"Sinocism is the Presidential Daily Brief for China hands"- Evan Osnos, New Yorker Correspondent and National Book Award Winner
Today’s Links:
THE ESSENTIAL EIGHT
1. 国企改革领导小组成立 实施方案将出台特别报道新京报网 The State Council has established a State Owned Enterprise Reform leading Group, NDRC vice chair and deputy director of office of Comprehensive Reform Leading Group Mu Hong disclosed March 7, says an indication SOE reforms will soon be unveiled // 3月7日，中央全面深化改革领导小组办公室常务副主任、国家发改委副主任穆虹在两会上透露，国务院成立了国企改革领导小组，由国务院领导亲自挂帅。“可以期待，国企改革系列实施方案今年将与社会见面。”
2.【舒立时间】吴敬琏纵论改革视频频道财新网-Video Wu Jinglian talks with Hu Shuli about the pace of reforms, says financial and fiscal reforms preceding on plan but SOE reforms are desperately needed
Related: 吴敬琏：左右极端都会给社会带来灾难_共识网 Wu Jinglian says left and right extremists will bring disaster to society // 在社会变革中，理想的式是政治观点分歧双方温和派的结合。如果不这样，只要一方出现极端派，另一方也必定分裂出自己的极端派，如果两边的温和派不能掌控局面而被边缘化，社会就会被撕裂而趋向极端，而在两个极端之间的震荡，“不走到绝路不会回头”。
3. China shifts stimulus focus from monetary to fiscal policy – FT.com $$ China has tripled the quota for bond sales by local governments to Rmb1.5tn ($240bn) in a bid to shunt some of their hefty debts back on balance sheets at lower rates of interest. Ultimately this is set to reach Rmb3.5tn, according to local media.
Related: China’s Solution to $3 Trillion Debt Is to Deal with It Later – Bloomberg Business just like everyone else does… // “It will buy time for the government to solve the local debt problem, as the transition period takes three to five years,” said Ivan Chung, a senior vice president at Moody’s in Hong Kong. “The 1 trillion yuan debt-swap plan will be able to cover the refinancing needs of the maturing bonds this year, as municipal bond issuance is not enough.”
Related: 经济参考网 – 代表委员呼吁延长地方债务处理过渡期 增加专项债额度，防系统性区域性风险 全国人大代表、山东省财政厅厅长于国安接受《经济参考报》记者专访时表示：“我们省上次上报的债务规模还是实事求是的，这次上报的规模没有被认定，尚不方便公布，不过确实比2013年6月审计署审计的要增加较多。” 针对这一问题，全国政协委员、国家审计署原副审计长董大胜接受《经济参考报》记者采访时表示：“去年财政部要求各地清理、甄别、上报债务规模，要将其纳入预算管理，一些地方政府在这个过程中把不属于地方政府偿还的债务也算入地方政府债务，有的地方增长还比较快，20%、30%、甚至50%的增长都有。我认为这是不可能的。” 专家分析认为，清理甄别后地方债规模的数据必将刷新、达到新的高度。这里面或许有地方虚报的成分，或许有标准不甚统一的原因，不过不可否认，这同样意味着地方债务规模的确有不小的攀升。//expect in increase in the amount of local debt
4. Hu Jintao’s weak grip on China’s army inspired President Xi Jinping’s military shake-up: sources | South China Morning Post President Xi Jinping grew determined to shake up the army after he saw first-hand how his predecessor Hu Jintao was treated as a mere figurehead by his deputies, sources told the South China Morning Post. Xi, who became the Central Military Commission’s third vice-chairman in 2010, witnessed how his fellow vice-chairmen Xu Caihou and Guo Boxiong took over the army’s staff affairs right under Hu’s nose, a military source said.
Related: Retired generals point to ‘horrible’ graft in PLA | South China Morning Post All People’s Liberation Army ranks have a price, getting a Communist Party membership has a price, and important military positions are reserved for cronies, senior officers children and in-laws, three retired PLA major generals told local TV this week, addressing the “horrible” corruption in the military.
