Chinese state media continues its campaign to core Apple. CCTV Evening News had two segments Wednesday criticizing Apple–苹果避重就轻 社会关注事态进展 and 质检总局要求苹果公司改正违规行为. One of the main themes of the attacks has been that Apple’s repair policies do not conform to Chinese law.

Today’s People’s Daily devoted half of page 9 to several articles attacking Apple. One article even cites an earlier New York Times (yes, that New York Times whose web site is blocked in China) story about Apple minimizing its taxes.

These attacks have devolved into absurd caricature. A fair number of Weibo users are mocking state media and state-owned enterprises, as the Wall Street Joural reports in Apple Ire Hits China’s State-Owned Mammoths:

But one unintended consequence of the vitriol emerged Wednesday after the financial magazine Caijing polled its Weibo microblog followers for their response to Wednesday’s article.

Playing on the title of the People’s Daily article — “Smash Apple’s ‘Incomparable’ Arrogance” — Caijing wrote on its account early Wednesday morning: “As a consumer, which arrogant company or companies do you want to smash? Please give specific names so that we can announce a top 10.”

By Wednesday evening the poll had more than 600 comments, but Apple wasn’t a top mention. Instead, hundreds of users repeatedly named a handful of state-owned monopolies. Among them were China’s three largest oil companies, its three major telecom-service providers, and its four major banks, along with other government-run services like railways, electricity and water. Running just behind those companies was the People’s Daily and other state-run media.

That Caijing Weibo is here.

Apple’s popularity is helping buffer Apple from Chinese state-media attacks reports Reuters:

Another user asked where the newspaper was when it came to reporting on corrupt on local ministries and poisonous milk.

“Do you wish to transfer our focus? Get the ordinary people to curse and blame useless things? There’s toxic air, toxic water and tainted milk…We are not fools!” said another user.

The intense push-back from Internet users indicates the strong reputation of Apple in China and shows the waning ability of China’s state propaganda apparatus to manage opinion online, analysts say.

Will Apple change its repair policies to try to stem these attacks, and do the company’s current policies not conform with Chinese law?

A new U.S. law to restrict government purchases of Chinese IT equipment (Reuters) may not help, even if Apple makes a display of contrition, or places large advertising buys with certain state media. According to the Reuters story:

The law prevents NASA, and the Justice and Commerce Departments from buying information technology systems unless federal law enforcement officials give their OK

A provision in the 240-page spending law requires the agencies to make a formal assessment of “cyber-espionage or sabotage” risk in consultation with law enforcement authorities when considering buying information technology systems.

The assessment must include “any risk associated with such system being produced, manufactured or assembled by one or more entities that are owned, directed or subsidized” by China.

Yesterday’s newsletter linked to the seventh in a series of People’s Daily page one commentaries on building the Chinese Dream. Xinhua published an abridged version in “Chinese dream” driven by individuals: newspaper:

The People’s Daily, the flagship newspaper of the Communist Party of China, carried an editorial on Wednesday asserting that the “Chinese dream” highlighted by President Xi Jinping is essentially the dream of every individual…

It summarized, “At the critical stage of achieving a great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, as long as we involve as many people as possible in the country’s reform and development, and in the building of a moderately prosperous society in an all-round way, we can forge ahead with public support.”

Today’s People’s Daily has number eight in the Chinese Dream series–人民日报-在党的引领下汇聚圆梦力量 ——八论同心共筑中国梦–reiterating the importance of the Party’s leadership in achieving the Chinese Dream:

在一个人口比欧盟、美国、日本、俄罗斯加起来还要多的国家，进行一场广泛深刻的工业革命、技术革命、社会革命，让１３亿人民走向现代化、走向民族复兴，这是人类历史上前所未有的挑战。应对这一挑战，实现中国梦想，起着引领作用的政治领导至关重要，团结亿万人民的核心力量不可或缺。我国革命、建设的实践反复告诉我们，办好中国事，实现中国梦，关键在党。只有在党的领导下，既不走封闭僵化的老路，也不走改旗易帜的邪路，坚定不移走中国特色社会主义道路，才能迎来国家富强、民族振兴、人民幸福的光明前景。

