The newsletter is a bit abbreviated today as I have to attend a memorial service this morning.

The campaign to destroy “Big V” Xue Manzi’s reputation went into high gear overnight with the release of more details of his alleged crime and a video of his admission of guilt. For spam-filter avoidance reasons I can not publish what he is accused of doing, but links to the details are in the Essential Eight section. The message to the Big Vs is now unmistakable.

Readers know I have emphasized that this current crackdown on online rumors is very consistent with past policies, and specifically with the official decision (中共中央关于深化文化体制改革推动社会主义文化大发展大繁荣若干重大问题的决定) released after the Sixth Plenum of the 17th Party Congress in October 2011. No official English translation of that document has been published but Oxford scholar Rogier Creemers translated the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party Decision Concerning Deepening Cultural Structural Reform and posted it to his excellent China Copyright and Media blog. The section on the Internet is very relevant to the current crackdown:

 (5) Developing healthy and upward network culture. Strengthening online ideological and cultural battlefield construction is an urgent task in Socialist culture construction. It is necessary to earnestly implement and vigorously use, scientifically develop, and manage according to the law policies guaranteeing security, strengthen and improve network culture and management, strengthen online public opinion guidance, sing the online ideology and culture main melody. Implementing network construction projects, promoting excellent traditional cultural treasures and contemporary excellent cultural product network dissemination, producing excellent works and masterpieces suited to burgeoning media dissemination such as the Internet and mobile telephones, etc., encouraging netizens to create network cultural works with a healthy style. Supporting focus news websites in accelerating development, forging a batch of comprehensive websites and specialist websites having relatively strong influence at home and abroad, giving rein to the constructive function of main commercial websites, fostering a batch of network content production and service backbone enterprises. Developing new network technology and new business models, occupying the high ground of network information dissemination. Broadly developing civilized website construction, promoting civilized web business and civilized web use, supervising and urging network operators and service enterprises to implement legal duties and social responsibilities, not providing dissemination channels to harmful information. Strengthening network legal structure construction, accelerating the shaping of an Internet management system combining standardized laws and regulations, administrative supervision and management, sectoral self-regulation, technological guarantees, public supervision and social education. Strengthening guidance and management over social networks and instant communication tools, etc., standardizing online information dissemination procedures, cultivating a civilized and rational network environment. Punishing activities of disseminating harmful information according to the law, deeply moving forward the special campaign to clean up network obscenity and pornography and resist vulgar information, strictly strike network illegality and crime. Expanding online personal information protection strength, establishing network security appraisal mechanisms, safeguarding the public interest and national information security.

For those who read Chinese, here is the original of that section:

发展健康向上的网络文化。加强网上思想文化阵地建设，是社会主义文化建设的迫切任务。要认真贯彻积极利用、科学发展、依法管理、确保安全的方针，加强和改进网络文化建设和管理，加强网上舆论引导，唱响网上思想文化主旋律。实施网络内容建设工程，推动优秀传统文化瑰宝和当代文化精品网络传播，制作适合互联网和手机等新兴媒体传播的精品佳作，鼓励网民创作格调健康的网络文化作品。支持重点新闻网站加快发展，打造一批在国内外有较强影响力的综合性网站和特色网站，发挥主要商业网站建设性作用，培育一批网络内容生产和服务骨干企业。发展网络新技术新业态，占领网络信息传播制高点。广泛开展文明网站创建，推动文明办网、文明上网，督促网络运营服务企业履行法律义务和社会责任，不为有害信息提供传播渠道。加强网络法制建设，加快形成法律规范、行政监管、行业自律、技术保障、公众监督、社会教育相结合的互联网管理体系。加强对社交网络和即时通信工具等的引导和管理，规范网上信息传播秩序，培育文明理性的网络环境。依法惩处传播有害信息行为，深入推进整治网络淫秽色情和低俗信息专项行动，严厉打击网络违法犯罪。加大网上个人信息保护力度，建立网络安全评估机制，维护公共利益和国家信息安全。

The current Internet campaign looks more like a consistent application of a broader policy decided years ago than some “reformer vs. conservative” split ahead of the Third Plenum. Maybe there is a Chinese Gorbachev hiding somewhere in the bushes in Zhongnanhai but I would not bet on it, and the onus should be on those claiming a “reformer vs. conservative” dynamic to provide evidence.

