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Xi Jinping Meets with Foreign Guests Attending the ChinaInternational Friendship Conference and Events Marking the70th Founding Anniversary of the CPAFFC

On the morning of October 11， 2024， President Xi Jinping held a group meeting with foreignguests attending the China International Friendship Conference and Events Marking the70th Anniversary of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries（CPAFFC） at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

President Xi pointed out that people-to-people friendship is the foundation for stable andsustained international relations and an inexhaustible driving force for promoting worldpeace and development. Over the past 75 years since the founding of the People’s Republic ofChina （PRC）， the Communist Party of China （CPC） has united and led the Chinese people inblazing a path of modernization that has not only resulted in developing the country itself butalso benefited the world.

President Xi also stressed that the world is once again at a crossroads in history. Amidchanges unseen in a century， the world is closely interconnected， and humanity shares a commonfuture. Building a community with a shared future for mankind is the right way forwardfor people of all countries in the world. China is ready to strengthen friendly exchanges withfriends from all other countries， give full play to the unique role of people-to-people diplomacy，and work together to build a community with a shared future for mankind.

Former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo， former President of the National Assemblyof Thailand Bhokin Bhalakula， and Elyn MacInnis， founder of Friends of Kuliang， spoke onbehalf of the foreign side respectively.

They extended warm congratulations on the 75th anniversary of the founding of the PRCand spoke highly of the unique role played by the CPAFFC in promoting people-to-people diplomacyand enhancing understanding and friendship among people from different countries.

They said that under the leadership of President Xi， China has successfully lifted itself outof poverty and achieved rapid development， making it a beacon of hope for the vast numberof developing countries.

They said They look forward to working with China to continue strengthening friendly exchangesand cooperation in various fields， pass on the friendship among people from generationto generation， and jointly build a community with a shared future for mankind in a bid tomake greater contributions to world peace， development， and prosperity.

Li Qiang Meets with European Council PresidentCharles Michel

Chinese Premier Li Qiang met with European Council President Charles Michel onthe sidelines of the leaders’ meetings on East Asia cooperation held in Vientiane， Laos， onOctober 11， 2024.

Li said that since Chinese President Xi Jinping met with EU leaders in December lastyear， China and the EU have maintained close high-level exchanges and promoted dialogueand cooperation in various fields， as a result， people-to-people exchanges have increasedsignificantly.

Li pointed out that it has been proven repeatedly throughout history and practice thatas two major peaceful and constructive forces in theworld， China and Europe’s sound relationship and practicalcooperation are conducive not only to stimulatingtheir respective development and joint responses toglobal challenges， but also to promoting world prosperityand stability.

Li said that China regards Europe as an importantdirection of its diplomacy and an important partner inpromoting Chinese modernization， adding that China isalso a major partner in helping Europe achieve energyand green transition and promote world peace anddevelopment.

Speaking highly of China’s development achievements in recent years， Michel said theEU side attaches great importance to its comprehensive strategic partnership with Chinaand looks forward to strengthening exchanges and dialogue with China at all levels and inall fields， deepening mutual understanding， expanding mutually beneficial cooperation，and improving the well-being of the two peoples.

Noting that the EU adheres to its strategic independence， he said it stands ready tostrengthen communication and coordination with China in international multilateral affairsto jointly address climate change and other global challenges.

Wang Yi Holds Phone Conversation with Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya

Wang Yi， a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Chineseforeign minister， spoke on the phone with Japan’s newly-appointed Foreign MinisterTakeshi Iwaya on October 9， 2024.

Iwaya said the new Japanese cabinet is willing to comprehensively promote the strategicrelationship of mutual benefit between Japan and China and is committed to building aconstructive and stable bilateral relationship.

Iwaya said Japan and China shoulder important responsibilities for the peace andstability of Asia and the world. In the face of a turbulent international situation， the newJapanese cabinet is committed to advancing diplomacy through dialogue and coordinationand is willing to work with China to strengthen cooperation and make greater contributionsto the promotion of regional peace and stability and addressing global challenges.

Wang said that China appreciates the positive signals sent by the new Japanese cabinetand Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya since he came to office， reflecting a willingness tostabilize and develop bilateral relations.ß

Wang called on both sides to learn from history， stay true to their original aspirations，expand cooperation， eliminate disruptions， and comprehensively advance the China-Japanstrategic relationship of mutual benefit. In this way， they will build a constructive andstable bilateral relationship fit for the new era.

ECONOMY/SOCIETY

Fiscal PolicyMeasures toBolster Economy

China will introducea package of targetedincremental fiscal policymeasures in the near futureto boost the economy，Minister of Finance LanFo’an told a press conferenceon October 12.

The package includesincreasing the debt ceilingon a relatively large scaleto replace existing hiddendebts of local governmentsand help defuse their debtrisks.

