A Global Mission

Touching on a series of topics related to eco-civilization， the Eco Forum Global Annual Conference was held in Guiyang， capital of southwest Chinas Guizhou Province， from July 6 to 8.

Under the theme of Embracing a New Era of Eco-Civilization： Green Development with High Priority to Ecology， the forum sent a signal to the world that eco-civilization matters to all of humankind and thus international cooperation is necessary to build an ecosystem based on respect for nature and green development.

Foreign Language Services

Major public medical institutions in Beijing will take measures to improve foreign language services at hospitals， according to a Beijing Daily report on July 10.

Services， including guidance， consultation， registration and signs， will have translations to help foreigners access doctors， according to the Beijing Municipal Commission of Health and Family Planning on July 9.

In addition， the capitals emergency lines will also have a foreign language service. When foreigners dial the emergency numbers 120 or 999， response centers will immediately access another line for translation.

The 999 Emergency Center has cooperated with Beijing Language and Culture University to train foreign language telephone operators， and established a multilingual translation team to transfer calls.

The health commission plans to create a medical foreignlanguage speaking talent pool， and to strengthen language training with universities and institutions. It has launched Japanese， French and IELTS training programs， as well as online classes.

As an international metropolis， Beijing received nearly 1.2 million inbound tourists in the fi rst four months of this year.

Forest Cities

China will build 300 forest cities by 2025 to improve the environmental condition of urban areas， China Daily reported on July 9.

The efforts are expected to help lower temperatures， improve air quality， create noise barriers， generate new wildlife habitats and improve local biodiversity， the forestry authority was cited as saying.

According to a national development plan released by the National Forestry and Grassland Administration， 200 forest cities and six city clusters are to be developed in the next two years.

Under the plan， areas including the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei cluster， cities along the Yangtze River and border regions connecting countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative will be top priorities.

A total of 138 cities have attained state-level forest city status， with an average annual increase of 13，333 hectares of forested area in each city over the past fi ve years， the paper said.

Antique Authentication

A set of regulations on the authentication and evaluation of antiques in criminal cases has been released by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage （SACH） and four other departments.

The regulations state the range， content and procedures for evaluation.

Authentication and evaluation refer to the consulting activities carried out by state-owned museums， which are designated by the SACH to provide professional information to help handle criminal cases involving antiques.

A total of 41 institutions have been designated the task， carrying out the evaluation of antiques involved in over 1，300 cases， including more than 70，000 items or sets of movable antiques and nearly 600 immovable antiques.

Wetland Area

China ranks fi rst in Asia and fourth in the world for wetland area with 53.6 million hectares， offi cial data showed.

The statistics were released by the National Forestry and Grassland Administration at the Eco Forum Global Annual Conference held in southwest Chinas Guizhou Province.

China has 57 wetlands that are of international importance， 602 wetland nature reserves and 898 national wetland parks， according to the administration.

In the countrys wetland ecosystem， there are 4，220 species of plant and 2，312 species of animals， with the wetland protection rate reaching 49 percent， statistics showed.

With increased policy support and fi nancial investment， China has achieved remarkable results in wetland protection， said Li Chunliang， Deputy Director of the National Forestry and Grassland Administration.

According to Li， a total of 8.15 billion yuan （$1.23 billion） of central investment was arranged from 2013 to 2017， covering more than 1，500 wetland protection and restoration projects. Over 233，333 hectares of wetland has been restored， with 51，000 hectares of farm land converted into wetland.

China has completed a second national survey of wetland resources， with 11 provinces listing 445 wetlands of provincial-level importance， Li said.

China will step up efforts to strengthen the protection and restoration of wetlands as the focus of ecological civilization construction， and strive to maintain a wetland area of no less than 53.3 million hectares with a protection rate of 50 percent by 2020， according to Li.

By 2035， the quality of Chinas wetland ecosystem will be signifi -cantly improved， Li added.

Golden Jackal

A golden jackal has been caught on camera in southwest Chinas Tibet Autonomous Region， the fi rst time the species has been photographed in China， according to the Tibet Biodiversity Image Conservation（TBIC） on July 9.

The animal appeared on June 30 in Xigaze at an elevation of 3，500 meters.

“We spotted a fox-like animal in the bush and took more than 20 very clear photos of it in three minutes，”said Luo Hao， the initiator of the TBIC.

On July 8， Li Sheng， researcher with the School of Life Sciences at Peking University， confi rmed that the animal was a golden jackal.