Today’s Links:

THE ESSENTIAL EIGHT

Beijing police capture 27 for prostitution – Xinhua Police in Beijing have captured 27 people after they were found to have been involved in prostitution, including Chinese-American Xue Charles Bi-Chuen, according to the Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau. Xue, 60, an investor and prolific microblogger with more than 12 million followers, was arrested in the Chaoyang District of Beijing last Friday, police said. Xue was accused of group licentiousness…

Related: 北京警方查明网络大V“薛蛮子”嫖娼且涉嫌聚众淫乱-法治频道-新华网 video of Charles Xue’s admission// 新华网北京８月２８日电　记者２８日从北京市公安局获悉，日前，北京警方根据群众举报，在朝阳区安慧北里一带连续端掉多个卖淫嫖娼窝点，抓获违法犯罪嫌疑人员２７名，其中包括广受外界关注的网络大Ｖ“薛蛮子”（中文名“薛必群”，美籍华人）。经警方进一步查明，“薛蛮子”不仅嫖娼，还涉嫌聚众淫乱。目前，案件正在审查中。

Related: 网络大V薛蛮子涉嫌嫖娼及聚众淫乱被拘留_网易新闻中心 薛某某：我于1980年到美国加州大学伯克利学校自费留学之后，至今在美国生活了33年。我在1988年就变成了美国公民。我在海外工作，进行商务活动和访问期间，曾经接触过卖淫嫖娼的现象，也曾经有过这样的行为，接触了这个恶习。 2007年，薛某某来到中国。他说，自己是在2011年开始沉迷于嫖娼活动。薛某某：在国内真正沉迷其中的原因是在2011年,据我个人的回忆，同时与两名以上小姐发生性关系的有6-7次。 薛某某说，今年8月初，他通过被称为“阿婕”的梁某婕介绍，与张某认识。警方的询问记录显示，张某证实了薛某某的说法：

Related: 薛蛮子嫖娼被抓态度蛮横 满嘴英文阻碍查案|薛蛮子|嫖娼|卖淫女_新浪新闻

Related: 新华社评薛蛮子嫖娼被拘:伪善面具破碎斯文扫地|薛蛮子|嫖娼|新华网_新浪新闻 在无数粉丝和追随者面前，网络大V们能否坚守道德和法律底线，既是个人问题，更是社会问题。“薛蛮子”的许多“粉丝”怀着对公益事业的热心和对“薛蛮子”的充分信任，充满善意地关注他、投身到他所组织的各种公益活动之中，并慷慨解囊。然而，这种信任，是基于对所追随者的正直人格、良好品格的信任，是基于对其言行一致、严格自律的信任；这种信任，来自于“薛蛮子”在网上一贯呈现的“正义”之形象。如今他被警方查实的有违道德、背离正义之行径，难免会让一些“粉丝”信念坍塌、价值观混乱，其社会“负能量”绝不可小视。

China Voice: Deepening reform to drive progress, avoid crisis – Xinhua  not like they don’t know the problems…interesting that this quotes Wu Jinglian // The Chinese economy has been stuck in a protracted slowdown, with growth easing to 7.5 percent in the second quarter after softening for 10 straight quarters. Restructuring the economy, which started many years ago, has not been successful, and improving growth model is hard, said Wu Jinglian, a renowned Chinese economist. The energy-inefficient growth pattern Chinese leaders want to shift has relied too much on investment, leading to shortages of resources and environmental degradation. Massive protests against construction of chemical projects are rising at multiple places across the country, indicating more people are seeking to block any growth that sacrifice the environment and public health. Citizens are increasingly concerned about their access to affordable housing, medical care, fair education, food safety and social insurance. The burgeoning social media make it difficult for local officials to cover up negative news. Under the current growth model whereby problems are not handled properly, “economic growth would not be sustainable and a social crisis may follow,” Wu warned.