The latest issue of Caijing Magazine has an interesting piece on the subject 中国梦，民为本:

什么是“中国梦”？习近平3月17日在十二届全国人大一次会议闭幕会上的讲话，对实现“中国梦”的目标、道路、精神和力量进行了全面阐述。

在此一类似于“就职演讲”的政策宣示中，习近平特别强调指出：“中国梦归根到底是人民的梦，必须紧紧依靠人民来实现，必须不断为人民造福。

这是一个非常重要的政治结论和施政指向，符合民众期待，直面当前挑战，可以说再次厘清并升华了中国改革开放国策的出发点与终极目标…

“中国梦、民为本”所涉及的原则和指向关系重大，但知易行难，不能仅靠少数开明领导的政治远见和道德自觉，而要通过法律建设和制度改革加以保障。习近平对此有完整阐述，他强调坚持党的领导、人民当家作主、依法治国有机统一，他还强调坚持人民主体地位，扩大人民民主，建设服务政府、责任政府、法治政府、廉洁政府，充分调动人民积极性。

基于中国现实国情，我们认为其中核心还是还权于民、民众做主，为此必须深化经济、社会和政治体制改革，打破现有权力、利益格局，确保人民利益高于一切。如此，中国梦可圆，民为本可期。

The “Chinese Dream” concept is very broad, potentially very powerful and should not be dismissed as just another empty propaganda push, though there is no timetable for when these petitioners might see their Chinese Dreams fulfilled (Photos via Tea leaf Nation).

Longtime Sinocism readers may remember my attempts at Baijiu speculation with the purchase of a case of Xi Jiu, as described in last year’s post Xi Jiu, A Baijiu Bet on Xi Jinping. Sadly Xi Jiu, a subsidiary of Moutai, was caught discharging polluted waste water into a local river and is now in trouble, as National Business Daily reports in 茅台301厂污染被查实 习酒遭“挂牌督办”. I may have to drink that case now…

Today’s Links:

THE ESSENTIAL EIGHT

Xi Jinping Imposes Austerity Measures on China’s Elite – NYTimes.com But old ways die hard. In its investigation into continued abuses, the state-run Xinhua news agency denounced “double-dealing officials who chant frugality slogans but secretly hold extravagant banquets.” Xinhua also discovered a new catchphrase popular among government officials: “Eat quietly, take gently and play secretly.” // But 媒体曝国企食堂宴请官员：茅台装入矿泉水瓶 – 搜狐视频手机版 more exposes of officials moving banquets to private venues, including their office canteens..tales of using mineral water bottles to hide the Moutai…

The Temptation of China’s Capital Account by Yu Yongding – Project Syndicate Today, as all major developed economies resort to expansionary monetary policy, the global economy is being flooded with excess liquidity, and a “currency war” is looming large. As a result, short-term capital inflows, whether seeking a safe haven or conducting carry trades, are bound to become larger and more volatile. In these circumstances, with China’s financial system too fragile to withstand external shocks, and the global economy mired in turmoil, the PBOC would be unwise to gamble on the ability of rapid capital-account liberalization to generate a healthier and more robust financial system. On the contrary, policymakers should tread carefully in their pursuit of financial liberalization. Given China’s extensive reform agenda, further opening of the capital account can wait; and, in view of liberalization’s ambiguous benefits and significant risks, it should.

