Ready, Set, Go

A college student prepares an elastic model car for a competition at the 2015 Formula-E China Design Championship， which kicked off at Beijing University of Technology on June 15.

Thirty-five teams from 14 universities in China competed for the opportunity to attend the global final held in Los Angeles in August.

HK Election Reform

Chinas Hong Kong Legislative Council on June 18 vetoed a motion regarding proposed universal suffrage for selecting the regions next chief executive in 2017.

After a nine-hour debate which started on June 17， 28 lawmakers of the Legislative Council voted against the motion while eight voted in favor.

Many lawmakers left the chamber of the legislature building before the vote.

According to a decision by the Standing Committee of the National Peoples Congress， Chinas top legislature， the motion needed endorsement by at least two thirds of all the 70 lawmakers， or 47 votes， in the Legislative Council.

Environmental Crimes

Chinas procuratorial agencies have investigated or prosecuted more than 2，163 officials for environment-related crimes over the past 16 months， authorities announced on June 16.

The officials were suspected of bribery or dereliction of duty regarding environmental issues and accidents， said Xiao Wei， a spokeswoman for the Supreme Peoples Procuratorate （SPP）， at a press briefing.

From January 2014 to the end of April， procuratorates at all levels arrested 10，084 and prosecuted 28，707 people suspected of damaging the environment and resources， such as polluting the environment， illegal mining and stealing timber， Xiao said.

The SPP will launch a two-year campaign to supervise law enforcement authorities handling of environment violation cases， preventing possible corruption or duty dereliction while they are handling environment violation cases， she added.

The SPP will also focus on cracking down on duty-related crimes in areas related to major ecological restoration projects， mining resources， environment assessment and pollution treatment， she said.

Medical Aid

The Chinese Government spent 109.5 billion yuan （$17.64 billion） aiding people who cannot afford medical services during the 2009-14 period， said the Ministry of Finance （MOF）.

Government spending for this purpose rose by an annual average of 13.8 percent during the period， according to MOF statistics.

China established a national medical assistance system in 2008， allocating money to help disadvantaged individuals purchase medical insurance and to subsidize healthcare not included in insurance programs.

In 2014， the nation spent 25.4 billion yuan （$4.09 billion） on such subsidies， benefiting 102 million people.

Currently， 63 percent of the funding comes from the Central Government， while local governments and private donations contribute 32 percent and 5 percent respectively.

In April， the State Council， Chinas cabinet， promised to expand medical assistance to cover more people and help pay more medical expenses.

Worker Protection

The All-China Federation of Trade Unions （ACFTU） on June 15 urged labor organizations at all levels to provide better services for migrant workers.

Trade unions must include as many migrant workers as possible， said ACFTU Chairman Li Jianguo at a plenary meeting of the organizations presidium.

At the end of 2014， the number of migrant workers in China stood at about 274 million， one fifth of the countrys population.

Li asked trade union organizations to focus on protecting the legitimate rights and interests of ordinary workers.

Easier Access

The Chinese mainland will remove the entry permit requirement for Taiwan residents， as top political advisor Yu Zhengsheng vowed to boost exchanges across the Taiwan Straits on June 14. The policy will take effect on July 1.

Currently， Taiwan residents must apply for a visa-like entry permit in order to visit the mainland.

Official statistics show that in 2014， Taiwan residents made 5.37 million visits to the mainland， up from 4.36 million in 2008. Mainlanders made 4.04 million visits to Taiwan last year， compared with 280，000 in 2008.

“Well continue to expand peopleto-people exchanges across the Taiwan Straits and engage more Taiwan compatriots in the trend of crossStraits interaction，” said Yu， Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference， during a speech at the Seventh Straits Forum， the largest annual event for cross-Straits exchanges， in Xiamen， Fujian Province.

Desertification Control

Chinas State Forestry Administration（SFA） has pledged to fight desertification as the country faces a tough battle against encroaching sands.

Figures from that SFA show that China has 1.73 million square km of land classified as undergoing desertification， forming a long stretch in the north that suffers from constant winds and blowing sands. Desertification has affected more than 400 million people.

To ease the problem， these regions will strictly ban improper activities such as excessive reclamation and grazing， while stepping up enforcement of environmental protection-related laws and regulations， said SFAs deputy head Zhang Yongli.

The pledged policies came ahead of the World Day to Combat Desertification， which falls on June 17.

Dragon Tales

Pupils in Cuitingyuan Primary School of Hefei， capital city of Anhui Province， read ancient poems on June 16 as part of activities to celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival， which fell on June 20.

New Facilities

Pictured is Yongshu Reef of the Nansha Islands in the South China Sea.

China is planning to construct new civil facilities such as lighthouses and radio navigation stations in the Nansha Islands in the South China Sea， according to the National Development and Reform Commission on June 17.

These facilities are meant to ensure local civil needs， provide the international community with public services like assistance and salvage at sea， and promote international cooperation on maritime scientific research， the commission said.

Moving Qomolangma

Mount Qomolangma has moved 40 cm to the northeast over the past 10 years， with its height increasing by 3 cm， the National Administration of Surveying， Mapping and Geoinformation said on June 15.

Monitoring data collected by the administration from 2005 to 2015 show that the mountain has been moving at a speed of 4 cm per year and has been growing by an average 0.3 cm annually.

The administration set a satellite monitoring system on Mount Qomolangma in 2005 and started to observe its movement.

Observers found that Mount Qomolangma shifted 3 cm southwestward after the devastating Nepal earthquake on April 25， while the height of the mountain was left unaffected.

China-Australia FTA

The Australian and Chinese governments signed a long-awaited free trade agreement in Canberra on June 17， freeing up trade between the two countries.