“It will greatly reducethe pressure on local governmentsto dissolve debts，free up more resources foreconomic development，and boost the confidenceof business entities，” Lansaid.

He stressed raising fiscalrevenue in accordancewith laws and regulations，while avoiding excessivetaxation to protect therights and interests ofbusiness entities.

Meanwhile， Chinaneeds to maintain thenecessary intensity offiscal expenditure， ensurethat key projects are fullyfunded， and play the roleof fiscal counter-cyclicalregulation effectively， in orderto achieve the annualeconomic and social developmentgoals， accordingto Lan.

Services TradeReports RapidGrowth

Recently， Black Myth： Wukong，an action role-playing game （RPG）rooted in Chinese mythology，became popular in many countries.It not only marks significantachievements in technologicalinnovation and content creationin the Chinese gaming industry，but also provides a new way forthe world to gain a deeper understandingof Chinese culture.

This is a reflection of thebooming knowledge-intensiveservice trade in China. Accordingto the Ministry of Commerce，China’s services tradesaw rapid growth during the firsteight months of the year， totalingnearly RMB 4.89 trillion （US$691.24 billion） between Januaryand August， up 14.3 percent yearon-year. Among them， the importand export of knowledge-intensiveservices was close to RMB 1.9trillion， an increase of 4.4 percent.

The continued growth ofknowledge-intensive service traderepresents new achievementsin innovation and high-qualitydevelopment of China’s servicetrade.

It is worth mentioning that inthis trade， the import and exportof cultural and entertainment serviceshave shown a rapid growthtrend. Among them， the exportgrowth rate is 13.8 percent， andthe import growth rate is 35percent.

Commercial Banks to Cut Mortgage Rates

China’s major commercialbanks， including the Industrialand Commercial Bank of China，Agricultural Bank of China， theBank of China， and China ConstructionBank， announced thatthey planned to cut some of theirexisting mortgage rates startingOctober 25.

Mortgage rates that currentlyexceed loan prime rate （LPR）-30basis points （BP） will be reduceduniformly to LPR-30BP. Both firstand second home mortgage rateswill be adjusted. Meanwhile，those mortgages， already belowLPR-30BP， are not subject toadjustment.

As an example， a RMB 1 million（US $141，518） mortgage overa 30-year period on an equal loanpayment could save a borroweraround RMB 61，000 in interestafter the latest adjustments.

The Ministry of Housing andUrban-Rural Development saidon September 29 that it willsupport cities， especially first-tiercities， to effectively leverage theirindependent real estate marketregulations and adjust restrictionson housing purchases basedon local conditions.

The set of stimulus measurescame after a recent meeting bythe Political Bureau of CommunistParty of China Central Committee，which emphasized effortsto reverse the downturn andstabilize the real estate market.

Flights Shift to Sustainable Fuel

Starting September 19， 12flights taking off from BeijingDaxing International Airport，Chengdu Shuangliu InternationalAirport， Zhengzhou XinzhengInternational Airport， andNingbo Lishe International Airportwill use sustainable aviationfuel （SAF）， according to theCivil Aviation Administrationof China. This move marked theinauguration of a pilot programthat involves China SouthernAirlines， China Eastern Airlines，and Air China.

The first phase of this programwill run from Septemberto December 2024， followed by asecond phase throughout 2025，during which the number ofparticipants will increase.

China’s civil aviation sectorhas intensified efforts to reduceenergy consumption and emissionsduring recent years.

SAF is a liquid aviation fuelalternative to traditional jetfuel. Manufactured using renewablematerials， it can reducecarbon emissions by up to 80percent over the fuel’s life cyclecompared to conventional one.Approximately 99 percent of thecarbon emissions from the civilaviation industry are linked tofuel consumption during flights

The development and useof SAF is believed to boost newindustries， new business modelsand new growth drivers， andfoster new quality productiveforces.

Marked Improvement in Public Health over 75 Years

According to data released inAugust this year， the average lifeexpectancy in China has morethan doubled from 35 years in1949 to 78.6 years at the present.This is just one example ofimprovements in the country’spublic health over the past 75years since the founding of thePeople’s Republic of China （PRC）.

The maternal mortality ratehas fallen from 1，500 to 15.1 per100，000， and the infant mortalityrate from 200 per thousandto just 4.5 per thousand. Thenumber of hospital beds hasincreased from 0.17 to 7.23 per1，000 people， and the numberof licensed （assistant） doctorsfrom 0.67 to 3.4 per 1，000 people.Major health indexes of theChinese population rank highamong mid- and high-incomecountries. In addition， China’smedical insurance network isalso the largest in the world，covering more than 1.3 billionpeople.