The Day Everbright Had to Pull Power Plugs to Stop Erroneous Trading – Caixin Securities firm made a bundle by skipping a crucial risk control step so it could deal fast, but when things soured, traders literally resorted to yanking cables out of sockets

审计纪委双双进驻中石油政经频道财新网 CDIC and National Audit Bureau folks take up residence in PetroChina…wonder what they will find // 集团及股份公司接连四名高管涉嫌严重违纪被调查，目前国家审计署和纪委系统还有多个调查组正在中石油内部开展工作

Related: 中石油再曝窝案高管 新华社掉队报道遭呛声_中国_多维新闻网 【多维新闻】继中石油副总经理王永春落马后，中石油再曝三高管被查。作为中石油“政治新星”的王永春落马本就在中石油内部引发轰动，如今三名高管接踵落马，或许解开了中石油系统内部窝案的一角。不过有意思的是，此时此刻，在中国大陆媒体中占有极为重要一席的新华社，却好似穿越到一个月前，刊发了李华林等人的任职消息。

China Urban Migrants’ Cost Seen at Least $6.8 Trillion: Economy – Bloomberg China must spend at least 41.6 trillion yuan ($6.8 trillion) over two decades to integrate rural workers living in cities and towns so the country realizes benefits of urbanization, a United Nations report said. Spending may exceed 75 trillion yuan in a scenario with a higher rate of investment to improve living conditions and housing quality, according to the report released yesterday in Beijing. The study’s baseline assumptions are for the urban population to rise to 976 million in 2030 from 666 million in 2010 and integrate about 210 million migrant workers.

Rhodium Group » A New Momentum for FDI Reforms in China A look at potential impact of the Shanghai Free Trade Zone // The behavior of other local governments will be another important indicator to watch. Competition for foreign investment is intense and other cities and provinces can be expected to push forward with their own initiatives if Shanghai should be granted special rules. In fact, a number of cities with special tax-protection zones have already filed or are preparing to file for the FTZ status, including Tianjin, Xiamen, Dalian, Shenzhen and Guangzhou. If those local pilot schemes are approved and successful, it won’t be too long before a modern FDI regime with pre-establishment rights will be implemented nationwide.

Brics Nations Broadly Agree on Capital Structure of Joint Bank – WSJ.com Officials from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa have agreed to set up the bank with a total capital of $50 billion, shared equally among them, the Indian government official told The Wall Street Journal Wednesday. This decision, which the official said was taken at a meeting in New Delhi in the first week of August, means the nations will have equal control over the proposed bank. This will likely end disagreements over funding and management of the bank as China had earlier proposed a $100 billion capital and sought a bigger share.

Chinese shoppers set to become world leaders online | Reuters China’s e-commerce market is expected to leapfrog that of the United States this year to become the world’s largest by total customer spending, management consultancy firm Bain & Company says. Online spending could account for half of all Chinese retail spending within a decade, according to Chinese e-commerce firm Alibaba Group.

Related: China’s e-commerce market hits 711 bln USD in 1H – Xinhua | English.news.cn E-commerce in the world’s second-largest economy reached 4.35 trillion yuan (705 billion U.S. dollars) in the January-June period, up 24.3 percent from a year earlier, the China e-Business Research Center said in a report. Business-to-business (B2B) was up 15.3 percent year-on-year, at 3.4 trillion yuan. The online retail sales, which include business-to-consumer (B2C) and consumer-to-consumer (C2C) rose 47.3 percent to 754.2 billion yuan. Online retail sales for the year could reach 1.74 trillion yuan.

 

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

China’s consumers take eagerly to credit – FT.com The final installment in the FT’s “The Debt Dragon” series // The government has strict rules in place to limit the amount of debt that can be incurred in buying a house. Homebuyers must make at least 30 per cent of their purchase up front in cash to obtain a mortgage, far less risky than the US before the subprime crisis when zero down payment mortgages were widely available. But it is rare for new professionals in China to stump up so much money on their own. Both Mr Dai and Mr Chang, like many of their peers, relied on their parents for the entirety of their downpayments.

