IN T

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E 1 Industry

2 Finance

3 Automobile

4 Agriculture

5 Real Estate

6 Construction

7 Science & Technology

8 Information Technology

9 Society

Makhdoom Babar

Arshad Chaudhry

Mr. Asmat Ullah KhanMr. Awais Shehzad

Jamshed Ullah

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02

Society

4G market set to ignitehot competition

03

CED Monitoring

BEIJING-Foreign telecom compa-nies are keen to join China's fourthgeneration (4G) mobile networkdeployment with the country look-ing likely to issue the relevant li-censes as early as this year.

Minister of Industry and Infor-mation Technology Miao Wei saidthe country is expected to award4G licenses to domestic telecomoperators by the end of 2013.

Miao's words have helped fuelthe enthusiasm of telecom industryplayers, both from China andabroad, to participate in the huntfor a sizable share in the world'slargest 4G market where there aremore than 10 billion cell phonesubscribers.

Global telecom equipmentgiants, including Ericsson AB, NokiaSiemens Networks and Alcatel-Lu-cent SA, as well as the world'sleading chipset and device man-ufacturers such as US-based Qual-comm Inc and South Koreacompany Samsung Electronics Co,are preparing to do battle in Chinaover the 4G market.

It is easy to see how attractivethe Chinese 4G market is afterChina Mobile Ltd, the nation'slargest telecom operator, an-nounced its capital spendingwould jump 49 percent year-on-year to 190.2 billion Yuan ($30.5bn)in 2013. More than half of the com-pany's spending on networks - 42billion Yuan - will go on 4G projectsthis year.

High-level executives fromtwo smaller wireless carriers - ChinaUnicom (Hong Kong) Ltd andChina Telecom Corp - also re-vealed they are conducting 4G tri-als.

The world's largest Long-TermEvolution (LTE) 4G vendor Ericssonexpressed an ambition to achievea better performance in China thisyear.

"We are not satisfied with theresults Ericsson achieved in ChinaMobile's first-round 4G bidding lastyear," said Mats H. Olsson, seniorvice-president of Ericsson Asia-Pa-

cific, during the 2013 Mobile WorldCongress held in Spain in February."In the past Ericsson paid a lot ofattention to countries including theUnited States, Japan and SouthKorea and mainly focused on thedeployment of FDD LTE networks.Now we have turned our sights onChina and TD-LTE technology," Ols-son said.

He expects China will be-come the world's biggest 4G mar-ket. Therefore Ericsson will ensure itis fully prepared and strive to lift the4G market share in the country, hesaid.

The Time-Division Long-TermEvolution (TD-LTE) technology andthe Frequency-Division DuplexLong-Term Evolution (FDD LTE)technology are two variants of theLTE 4G standard.

The TD-LTE technology is a Chi-nese homegrown 4G standardand is actively promoted by ChinaMobile. However, unlike the wide-range adoption of FDD LTE tech-nology, the deployment of TD-LTEcommercial networks is still limited.Markus Borchert, president ofNokia Siemens Networks China,said 2013 is a very important yearas eyes are turning to China andChina Mobile's 4G activities.

Nokia Siemens Networks,based in Espoo, Finland, is the No2 LTE player globally and No 1 LTEplayer in Asia by sales. "We arevery happy to see the strongleadership role China Mobile istaking to drive the TD-LTE eco-system. I think that is very goodfor the industry," Borchert toldmedia.

China Mobile is conductinglarge-scale 4G TD-LTE trials in 15cities including Beijing, Shanghaiand Guangzhou.

The Ministry of Industry and In-formation Technology predicts aninvestment of 500 billion Yuan intrial network construction andmore than 1 trillion yuan after com-mercial use begins.

In addition to 4G benefits totelecom equipment makers, BryanWang, vice-president and princi-pal analyst at Forrester Research,said the potential commercial roll-out of the 4G LTE network has alsolured networking vendors such asJuniper Networks and Cisco Sys-tems Inc.

"China's economic slowdownlast year had a negative effect oninternational IT companies but 4Gconstructions is rising and has beena highlight," Wang said.

Society

04

Rule change to benefit people with

disabilitiesBEIJING-The State

Council solicited opinionsfrom individuals andorganizations on therevised Regulation onEducation for Persons

with Disabilities.

05

Society

CED Monitoring

BEIJING-The State Council solicitedopinions from individuals and or-ganizations on the revised Regula-tion on Education for Persons withDisabilities.

Compared with its predeces-sor, this revised regulation makeschanges to ensure not only equalrights to education for people withdisabilities, but also the quality oftheir education.

One of the highlights of theprogress is that inclusive educationin regular schools for people withdisabilities is specified as the pri-mary choice when deciding edu-cation placement.

Whether disabled peopleshould attend regular schools orspecial education schools haslong been controversial. Manypeople take it for granted thatchildren with disabilities shouldgo to special education schools,not only because of discrimina-tory social attitudes, but also be-cause they believe that specialeducation equates to educationin special schools. In fact, specialeducation includes placement inspecial education schools, spe-cial education classes in generalschools, and also regular class ingeneral schools.

The principle of makingchoices should always respectthe equal rights to education forchildren with disabilities and bebased on the best interests of thechild.

The lack of screening and ap-praisal as well as a dispute-solvingmechanism makes it difficult tojudge what the best educationchoice is for children with disabili-ties and whom parents can turn towhen their children with disabilitiesare refused by general educationschools.

Now, though, the regulationstipulates inclusive education asthe primary choice, except proofcould be provided to say that thechild is not suitable for generalschools.

Moreover, the regulation

also calls for setting up a steer-ing committee on educationfor people with disabilities atthe district and county levels,the role of which is to appraiseand advise on educationplacement for people with dis-abilities, and also to solve dis-putes between parents andschools.

Inclusive education is abouthaving an education system thatrecognizes and meets the learningneeds of all students, whatevertheir differences are. Other thanensuring equal rights to educationfor children with disabilities, thedeeper meaning of inclusive edu-cation lies in achieving the long-term goal of social inclusion for thedisabled community.

It's time for the education sys-tem to break down the barrierscreated by separating educationin special education schools andeducation in general educationschools.

People who fear that the rap-idly growing number of special ed-ucation schools will grab morechildren with disabilities can relax:The regulation also renegotiatesthe role of special educationschools.

It's expected that specialeducation schools, with theirwell-trained professionals on spe-cial education and equipment,should serve children whose spe-cial needs could not be met bygeneral education schools. Inaddition, special educationschools could play a supportiverole in inclusive education ingeneral education schools byengaging themselves in traininggeneral school teachers, assess-ing teaching practices, etc.

In fact, special educationschools should also reflect how in-clusiveness should be integratedinto the mission and curriculum.Many special education schoolsare still places that keep childrenwith disabilities within their wallsand are also not open to the com-munities.

The goal of education is to

prepare children and young peo-ple for their future life. If the educa-tion in special education schools isisolating these future citizens morefrom the mainstream society, themindset and practice should defi-nitely be changed.

Evidence both domestic andabroad shows that most childrenwith disabilities could attend andretain in general educationschools on condition that the edu-cation system is well-resourcedand equipped.

The argument that childrenwith disabilities are suitable forgeneral education schools there-fore should be shifted to them ifthe education system is ready tomeet their needs. To implementthe revised regulation, thereshould obviously be an assess-ment of the education system, in-cluding the local educationauthorities, special educationschools, and general educationschools.

Higher-education institutesthat train professionals should beready to accommodate thesechanges.

Parents' rights to know whattheir rights are could also be stipu-lated as the obligation of local ed-ucation authorities. In manycircumstances, information onservices available for families andindividuals with disabilities do notreach out to them. Field researchfound that many parents, espe-cially those in rural areas, do notknow that children could go togeneral education schools, andthey don't even know whetherthere is a special education schoolnearby.