Remarkable progress has alsobeen made in combating infectiousdiseases. Malaria — whichaffected 30 million people before1949 — has been eradicated inChina. Vaccination has broughta sharp decrease in cases ofmeasles， epidemic encephalitisB， and other diseases. And themortality rate of tuberculosispatients is now on par with thatin developed countries.

628，000 metric tons

Since joining the Montreal Protocol in 1991， China has phasedout roughly 628，000 metric tons of ozone depleting substances，which represent over half of the contributions made by all developingcountries. It has also prevented the equivalent of more than 26billion metric tons of CO2 emissions， contributing significantly tothe recovery of the ozone layerand the fight against climatechange.

China's approach to hydrofluorocarbon（HFC） reductionis multifaceted. A strict quotaand licensing managementsystem has been put in placeto control the total volumeof HFCs. The 2024 quotas forproduction and domestic use were set at the equivalent of 1.449billion and 643 million metric tons of CO2 respectively， slashed by404 million and 262 million metric tons from 2023.

CULTURE

British MuseumUnveils Silk RoadExhibition

The British Museum openeda Silk Road exhibition for amedia preview on September24， showcasing over 300 objects，including items from 29 nationaland international institutions.

Spanning from around 500to 1000 A.D.， the exhibitionexplores how the journeys ofpeople， objects， and ideas along"the Silk Road shaped culturesand histories across continents.

Nicholas Cullinan， directorof the British Museum， saidthat through partnerships withorganizations worldwide， theexhibition demonstrates theconnection between differentcultures. \"Even though we havedistinct cultures and viewpoints，there are deep links thatconnect them，\" he said.

Luk Yu-ping， co-curator ofthe exhibition， emphasizedthe relevance of the past to the"present. \"In the past， China wascentral to these vast networks，influencing economic developmentand cultural exchange. Thisis mirrored today in initiativeslike the Belt and Road， whereChina again plays a vital role inthe global economy，\" she noted.

Luk highlighted the connectionbetween China's TangDynasty and the rest of theworld. \"For instance， we focuson maritime routes linkingChina to West Asia， illustratedby artifacts from the ninthcenturyBelitung shipwreck，which carried ceramics， gold，and silverware from Tang China，discovered off Indonesia's coast.\"

Sue Brunning， another cocurator，explained the broadgeographical scope of the SilkRoad. \"We're portraying it as aseries of overlapping networksconnecting Asia， Africa， andEurope. Although Northwest Europeis often overlooked in SilkRoad discussions， our exhibitionconcludes with artifacts foundin Scotland that can be tracedback to present-day Iran，\" shesaid.

The exhibition will open tothe public until February 23，2025.

Works of French Photographer on Display in China

From a wedding held in atextile factory in the 1950s to aman in a suit speaking on a brickphone in the 1990s， a new exhibitionfeaturing the works of Frenchphotographer Marc Riboud offersprecious glimpses of a fast-changingChina over half a century.

The exhibition， \"West MeetsEast： Retrospective Exhibitionof Marc Riboud's Photography，\"opened on September 26 at theHunan Museum in Changsha，capital of central China's HunanProvince， and features 148 photostaken by Riboud.

About 10 works are beingexhibited in China for the first"time. One of them is a colorphoto showing a couple carryinga television on a street inBeijing in 1980， shortly after thecountry launched its reform andopening-up drive.

The late photographer wasbest known for his extensivereports on China and Asia.

\"Marc Riboud had a keen eyefor Chinese society. His works，which have a unique visualrhythm and are deeply humanistic，show different sides of lifechanging in China，\" said HuangLei， curator of the exhibition.

Co-organized by the HunanMuseum and France's GuimetMuseum， the exhibition is partof this year's Croisements Festival，which marks the 60 years ofdiplomatic ties between Chinaand France.

Netherlands ServesUp Festival ofCinematic Treats

The Netherlands Film Festival，organized by China FilmGroup Corporation and theDutch embassy， was concludedin Beijing on October 31.

With Camiel Schouwenaar'sBigman as the openingfilm， the festival is set to beheld in seven cities， namelyBeijing， Shanghai， Guangzhou，Shenzhen， Xiamen，Chengdu， and Nanjing.

Ten acclaimed filmsincluding the documentaryClose to Vermeer ， thedrama road movie Kiddo， andthe comedy Rocco ， will bescreened.

Schouwenaar said that hehopes his film conveys a messageadvocating for parentsand teachers to provide theirchildren with the freedomand opportunity to exploretheir boundaries and discovertheir potential.

Job Tichelman， the scriptwriterof Bigman ， said thatthe film was inspired bychildhood experiences， and"mentioned that writing thescript sometimes felt like conversingwith his younger self.He expressed being pleasantlysurprised at the opportunity tobring the movie to China， remarkingthat he had only beennotified two weeks before thefestival.