China Tightens Regulations on Wealth Management – WSJ.com this news seems to be hitting Chinese stocks hard Thursday//  In a notice dated March 25 but publicly unveiled Wednesday, the China Banking Regulatory Commission said banks must clearly link wealth management products with the assets that proceeds are invested in. Banks could previously pool assets in a nontransparent manner, leading many critics to argue that they were using proceeds from sales of new products to repay previous investors. The banking regulator mandated in its statement that all individual wealth management products must undergo auditing and banks must ensure products have balance sheets, income statements, cash flow statements and other financial reports.//银监会整顿银行通道业务_金融频道_财新网 Caijing on this circular…regulators are working to get this under control, but could lea to a bit of a liquidity squeeze that may hit 2013 economic growth

Iraqi oil: Once seen as U.S. boon, now it’s mostly China’s | McClatchy Ten years after the United States invaded and occupied Iraq, the country’s oil industry is poised to boom and make the troubled nation the No.2 oil exporter in the world. But the nation that’s moving to take advantage of Iraq’s riches isn’t the United States. It’s China.

Chinese navy makes presence felt at disputed shoal – Pacific – Stripes A Chinese amphibious task force conducted patrol and training missions at a shoal 50 miles from Malaysia’s coast Monday, furthering its assertive claims to nearly all territory in an area that most of the world considers international waters. Chinese officials said they “were determined to safeguard the country’s sovereignty with their services on the South China Sea” during a ceremony at uninhabited James Shoal, according to Xinhua news agency and the People’s Daily Online

China agencies press territorial claims in Asian waters – latimes.com Civilian agencies serving as military proxies enable China to avoid serious repercussions for what some see as maritime sovereignty harassment.

China’s Cultural Revolution: son’s guilt over the mother he sent to her death | World news | guardian.co.uk Zhang Hongbing was 16 when he denounced his mother for criticising Chairman Mao. Now Zhang wants to make amends//earlier story by Tania Branigan about the Cultural Revolution features my spouse

重庆“文革”红卫兵墓园清明节将开放(图)_资讯频道_凤凰网 Chongqing’s “Red Guard Cemetery” will be open to the public during the upcoming Tomb Sweeping Festival// “文革”红卫兵墓园四周建有围墙，平时大门被锁着，今年清明节将对市民开放。

 

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

ICBC Leads Chinese Banks in Trumping Returns at JPMorgan – Bloomberg but banks down hard in Shanghai stock market Thursday// “Chinese banks are in much better shape than their counterparts in most developed countries,” Sandy Mehta, chief executive officer of Value Investment Principals Ltd., said in an interview in Hong Kong. Their “ROEs have been remarkably resilient in the face of a slowing economy,” and will probably be sustained as China’s growth revives, he said.

Non-Performing Loans at Three of China Four Largest Banks Near CNY 226Bn in 2012-Caijing Non-performing loans (NPL) at three of China’s four largest state-owned banks approached 226billion yuan (USD 36.34 billlion) by the end of 2012, triggering worries over Chinese banks’ deteriorating credit quality following years of lending spree in tandem with the government’s efforts to bolster a slowing economy. The NPLs which accounted for almost half of net incomes generated by the banks, Agricultural Bank of China (ABC), Bank of China (BoC) and China Construction Bank (CCB), marked a 2% uptick from the same period in the previous year, as recent annual earnings reported showed.

New Hands Take the Financial Regulation Wheel – Caixin Who’s steering China’s carefully managed financial system? Speculators were busy name-guessing before and for several months after the Communist Party’s 18th National Congress in November….As CSRC chairman, Xiao is expected to continue moving forward with pro-market policies introduced by Guo. He and Guo are said to have different management styles: Xiao has been called studious, shy and good-natured. But the two men share a commitment to market-oriented progress: Xiao told reporters in March he supports consistency in securities regulations.

Local Gov’t Debt to Hit 16.3 Tln Yuan This Year, Brokerage Says – Caixin Local government debt will reach 16.3 trillion yuan this year, equivalent to 29 percent of the country’s GDP, a report by a major Chinese securities broker says. The calculation by Huatai Securities includes loans borrowed by local government financing platforms, urban investment bonds and local government debts issued by the Ministry of Finance. By the end of 2011, outstanding loans held by local government financing platforms totaled 9.1 trillion yuan, the report said. The China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC) put the figure at 9.3 trillion yuan at the end of 2012.