It normally takes years andmany steps to turn the vision of aregulation into reality. Stakeholdersare expected to take actions afterthe revised regulation is officially is-sued after this round of publiccomment. Eighteen years haveelapsed since the regulation wasfirst issued. Parents and childrenhave been waiting for the regula-tion to be revised. They can't waitany longer.

06

07

Society

Chinese TV series gainingpopularity overseas

SHANGHAI -- Chinese TV showsthat depict young people's lives inmodern society are crossing thecultural divide and attracting agrowing set of global audiences.

One of the examples is theChinese TV series "A BeautifulDaughter-in-law Era," a 36-episodelight comedy about a modern Chi-nese couple.

The TV series was first aired inShanghai in November 2009. Itwas dubbed in Swahili andbroadcast in east African coun-tries in 2011. Kenyan actressJosephine Moeni Waweru and

actor Khamis Juma Swaleh werechosen to do voice dubbing forthe two leading roles in theAfrican version of the series.

Wang Liping, screenwriter ofthe TV series, said she had doubtsas to whether African audienceswould be able to connect with theTV series. However, to her relief, ithas at least proven to be a successin Africa.

Tanzanians have said thatthey have been able to under-stand the series due to the emo-tional entanglement and personalrelationships depicted in the show,

as they resonate with African peo-ple as deeply as they do with theChinese.

Kenyan Janet Nzomo said thetension between the show'smother-in-law and the daughter-in-law also exist in Kenya.

Kenyan people may be ableto find ways to solve their personalproblems by watching the series,she said.

"The overseas market is eagerto know young Chinese people'sstate of mind in modern times,"Wang said.

Although China is one of the08

world's most prolific producers ofTV series, its series are not particu-larly popular overseas. The popu-larity of "A BeautifulDaughter-In-Law Era" may serve asan impetus for Chinese TV produc-ers who are seeking to bring theirwork to other countries.

Chinese TV is typically limitedto tales about ancient imperial lifeand kung fu in the global market,said He Xiaolan, president of theShanghai-based WingsMedia.

"But in fact, foreign marketsare calling for more stories that de-pict the real lives of young Chi-nese," He said.

Chinese TV shows with compli-cated storylines and historical set-tings are not popular amongwestern audiences, as they prefersimpler stories about human na-ture, according to Cheng Chunli,a senior marketing director at theChina International Television Cor-poration.

In recent years, some TVshows that focus on the lives ofurban Chinese have achievedsome success in the foreign mar-ket.

"Go Lala Go!," a TV series thatdetails the adventures of a femaleoffice worker named Du Lala, hasalso started to reach global audi-ences.

The series has been exportedto Singapore, Malaysia, the UnitedStates and Canada.

The series' export price perepisode is about 10,000 U.S. dollars,paralleled only by "The Legend ofBruce Lee," a biopic about thekung fu icon.

Exported series are typically"optimistic, modest and harmo-nious," according to He.

Wang said she will continue tofocus on the lives and dreams ofordinary people in her work, as wellas make her work more appealingto both domestic and internationalaudiences.

"The Chinese dream will bemore easily accepted by foreignaudiences when it is manifested insmall and touching stories," saidMeng Jian, a professor at FudanUniversity. (XINHUA)

09

Society

Coastal resort embracessurging Russian touristsSANYA -- Russian tourists are flocking to China'ssouthernmost costal resort of Sanya in HainanProvince as they seek tropical beaches and getaway from their country's winter chill.

The city of Sanya is the only tropi-cal tourist destination in China, withannual average temperatures of25 degrees Celsius. It has seen asurge in Russian tourist numbers inrecent years with about 190,000 in2012, according to Zheng Con-ghui, Sanya Tourism Commissionspokesman.

In 2006, the number of Russiantourists to Sanya was 84,000, lessthan half the figure of last year.

The 2012 figure of Russian visi-tors represented 42 percent of thecity's total number of overseastourists, which was 450,000.

The rise in the number of Russ-ian tourists is thanks to various con-venient policies as well as otherfactors, Zheng said.

Word-of-mouth recommen-dations among Russian visitors, in-creasing regular flights and touristcharter travel have all contributedto the surging inflow since 2007.

Airlines link Sanya Phoenix In-ternational Airport with 15 Russiancities, including Moscow, St Peters-burg, Irkutsk and Vladivostok.

Russians are also taking ad-vantage of a visa-free policy inHainan that enables them to jointour groups and register with au-

thorities just one day before theirscheduled departure date.

The State Council, China'scabinet, gave Hainan permissionto implement a duty-free programon a trial basis in April 2011 as partof efforts to promote the provinceas an international tourist destina-tion.

More importantly, the weatherin Sanya is a significant contrast tothat of Russia, with many visitorswanting a sunny beach vacation,said Zheng.

Trofimova Olga is a 51-year-old engineer from Tyumen City, inWest Siberia and is on holiday inSanya. He said, "Amazing days inSanya. I just lie on the beach withthe sunshine and tender seabreeze."

It is his third vacation to thecity, and on this occasion Olga hassigned up to a 14-day treatment

course with traditional Chinesetherapy as he suffers from chronicdisease in his leg.

"I am refreshed after the treat-ment and my physical condition isimproving," he said.

Russian visitors are also at-tracted to the tourist, medical andrecreation services because oftheir reasonable prices.

Olga paid about 20,000 yuan(about 3,218 U.S dollars) on his va-cation, including flights, accom-modation and traditional Chinesetherapy.

"I have traveled to many citiesin various countries. Sanya pro-vides the most cost-effective va-cation experience," Olga said. Headded that the traditional medi-cine therapy was an "unexpectedpresent" that he cannot enjoy inany other country.

Other attractions for visitors is10

that restaurants offer a Russianmenu and employees working inthe tourist industry can speak Russ-ian.

Some Russians liked Sanya somuch they stayed.

"It is like a leisure activity forme to cook Russian food in abeach restaurant," said Nezhel-eva, who did not want to give hersurmane. She cooks in a Russianrestaurant on Dadonghai Beach.

"In the peak season, we re-ceive about 400 Russian tourists of-fering them authentic Russiandishes as well as Chinese food,"said Nezheleva, who relocatedafter quitting her job in Russia'ssnowy far east region.

Andre Ivanov, 57, is founder ofHainan Zhujiang InternationalTravel Agency and was honoredwith the national Friendship Awardin 2010 for his contribution in pro-

moting Sanya to Russians since1994.

He helped with the first chartertourist flight in 1997 when 100 Russ-ian travelers from Siberia visitedSanya.

"I established my own tourismbusiness in Sanya and settled herewith my Chinese wife. I am proudto bridge this Chinese resort citywith my motherland," he said.(XIN-HUA)

11

Finance

Sinopec’s net profit

falls by 14.8%

12

BEIJING -- China Petroleum andChemical Corporation, or Sinopec,the country's largest oil refiner, saidon Sunday its net profits in 2012dropped 14.8 percent year-on-year to 66.8 billion Yuan ($10.65 bil-lion).

Business revenues amountedto 2.73 trillion Yuan last year, an in-crease of 11 percent year-on-yearas calculated according to the in-ternational financial reporting

standards, the company said in astatement filing to the ShanghaiStock Exchange.

By the Chinese reporting stan-dards, Sinopec's net profit fell 11.4percent to 63.5 billion Yuan lastyear, mainly driven by theprospecting and extracting oper-ations.

The refinery sector saw lossesof 11.95 billion Yuan during the pe-riod, narrowing from the 37.61 bil-

lion Yuan in 2011, according to thereport.

In 2012, Sinopec produced328.28 million barrels of crude oil,among which 306 million are fromexplorations in China.

The company forecast it willproduce 46.43 million tones ofcrude oil and 18.1 billion cubic me-ters of natural gas this year.(Agen-cies)

In 2012, Sinopec produced 328.28million barrels of crude oil, amongwhich 306 million are from explo-rations in China. “

“

13

Finance

CPIC's netprofit down by 39%

SHANGHAI -- China Pacific Insur-ance (Group) Co Ltd, or CPIC, hassaid that its 2012 net profitdropped by 38.9 percent year-on-year due to decrease of invest-ment yield and slowdown ofbusiness growth.