5. China to roll out plans to raise retirement age within two years to cope with ageing population | South China Morning Post The current system, which was formulated in 1953, allows men to retire as early as 60 and women at 55. Yin said any adjustment would be “gradual”, the retirement age raised by only a few months each year. But he did not say when the plan was likely to take effect. “The public has yet to reach a consensus on raising the retirement age … The plan will be released to the public well in advance,” he said. National pension funds still had an accumulated surplus of more than 3 trillion yuan (HK$3.8 trillion) by the end of last year, but regional imbalances were significant, the minister said.
Related: 人民网舆情监测室–中国现有公务员720万 延迟退休方案2017年出台 尹蔚民说，我们国家720多万公务员，60%分布在县以下机关工作，条件更为艰苦，工作任务十分繁重。但是由于县以下机关机构规格比较低，所以基层公务员晋升难、待遇低的矛盾比较突出。 为了解决这个问题，提出建立公务员职务与职级并行制度。经过中央批准，去年在4个省选择了4个县进行了试点工作，经过一年的试点达到了预期目的，验证了公务员职务与职级并行制度的可操作性。经过中央批准，在今年全国县以下机关都要实行公务员职务与职级并行的制度。
Related: 养老保险2.0版：2017年正式推出延迟退休方案要闻一财网 人口老龄化导致提高退休年龄成为国际化趋势。OECD(经济合作与发展组织)国家提出的口号是“活得越长，工作更长”。退休年龄是养老保险制度中最敏感的变量，既影响保费收入，又影响退休金支出，对于基金的收支平衡是双向影响。 杨燕绥在接受媒体采访时介绍，研究显示，退休年龄每延迟一年，养老统筹基金可增加40亿元，减支160亿元，减缓基金缺口200亿元。
6. 经济参考网 – 丝路基金运作路线图现雏形 依托发起人“一带一路”项目资源优势，适时引入机构民资 Economic Information learns more about plans for the Silk Road from from NPC delegates, including that will soon open up to investment from long-term private investors // 近日，《经济参考报》记者就丝路基金路线和规划采访两会代表委员时独家获悉，丝路基金将择机引入一些有中长期承诺的机构民资，运作前期可能依托国家开发银行（以下简称国开行）大量的境外项目储备资源、中国进出口银行的资金和渠道优势、中国投资有限责任公司（以下简称中投公司）的海外投资经验，发挥协同作用，资金主要投向“一带一路”沿线国家的基础设施建设、能源、钢铁、电力、通信等相关行业领域。目前，国内有意参与“一带一路”的省份也正在积极制定相关规划。
Related: With China’s Silk Road initiative, SCO eyes bigger global role – Xinhua The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) will combine national development strategies with the China-proposed Silk Road Economic Belt initiative and work for deeper involvement in global affairs, its secretary-general said Tuesday. “A 10-year strategy has been drafted by the Russian side. It is expected to be adopted during the SCO summit in (Russia’s) Ufa,” Dmitry Mezentsev said a day ahead of the opening of the 10th session of the SCO Forum in the western Siberian city of Khanty-Mansiisk. “The strategy will be the SCO’s proclamation for deeper and wider participation in global affairs,” and combine the national economic strategies of SCO members with the big Silk Road Economic Belt project, he said.
7. Apple’s high-stakes negotiations with the Chinese government could complicate Obama’s tough talk on snooping – Quartz Quartz backtracks from earlier reporting that Apple had “capitulated” to China and handed over source code // Two people briefed on the company’s discussions in China said it had not provided any source code to the Chinese government. Cook has said Apple “will not ever provide a back door, that would be access to a back door,” one of the people told Quartz. The company agreed after Lu’s visit to California to submit its products to the government for approval to sell in the country, just as it has in the past, these people said.