NDRC Puts Two Restrictions on PE Funds – Caixin The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) rolled out another regulation regarding private equity funds, prohibiting them from running public funds and investing in publicly traded securities. This is in direct conflict with two policies announced by China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) in February that allowed PE funds to operate public funds and invest in public companies.

Web China: Looming property taxes spark owner panic – Xinhua | English.news.cn Famous microblogger “Ren Zhiqiang,” president of a real estate company in Beijing, predicted this round of administrative regulation would once again be a failure, just as he and his colleagues have found with previous rounds since 2003. Meanwhile, Zhu Haibin, chief Chinese economist with JPMorgan Chase & Co., said that efficient tools were needed to curb surging home prices and that measures involving income tax could greatly cut down property deals based on profiteering rather than living demand. However, Zhu added, the uncertain date of implementation left uncertainty through March, when property deals and home prices may have seen their last crazy rises.

三央企亏掉创业板全年盈利_财经频道_一财网 中国远洋亏95.6亿元，中国铝业亏82.3亿元，中国中冶亏72亿元。

China May Need Record Corn Imports to Bridge Shortage, Yigu Says – Bloomberg China, the second-biggest corn user, may increase imports to a record in the marketing year starting Sept. 1 as wet weather in its northeast region cut grain quality, according to advisory service Yigu Information Consulting Ltd. Heavy snow this winter increased moisture content and reduced density, making the grain more susceptible to mold and less suitable for feeding animals, said analyst Zhang Qi. A national shortage of good-quality grain may boost local prices and purchases of U.S. corn to more than 7 million metric tons, near the most allowed under government quotas, he said.

环球时报：彭丽媛支持国产品牌服装 其他名流应惭愧 -财经网 global times says Peng Liyuan’s support of Chinese fashion brands should make other celebrities ashamed…crackdown on corruption, frugality campaign, now this…2013 looks to be a very bad year for foreign luxury firms in China // 中国的社会名流应当成为推动中国自主品牌建设的一支力量，他们中的很多人最早成为外国知名品牌的拥趸，现在也应早于普通国人一步跳出对它们的崇拜。看看日韩社会对本国品牌的那份支持，中国人、首先是中国的名流们应当有所惭愧

Samsung to Build Largest Plant in Vietnam as Labor Cost Rises in China-Caijing Samsung Electronics Co. is building world’s large plant in Vietnam manufacturing mobiles largely due to lower costs compared with other Asian countries like China, according to media reports. The Vietnam unit of the company has started construction on the plant in Yen Binh Industrial Park in Thai Nguyen province, reported the Korea Central Daily News.

China Exclusive: Migrants: linchpin of China’s urbanization – Xinhua | English.news.cn China’s hundreds of millions of migrant workers, about two thirds of the U.S. population, underpins China’s transition toward a consumer economy. But if mishandled, they may also form a disgruntled urban underclass lacking social benefits. Tom Miller, author of “China’s Urban Billion”, told Xinhua that the rural migrants of China are the linchpin of the country’s further urbanization…As China forges ahead, certain urban areas are vacant and thus have been labeled “ghost towns”. But Miller disagrees. “Most of the so-called ‘ghost towns’ are not towns at all. They’re ‘ghost suburbs’,” he said. He believes that as government offices and university campuses are relocated to the new areas, those suburbs will gradually fill up.

Lateline – 27/03/2013: Garnaut warns of Chinas debt Ross Garnaut, Professorial fellow in Economics at the University of Melbourne discusses [disagrees with] the report from Nomura investment bank that China is on the brink of a debt crisis and showing symptoms similar to those that triggered the Global Financial Crisis.

In China, Executives Flock Back to Graduate School – NYTimes.com Leading Chinese executives or their companies pay upwards of 600,000 renminbi, or about $96,000, for a part-time, two- to three-year course. Many fly across the country to attend four-day blocks of classes once a month.