China Minsheng Banking Turns to Small-Business Loans – WSJ.com another entry in the “China’s Rising Risks” WSJ series // Dong Wenbiao, the bank’s chairman, wants to expand the share of loans to small business from roughly a quarter of its portfolio to 45% to 50% over the next three to five years. In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Mr. Dong said that Minsheng’s small-business loans are typically priced 30% to 40% above a benchmark rate set by China’s central bank—considerably higher than most state-owned firms are willing to pay.

China to Expand Credit Asset Securitization Pilot Program-Caijing China will expand a pilot program for securitizing credit asset, a State Council meeting chaired by Premier Li Keqiang said today. The expansion of credit asset securitization is a “concrete step” towards the implementation of a boarder plan to support economic restructuring and upgrading, the cabinet said at a regular meeting

New Economic Policies Mean Both Growth and Reform – Caixin There are great expectations for structural reform at the third plenum of the Central Committee of the Communist Party’s 18th National Congress. The government will likely make fiscal and financial reforms, but the prospects for urgently needed reforms of state-owned enterprises, property rights, protection of intellectual property and other areas are less certain. The rate of credit growth will be moderated. Nominal GDP growth in the second quarter of the year was eight percent. Yet the combined growth of yuan loans, M2 supply and aggregate credit levels, despite the credit crunch in June, remained at or above 14 percent. It is not realistic to deleverage by dropping this rate below 8 percent. Thus, leveraging will increase but at a slower rate than in recent years. The short-term outlook for economic growth is expected to improve thanks to domestic policy adjustments and anticipated rebound in external demand, but the nominal year-on-year growth rate in the fourth quarter will be limited due to a high comparative baseline from last year. Fundamental reforms and cutbacks in government spending will improve long-term growth prospects, but as the country’s population profile changes and productivity catches up to the advanced economies, overall economic growth is likely to ease in the future.－－The author is an economist at Goldman Sachs Gao Hua Securities

Grand Vision for a New Beijing Financial District – WSJ.com “Some of these projects will work, for sure, but most of them won’t,” said Gillem Tulloch, founder of Hong Kong-based research firm Forensic Asia and a longtime skeptic of China’s property boom. Still, the “build it and they will come” camp can point to some successes. Shanghai’s Pudong area, mocked as a white elephant when it was built in the 1990s, soon filled up. A top-tier city like Beijing, which can count on strong demand from government ministries and corporate headquarters, may have a better chance than most of filling the new space. Despite the picture of rampant overcapacity painted by the government’s own data, office vacancy rates in the capital are down to 4.4%, according to Jones Lang LaSalle, a real-estate services firm.

China to deepen tax reforms: financial minister – Xinhua Tax systems concerning business turnover, consumption, resources and property will continue to be reformed in order to promote economic development, China’s Financial Minister Lou Jiwei said on Wednesday…The country will widen its pilot scheme of replacing turnover tax with value-added tax (VAT) to sectors including railway transportation, postal services and telecommunications, Lou said at the ongoing bimonthly session of the National People’s Congress Standing Committee, which started on Monday and ends on Friday…China will also impose its consumption tax on goods that could cause severe environmental pollution and over-exploitation of resources. The tax will also be applicable to more luxury goods, Lou said. It could help curb over-consumption of unhealthy goods including alcohol and cigarettes and promote energy conservation, said Zhang Bin, who is in charge of revenue research with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Agricultural Bank of China’s Profit Jumps as Bad-Loan Costs Drop – Bloomberg The lender’s profit expanded faster than earnings at Bank of Communications Co. (3328) and China Construction Bank Corp. (939) after it stepped up debt recovery, improved credit-risk management and wrote off some bad loans. Those measures also helped Agricultural Bank, whose 420 million customers exceed the population of any country except China and India, post a smaller increase in soured loans than competitors. “The bank has shown good progress in getting its asset quality under control,” said Ismael Pili, the Hong Kong-based head of Asia bank research at Macquarie Capital Securities Ltd. “The way they can crank up their profitability is through better fee income and continued improvement in asset quality.”