8. Under the Dome-Sinica Podcast In this episode of Sinica, Kaiser Kuo and David Moser interview Calvin Quek of Greenpeace, who works on pollution problems and has significant experience lobbying the private sector to curtail investments into the worst-offending, environmentally unsustainable technologies. We are also joined by Peggy Liu, chairperson of JUCCCE (Joint US-China Collaboration on Clean Energy), a non-profit organization focused on Chinese government training and other green initiatives.
Related: 柴静雾霾调查：穹顶之下视频频道财新网 Under the Dome video is on the Caixin site
BUSINESS, ECONOMY AND TRADE
Regulator Said to Mull Allowing Private Investors to Open New Banks – Caixin The banking regulator is considering whether to allow private investors to establish as many as 30 banks this year, an official says. Last year, the China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC) let five groups of private companies set up a bank as part of a pilot plan. In the past they would have had to cooperate with an existing bank that acted as the initiating founder and was the largest shareholder. The central government relaxed the requirement in 2013 in a bid to encourage private investment in the financial sector.
Gov’t Must Meet GDP Goal to Create Enough Jobs, Researchers Say – Caixin Niu Li, the director of the macro-economy projection department at the State Information Center, said growth may fall short of the target in one or two quarters, but the government must make sure the goal for the year is met. “After all, it’s a key benchmark” for job creation, Niu said. Xiang Dong, who leads the cabinet’s research office, told The Beijing News that the 7 percent figure was chosen because it would ensure enough jobs are created. To meet it target for economic growth, the central government has also laid out specific targets for fixed-asset investment and sales of retail goods.
经济参考网 – 经济“新势力”有望成增长新引擎 “互联网+”、创业和创新、“中国制造2025”蓄势发力 “Internet Plus” is the new big thing Li Keqiang says will propel economic transformation and growth // 今年的政府工作报告提出，制定“互联网+”行动计划，推动移动互联网、云计算、大数据、物联网等与现代制造业结合，促进电子商务、工业互联网和互联网金融健康发展，引导互联网企业拓展国际市场。 多位两会代表委员和相关专家对《经济参考报》记者表示，“互联网+”行动计划、推动“大众创业、万众创新”、实施“中国制造2025”这三项具体措施体现出新常态下经济发展的全新思路，将锻造中国经济增长“新势力”，有望打造经济发展新引擎。
The Colossal Strangeness of China’s Most Excellent Tourist City-TMagazine Ordos, like so many of the country’s hundreds of new towns, is famous for being empty — a symbol, some would say, of the hubris of rampant urbanization. But the few people who live there see it differently.
China steps up weaving high-speed railway network – China Daily In the report on the work of the government this year, Premier Li Keqiang said that the central government will invest over 800 billion yuan ($127.76 billion) in railway construction and open over 8,000 kilometers to railway traffic. All cities with more than 500,000 population will be connected by high-speed railway by 2015, it said.
China Crest ad loses sparkle with fine | Business Spectator Chinese regulators have fined US consumer goods giant Procter & Gamble nearly $US1 million ($A1.30 million) over claims a type of Crest toothpaste can whiten teeth. The Shanghai Administration of Industry and Commerce said on Tuesday a television ad for Crest brand toothpaste featuring a popular Taiwan talk show host used “excessive” digital enhancement to make her teeth appear whiter. China’s official Xinhua news agency said the fine was the country’s largest ever in a false advertising case.
Views diverge on China steel outlook – FT.com The world’s largest miners, BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto, however, expect China’s steel production, which reached 820m tonnes last year, to keep rising until the next decade before it begins to plateau. BHP and Rio are two of the world’s biggest producers of iron ore, a key ingredient in steelmaking. “Iron ore mining companies still forecast China’s output to grow at 2.5 per cent compound annual growth rate until 2025, but we disagree,” UBS said in its report. “Our analysis shows that its steel production has already reached a turning point.”
Alibaba says March 18 lockup expiry will free up 437 million shares | Reuters what will Alibaba do in next few days to try to keep price up? // Alibaba Group Holding Ltd’s 180-day post-IPO lockup expires March 18, allowing about 437 million shares or roughly 18 percent of the company to be sold publicly.