The Ambow Massacre — Baring Private Equity Fails in Its Take Private Plan | China Private Equity Some of the Chinese-listed companies fell out of favor for the good reason that they are dubious businesses, run with shoddy and opaque practices, by bosses who’ve shown scant regard for the letter and spirit of the securities laws of the US. Are these really the kind of people PE funds should consider going into business with?

 

POLITICS AND LAW

China’s new captain of industry | beyondbrics If there is one thing Jiang excels at, it is knowing how to work the ropes. The son of a local bureaucrat in Shandong province, he started his career as an oil well repairman in the local Shengli oil field in the 1970s, and rose rapidly through management ranks. Aside from a brief stint in the government of Qinghai province, he has been with CNPC (and its predecessor the Ministry of Petroleum) for his entire career, and energy executives say he is widely viewed as a lynchpin in decision-making in the industry in Beijing.So, he could have the credentials to make the Sasac job a bit less ceremonial, and a bit more influential.／／surprised no mention that jiang did not get the sasac party secretary job

Li Keqiang urges more information openness – China Media Project Offering what quickly became a popular meme on social media, Li also said the government needed to “speak the truth, and deliver” (说真话、交实底).

China to punish phony business trip officials – Xinhua | English.news.cn Anyone caught seeking overseas sightseeing using fake training invitations and schedules will face severe punishment in accordance with law, and the training arrangement will be canceled, said Wang, who doubles as director of the Hunan Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs. He explained, “Individuals responsible for the fabrication will be ineligible to apply for any future training sessions, and the overseas agencies involved will be disqualified from organizing overseas training.”

PREMIER LEAGUE (11): Communist Youth League spreads tentacles to private-sector companies – AJW by The Asahi Shimbun Editor’s note: This is the 11th in a series of articles on the Communist Youth League and the officials who have used the organization as their power base…Foreign employees of foreign companies have almost no knowledge of the presence of the league within their own company. “Foreigners are unable to become involved in league activities,” a diplomat who has worked many years in China said about the trend. “Action is being taken outside of the realm of foreign employees.”

Hu’s decade of “failed” power – China Media Project Obviously, it’s too early to say history is repeating itself. But the questions certainly are being repeated. Who is Xi? Will he be the reformer China needs? Are these the wrong questions? I had a strong sense of déjà vu this week as I sat down with another veteran journalist facing intimidation by the authorities. The key now, he said, was to watch Xi Jinping after his return from his official tours to Russia and Africa. //translates part of an essay by Sun Liping// The Olympics marked the beginning, it can be said, of the ascendance of the stability preservation regime in China. Looking back now, it might be that the Olympics were something we did that we ought not to have done.

20 jailed for terrorism, separatism in Xinjiang – Xinhua | English.news.cn Nineteen of the suspects were given prison sentences ranging from 5 years to life in prison after a trial in the Kashagar Prefecture Intermediate People’s Court on Tuesday. They were convicted of using cell phones and electronic storage mediums to organize, lead and take part in terrorist activities. They were also convicted of illegally crossing borders and affray, according to the court ruling. Kerem Mohammad, the 20th suspect, was sentenced to 10 years in jail on the same day by the Bayingolin Mongolian Autonomous Prefecture Intermediate People’s Court for inciting separatism. He was charged with using online chat rooms to spread information related to separatism and terrorism.//which chat rooms?

Chinese premier specifies government tasks for 2013 – Xinhua | English.news.cn quite a laundry list// A total of 48 key tasks in six categories were declared and distributed to corresponding departments at an executive cabinet meeting chaired by Li. All departments should closely follow and analyze economic situations at home and abroad in a bid to stabilize growth, fight inflation, guard against risks and boost China’s economic transition, according to the meeting.