Its net profit hit 5.077 billionYuan ($809.6 million) last year,down 38.9 percent from 8.313 bil-lion Yuan in 2011, according to itsannual report filed with the Shang-

hai Stock Exchange.Affected by slowdown of the

overall economic growth, sluggishcapital market and cyclical adjust-ment of the industry, the companyrecorded gross written premiumsof 93.461 billion Yuan in 2012 fromlife insurance business, up 0.3 per-cent from the previous year, it said.

Premiums from new policiesamounted to 37.333 billion Yuan in2012, representing a decrease of

20.5 percent over the same periodof 2011 while premiums from re-newed policies amounted to56.128 billion Yuan, up 21.3 per-cent year-on-year, it said.

Basic earnings per sharedropped drastically from 0.97 Yuanin 2011 to 0.59 Yuan in 2012, it said.

The Shanghai-based CPIC is amajor insurance company inChina. It is listed both in Shanghaiand Hong Kong.(Agencies)

14

China Construction Bank’s net profit up

by 14%BEIJING -- China ConstructionBank, the country's second-largest State-owned bank, saidSunday its net profit rose 14.13percent year-on-year to 193.18billion Yuan ($30.8 billion) in2012.

The bank's business revenuereached 460.75 billion Yuan lastyear, an increase of 16.03 per-cent from 2011, according to areport the bank filed with theShanghai Stock Exchange.

The bank attributed the

profit gain to a modest ex-pansion of interest-bearingassets and its strengtheningcost management during theperiod.

Net interest income grew15.97 percent year-on-year to353.2 billion Yuan.

Affected by the year's tem-pered economic growth andregulatory policy changes, rev-enues from commission chargesadded a mere 7.49 percent to93.51 billion Yuan, it said.

At the end of last year, thebank's capital adequacy ratiocame in at 14.32 percent, whilecore capital adequacy ratiowas 11.32 percent, up 0.64 per-centage point and 0.35 percent-age point, respectively, from theend of 2011.

The bank's outstanding non-performing loan stood at 74.62billion Yuan, with the NPL ratio at0.99 percent, down 0.1 percent-age point from the level at theend of 2011. (Agencies)

15

Finance

HK Airport wins green award

CED Monitoring

HONG KONG - Hong Kong Interna-tional Airport has been awardedthe Airport Carbon Accreditation"Optimization" certificate, whichturned it to be the first and only air-port in the Asia-Pacific to achievethis standard.

The certificate was awardedby the Airports Council Interna-tional Asia-Pacific's Regional Direc-tor Patti Chau to Airport AuthorityChairman Marvin Cheung at aceremony here.

Officiating at the ceremony,

Secretary for Transport & HousingProf Anthony Cheung said the ac-creditation is an important mile-stone towards a sustainable future.

"Environmental protectionhas always been an integral as-pect of the airport's develop-ment, and this is also one of thepolicy priorities of the new gov-ernment, so it is rewarding to seethe airport become a pioneer inthe Asia-Pacific region and anexemplar of environmental ex-cellence," he said.

The Airport Authority said theairport reduced carbon intensity

by nearly 14 percent in the last twoyears, and is on track to meet thegoal it set in 2010 of a 25 percentreduction by 2015 on 2008 emissionlevels.

Airport Carbon Accreditationwas initially launched in June 2009and expanded to the Asia-Pacificin November 2011. As the only insti-tutionally-endorsed carbon man-agement certification standard forairports, the program independ-ently assesses airports with four pro-gressive levels of accreditation,including "Mapping", "Reduction","Optimization" and "Neutrality

16

Cop investigated forrape in GuilinCED Monitoring

GUILIN-A police substation headhas been suspended pending fur-ther investigation on suspicion ofbeing involved in the rape of a 13-year-old girl in Guilin city'sQuanzhou county in the GuangxiZhuang autonomous region.

The victim, who is attending ajunior high school, told police inJanuary that she was raped bythree men from Jan 17 to 19, aftershe was forcefully taken to three

hotels by three women and ayoung man. One of the womenwent to the same school as thevictim but has left the school.

After preliminary investiga-tions, the unnamed police substa-tion head was believed to be oneof the men who raped the girl, andhe was detained for a month.

But local authorities later didnot issue an arrest warrant againstthe police officer saying that theylacked evidence.

The case has raised great

concern among residents asthe police substation head,who was newly appointed to hispost, had not received anypunishment.

On Saturday, the autonomousregion's public security depart-ment said it will make further inves-tigations and that the findings willbe made public.

Those who are found to haveviolated laws in the case will be se-verely punished, local mediaquoted authorities as saying.

17

IT

'Ecosystem' plays pivotal role in city's IT success

CHENGDU FORTUNECHENGDU-Li Jianfan, general manager of Teleca(China), often feels that he is in the epicenter ofChina's software service industry.

The Chengdu branch of Huawei Technologies CoLtd is next door to his company. Across the street isthe ZTE Corp building. Both Huawei and ZTE areemerging global cell phone giants.

18

19

IT

Li also routinely meets hisclients and managers from thesame industry in the numerous sa-lons and conferences held withinthe Chengdu Hi-tech Zone.

Teleca is a supplier of softwaresolutions and engineering servicesto the mobile industry. Originallyfrom Sweden, it now has more than2,000 employees in 11 countriesworldwide. Its clients are cellphone brands such as Nokia Corp,Sony Mobile Communications AB(formerly Sony Ericsson), MicrosoftCorp and Motorola Mobility LLC.

In 2005, Nokia, one of Teleca(China)'s major clients, decided toopen its regional headquarters inChengdu's Tianfu Software Park.Teleca (China) followed Nokia toChengdu.

"As a software serviceprovider, we have to be where ourclients are," Li said.

Like Teleca (China), thou-sands of companies have followedtheir main clients to Chengdu,capital of Sichuan province.Chengdu is now home to 234 For-tune 500 companies. In the IT sec-tor alone, the world's largestmultinationals such as Intel Inc,Dell Inc, Lenovo Group Ltd, Fox-conn Technology Group, CompalElectronics Inc and Wistron Corphave set up their operation in thecity.

Li said that after he moved in,he came to realize that Chengduwas the perfect choice for hiscompany. Numerous colleges anduniversities in Chengdu producethousands of skilled and relativelycheaper employees every year. Liestimated the worker cost in his in-dustry is 20 to 25 percent of work-ers in Beijing and Shanghai.

Besides, as Chengdu grew tobe a major software industry hub inChina and the multinationals therematured, they cultivated many ex-perienced software engineers andmanagers, which could be hiredby Li's company.

Xiong Jie, a manager ofThought Works, a software out-sourcing company, also feels thebenefit of Chengdu's quality talentpool.

"Thirty-five out of 50 employ-ees we currently have are fromChengdu. They are intelligent anddiligent," said Xiong. He himselfwas attracted to Chengdu afterworking in a Beijing software com-pany for several years.

Both Xiong and Li said theyare grateful to the zone's effort toorganize collective hiring program.With just a few thousand Yuan, theircompanies could join campus re-cruiting as well as fly to Beijing,Shanghai and Shenzhen to hireworkers. Organizing their own

campus hiring campaign individu-ally could cost them much moremoney.

Xiong and a number of ITcompanies China Daily inter-viewed said being in the "ecosys-tem" is very important for them, somuch so that it is like breathing air.

"They (my colleagues) cantalk to each other. They can com-municate with each other. Theycan learn from each other," Xiongsaid.

"The zone organizes commu-nication events every week. Forexample, in the mobile tech con-ference, we can easily talk to peo-ple in Tecent."

For Xiong, another importantreason for him to select Chengduwas its visionary officials.