Suntech Directors Quit Saying Solar Maker Has No Plan – Bloomberg Susan Wang, Julian Worley and Zhizhong Qiu resigned on Aug. 21, saying they weren’t provided with information they needed to fulfill their responsibilities, the Wuxi, China-based company said today in a statement. Michael Nacson replaced Wang, who took the post of chairwoman in March, Suntech said.

China Regulators Deny Quizzes on Medical Device Makers -Caijing China’s anti-monopoly regulators have denied reports saying they have been collecting information on pricing and business practices of medical device makers in an escalating probe which would target more sectors following baby formula and pharmaceuticals. A Reuters report last week said an anti-monopoly under China’s Commerce Ministry conducted a survey on pricing of foreign and local medical device makers via an industry association.

 

POLITICS AND LAW

习近平在大连考察 冒雨与工人合影(图)新闻腾讯网 Video of Xi Jinping’s rain-soaked, umbrella-free visit to the Dalian shipyard. just a coincidence he visited dalian so soon after the Bo trial?

CPC campaigns to cut regulatory red tape – Xinhua The Communist Party of China’s (CPC) first campaign to cut regulatory red tape has seen the abolition of nearly 40 percent of its intra-Party rules introduced by the central authority since 1978. In the clearing-up move, 300 of the 767 regulations or normative documents introduced by the central authority have been abolished or nullified, according to a CPC Central Committee circular made public on Wednesday. Forty-two of the remaining 467 ones still in effect will undergo revisions, the document said.

[视频]中共中央对党内法规制度进行集中清理新闻频道央视网 央视网消息（新闻联播）：本台消息，《中共中央关于废止和宣布失效一批党内法规和规范性文件的决定》日前发布。根据该《决定》，1978年以来制定的党内法规和规范性文件，有300件被废止和宣布失效，467件继续有效，其中42件将作出修改。　这次集中清理工作是中共中央于去年部署开展的，分两个阶段进行：第一阶段清理1978年至2012年6月制定的党内法规和规范性文件，第二阶段清理新中国成立至1978年前制定的党内法规和规范性文件。这次中央发布《决定》，是第一阶段清理工作的重要成果。

打击网络谣言一批大V相继落网 河南两个月批捕131人-财经网 “明确在互联网中哪些是得到保护的、哪些是被禁止的，让网民与网站知晓自己的权利与义务，使得网络行为有章可循，有法可依。”省通信管理局副局长赵会群说

Rape Trial Casts Attention on Offspring of China’s Elite – NYTimes.com Chinese news Web sites have devoted special sub-sites to the case, and they showed pictures of journalists jammed behind police cordons outside the courthouse on Wednesday, although the trial is closed to the public. Most of the defendants, including Mr. Li, told the court that they were innocent of the rape charges, the official news service, Xinhua, reported. The China News Service said the trial is likely to last two days; Chinese courts usually give verdicts about two weeks after a trial. But for Mr. Li’s status, the case probably would never have ignited the uproar. His father, Li Shuangjiang, is a highly ranked People’s Liberation Army singer – sometimes, mistakenly, called a general in Chinese news reports – famed for his rousing odes to the party, patriotism and military virtues. His mother, Meng Ge, is also a well-known military singer.