 

FOREIGN AND DEFENSE AFFAIRS

BRICS Big Five find it hard to run as a herd | Reuters Seasoned BRICS observers said they were not surprised by the lack of concrete institution-creating results from the summit. “I think there was too much hype around it,” said Martyn Davies, chief executive of the Johannesburg-based Frontier Advisory consultancy that focuses on emerging markets. “They are still battling to create the economic institutions to back their geopolitical rhetoric … the rhetoric is not supported by the substance,” he told Reuters.

China Oil Tanker Seen at Iran Port for First Time Since EU Ban – Bloomberg A Chinese supertanker able to haul 2 million barrels of crude sent a signal from Iran’s largest export terminal in what may be the first visit of its kind since a European ban on insuring shipments in July. The Yuan Yang Hu, belonging to state-owned China Ocean Shipping (Group) Co., the country’s biggest shipping company, was at Kharg Island on March 21, according to vessel-tracking data from IHS Fairplay, a Redhill, England-based research company. The ship has since left the Persian Gulf, according to a signal today.

Rushford Report–Half Pivot Let’s cast a gimlet eye on President Barack Obama’s “pivot” toward Asia. Viewed from important Asian capital cities — Tokyo and Bangkok, Manila and Hanoi, Dacca and Phnom Penh, also Jakarta —the pivot is looking more like a half-pivot. The first half involves U.S. security ties to Asia. The Pacific Command — with its U.S. Seventh Fleet, the Fifth Air Force, and its Special Operations Forces — has been keeping the Pacific, well, pacific, for more than a half-century. In that sense, there is nothing especially new to the Obama pivot, except perhaps the spin. But give the White House credit for supporting officials in the State Department and the Pentagon, as they have been tending to America’s traditional diplomatic and security relationships. But the same White House has failed to connect U.S. trade policies to the political-military part of the pivot. A search for a coherent U.S. trade policy for the region turns up a series of unconnected ad hoc policies.

Asia Sentinel – Canada: China’s New Gold Mountain Last July, the Canadian government suspended its Federal Entrepreneur Program – essentially visas for cash – under the weight of tens of thousands of applications. Despite a provision requiring applicants to loan C$800,000 – the equivalent of US$784,450 – to the Canadian and its local governments for five years, and other criteria, the program crashed under the weight of tens of thousands of applicants, significant numbers of them Chinese, and apparently significant numbers of them fleeing with ill-gotten funds.

中国买家涌入塞浦路斯 2个月买入600套房产 | 每经网 600+ Chinese bought properties in Cyprus in just 2 months last year…probably many more, to take advantage of cheap way to buy an EU passport…hahaha// 官方上月公布的调查报告显示，2012年8-10月，塞浦路斯有600多套房产的买主为中国人，其中90%都在帕福斯。

American Arrested in Spy Case Unlikely Suspect, Friends Say | Defense News | defensenews.com Prior to becoming a contractor, Bishop served in PACOM’s J5 Strategic Planning Policy Directorate, said one source who knew him. Specifically, Bishop served under J57, which handles weapons of mass destruction, homeland defense, consequence management and functional plans and policy, “so he would have been in the thick of all the strategic level stuff with his uniform position,” he said. The criminal complaint filed by Scott Freeman, a special agent with the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, said there is “probable cause” that Bishop communicated classified U.S. national defense information to an unidentified 27-year-old female Chinese citizen who was in the U.S. on a non-immigrant J1 student visa, identified only as “Person 1” in the complaint.

Chinese general leads troops in Cyprus as Beijing embraces U.N. role | Reuters  Now, as commander of the U.N. mission in Cyprus, Major General Liu has the most senior peacekeeping position yet held by China – the biggest contributor of peacekeeping troops of the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council. Beijing makes it clear it views its peacekeeping as a sign of its growing status as a global power.

China eyes $3.5 billion Russian arms deal despite ire over Sukhoi copy | Reuters China’s state media reported this week that Moscow had agreed to supply 24 Sukhoi Su-35 fighters and four Amur-class conventional submarines to the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), which would make it the first major arms deal between the two nations in almost 10 years. Russia has not yet confirmed the deal and military experts there said the Chinese announcement was premature because negotiations were continuing.