Is China’s 1929 moment coming? – The Washington Post is there a new bubble forming in China collapse punditry, or is this time different? // China, in other words, has plenty of problems even if its people don’t become too scared to do anything with their money. But if they do, watch out. It could be 1929 with Chinese characteristics.
POLITICS AND LAW
“山西塌方式腐败的代价不能白付”国内新京报网 中央纪委书记王岐山10日参加了全国人大山西代表团的审议。他指出，山西发生系统性、塌方式腐败案件，教训十分深刻，这个代价不能白付。要严明党的纪律，用最坚决的态度减少腐败存量，用最果断的措施遏制腐败增量。
Reading Xi’s Modern Twist on Plato’s “The Republic” | The World View @insidehighered Perhaps the views expressed by scholars associated with the Party School (of CPC Central Committee) and Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) shed light on the actual meaning of this campaign. They define “Western values” as those concerning basic principles of democratic governance— those that might challenge the legitimacy of CPC leadership, especially when it is now in a bitter fight with internal corruption. Pretty much, those banned Western values concern what Wu Bangguo (former Chairman of the NPC Standing Committee), elaborated in 2011: “No multi-party election, no diversification of guiding principles, no separation of powers, no federal system, and no privatization.” These reforms could disrupt the principles justifying rule by the CPC. As long as one doesn’t challenge the legitimacy or capacity of the CPC to rule China, a scholar will be free to follow the normal routines of scholarly and social life.
China Focus » Three Questions with … Joseph Fewsmith There is no political reform, so the limits are very real. That’s what concerns me a great deal about China right now. What I was looking at in that book, were some very interesting experiments with limited elections at the township level and now those have almost completely stopped. And Xi Jinping has been quite clear that we don’t necessarily want to promote cadres by vote. So we don’t trust that mechanism, so you’re back to the Bole (伯乐), the spotting the good horse, right? The trouble is if Xi’s vision of how to run China doesn’t work, you have no off-ramps. There’s not sort of a turning back to a more pluralistic, open, democratic in some sense of the word, China. At least now it looks like it’s succeed or fail, that you don’t have these other options.
新疆公安牺牲率是内地5.4倍 暴恐案95%提前打掉–时政–人民网 Zhang Chunxian says that Xinjiang public security officers 5.4 times as likely to die in the line of duty as officers in other areas of China
IS recruits Xinjiang residents – China Daily A top official from the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region confirmed for the first time on Tuesday that Xinjiang residents have joined the radical group Islamic State. “Some Xinjiang residents have crossed the border illegally to join IS. The group currently has a growing international influence, and Xinjiang is affected by it, too,” said Zhang Chunxian, the region’s top leader. “We recently broke up a terrorist cell run by those who returned from fighting with the group,” Zhang said at a news conference on the sidelines of the annual National People’s Congress session.
China issues white paper on judicial transparency – Xinhua | English.news.cn China’s Supreme People’s Court (SPC) published a white paper Tuesday on judicial transparency that said new measures introduced over the past two years have expanded both the scope and depth of judicial openness. “This is the first time the top court has reviewed the measures and effects of judicial reform on boosting transparency in the form of a white paper,” said SPC spokesman Sun Jungong at a press conference Tuesday.
