haven” may reduce the sense of parental guilt and encourage such acts. But without such services， parents may resort to concealing newborns in places that leave them difficult to find， causing the deaths of many unwanted babies.

Clean Energy

Staff members from the National Grid and the Tianjin Yingli photovoltaic （PV） industrial park examine solar panels to make sure the generated electricity is connected to the grid in Tianjin.

On December 10， the PV roof project was connected to the national grid. It has the potential to reduce coal consumption by 1，600 tons a year.

Mapping the Future

China opened its annual Central Economic Work Conference on December 10 amid calls for stronger and more concrete reform efforts.

The meeting is set to review Chinas economic progress in 2013 and suggest plans for 2014， an important year for carrying out the reform blueprint adopted in November.

Li Yang， Vice President of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences， which is a major government think tank， said China cannot wait any longer to transform its pattern of growth， and economic policies should focus on quality growth and efficiency instead of bailouts and high-speed growth in the short term.

Economists said that Chinas economy has entered a new era of structural slowdown， and the rate of economic growth is likely to decrease to less than 6 percent by the end of 2030.

“The structural slowdown is not a concern by itself， but it requires an adjustment of the macroeconomic policy framework，” Li said.

Interest Rate Reform

Chinas new guideline on deposit certificates in the interbank market became effective as of December 9. The trial is part of Chinas loosening of controls on deposit rates following its move in July to scrap the floor limit of lending rates.

The guideline published by the Peoples Bank of China， the central bank， will help increase the range of debt products offered by financial institutions， so as to better prepare for the gradual liberalization of interest rates.

The offering of deposit certificates in the interbank market is expected to improve the Shanghai Interbank Offered Rate （Shibor）， measuring the cost at which Chinese banks lend to one another， which will set pricing standards for the future launch of Large Negotiable Certificates of Deposit （NCD）.

NCDs usually inspire breakthroughs in interest rate reform in other countries， which generally call for deposit insurance systems to be in place beforehand.

Chinas launch of deposit certificates in the interbank market will lower potential risks and gain experience for the NCDs before the country establishes a deposit insurance system.

A step toward fully floating interest rates， the guideline requires financial institutions to report their annual plans for the issuance of deposit certificates to the central bank before entering the market.

The central bank set the onetime minimum volume at 50 million yuan （$8.18 million）， which allows banks to borrow at more stable costs in the interbank market.

The issuance will be priced in reference to the Shibor， with the maturities of fixed-rate certificates ranging from one month to a year with those of floating-rate certificates ranging from one year to three years.

Exports Surge

Chinas exports outperformed market expectations in November due to improved data in the United States and the European Union.

Exports went up 12.7 percent year on year in November and imports gained 5.3 percent year on year， according to the General Administration of Customs on December 8.

Novembers export growth is above market expectations of 7 percent， indicating improved data in the United States and the European Union， said Liu Ligang， chief Greater China economist at ANZ Banking Group.

Foreign trade stood at $370.6 billion in November， including$202.2 billion of exports and imports worth $168.4 billion.

Trade surplus hit $33.8 billion in November， the second month that China has reported a trade surplus of more than $30 billion.

Foreign trade gained 7.7 percent year on year to climb to $3.8 trillion in the first 11 months. China targeted a foreign trade growth of 8 percent year on year in 2013.

Inflation Easing

Chinas consumer price index （CPI）， an indicator of inflation， grew 3 percent year on year in November， down from the 3.2 percent in October， the National Bureau of Statistics （NBS） said on December 9.

In the first 11 months of 2013， Chinas CPI rose 2.6 percent year on year， well below the governments full-year target of 3.5 percent.

Yu Qiumei， a senior statistician with the NBS， said prices of food， which account for roughly one third in the weighting of Chinas CPI calculations， edged down slightly on the whole in November.

Compared to October， Novembers CPI contracted 0.1 percent and food prices dropped 0.2 percent. Prices of non-food products remained no change.

NBS data also showed Chinas producer price index （PPI）， which measures inflation on a wholesale level， contracted 1.4 percent year on year in November， following a 1.5-percent drop in October.

Cross-Straits Bonds

The fifth regular meeting of the Cross-Straits Economic Cooperation Committee （ECC） concluded in Taipei on December 10， with plans formed for closer economic cooperation between the mainland and Taiwan.

Gao Yan， the mainlands chief representative to the ECC and Vice Commerce Minister， said at a press conference after the meeting that the ECC will continue promoting the Early Harvest Program under the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement （ECFA）， which was signed in 2010 to reduce tariffs and commercial barriers between the mainland and Taiwan.

The Early Harvest Program was designed to help people across the Taiwan Straits enjoy the benefits of the ECFA before full liberalization of economic ties between the mainland and Taiwan.

All commodities under the program became tariff free on January 1， 2013. According to official statistics from the mainland， a total of $550 million worth of tariffs were cut for commodities imported from Taiwan from January to October. According to statistics from Taiwans customs， imports from the mainland were exempted from tariffs and were worth more than $50 million during the same period.

By October， the program had benefited 216 non-financial Taiwan enterprises and 40 Taiwan financial institutions. Nine Taiwan accounting firms had obtained a one-year license for conducting auditing business on the mainland. Also， 14 Taiwan-made movies had been screened in mainland cinemas， according to mainland official statistics.

3D Printing

A visitor takes a picture of a lampshade made by a 3D printer in the exhibition hall of the China 3D Printing Research Institute on December 10.

The institute was inaugurated the same day in Nanjing， capital of Jiangsu Province， with aims to push forward research， commercialization and cultivate talent for the emerging 3D printing market.