The golden jackal can be found from North Africa to South Asia， but this is the fi rst time it has been photographed in the wild in China.

“The sighting shows that there may be more animals and plants waiting to be discovered in the southern Himalayas，” said Li.

Established in 2010 by photographer Luo Hao， the TBIC conducts annual biodiversity surveys in Tibet through still images and videos.

Reaching for the Moon

Visitors photograph a model of the moon at an exhibition on the celestial body held at the National Aquatic Center， or Water Cube， in Beijing on July 8， the opening day of an exhibition on Chinas Lunar Exploration Technology and Museum of the Moon.

Nursing Service Reform

China plans to build a nursing service system supported by medical institutes， with communities as the platform and families as the basis by 2020， according to the National Health Commission （NHC） on July 6.

“It will push forward the establishment of a nursing service structure that covers diagnosis and treatment in the acute phase， recovery in the chronic phase， nursing in the stable phase and caring in the dying phase，” a guideline by the commission read.

“The reform will adhere to the principle of following the guidance of the government and getting input from multiple sources， as social forces will be guided to contribute to the business in various forms，” said Jiao Yahui， an NHC offi cial.

“They will be encouraged to set up nursing institutions to increase the supply in nursing services for the elderly and the disabled， which can also be helped by smaller hospitals.”

The guideline also encouraged medical institutions to extend their services for patients who are more prone to readmission to hospital or have higher demands for services.

Moreover， the guideline reiterated the goal of having 4.45 million registered nurses in China by 2020. At the end of 2017， China had more than 3.8 million registered nurses.

Cooling Down

Doctors apply sanfu paste to patients at a hospital in Guangzhou， south Chinas Guangdong Province， on July 7.

Sanfu paste is used in traditional Chinese medicine by placing medicinal patches on acupuncture points on the body. Sanfu， the hottest period of the Chinese lunar calendar， is considered a particularly suitable time for treating illness.

Xiaomis Stumble Xiaomi experienced a weak trading debut in Hong Kong as its oncehighly anticipated initial public offering faced muted demand.

Shares of Xiaomi opened down at HK$16.60 （$2.16） on July 9， more than 2 percent below its offering price of HK$17.

The Beijing-based company ended its trading debut 1.18 percent lower at HK$16.80， after hitting a low of HK$16 and briefl y peaking at HK$17.00 in the morning session.

“It is not necessarily a bad thing to start out from a low point，”Lei Jun， Xiaomi founder and CEO， said during a listing ceremony at the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on July 9. “Getting listed in Hong Kong is already a big win for us. It also marks a fresh start.”

The entrepreneur， who founded Xiaomi eight years ago， said that the companys market debut was“much better than expected，” given that global capital markets are in constant fl ux at this critical moment in Sino-U.S. trade relations.

Xiaomi， the worlds fourthlargest smartphone maker by shipments， has undergone a series of twists and turns on the path to its$4.7 billion Hong Kong listing amid mounting concerns over its hefty valuation and the delay of its plan to become the fi rst company to offer China Depository Receipts on the Chinese mainland.

Fresh and Abundant

Local residents buy vegetables at a market in Haikou， capital of south Chinas Hainan Province， on July 11. More vegetables are being supplied by the Haikou Shopping Basket Industry Group Company to stabilize their price， as Haikou has been in a phase of off-season vegetable production since May.

Tesla in Shanghai

U.S. carmaker Tesla Inc. will open its fi rst overseas plant in Shanghai， according to an agreement signed between Tesla and the Shanghai Municipal Government on July 10.

The factory， with a planned annual capacity of 500，000 electric cars， will be located in the Lingang Industrial Area along with an electric vehicle R&D; center， the agreement said.

According to the Shanghai Municipal Government， this will be the largest foreign-invested manufacturing project in the citys history， although detailed investment is yet to be revealed.

The Shanghai Municipal Government said that it would give full support to the construction of the plant and improve the business environment for foreign-owned enterprises.

Expanding Imports

On July 9， the State Council approved and released guidelines on expanding imports for balanced foreign trade， with policy incentives detailed in several areas.

China should keep exports stable while at the same time further expand imports， the guidelines said.

China will optimize the structure of imports to support the upgrade of production and consumption， with tariff cuts on certain products and the cleanup of unreasonable price markups， according to the guidelines.

Policy incentives will be given to imports of daily consumer goods， medicine and equipment for rehabilitation and elderly care.