"Before we decided (to moveinto Chengdu), we talked to the of-ficials of Chengdu, as well as othercities. I figured out that they(Chengdu officials) have a visionof the global economy and the ITindustry. They understand how toencourage enterprises to be inno-vative."

Li said his next goal is to de-velop domestic cell phone giantssuch as ZTE and Huawei to be hisclients. Those companies' fastgrowth could boost his business.

"They are so close to us. I thinkwe can grow together," Li said.

20

Beijing buses to offer

Wi-FiCED Monitoring

More than 10,000 buses in Beijingwill offer Wi-Fi service by the end of2013. The service followed a dealsigned in April last year betweenChina Mobile and Beijing Bus Trans-

portation Group, which operatesBeijing's bus system and will pro-vide coverage on all routes withinthe Fourth Ring Road.

More than 1,800 buses havewireless Internet access so far, al-lowing passengers with Wi-Fi en-

abled devices to connect to theInternet through China Mobile'snetwork.

Beijing has the broadest Wi-Ficoverage on buses in the country.

China Mobile will offer 20-hours a month free before June 30.

21

IT

Carrier bets on

data services

CED Monitoring

SHANGHAI-China Mobile Ltd, theworld's biggest telecom carrier bysubscribers, plans to boost its dataservices to make up for a drop inrevenue from short message serv-ices caused by the rise of chat ap-plications.

China Mobile and carriersacross the world are being se-verely challenged by thriving in-stant messaging applications onmobile phones, such as WeChatand Whatsapp, which allow users

to send text messages, imagesand voice clips through mobilenetworks.

An increasing number ofsmartphone users are choosing touse the applications over the car-riers' short message and voiceservices to communicate withfriends and family members asthey are much cheaper.

It costs at least 100 Yuan($15.95) to send 1,000 text mes-sages through the carriers' serv-ices, but only 3 to 5 Yuan to sendthe same number of messages

using the applications. Xi Guohua, China Mobile's

chairman, told a press conferencein Hong Kong on Thursday that thecompany's strategy to cope withthe challenge posed by the chatapplications is to step up its dataservices, partly through building itsnew 4G network, in the hope thata rise in data services revenue willmake up for the inevitable loss inthe traditional SMS and voice serv-ices.

"Strengthening data services isour answer to instant messaging,"

22

said Xi, after remarking that ChinaMobile's net profit grew just 2.7 per-cent in 2012 to 129.3 billion Yuan,on a 6.1 percent increase in rev-enue to 560.4 billion Yuan.

Revenue from short messageand multimedia message servicesdropped about 5 percent to 44.2billion Yuan. Revenue from voiceservices, mostly phone calls, wasalmost stagnant, increasing just 1.1percent year-on-year to 368 billionYuan.

The weakness in the two tradi-tional services was mostly com-pensated by a surge in revenuefrom wireless data traffic, whichjumped 53.6 percent to 68.26 bil-lion Yuan. Wireless data traffic vol-ume grew 187.6 percent to 1,039billion megabytes, a clear sign that

China Mobile's data services aretaking off.

Revenue from wireless datatraffic accounts for 12.2 percent ofthe carrier's total revenue, up 3.8percentage points from 2011. Theproportion of short message andmultimedia message services, inturn, dropped 0.9 percentagepoints, to 7.9 percent.

"Wireless data traffic has de-veloped rapidly and become akey driver of revenue growth," saidXi.

The carrier's voice and shortmessage service business may be-come even weaker as traffic onchat applications keeps balloon-ing. On a single day - Dec 31 - thenumber of outbound messages onWhatsApp hit 11 billion. In January,

Apple Inc said that users on itsiMessage service were sendingmore than 2 billion messages aday, up from 1 billion in June.

China Mobile hopes that thelaunch of its TD-LTE 4G networks willhelp bring in much-needed addi-tional revenue. The carrier has setaside 41.7 billion Yuan this year toinvest in its TD-LTE infrastructure, in-cluding building over 200,000 basestations nationwide. Last year, itspent around 5 billion Yuan to build20,000 base stations to test the newtechnology and decided that TD-LTE is mature enough for commer-cial promotion. The investment willaccount for a major part of the in-crease in its planned capital ex-penditure to 190 billion Yuan thisyear, up from 127 billion in 2012.

A girl checksher smart-phone in Bei-jing. Moreand moresmartphoneusers arechoosing touse WeChatand What-sapp to com-municate withfriends andfamily mem-bers

23

Industry

24

CED Monitoring

BEIJING-BRICS members shouldcreate a free trade agreement toincrease the power and voice ofemerging economies in the worldeconomy, Chinese experts say.

"BRICS should consider pro-posing a free trade agreement atthe summit, regardless of whetherit's feasible right now," said WangJunwen, chairman of the ChinaAssociation of International Trade.

Wang said the current coop-eration of the BRICS nations - Brazil,Russia, India, China and SouthAfrica - is "of more political signifi-cance than an economic one".

"Despite challenges and com-petition, all five members of thegroup intend to increase theirvoice in the multilateral trading sys-tem, which is dominated by devel-oped economies such as the US,the EU and Japan," he said.

A bilateral FTA between theUnited States and the EuropeanUnion is expected to start in Juneand conclude in 2014. Throughthe high-standard TransatlanticTrade and Investment Partner-ship, the US and the EU will havethe opportunity not only to ex-pand trade and investmentacross the Atlantic, but also tocontribute to the developmentof global rules that can

strengthen the multilateral trad-ing system. Meanwhile, the USalso has been advancing theTrans-Pacific Partnership Agree-ment, or TPP.

"The TPP and the trans-Atlantictrade and investment pact, if intro-duced, will shape global rules as itsmembers account for more thanhalf of total global trade andGDP," said Sun Zhenyu, chairmanof the China Society for WorldTrade Organization Studies(CWTO), a think tank of the Ministryof Commerce.

"BRICS surely needs tostrengthen cooperation, and bet-ter cooperation will bring about agreater role in global gover-nance."

CWTO Vice-Chairman ZhengZhihai said China must take thelead in such efforts.

"China is the leader of theBRICS. It can first start the FTA talkswith South Africa and then ad-vance the pact with India, be-cause a feasibility study hasalready been concluded. The finalgoal is establishing an FTA of theBRICS countries," he said.

A recent report from StandardBank said that Intra-BRICS conver-gence is being led by China, andChina plays a part in 85 percent ofintra-BRICS trade. China is one ofthe top-three export destinations

of each of the four other BRICScountries.

Zhao Longyue, director of theChina Center for International De-velopment, said: "China is now ex-erting more influence on worldeconomic affairs, but has a muchsmaller role in global politics andinternational diplomacy. In orderto be the leader of the BRICS,China should deliberately mergeits own interests into the group'swith a comprehensive guidelinewhile the group still lacks a core."

Wang Hui, a consultant ofCWTO's foreign economic andtrade advisory council, added thatChina's advantage in enhancingits role in global trade rules relies inits domestic market.

To increase its economicpower, BRICS should develop its in-frastructure, for example setting upa secretariat, as the Shanghai Co-operation Organization did, as wellas bringing in more members, suchas Indonesia, South Korea andMexico.

"The growth of China andother members will easily lift thegroup's trade to $500 billion inthree years. But that's not impor-tant and not attractive to othermembers," Wang said.

"The future goal is building upan FTA of emerging economies,"he said.

25

Industry

Oil pricing systemgets adjustment

26

CED Monitoring

BEIJING-Fuel costs to see short-termdecline under market-orientedmeasures

China has launched a moremarket-oriented oil product pricingsystem to better reflect costs andadapt to fluctuations in global oilprices.

A system introduced in 2009to adjust prices when Brent,Dubai and Cinta crude oil priceschange by more than 4 percentover 22 working days, will beabandoned.