最高检司法部印发方案全面深化人民监督员制度改革-新华网 新华网北京３月１０日电 日前，中央全面深化改革领导小组第十次会议审议通过了《深化人民监督员制度改革方案》。最高人民检察院、司法部近日将该《方案》印发实施。《方案》着眼加强对检察机关职务犯罪案件查办工作的外部监督制约，明确了人民监督员制度改革的总体思路，从人民监督员选任管理方式、监督范围、监督程序、知情权保障、加快制度立法等方面提出了具体改革任务，人民监督员制度自此进入全面深化改革的新阶段。
上海首轮巡视将对市经信委等10家单位开展—中央纪委监察部网站 根据统一安排，上海首轮巡视时间为3月下旬到5月下旬，市委第一至第十巡视组将分别对市经信委、市教委、市国资委、上海图书馆、市合作交流办、上海城建集团、市绿化市容局、市科委、市司法局、市建管委开展2015年第一批巡视。
澎湃新闻–薄熙来、周永康、苏荣……看省委书记们如何吐槽极品前任 Thepaper looks at how current party provincial secretaries ridicule their detained predecessors
澎湃新闻-中纪委“苏荣忏悔录”被人民日报抢发了…（附8名贪官忏悔集） 《人民日报》3月10日在第5版刊发题为《政治生态如何“山清水秀”》的评论文章，从习近平3月6日参加十二届全国人大三次会议江西代表团审议时再次强调的“自然生态要山清水秀，政治生态也要山清水秀”起笔，纵论如何涵养政治生态问题。 这篇署名“范正伟”的评论员两会观察文章在文末提到了苏荣，“全国政协原副主席、原江西省委书记苏荣本人忏悔，家就是权钱交易所，他本人就是权钱交易所所长，不仅全家老小参与腐败，也带坏了干部队伍、败坏了社会风气、损坏了政治生态。” 这是十八届中央纪委五次全会提及中央纪委汇编十八大以来被查处中管干部的忏悔录、用好用活反面教材后，官方传媒首次披露苏荣忏悔的内容。
Sensitive Words: Prince (Zeng) Qing(hong) – China Digital Times (CDT) Keyword combinations connecting Qing Yikuang and Zeng Qinghong are now blocked, including “Zeng Qing” + prince (曾庆＋亲王), Qinghong + “Prince Qing” (庆红＋庆亲王). Also blocked is the combination “Qing Hong” + “[Hu] Jintao” (庆红＋锦涛), linking Zeng to Hu Jintao, who was president when Zeng was vice president.
Linghu Jian, adopted son of disgraced official Ling Jihua｜WantChinaTimes His uncle Ling Jihua is said to have adopted him as a son. He lived with his mother and sister in a hutong growing up, later moving to Xinfeng Street in Xicheng district, a district mostly populated by army officers and China Central Television employees, and he later bought another property in the area near the Lama Temple in Dongcheng district. These are both expensive districts, which suggests that he was quite successful in his business dealings. Linghu, now married with two daughters, is said to have lived for many years in Singapore but maintains several residential properties in Beijing, according to Tencent’s financial news web portal. Linghu is said to have worked closely with his uncle Ling Wancheng in his business dealings and to have enjoyed the protection of his uncle and adopted father Ling Jihua.
Proposals for Changing Legislation Law Have Been Watered Down, Experts Say – Caixin Amendment covering legislative powers – especially over taxes – said to be stripped of improvements seen in earlier drafts
Chinese cyber-dissident takes farmers’ land fight online – Yahoo News He spent years in jail for running one of China’s few websites dedicated to reporting human rights abuses. But now authorities appreciate his coverage, Huang Qi said as his smartphone buzzed with fresh news of injustice. His website, ’64 Tianwang’, named in part after the 1989 crackdown on Tiananmen Square protestors, runs headlines — “Village Officials Stab Campaigner”, “Gangsters Detain Protestor” — rarely seen in ordinary Chinese media.
China Law Translate | 关于依法办理家庭暴力犯罪案件的意见 Title: Opinion on Handling Criminal Cases of Domestic Violence in Accordance with Law Promulgating Entities:The Supreme People’s Court，The Supreme People’s Procuratorate, The Ministry of Public Security, and Ministry of Justice. Reference number: Promulgation Date: 2015-3-2
FOREIGN AND DEFENSE AFFAIRS
Sri Lanka Tells China It Will Rethink Ties – and a Major Port Project – Caixin Investment key to Beijing’s maritime silk road plan put on hold, as foreign minister says South Asian country will adjust relationships with major powers
General: Make military more transparent – China Daily Major General Qian Lihua, a member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference who once headed the foreign affairs office of the Ministry of National Defense, said he would submit two proposals during the two sessions aimed at bridging the information gap between the public and the People’s Liberation Army. “Compared with other countries, China’s military is very open to domestic citizens and foreign visitors,” Qian said. “However, the release of information doesn’t keep pace with the rapid development of the Internet and the surging demand from the public.”