洪振快：历史如何让亲美变成仇美-财经网 假如没有美国，中国抗日战争能否胜利，恐怕是未知数。因此，抗战结束，中美处于蜜月期，中共对美国也很有好感。朝鲜战争爆发，中共”一边倒”向苏联后，美国就成了最凶恶的帝国主义，仇视、鄙视、蔑视美国的”三视”教育运动应时而生

First pics: China’s J-20 stealth fighter armed with a missile | Killer Apps Here are what might be the first photos and videos of China’s J-20 stealth fighter equipped with an air-to-air missile. We’ve seen this coming for several weeks now as photos and videos emerged on the Chinese internet showing the second known J-20 (dubbed serial number 2002) flying with its weapons bay open and a missile rack popping out.

军人公开发表叛国言论将被立案_政经频道_财新网 最高检和解放军总政治部联合发布《军人违反职责罪案件立案标准》，强化了对军人言论的约束，并要求严惩擅自出卖、转让军队房地产等案件…　一位不愿公开姓名的法学专家则指出，经上述修订后，关键是如何界定“公开发表叛国言论”的性质和程度。如果相关规定不细化，会弱化军人叛逃罪的构成要件，容易模糊“公开发表叛国言论”与“煽动颠覆国家政权罪”的界限。 除了“公开发表叛国言论”，还有六种情形也应予立案：因反对国家政权和社会主义制度而出逃的；掌握、携带军事秘密出境后滞留不归的；申请政治避难的；投靠境外反动机构或者组织的；出逃至交战对方区域的；进行其他危害国家军事利益活动的。

 

TECH AND MEDIA

Apple In Chinese Court After Being Accused Of Copying Siri Software – Business Insider The Chinese company’s product operates in a similar way and works on Apple’s iOS system as well as rival Android. It has wide application in areas including telecommunications, finance and e-commerce and Zhizhen claims more than 100 million users in China, according to a statement. “The company will ask Apple to stop manufacturing and selling products using its patent rights, once Apple’s infringement is confirmed,” Si Weijiang, a lawyer representing Zhizhen, told AFP

Baidu Form 20-F Baidu has filed its 2012 20-F with the SEC…these filings worth reading

宽带中国配套政策正在制定中 新华社——经济参考网 progress on “Broadband China Strategic Plan”?// 《经济参考报》记者从宽带中国战略方案起草组核心专家处独家获悉，《宽带中国战略方案》(草案)(以下简称《方案》)已制定完成。目前专家组和相关部委正在制定相应的配套政策，部分已经完成，而外界最为关心的后续财税支持方案也在紧锣密鼓地研究制定中，据悉，如果进展顺利，这一财税支持方案，将在《方案》正式出台后公布。

默多克低调来华：或寻求移动互联网并购_科技_腾讯网 Rupert Murdoch in Beijing, meeting with Internet entrepreneurs. Murdoch looking for CHina Internet/mobile deals? and who is the foreigner to Murdoch’s right in the picture?

Weixin To Release The Mobile Payment Service–TechNode Staff from Weixin’s R&D team revealed to local portal Sohu that the popular chatting app will soon launch its mobile payment service. Accordingly the function will be realized in the form of a “payment card” on Weixin’s platform, and be connected to Tencent’s online payment service Tenpay.