The new system will shortenthe adjustment period to 10 daysand remove the 4 percent limit,allowing for swifter reaction to in-creases or cuts in fuel prices, ac-cording to the NationalDevelopment and Reform Com-mission, China's top economicplanner.

The composition of the basketof crudes to which oil prices arelinked will also be adjusted.

The 22-working-day cycle hastriggered complaints about thepricing system, as it often failed toreflect fluctuations in the interna-tional market.

China has also cut gasolineand diesel prices for the first timethis year. From Wednesday, themaximum retail prices of regulargasoline and diesel will be cut by310 Yuan ($48.30) and 300 Yuanper ton.

The benchmark retail price ofgasoline will fall by 0.23 Yuan perliter and diesel by 0.26 Yuan perliter.

After the adjustment, the retailgasoline price will drop to under 7Yuan per liter in most cities includ-ing Beijing, Shanghai andGuangzhou.

Operators can determine theirown retail prices based on supplyand demand and by referencingthe regulated prices, according toan official in the commission's pricedepartment.

A more market-based pric-ing mechanism is good for con-sumers' interests through marketcompetition, said Wen Guifang,

an economist at the Institute ofFinance and Trade Economics atthe Chinese Academy of SocialSciences.

Wen said in the long run, oilprices will continue to rise. Asthe world's second-largest oilconsumer after the UnitedStates, China has seen increas-ing dependence on importedoil, which has threatened its en-ergy security.

That dependence is ex-pected to reach 59.4 percent in2013, according to a report re-leased by the Economics andTechnology Research Institute ofChina National Petroleum Corp.

Many analysts said the com-mission has acted quicker than ex-pected.

Zhang Ping, the former chair-man of the commission, said thismonth that China is moving to re-form the oil pricing mechanism.

Han Jingyuan, an energy an-alyst with JYD Online, a bulkcommodity consultant based inBeijing, said it is better to launchthe new system when oil pricesare low.

Crude oil prices on the inter-national market continued to fall inthe past few weeks, and the inter-national oil price is likely to keepdropping, she said.

The 22-day moving averageprice of Brent, Dubai and Cinta onMonday was 5.12 percent lowerthan the level when China last ad-justed fuel prices, said Han.

Eased domestic inflationarypressure also means it is a goodtime for the commission to launchthe new system.

Lu Zhengwei, chief economistwith Industrial Bank Co Ltd, said in-flation is not an immediate prob-lem and he forecast growth of theConsumer Price Index will continueto fall to about 2.2 percent inMarch.

The index rose 3.2 percent inFebruary year-on-year. A 10 per-cent cut in oil prices usually leadsto a 0.1 percent fall in the index.

Since February 2011, Chinahas adjusted fuel prices 13 times,with seven increases and six cuts.

27

Industry

Trade continuesrapid growth

28

CED Monitoring

BEIJING-Fuel costs to see short-term decline under market-ori-ented measures

China has launched amore market-oriented oilproduct pricing system to bet-ter reflect costs and adapt tofluctuations in global oi lprices.

A system introduced in2009 to adjust prices whenBrent, Dubai and Cinta crude

oil prices change by more than4 percent over 22 working days,will be abandoned.

The new system will shortenthe adjustment period to 10days and remove the 4 percentlimit, allowing for swifter reac-tion to increases or cuts in fuelprices, according to the Na-tional Development and Re-form Commission, China's topeconomic planner.

The composition of the bas-ket of crudes to which oil pricesare linked will also be adjusted.

The 22-working-day cyclehas triggered complaints aboutthe pricing system, as it oftenfailed to reflect fluctuations inthe international market.

China has also cut gasolineand diesel prices for the firsttime this year. From Wednes-day, the maximum retail pricesof regular gasoline and dieselwill be cut by 310 Yuan ($48.30)and 300 Yuan per ton.

The benchmark retail priceof gasoline will fall by 0.23 Yuanper liter and diesel by 0.26 Yuanper liter.

After the adjustment, theretail gasoline price will drop tounder 7 Yuan per liter in mostcities including Beijing, Shang-hai and Guangzhou.

Operators can determinetheir own retail prices basedon supply and demand andby referencing the regulatedprices, according to an offi-cial in the commission's pricedepartment.

A more market-based pric-ing mechanism is good for con-sumers' interests through marketcompetition, said Wen Guifang,an economist at the Institute ofFinance and Trade Economicsat the Chinese Academy of So-cial Sciences.

Wen said in the long run, oilprices will continue to rise. Asthe world's second-largest oilconsumer after the UnitedStates, China has seen increas-ing dependence on importedoil, which has threatened its en-ergy security.

That dependence is ex-

pected to reach 59.4 percentin 2013, according to a reportreleased by the Economics andTechnology Research Instituteof China National PetroleumCorp.

Many analysts said thecommission has acted quickerthan expected.

Zhang Ping, the formerchairman of the commission,said this month that China ismoving to reform the oil pricingmechanism.

Han Jingyuan, an energyanalyst with JYD Online, a bulkcommodity consultant based inBeijing, said it is better tolaunch the new system when oilprices are low.

Crude oil prices on the in-ternational market continuedto fall in the past few weeks,and the international oil price islikely to keep dropping, shesaid.

The 22-day moving aver-age price of Brent, Dubai andCinta on Monday was 5.12 per-cent lower than the level whenChina last adjusted fuel prices,said Han.

Eased domestic inflationarypressure also means it is a goodtime for the commission tolaunch the new system.

Lu Zhengwei, chief econo-mist with Industr ial Bank CoLtd, said inflation is not an im-mediate problem and he fore-cast growth of the ConsumerPrice Index will continue to fallto about 2.2 percent inMarch.

The index rose 3.2 percentin February year-on-year. A 10percent cut in oil prices usuallyleads to a 0.1 percent fall in theindex.

Since February 2011, Chinahas adjusted fuel prices 13times, with seven increases andsix cuts.

29

Industry

China's economy boostedby intra-Asia trade

30

nations, has meant China'sgrowth remains well ahead ofglobal trends, according to thelatest quarterly report onChina's economy compiled bythe institute.

The study suggested thatinvestment has become thekey policy tool for boostinggrowth and it has been de-ployed successfully in the lastquarter of 2012.

Inland provinces are re-ceiving a greater boost thancoastal areas, and lower capi-tal stock levels mean that theycan make better use of re-sources.

However, McWilliamswarned that bad loans maycome back to haunt Chinesebanks and could even threatena credit crunch without govern-ment intervention.

"Since investment is prima-rily financed by bank loans,they need to be paid backfrom cash flows generated bythe investments. Currently, loanlosses are increasing in Chinacompared with a year ago. Un-economical investment in thepast can cause a drop in futureinvestment via the banking sys-tem," he said.

CED Monitoring

SHANGHAI-The country's eco-nomic growth will rise to 7.9percent, beating the govern-ment's target of 7.5 percent, fu-eled by China's increasedintra-Asia trade, said DouglasMcWilliams, an economic ad-viser at the Institute of Char-tered Accountants in Englandand Wales, a London-basedaccounting association.

"Global growth as a wholewas low last year, but Chineseexports rose by around $150 bil-lion. Around two-thirds of thatwas increased exports to Asia,which already accounts forabout half of foreign sales forChina," McWilliams said.

He pointed out that the riseof Asia, Africa and Latin Amer-ica has effectively made West-ern economies less crucial forChina's economy. For instance,the share of Chinese exports tothe EU, Japan and NAFTA re-gions fell from 17 percent in2000 to 7 percent in 2012, adownward trend that will con-tinue for years to come.

The use of investment as apolicy tool, supported by surg-ing consumption among ASEAN

Global growth as a whole waslow last year, but Chinese exportsrose by around $150 billion “

”31

Automobile

Govt departments purchasingmore locally made cars

32

Govt departments purchasingmore locally made cars

33

Automobile

CED Monitoring

SHANGHAI-Government depart-ments across the country arebuying locally manufacturedcars in greater numbers in ac-cordance with the latest gov-ernment guidelines, carmakerssaid.