China jails two for selling military secrets, including details of aircraft carrier | Reuters The state-controlled Dalian Daily said foreign intelligence services paid the men to send thousands of photos of military targets and projects, as well as recordings and other information. Both were young, “ordinary workers” who used their access to military bases in Dalian, in the northeast, the paper said. One of the men, surnamed Han, was lured by a person posing as a journalist on a popular mobile chat application.
环球时报：沈大伟突喊“中国崩溃”为哪般_凤凰资讯 Global Times has issues with David Shambaugh’s prediction of a “coming crack-up” for the CCP // 如果美国的主流学者就是以这样过山车般的逻辑开展对华研究并引导美国舆论的话，那么将很令人失望。一段时间以来我们注意到，美国学者对中国情况的资料占有很丰富，但他们的研究结论有很明显立场先行的迹象，并且高度意识形态化。 沈大伟应当意识到，他的个人经历和思想方法都有局限，他对非西方世界的认识始终隔着一层，这值得他本人高度警惕。如今全世界看好中国未来的人无疑在增多，第三世界相信中国道路的人尤其越来越普遍。即使在西方，愿意反思对中国认识的人也呈增加之势。他本人对中国的悲观在他周围的圈子里容易得到共鸣，但在世界上却是反常识的。 对于自己的“中共末日论”，沈大伟给出五个理由，其中包括中国官场腐败、经济下行压力增大、自由派受到打击等等。它们大多是“中国崩溃论”老掉牙的论据，一些中国学者一时对沈大伟会去附和这些低俗的论述感到惊讶和困惑。
中航工业发布霸气宣传片：13架歼31齐飞新闻腾讯网 Quite the AVIC CGI promo video PLA air force hardware
China Ready to Sign 2nd Major Gas Deal with Russia – The American Interest The two countries signed a massive $400 billion gas deal last year, which would send supplies from Russia’s far east south to China, but have also been in talks for this second deal, which would ship gas through a pipeline farther to the west. Last month Russia’s energy minister hoped that the second deal would be finalized sometime this spring, and now we’re hearing China’s foreign minister hope that it will be closed by the end of the year.
New Zealand spies on China, other Asian nations: Snowden papers | Reuters as it is supposed to // The latest documents released by former U.S. National Security Authority (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden show that New Zealand’s spy agency collects data on communications from about 20 nations, including China, Japan, North Korea, Iran, and Antarctica, many of whom are close trade partners.
China Policy Institute Blog » China and the Arctic: Site of great power competition? Ever since China joined the Arctic Council as a permanent observer in May 2013, there has been speculation about what consequences Chinese interest may bear for the region. And China is far from the only non-Arctic country interested in the region, South Korea, Japan, Singapore and India are other major Asian economies that obtained observer status on the Council. This week, the China Policy Institute has invited contributions reflecting on various issues related to the significance of the Arctic region. The contributors will address issues pertaining to China’s Arctic policy, implications of potential permanent opening of Arctic sea routes for China, Beijing’s stake in the Arctic, implications for regional security, et
China media confirm second aircraft carrier – FT.com The People’s Daily, the Communist party mouthpiece, quoted top officials as confirming the craft’s construction. The ship is reportedly being built in a shipyard in the northeastern city of Dalian, where China’s first carrier, the Liaoning, was refitted before going into service in 2012.
President Xi reshuffles elite unit that guards Communist Party leaders’ safety | South China Morning Post Major General Wang Shaojun, the executive deputy commander of the CSB, has been promoted to lead the bureau and the Central Guard Regiment. The bureau’s incumbent commander, Lieutenant General Cao Qing, is being transferred to the Beijing Military Area Command as its deputy commander, the sources said. Cao’s junior deputy, Wang Qing, is being moved to the PLA Information Engineering University to serve as vice-president. It is not clear when the changes were made.