China will optimize the layout of its international market， focusing on the expansion of imports from countries related to the Belt and Road Initiative.

It will also actively explore multiple channels to boost imports， including hosting the China International Import Expo.

The countrys investment environment should be improved so that foreign investment can play an important role in boosting imports， the guidelines said.

China will further facilitate trade by cultivating pro-import platforms and strengthening the protection of intellectual property rights， the guidelines said.

Smart Mobility

Chinese mobile transportation platform Didi Chuxing signed a strategic cooperation agreement with German automotive supplier Continental on July 10 to promote intelligent transportation services in China.

The two parties will explore cooperation mainly in the areas of intelligent and connected vehicles and customized new-energy vehicles， according to a statement from DiDi.

Under the partnership， Continental will provide an intelligently connected head unit for DiDis fi rst-generation customized shared vehicles.

This is the f rist time that Continental will provide connected head units for a ride-sharing busi-ness， which marks a milestone in Continentals expansion into the future transportation industry.

New-energy， ride-sharing and intelligent vehicles are paving the way for the development of the automobile and transportation industries， while ride-sharing offers new scenarios for consumers to experience automotive products， according to Yang Jun， Vice President of Didi.

Green Plastic

A circular weaving machine is used to make PET fabrics in Jingxian County， north Chinas Hebei Province， on July 10. Companies in the county have been developing rubber and plastic products that can be applied to ecological protection.

JD Finance Fundraising

JD Finance， the fi nance arm of Chinas second-largest e-commerce giant JD.com， announced on July 12 the B-round fundraising of 13 billion yuan （$1.94 billion）.

JD Finance has signed capital increase agreements with investors including CICC Capital， Bank of China Group Investment Limited， China Securities Co. Ltd. and CITIC Capital Holdings Limited， lifting its valuation to 133 billion yuan （$19.9 billion）， said the companys statement. This round of fundraising is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2018.

JD Finance will adhere to the digital technology strategy and increase input in data and technology sectors， said Cheng Shengqiang， JD Finance CEO.

Up to now， the company has offered services to more than 700 fi nancial institutions， and is working with fi nancial institutions to serve the 8 million small and micro merchants and 400 million individual users both online and offl ine.

JD Finance completed the A round fundraising of 6.65 billion yuan （$997 million） in January 2016， taking its valuation to 46.65 billion yuan （$6.99 billion）.

Esports Market Boom

Chinas esports market is expected to exceed 88 billion yuan （$13.2 billion） in 2018 and increase another 35 billion yuan （$5.25 billion） in the next two years， according to a report released on July 10.

The report by CNG， a research institute focusing on the industry， showed that the number of Chinas esports players has been growing at an annual average of more than 20 percent over the last three years， and will exceed 430 million in 2018.

The esports market revenue is mainly generated by gaming competitions while live broadcasts of people playing video games contributed less， according to the report.

In 2017， the esports market reached 77 billion yuan （$11.54 billion）. It is estimated that more than 500 gaming competitions were held in China in 2017， the report said.

New Germany Base

Contemporary Amperex Technology Ltd. （CATL） will invest 240 million euros （$281 million） on a production base in central Germany as part of the companys efforts to expand its presence in Europe.

The company， from Ningde in southeast Chinas Fujian Province， makes batteries for electric vehicles and said that the new factory will be built in two phases and start operations in 2021， with an annual output capacity of 14 gigawatt hours.

“We hope to bring the worlds most advanced battery technology to Germany. By localizing production in Europe， the company expects to be closer to European clients and offer them more timely and effective product solutions，” said CATL Chairman Zeng Yuqun.

Zeng said that China and Germany are highly complementary in the production， research and development of batteries. “Germanys strong manufacturing infrastructure can help CATL manufacture reliable and quality products. Meanwhile， German automakers need CATL battery technology to promote product development and overseas expansion.”

CATL said that the new site is expected to create around 600 local jobs. The European facility will supply world-leading carmakers in the region such as BMW， Volkswagen and Daimler.

Lotus Tourism

Visitors enjoy the lotus bloom in Nanfeng County， east Chinas Jiangxi Province， on July 9.

Over 2，000 hectares of loti are in bloom across the county， attracting a large number of tourists. In 2017， Nanfeng County received 3.92 million tourists， which generated an income of more than 3 billion yuan （$449 million）， helping 1，109 local people out of poverty.