Reacting to the govern-ment's call for frugality, and inan effort to boost the fortunes oflocal car manufacturers, theMinistry of Industry and Informa-tion Technology published adraft catalogue last year of 400types of cars available for offi-cial use.

All the cars are either Chi-nese brands, or internationallybranded cars that were manu-factured in partnership with Chi-nese companies in the country -but some previously popular of-ficial car brands were omitted,such as Audi, Volkswagen andToyota.

Domestic carmakers, includ-ing China FAW Group Corp,SAIC Motor Corp andGuangzhou Automobile GroupCo Ltd, were highlighted on thelist as producing high-qualitycars that can meet the de-mands of government depart-ments.

According to Xu Xianping,general manger of China FAWGroup Corp, government buyinghas increased as a result.

"Thirteen Red Flag H7 pre-mium sedans manufactured byour group were purchased bythe Jilin provincial governmentat the end of February, whilemore than 10 provinces andcentral government depart-ments have purchased largebatches of Red Flag H7 cars," Xutold media

Cui Dayong, deputy man-ager of FAW Car Co Ltd, a sub-sidiary of FAW Group, who is incharge of selling Red Flag,Besturn and Mazda cars, said:"The launch of the Besturn B90 in2012, targeted at the govern-ment car market, has receivedpositive results.

"Seventy-two Besturn B90s

were purchased by the Fujianprovincial government lastyear."

The share prices of China'scar manufacturers have alsobenefited from the policy.Shares in FAW rose by the 10percent daily limit in Shenzhentrading on Wednesday, andwere poised to hit their highestpoint since Nov 2008.

And there have been othernotable orders received by localcarmakers.

The Trumpchi, produced byGuangzhou Automobile Group,is now being used as the officialcar by the governments ofGuangzhou and Fuzhou, whilethe Roewe 950, produced bySAIC Motor, is reported to havepicked up orders from officials inZhejiang, Jiangsu and Shandongprovinces.

Yang Yan, the legal repre-sentative of the Wenzhou Trans-portation Group, appointed tosupply rental services for gov-ernment officials in the city, said:"More than 200 cars made avail-able by the company for gov-ernment departments to rentwere all made by Chinese man-ufacturers, including modelsfrom SAIC Motor."

Buying local brands as offi-cial government cars is a com-mon practice in many countries,said Zeng Zhiling, director of AsiaPacific Forecasting with LMC Au-tomotive. "It is a good methodof promoting domestic brands,and increasing the confidenceof buyers in local products," saidZeng.

However, Feng Shiming, anauto analyst at Menutor Consult-ing, said more needs to be doneby the government to open upthe official car market to moresuccessful small and medium-sized, and privately owned carmanufacturers, as well as State-owned manufacturers.

"To promote domesticbrands, the government couldoffer more opportunities for pri-vate carmakers, like Geely, BYDand Great Wall to supply gov-ernment cars," Feng said.

34

35

Construction

Chinese-built railway aids Tanzania's tradeaspirationsCED Monitoring

BEIJING-Tazara was not the firstconstruction work China carriedout in Africa, but the symbolism ofChina-Africa friendship during hardtimes created by this railway is irre-placeable and has been treas-ured by the two peoples for nearlyhalf a century.

It played a vital role in break-ing the economic isolation of theeast African country and buildingbridges between countries at thetime, but it also suffered a nega-tive effect later because of thecountry's controversial misman-agement.

"We could see the signifi-cance the railway could play inthe future and we have never left,"said Wang Lei, general managerof China Civil Engineering Con-struction Corp in East Africa, whosepredecessor was the foreign aidoffice of the Ministry of Railways ofChina in the 1960s and 70s, whichbuilt this railway over a 10-year pe-riod.

He said 15 training pro-grams have been accom-plished since the completion ofthe railway in 1976. His workershave conducted maintenancework, including installing spareparts, providing carriages andfunds, transferring technologyas well as training staff.

Several leading companiesand research institutes have beenappointed by the Chinese govern-

ment to investigate the currentcondition of the railway with aview to updating it.

Today, not far from the ter-minal of this railway in thestreets of Dar es Salaam, Chi-nese and Tanzanian flags hangalong the roads and huge signsare set up with a Chinese man'sportrait and the word "Wel-come" in Swahili.

He is the man who mightbring in more Tazara railwaysand also more investment andopportunities to this region overthe next few years — the newlyelected Chinese President XiJinping, who is making his firstvisit to three African countriesas president.

Visiting Africa has been a tra-dition for a new Chinese leader toshow friendship and comprehen-sive interconnectedness, but thistime Xi is not just coming as a ges-ture but with a program to tacklemany challenges that lie aheadfor the two nations.

Integration, industrializa-tion, peace and security, aswell as sustainable develop-ment, are all buzzwords inAfrican countries. They alsocould be the guidelines forChina's engagement in Africa ifChina wants its interests thereto be more efficient and sus-tainable.

Luckily, China has neverbeen the sole dominant forcein this relationship and has

shown a strong willingness tosupport Africa's own agenda.But where this relationship isleading depends on the extentto which both sides canachieve mutual benefit acrossall fields.

China is not the only inter-national player in Africa. Tradi-tional players from the West stillhave a huge impact on Africa'ssocial progress. Competitionalso comes from emerging mar-kets such as India and Brazil,which is a good thing for thecontinent because it givesAfrica more leverage in choos-ing what really benefits it.

To solidify its achievementand role in Africa, China shouldcontinue being a strong sup-porter of African home-grownsolutions and "African dreams",say observers.

For instance, as deeper in-tegration among African coun-tries utilizing a more connectedcontinental transportation net-work has risen to the top of theagenda of many governmentsthat want to enhance intra-bor-der trade and communications,China and Chinese companiesare eager to join these effortsto further support Africa's aspi-rations.

"We have signed three Mem-orandums of Understanding withthe Tanzanian Transportation Min-istry to build other railway arteriesin this country," said Wang.

36

It played a vitalrole in breaking

the economicisolation of the

east Africancountry and

building bridgesbetween coun-tries at the time

37

Construction

Economic powerhouseshows cultured side

CED Monitoring

SHANGHAI WHEN it comes to thePudong New Area, most peopletend to focus on its booming econ-omy and financial achievements.

However, after 20 years of as-tonishing economic development,Pudong is now establishing itself asa cultural powerhouse, too, andshowing the world a brand-new"culture name card."

Recently, it selected its "10Best" - including architecture, cul-ture and creative industries, histor-ical resources, publicperformances and more.

Hundreds of subjects wereconsidered in this event, creatinga wonderfully diversified, ofteneye-popping selection.

In May 2012, the "10 Best" se-lection began with members ofthe public posting photographs oftheir favorite cultural attractions inthe district on the official weibo(Chinese version of Twitter) ac-count.

While the local governmenthad an input - through civic voteand discussions by professionals -the public played a major rolethrough votes.

At the end of February this

year, the account had more than20,000 followers accounts andtweets were forwarded more than30,000 times, reported officials.

Some residents literally got ontheir bikes to participate. Hong Jin-long, who is in his 70s and lives inZhangjiang area, rode his bicycleto a post office just to cast his vote.

"Pudong has been developedfor more than 20 years, yet I'veoften heard it still described as a'cultural desert'," he says.

But through the "10 Best" selec-tion, Hong was surprised to see somany outstanding attractions.

"This means that our area has

38

been developing better and bet-ter culture, and I'm thrilled aboutthis," says Hong. "And it's not onlyfor me, my daughter-in-law andgrandchildren all voted for the 10Best. Pudong culture will only flour-ish and if we all become involved."

With some input from aca-demics and civic opinion, on Sat-urday night, the long list of publicnominations was whittled down tothe top 10.

Included in the Pudong NewArea's "10 Best" are the China ArtMuseum; Shanghai Science andTechnology Museum; Pudong Li-brary; Shanghai InternationalMusic Fireworks Festival; andShanghai Nanhui Peach BlossomFestival.