Testing Beijing, Japan eyes growing role in South China Sea security | Reuters Tokyo’s security cooperation is broad-based: It is supplying maritime patrol boats to the two countries while Japan will hold its first naval exercises with the Philippines in the coming months. Japanese military doctors are even advising Vietnamese submariners on how to deal with decompression sickness. Japan is providing this help, and more, in a calibrated escalation of involvement to avoid a backlash from Beijing, said Japanese sources with knowledge of the assistance.
Japanese pubic urge Abe to confront history squarely – Xinhua the headline typo is Xinhua’s not mine // Japanese media and public on Tuesday urged Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to face up to history squarely, citing German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s words”facing World War II crimes is key to reconciliation”during a lecture in Tokyo.
HONG KONG, MACAO AND TAIWAN
HK, Macao service providers to enjoy easier market access in Guangdong – Xinhua Local authorities in Guangdong are required to make adjustments to regulations on administrative approval in order to boost service trade liberalization for investors from Hong Kong and Macao, according to a decision released by the State Council. Businesses owned by Hong Kong and Macao investors will no longer be treated as foreign companies whose establishment or business conversion usually need to undergo examination and approval procedures, it said. According to the decision, Guangdong will further open the local services industry to investors from Hong Kong and Macao under the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA).
PLA cyberunit targeting Taiwan named – Taipei Times Senior intelligence officials have identified the specific Chinese military outfit and technical surveillance unit tasked with cyberwarfare against Taiwan and say it is located on the campus of Wuhan University, in Wuhan, Hubei Province.
‘You are being watched’, Beijing warns officials who fancy a flutter in Macau | South China Morning Post As pressure on Macau to clean up and diversify its casino-dominated economy continues – part of President Xi Jinping’s wide ranging “tigers and flies” crackdown on corruption – Li Gang, the director of the city’s liaison office there, said measures were in place to ensure that officials who head for the former Portuguese enclave “would be discovered”.
TECH AND MEDIA
China’s Hottest Phone Maker? Here’s the Upstart Chasing Xiaomi – Bloomberg Business The Shenzhen, China-based OnePlus sold more than a million units of its debut device, the One, last year by favoring overseas markets such as U.S., the U.K. and India. Almost two-thirds of those phones were shipped abroad, where a $299 price tag, an invite-only sales system and an easy-to-pronounce English name fostered early buzz. The company expects to more than triple sales this year. “We are going to be a lot more aggressive in our international expansion,” Pete Lau, OnePlus co-founder and chief executive officer, said in an interview. “Some companies look at overall sales volume. We look more at word of mouth.” // of course that is what you say when your sales volume is relatively tiny…
Apple Watch To Hit China with Support for Local Apps WeChat, Alipay and Weibo – TechNode After the disappointment of repeatedly missing out on the first wave of various iPhone releases, China will be one of nine regions to get the Apple Watch from its global debut in April. China is becoming an increasingly critical pillar of Apple’s business. A report by UBS showed that the country represented up to 35% of iPhone shipments in the last quarter of 2014, overtaking the U.S. (29%) as the largest market for Apple. In order to better localize its services for Chinese buyers, the smartwatch has added support for several popular Chinese apps, including WeChat, Alipay and Weibo.
Grata-The Next Big Thing in WeChat: City Services The City Services section displays a large menu of services already operational for the pilot, including: booking doctor appointments traffic camera feeds paying your home electricity booking long distance transportation air quality monitoring paying traffic fines reporting incidents to police, and more.
China Box Office: ‘Big Hero 6’ on Top as ‘Jupiter Ascending’ Opens Strongly – Hollywood Reporter With overseas movies back in contention after Lunar New Year, Oscar winner Big Hero 6 took the top spot in the Chinese box office charts last week, while Jupiter Ascending somewhat offset its poor performance in North America with a strong opening weekend in the world’s second-biggest film market.