梦鸽斥受害人伪装处女膜破裂 物证精斑均无新闻腾讯网 Li Tianyi’s mom is on the attack…if he is convicted wonder how she will react…Amazing how people have tried to block every possible avenue the family had to extricate him from this mess// 8月28日，李天一涉嫌轮奸案正式在北京海淀区法院开庭。开庭前，梦鸽准备了给北京市海淀区法院的材料，长文提出了8个问题。文中称警方对李天一进行了长达30多个小时的疲劳审讯，引供诱供，梦鸽认为相当于变相刑讯逼供。文中称受害人杨某陈述很多虚假信息，包括身份和工作信息等。

梦鸽白天参加儿子庭审 晚上赴总政献唱_网易新闻 and yet the show must go on. li Tianyi’s mom performed the night of day 1 of the trial // 8月28日上午9时30分，北京，李某某等人涉嫌强奸一案在海淀法院第17法庭正式开庭审理，此次庭审因涉及未成年被告人及个人隐私，将进行不公开审理。8月28日晚消息，李天一之母梦鸽除白天参加儿子庭审外，晚上还要赶场参加她所在的总政歌舞团演出，献唱《祖国永远祝福你》

Chinese Official Known as ‘Brother Watch’ for His Many Expensive Timepieces to Stand Trial – China Real Time Report – WSJ Yang Dacai, a local official who became known as Watch-Wearing Brother last year as China’s online vigilantes blasted pictures of him donning pricey timepieces beyond his pay grade, is standing trial Friday, according to a report from China’s official Xinhua News Agency, citing a statement from the Xi’an Intermediate People’s Court.

Beijing, Why So Tense? | ChinaFile–A ChinaFile Conversation

张家口城管太牛了—在线播放—优酷网，视频高清在线观看 Video of another Cheng’guan brawl, this one in Zhangjiakou

China leaders fear Bo comeback if sentence is not harsh – sources | Reuters “If Bo is not executed, ‘tigers’ and ‘flies’ will not be afraid of Xi and will not listen to him,” the first source with leadership ties said, using Xi’s own metaphor for high-ranking and low-ranking offenders.

 

FOREIGN AND DEFENSE AFFAIRS

Analysis: China has much at risk but no reach in Middle East | Reuters The worsening Syria conflict has exposed an uncomfortable truth behind China’s cherished policy of non-interference: Beijing cannot do much to influence events even if it wanted to. With weak and untested military forces unable to project power in the Middle East, China can only play a low-key role in a region that is crucial for its energy security.

Japan’s Kono urges PM Abe to stop being coy over war dead shrine | Reuters Abe sent a ritual offering to Yasukuni on the August 15 anniversary of Japan’s defeat in World War Two. But, as usual, he declined to say if he would make a pilgrimage in future. “If he is not going to Yasukuni Shrine, he should say so,” Yohei Kono, a former head of Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), told Reuters in an interview.

对外工作要加强统筹协调（国际论坛） ——六论新形势下的中国外交 钟 声

TWQ: Double Trouble: A Realist View of Rising Chinese and Indian Power – Summer 2013 By George J. Gilboy and Eric Heginbotham-JUL 1, 2013-An objective assessment reveals that India, simply because it is a democracy, will be no less likely than China as a rising power to pose significant challenges to U.S. interests. While Washington has basically gotten its China policy right, a new approach to India is needed.

China to launch lunar probe for landing mission – Xinhua | English.news.cn China’s Chang’e-3 lunar probe is scheduled to be launched at the end of this year for a moon landing mission, the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defence announced on Wednesday. “Chang’e-3 has officially entered its launch stage, following its research and manufacture period,” said a statement released by the administration after Wednesday’s meeting on the mission. The mission will see a Chinese space probe land on a celestial body for the first time.

Chinese PLA Officer Tells Troops: ‘Pacific Rim’ Is Hollywood Propaganda In a bylined commentary carried by the People’s Liberation Army Daily, Zhang Jieli, wrote that Hollywood movies “have always served as a propaganda machine to convey American values and their strategies in the world.” He said Pacific Rim, which has grossed more than $100 million in China, failed to convey a peaceful message but instead “exported the U.S.’s rebalancing of its Asia-Pacific strategy.”