An official from the ShanghaiMunicipal Administration of CultureRadio, Film and TV told ShanghaiDaily that the "10 Best" selectedare popular with the public and"many have rich histories."

This event was also an oppor-tunity to take a grand panoramicview of Pudong's stunning devel-opment.

From a fishing village to one ofthe most recognizable skylines inthe world, it has come a long way.

And the top 10 list reveals thatwithin Pudong in 2013 lies an aston-ishing diversity of attractions.

Here are some options for aone-day cultural trip in Pudong:

Begin your cultural extrava-ganza absorbed in the scientificcharms of Shanghai Science andTechnology Museum, within walk-ing distance of Metro Line 2 Cen-tury Park Station.

Or immerse yourself amongthe books at Pudong Library, whilethe latest IMAX blockbuster mightbe available from its video hall.

Later on, you can head for toYuanshen Sports Center, which hasone of Shanghai's most establishedgyms, and enjoy a reasonablypriced workout in an unpretentiouscommunity atmosphere.

If all that exercise has left youwanting a bit more culture, headto the China Pavilion-turned-ChinaArt Museum in the Expo Park toview artworks, the Himalayas Cen-

ter for amazing artefacts and de-signs, or perhaps learn somethingnew at the China Maritime Mu-seum.

As night approaches, fans ofeverything from classical music,opera and ballet to pop, shouldcheck out who's playing at theShanghai Oriental Art Center andMercedes-Benz Arena and enjoyan audio-and-visual feast.

And after all this activity, wan-dering along Bingjiang Avenue is arelaxing option, looking at the pic-turesque and spectacular view ofthe Bund and other landmarks re-flected in the Huangpu River.

Of course, Pudong hasmuch more in addition to thesesuggestions. Indeed, it is esti-mated that residents only haveto walk for 10 minutes to find aculture spot.

Among nominations for the"10 Best" are cultural teams, cul-tural figures and public perform-ances. These help bridge thedistance between high art and or-dinary Pudong residents, bringinga cultural feast to residents withintheir local communities.

Hundreds of performancesare "delivered" to communitieswhile almost every sub-district - in-cluding rural areas - can provide

high quality "local cultural shows."Meanwhile, the culture indus-

try economy in Pudong is boom-ing, too. Zhangjiang CulturalIndustry Park gathers animation,media and other companies in thesector, which pays off handsomelythrough the year.

Substantive trade volume andincredible annual increase of morethan 100% is proof of the floweringof Pudong's culture industry and itsvital role in contributing to thearea's GDP.

Throughout its development,Pudong has always upheld theethos that cultural constructionand economic developmentshould proceed and promote syn-chronously.

"Economic hardware" and"cultural software" ought to be en-hanced simultaneously, andPudong is coming up with strate-gies for "more humanities and cul-ture in the new area," according tothe Pudong New Area's media de-partment.

The success of the "10 Best" ini-tiative in getting residents to con-tribute, together with the healthystate of the sector is confirmationthat the Pudong New Area is cre-ating its own strong cultural iden-tity.

39

Real estate

Real Estate experts bet on housing pricesBEIJING -- Although it has becomesomewhat fashionable for Chineseproperty tycoons and experts tobet on home prices, their predic-tions are often contradictory andsometimes downright bizarre.

Guo Jianbo, a Shenzhen-based industry insider, said last De-cember that if home prices inmajor cities didn't drop in March,he would go for a naked run indowntown Beijing.

Others have made sky-highpredictions about the industry'sprices. Dong Fan, a real estate re-searcher at Beijing Normal Univer-sity, said average home prices inBeijing will hit 800,000 yuan(127,389 U.S. dollars) per squaremeter in 25 years, 40 times higherthan the current average price.

Some industry experts, how-ever, think prices are more likely tofall due to government interven-tion. "Quickly sell your sparehomes, as their prices will fall dueto continued tightening policies,"said Andy Xie, a former seniormanager at Morgan Stanley.

Some industry insiders havetaken to criticizing each other fortheir predictions.

Outspoken property tycoonRen Zhiqiang said home prices willrise even faster than incomegrowth in March if land supplies forhousing do not increase signifi-cantly.

But Cao Jianhai, an econom-ics researcher with the ChineseAcademy of Social Sciences, criti-cized Ren and others for using their

predictions to create hype andgenerate sales.

"People say I am a goodactor. But the reality is, if I do notattract enough attention, who willknow me and buy my homes?"said Pan Shiyi, a friend of Ren's andanother real estate tycoon.

Amid the heated and oftenself-contradictory predictions, thecountry's housing prices are gen-erally increasing.

Of a statistical pool of 70major Chinese cities monitored bythe National Bureau of Statistics, 66cities saw home prices increase bya margin of no more than 3.1 per-cent in February from a month ear-lier, when 53 cities reported agrowth margin of no more than 2.2percent.(XINHUA)

40

City property prices inmonthly surge

CED Monitoring

BEIJING-Most major cities re-ported a sharp monthly rise inproperty prices in February, fu-eled by demand outstrippingsupply, analysts said.Of the 70major cities monitored by theNational Bureau of Statistics, 66,led by Beijing, Shanghai,Guangzhou and Shenzhen, sawprices rise month-on-month.

January, by comparison, saw53 of the monitored cities registerproperty price increases.

Measures rolled out by thegovernment at the beginning ofMarch to curb rising propertyprices have still to kick in, analystssaid.

Wenzhou in Zhejiang provincewas the only city to experiencefalling property prices in February.

A majority of cities also sawproperty prices rise over the yearwith 62 cities registering annual in-creases, compared with 53 in Jan-uary.

The largest increase was 8.2percent in Guangzhou, almostdouble the rate in the previousmonth.

Beijing came next with 7.7percent, Shenzhen with 5.8 per-cent, and Shanghai with 4.1percent.

"The key reason triggeringthis round of price hikes is lim-ited supply," said Tao Hong-bing, president of Gaoce RealEstate Brokerage.

Just nine projects opened forsale in Beijing in the first 10 days ofMarch, down 30 percent for thesame period of the previousmonth, according to Yahao RealEstate Selling and Consulting.

The strong rebound in the prop-erty market led to a government re-sponse on March 1 that targetedspeculative property sellers.

Homeowners who sell theirhomes within five years after theirpurchase will face capital gainstax of 20 percent. Before the newmeasure, the tax levied was 1 per-cent of the sale price. The detailsfor the implementation will be re-leased shortly.

The measure, targeting spec-ulation, resulted in further pricehikes in the new housing market,especially in key cities as buyersopted for new properties.

A real estate project on Bei-jing's North Fifth Ring Road in-creased its sale price by almost4,000 Yuan ($644) per squaremeter within 20 days.

But there were still more than1,300 potential customers seeking184 units.

Sino-Ocean Land, a HongKong-listed property developer,set its sales target for 2013 at 35 bil-lion yuan ($5.6 billion), up 15 per-cent year-on-year.

Longfor, a Hong Kong-listedproperty developer, reported anet profit of 54 billion Yuan in 2012,an increase of 19.4 percent year-on-year, the company said on Fri-day.

"Residential developers inChina are starting to rebuild,'' saidStandard & Poor's credit analystBei Fu.

"Financing conditions and liq-uidity have improved while refi-nancing risks have moderated.That's why we recently revised ouroutlook for the Chinese market tostable from negative. But smallerChinese developers could stillstruggle to raise funds or over-come stiff competition."

41

Agriculture

42

CED Monitoring

BEIJING-The First Beijing AgricultureCarnival kicked off in Changpingdistrict at the Strawberry Expo Gar-den in Xingshou township.

The carnival, which will con-tinue til May 12, highlights the latesttechnological advances and keyprojects.