Alibaba Repositions AliExpress as “International Taobao” | Marbridge Consulting – China Internet News Chinese e-commerce conglomerate Alibaba Group’s international wholesale marketplace AliExpress announced on March 26 that it will shift its focus from online international wholesale to overseas shopping, with the goal of developing an international version of Alibaba’s C2C & B2C e-commerce site Taobao. AliExpress spokesperson Shen Difan said that Taobao merchants now make up the mainstay of merchants on the AliExpress platform. AliExpress will focus on personal consumers in developing markets including Russia, India, and Brazil

别让免费定势再毁了移动互联网 – 新华信息化 – 新华网 State Planners can’t help themselves, seem to be pushing for rules to make Tencent’s WeChat fee-based…// 在3月25日晚举行的趋势对话主题沙龙上，国家发展和改革委员会经济体制与管理研究所产业研究室主任史炜、北京邮电大学经济管理学院教授曾剑秋、工信部电信研究院副总工程师陈金桥等专家一致认为，对OTT业务及其提供商收费是产业发展必然趋势，但如何收费应由市场自身解决。

 

SOCIETY, ART, SPORTS, CULTURE AND HISTORY

China’s urban refugees: Leaving pollution, city life behind | Marketplace.org know a few who have done this//In a cobblestone alleyway in the Western Chinese town of Dali, a group of urban transplants sit at a table, sharing a bottle of wine. It’s 10 in the morning. The sun has just come up behind the steep mountains that surround the town. They’re reflected in the turquoise waters of an alpine lake, below. Xu Yan and her husband quit their jobs in the southern metropolis of Guangzhou to start a wine shop here.

京剧不归路-《财经》杂志八个样板戏为数不多，却准确地反映了中共历史的革命意识和革命精神。反复观摩这一幅幅活动的革命图像，成为那个时代中国民众的唯一文化生活

Chinese Students Struggle for Returns on Education in U.S. – China Real Time Report – WSJ But contrary to many students’ expectations, having the American diploma isn’t a golden ticket to employment in China. Zhilian Zhaopin’s report also found that more than 70% of employers won’t give preferential treatment to haigui candidates, and almost 8% say they actually prefer not to hire “hai gui.” Reasons for that include mismatch in salary expectations as well as “hai guis’” lack of personal connections, or “guan xi,” compared to their Chinese-educated counterparts.

Talking to the dead: the art of making taoist paper effigies | South China Morning Post In the third episode of our Uniquely Hong Kong series, a design graduate tells of his decision to take up his father’s craft of making taoist paper effigies used to communicate with the dead

 

ENERGY, ENVIRONMENT AND HEALTH

1/5 of Shallow Groundwater in N China Plains Drinkable–CRI A survey conducted by the Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences shows that 44.13 percent of shallow groundwater in the North China Plains is polluted and only 22.2 percent can be drunk directly, Xinhua reports.

 

FOOD AND TRAVEL

官酱名天下_图个什么_金兮敏_博联社 cool pictures of a soy sauce factory in Pudong, Shanghai that has been recognized by State Council for its intangible cultural heritage for its use of traditional processes to ferment the sauce

河南新乡村民用造纸厂直排污水浇灌麦田 – 搜狐视频手机版 CCTV News Video of henan farmers irrigating their wheat with waste water. When asked if they eat the wheat the farmer replies “no, we sell it to you”

The Chinese Takeout Cookbook: Quick and Easy Dishes to Prepare at Home: Diana Kuan: Amazon America’s love affair with Chinese food dates back more than a century. Today, such dishes as General Tso’s Chicken, Sweet and Sour Pork, and Egg Rolls are as common as hamburgers and spaghetti. Probably at this moment, a drawer in your kitchen is stuffed with Chinese takeout menus, soy sauce packets, and wooden chopsticks, right? But what if you didn’t have to eat your favorites out of a container? In The Chinese Takeout Cookbook, Chinese food blogger and cooking instructor Diana Kuan brings Chinatown to your home with this amazing collection of more than eighty popular Chinese takeout recipes—appetizers, main courses, noodle and rice dishes, and desserts

How Does a Shot of $1,000 Chinese Liquor Taste?: Video – Bloomberg Stephen Engle reports on China’s white liquor. He speaks on Bloomberg Television’s “First Up.”

 

JOBS AND EVENTS

CSIS Event China Reality Check Speaker Series: China’s Defense Budget Date: 4/8/2013 10:00 AM – 11:30 AM Location: 1800 K St. NW Washington, DC
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