 

TECH AND MEDIA

Alibaba Seeking Control Leaves HK Bourse in IPO Quandary – Bloomberg Hong Kong has a choice: grant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. a shareholder structure that mirrors the world’s largest Internet companies, or stick to rules meant to protect ordinary investors and risk losing the largest initial public offering since Facebook Inc. China’s biggest e-commerce company asked Hong Kong’s stock exchange to allow a partnership of more than 20 executives and shareholders to nominate a majority of board members, a person with knowledge of the matter said last week. That would enable founder Jack Ma, who owns just a 7.4 percent stake, and his management team to maintain control after an IPO. //given the history shareholders should care, but they won’t if the HK Exchange caves

HTC Reportedly Building New Mobile OS Specifically For China Market, In Partnership With Chinese Government | TechCrunch The report said it wasn’t clear whether HTC’s China OS would be forked from or based upon Android in some way, and a source speaking to the paper said that in fact the company has changed plans throughout the year regarding whether it would be something completely new, or just a new user interface based atop Google’s mobile OS. Already HTC has some devices using the OS in active testing, and prototypes are in the hands of Chinese government officials. Attempting to partner with a company to build a partially homegrown OS solution isn’t a new move for China. The Chinese government recently partnered with UK-based Canonical, the makers of Ubuntu, to build a China-specific version of its own OS that likewise favored integrations with China-made apps and services. In general, the Chinese government has been actively trying to lessen reliance on foreign-made software. A white paper from China’s tech ministry released in March criticized its country’s over-reliance on the Google-made Android OS.

China Says Chipmakers Must Compete After $4 Billion Deal – Bloomberg While it approved the deal, China’s anti-monopoly authority said MStar’s liquid-crystal display television-chip business must exist as a separate entity to ensure fair competition, according to a statement posted yesterday by China’s Ministry of Commerce, or Mofcom, on its website. MediaTek announced the deal last year and extended the closing deadline three times before Mofcom gave its approval.

Tablet Sales Slow in China in Q2 2013–TheNextWeb Analysys notes that among the three major tablet PC platforms, iOS declined “significantly”. It warns that it will be “difficult to suppress the trend of its market share being eroded” and that if Apple cannot launch a new tablet soon to attract consumers, Android’s market share will soon exceed that of iOS.

 

SOCIETY, ART, SPORTS, CULTURE AND HISTORY

On Being African in China – Zahra Baitie – The Atlantic Others often ask me if I found Chinese to be racist, and whether their treatment of me as a spectacle — taking pictures, touching my hair, rubbing my skin, staring at me — does not indicate a racist attitude. I respond that I find them curious. Many of the experiences I had were borne of ignorance, not racism. Despite always being identified as “black” and “African,” I never felt discriminated against or antagonized, but rather treated with warmth and friendliness. Because I spoke Mandarin, I could often understand what people said about me, and they were rarely disparaging or maligning. On the other hand, some of my friends who have heard about my experiences feel that they reflect a deep lack of respect, and thus racist feelings. I also acknowledge that my experience is not fully reflective of that of other African students, as I never had to seek employment and so was never turned down because employers preferred “white foreigners,” which other African students in China have told me is commonplace.

 

ENERGY, ENVIRONMENT, SCIENCE AND HEALTH

中石化10月1日起全国置换国四国五汽油_网易新闻中心 中新网8月28日电(能源频道 史建磊)按照国家统一要求，2014年1月1日起国内将全面执行国四汽油标准，不过据中新网能源频道了解，中石化10月1日起提前启动置换国四国五汽油，其中上海、江苏沿江8地市及广东6地市开始置换国五汽油，其余省区(市)提前3个月开始全面置换国四汽油。

 

BEIJING

矿老板公寓楼里拆承重墙修建8米高祖先牌位(图)新闻腾讯网 mine boss illegally builds an 8 meter tall ancestral shrine in his Beijing apartment // 新京报讯 朝阳区国贸附近的一栋公寓内，一矿业老板购买相邻两套房，打通后，建起奢华的祠堂，供奉祖先牌位。目前，房子进入最后装修阶段。 昨日，北京市住建委房屋安全和设备管理处工作人员称，两套房中间的墙壁是承重墙，拆除它会危及整栋楼安全。如果情况属实，会对业主进行处罚，并责令业主整改。