The historic agreement， signed by Australias Trade Minister Andrew Robb and Chinas Commerce Minister Gao Hucheng， finalized negotiations that began 10 years ago.

Upon full implementation of the agreement， tariffs will be lifted on 95 percent of Australian exports， hurdles will be lowered for Chinese businesses to invest in Australia and more visas will be granted to Chinese on working holidays.

Australians will soon benefit from cheaper electronics， and their spending on these items is expected to boost the economy.

Chinese consumers， meanwhile， should enjoy great access to goods such as Australian beef， dairy products， wine and boutique whisky. The reduced tariffs on these items will make them much more affordable.

Housing Rebound

Chinas housing market continued to show signs of improvement in May with new home prices in an increasing number of cities surveyed registering month-on-month increases.

Of the 70 large and mediumsized cities surveyed， new home prices climbed to 20 in May from the previous month， up from 18 in April， while 43 reporting month-on-month price declines， down from Aprils 48， according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on June 18.

The property market remains largely anemic， but a string of indicators show the sectors decline may be coming to an end in Chinas major cities.

Despite the marginal improvement in major cities， Qin Hong， head of a research center under the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development， ruled out a sharp hike in home prices nationwide.

“Generally speaking， there is still an oversupply of housing. Therefore， it is unlikely to see skyrocketing prices across the country，” said Qin.

Technology Showcase

A technician from China National Nuclear Corp. introduces the third-generation nuclear technology， Hualong One reactor design， to government officials from Sudan at a promotion event held in Fuqing， southeast Chinas Fujian Province， on June 16.

Three in One

People wishing to start their own business in China will only need to apply to just one office for the three essential business certificates， rather than three offices like they do at present， the State Council announced on June 17.

In a move to cut red tape and encourage startups， business licenses， tax registration certificates and organization code certificates will all be issued by the industry and commerce administration， according to a statement released after an executive meeting of the State Council.

Currently， people have to go to the industry and commerce administration， quality supervision departments and taxation bureaus for the three certificates.

The State Council called for government departments to keep computer records and share information and said the streamlined registration system should be realized nationwide by the end of this year.

Tire Dispute

On June 12， the U.S. Commerce Department set final dumping margins on imported passenger vehicle and light truck tires from China， signaling that it may impose punitive duties on those products.

Punitive duties would be imposed after the U.S. International Trade Commission （ITC） made an affirmative final rule， which is scheduled for July 27. If the ITC makes a negative determination， the investigations will be terminated.

The Commerce Department launched the anti-dumping and antisubsidy investigation into Chinese tires last July， at the request of two U.S. labor organizations.

The Chinese Ministry of Commerce（MOFCOM） voiced strong opposition to such decision， saying that the probe breached the rules of the WTO and U.S. laws.

MOFCOM has repeatedly urged the United States to abide by its commitment against trade protectionism and work together with China and other members of the international community to maintain a free， open and just international trade environment.

Imports of these Chinese tires under investigation were estimated at about $2.3 billion last year， according to U.S. official data.

Dazzling

Robots weld a part of a truck at a workshop of China National Heavy Duty Truck Group Co. Ltd. in Jinan， capital of east Chinas Shandong Province， on June 17. The group exported 10，035 heavy trucks in the first quarter of the year， up 8 percent year on year.

Gold Auction Bank

The Intercontinental Exchange （ICE） announced on June 16 that the Bank of China has been approved by the ICE benchmark administration to participate in the gold auction which is used to determine the London Bullion Market Association （LBMA） gold price， a bench- mark physical gold price in the world.

“We are delighted to welcome the Bank of China to the gold auction，” said Finbarr Hutcheson， President of the ICE benchmark administration.

Sun Yu， General Manager at Bank of China London Branch and CEO at Bank of China （UK） Ltd.， said the bank was proud to become the first Asian bank to directly participate in the gold auction.

The Bank of China has been actively participating in the gold trading business in London for over 40 years.

Funding Innovative Firms

China is optimizing its capital markets to make financing more accessible to emerging and creative businesses， according to the guideline published by the State Council on June 16.

Currently， to file for an initial public offerings （IPO）， businesses must have turned a profit for the past two years and posted accumulated profits of no less than 10 million yuan （$1.6 million）. This puts filing for an IPO out of reach for startups.

The State Councils guideline called for an acceleration of a pilot program allowing some Internet and technology companies that have not yet turned a profit to get listed on the ChiNext after staying in the New Third Board， the national equities exchange and quotations system， for a certain period.

In addition， the Central Government has pledged to push forward plans to launch a new board， the Strategic Emerging Industries Board， at the Shanghai Stock Exchange， according to the guideline.

The new board will mainly target firms in the computing， renewable energy and biological technology sectors which have passed the startup stage， reached a certain size and shown clear strategies.

Being a Legend

Legend Holdings Corp.， parent company of the worlds largest PC maker Lenovo， said it plans to raise up to $1.94 billion in an IPO scheduled on June 29 on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

The company aims to sell a total of 352.9 million shares at a price range between HK$39.8-43 （$5.1-5.6）， the company said in a press release on June 15.

Legend Holdings Corp. was founded in 1984 by its current chairman Liu Chuanzhi and 10 other researchers with 200，000 yuan （$32，220） from the government think tank Chinese Academy of Sciences. It has a 30.6-percent stake in Lenovo Group， the worlds largest PC maker and third largest smartphone company. It has also invested in real estate， finance， agriculture， services and chemicals.

The company also runs venture capital fund Legend Capital and private equity firm Hony Capital， which acquired UK pizza chain Pizza Express for 900 million pounds （$1.43 billion） last year.

Legend Holdings said it will use more than half of the funding raised in the IPO to boost strategic investments and acquisitions in the consumer and service-related sectors.