SOCIETY, ART, SPORTS, CULTURE AND HISTORY
Tuhao club in Taiyuan blocks sidewalk with 50 million RMB in luxury cars: Shanghaiist not everyone in Shanxi feeling the pain…probably would have been a good sting operation for the CCDI…
Henan Delegates Protest Inequality in University Admissions – NYTimes People in Henan have long complained that education funds and national quotas for places in universities have been tilted away from them and other big, crowded rural provinces, in favor of the wealthier, more privileged parts of the country, especially Beijing and Shanghai. At a gathering open to journalists on Sunday, delegates to the congress from Henan denounced educational inequality, according to reports from the session. One delegate bowed before reporters to demand fair treatment.
Foreign non-government groups in China fear clampdown under new law Foreign non-government organisations (NGOs) in China are bracing for a crackdown as the government prepares to pass a new law to regulate their activities, which critics fear could curb activism and drive out several groups. It is unclear how strictly the government will enforce the rules, which a parliament spokeswoman said last week were necessary for national security reasons. But rights activists say the new law is part of a broader trend under President Xi Jinping’s administration to rein in dissent. The draft law, according to a copy seen by Reuters that was obtained by a foreign NGO, bars foreign NGOs from activities that violate “Chinese society’s moral customs” and from setting up branches in China. Issued by the Legislative Affairs Office of the National People’s Congress Standing Committee last December 22, the draft law says foreign NGOs will be regulated by a “business unit”, the police and other authoritie
ENERGY, ENVIRONMENT, SCIENCE AND HEALTH
China’s coal mine accident deaths drop to 931 last year – Xinhua The figure represented a sharp decline of 86.7 percent from about 7,000 in the year of 2002, which registered the biggest number of annual coal mine accidents, Yang said at a press conference on the sidelines of the national legislature’s annual session. This is a testimony to China’s “sustained and steady” improvement of coal mine work safety nationwide, with the annual coal production volume in the country surging to 3.87 billion tonnes in 2014 from about 1 billion tonnes in 2002, he told reporters. Last year also witnessed a decline of 14.3 percent in the coal mine accident deaths from 2013, SAWS figures revealed. // and less mining too…
AGRICULTURE AND RURAL ISSUES
鼎晖领投中鼎牧业 看中其商业模式公司频道财新网 CDH leads 400M Series A round in Zhongding Dairy Farming // 3月10日，一家创业不到两年的牧业管理公司中鼎牧业，在A轮融资中拿到鼎晖投资领投的4亿元投资，其中鼎晖投资1.4亿元。双方并未透露此次投资的估值与股比情况。
BEIJING
北京将出台居住证制度 明确3主责部门国内新京报网 据悉，居住证制度及积分落户政策研究制定，已确定由常务副市长李士祥牵头，市发改委、市公安局、市政府法制办3个部门主责。此外，超过20个市级部门以及16个区县今年均将承担落实京津冀协同发展任务。
北京潮生活-超完整版普通话VS北京话，完全看醉了哈哈哈哈哈哈哈！ Funny comparison of Beijinghua vs. Putonghua…never a moment goes by where Chinese language doesn’t humble you, learning it is intellectual masochism…
JOBS AND EVENTS
TheHutong–Manchus in the Palace: A Walking Seminar at the Forbidden City March 15 in Beijing // Join historian and blogger Jeremiah Jenne (“Jottings from the Granite Studio”) for a fun and informative walking seminar of Manchu history…in the Forbidden City. Not your usual history class, Jeremiah employs voices, stories, pop culture references, and examples from the archives to bring to life the palace in the days of Manchu rule. Along the way, Jeremiah will discuss why the Manchus — and the empire they founded — continue to cast a shadow over today’s China.
Communications Manager–Carnegie-Tsinghua Center – – Carnegie Endowment for International Peace Jobs The Carnegie–Tsinghua Center for Global Policy, the Beijing office of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, is seeking to hire a Communications Manager to run the communications team.