Visitors can see an array ofproduce in all shapes and sizes.Fruit and vegetables, includingthumb-sized cucumbers, pump-kins weighing more than 50 kilo-grams, as well as produce grownin space, will be displayed.

Nearly 300 enterprises fromhome and abroad will attend theevent, and up to 800,000 visitorsare expected. The carnival is ex-pected to bring about 400 millionYuan ($64.4 million) in direct eco-nomic returns for the district.

Tang Ai, 32, and her husband,drove their two daughters fromHaidian district. The family startedthe tour around 1 pm before head-ing toward the amusement parkfor children at 4 pm.

"My younger daughter is only6. She was amazed by so manydifferent kinds of tomatoes," Tangsaid.

Chen Yu took a bus ride to-gether with his 4-year-old son andhis mother-in-law to the carnival.

After they arrived at 1 pm, theywent to the strawberry fields.

Chen said he knew about thecarnival from news reports.

"My son finds the exhibitionsvery interesting," Chen said, whileplaying a video game that simu-lates the operation of aerial seed-ing carried out by helicopters.

One booth invites people topaint cartoonlike images, such asthe angry birds, with grains in dif-ferent colors.

Each family can participateand take their finished art homeafter a payment of 25 yuan.

At another booth, Zhi Xuhong,25, presents his sculptures createdfrom food products. He can carvea turnip into a flower within 10 min-utes and the God of Longevity wascreated from a sweet potato.

Zhi used to work for high-endrestaurants but is now passing onhis skills as head of a carving train-ing school.

"People approached me, es-pecially adults. Some asked me toteach them. They are interestedbecause they saw in real life thethings they had known only fromTV," Zhi said.

Another popular booth show-cases machines that can test thelevel of harmful substances, suchas pesticide residue in food prod-ucts.

Leng Xizhuan, 32, is a projectmanager from Paide Science andTechnology Development Co.They offer solutions to agriculturalmodernization via precise com-puter-based management andmechanization.

Precise management usescomputer-based monitoring andremote sensing systems to helpcrops grow under optimal condi-tions of light, water, temperature,humidity and irrigation, Leng said.

Leng said his company hassigned partnership deals with large-scale agricultural producers in Hei-longjiang province and the XinjiangUygur autonomous region.

"It is unlikely that we will findpotential partners at the carnival,because most visitors are Beijingresidents. We want more people toknow the hottest trends in agricul-ture and bring some practicalknowledge back home, such ashousehold and office greeningtips," Leng said.

Changping, located in north-west Beijing, is well-known for itshot springs and the Great Wall.

Strawberry cultivation andproduction has been a leading in-dustry in the district.

The carnival also features aphotography competition, whichwill receive submissions until April25

43

Agriculture

Keeping the rural areas safe

CED Monitoring

BEIJING-During the rapid processof urbanization, the governmentmust take measures to avoid dam-aging the countryside, a decline inagricultural output and the mar-ginalization of farmers, said ChenXiwen, Deputy Director of theParty's leading group on rural work.

China imported more than 60billion kg of grain in 2011 - includingmore than 52.4 million tons of soy-beans. The country also imported6.27 million tons of vegetable oil,3.3 million tons of cotton, 2 milliontons of sugar and 500,000 tons ofpork.

China's self-sufficiency in foodhas dropped below 90 percent,according to Chen, speaking atan international forum on urban-

ization in Shanghai last year.A large number of young

farmers born in the 1980s and1990s have left the countryside towork in the cities and few wish toreturn to their hometowns. Withouta younger generation of laborers,the countryside is going downhill.During the past 10 years, approxi-mately 900,000 villages have dis-appeared, said Feng Jicai,vice-president of the China Feder-ation of Literary and Art Circles.

As resources, labor and capi-tal all move to city-based indus-tries, the question of how thecountry can prevent agriculturefrom declining has been broughtinto sharp focus, Chen said.

In recent years, the govern-ment has found it increasingly dif-ficult to control the price of

agricultural products. One of thereasons behind the price fluctua-tions is the fall in the number ofsmall piggeries and henhouses,which has resulted in increaseddependence on the internationalmarket for food supplies.

The government must be pru-dent and prevent the decline ofthe agricultural sector and thecountryside, because they formthe foundation of the urbanizationprocess. China has suffered severefood shortages during its historyand has learned a good lesson. Ifthe government does not devotemore resources to the develop-ment of farmers and the country-side, the country could eventuallyencounter serious problems infeeding the population, said Chen.

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Communist farmer leavesbehind inspiring legacyNANJING, -- Thousands of peoplehave paid their final respects to WuRenbao, a communist farmer whorose to fame by leading his fellowfarmers to prosperity with a distinc-tive development model.Wu, the retired Communist Party ofChina (CPC) secretary of Huaxi Vil-lage in east China's JiangsuProvince, died of cancer recently.He was 85.Wu was elected Party chief ofHuaxi Village in 1961, when the im-poverished village had a popula-tion of 667, collective assets of25,000 Yuan (about 4,000 U.S. dol-lars) and debts of 15,000 Yuan.Wu, a bold reformer, made the vil-lage the richest in China through itsown industrialization, which beganwith the construction of a hard-ware factory in the 1960s.Boosted by industry, commerce,tourism and other sectors, in 2012,the sales revenue of the villagereached 52.4 billion Yuan and itsper capita income reached 88,000Yuan."Our old village Party secretary hasgone, but he left us rich materialand spiritual legacies, especially

his principles of 'common prosper-ity' and 'to work as long as youlive,'" said Wu Xie'en, the fourth sonof Wu Renbao and current Partysecretary of Huaxi."The collective economy featuringcommon prosperity is the key toHuaxi's success. We must adhereto the principle," said the youngerWu, who was elected to his currentpost in 2003, when his father optedto retire.Among the mourners was QiuWanquan, Party secretary of Xin-hua Village in Yinchuan, capital ofnorthwest China's Ningxia Hui Au-tonomous Region, an area that hasbeen underdeveloped due totough natural conditions.Xinhua Village was part of Wu Ren-bao's efforts to help more poverty-stricken people in other placeschange their fates.In the mid-1990s, Wu decided toestablish another "Huaxi Village" inthe suburbs of Yinchuan by relo-cating 5,000 impoverished peoplefrom mountainous areas.With financial support and techno-logical guidance from Huaxi Vil-lage, the per capita net income of

Xinhua Village has increased to5,000 Yuan from less than 1,000Yuan in the past, and people therenow rely on planting cash cropsand developing husbandry."The most important thing thatHuaxi Village and old SecretaryWu Renbao brought us are the im-provement of people's qualitiesand the change in their mindsets,"said Qiu."Without the establishment of'Huaxi Village' in Ningxia, I wouldbe in my former village and livinga far poorer life than now," saidWang Quanshan, a resident of Xin-hua Village.Amid rapid industrialization and ur-banization, China's agriculturaland rural development have en-tered a new phase. In an effort tosupport large-scale farming, thegovernment will create policies tospeed up rural land transfers andoffer more subsidies for familyfarms and farming cooperatives.Huaxi Village has been dubbedChina's "No. 1 village" for its greatsuccess. Several other villages, likeNanjie Village in central HenanProvince, have also spurred eco-

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nomic booms by developing thelocal economy.However, these villages are just atiny fraction of the 680,000 villagesacross China. The poverty-strickenpopulation in rural areas stood at98.99 million at the end of 2012, of-ficial statistics show. Rural peoplewith an annual per capita net in-come of 2,300 Yuan or less areclassified as poor under the currentpoverty standards adopted in2011.Wu Renbao and Huaxi Village alsodazzled the country with a featurefilm named for him last year andthe construction of a 328-meter-tallbuilding in the village several yearsago.As the Chinese work to realize awell-off life and the great rejuve-nation of the nation, the country'sleadership has vowed to narrowthe wealth gap, a major source ofpublic complaint, by striving for

common prosperity via develop-ment and reform.Over the past several months, thecountry initiated a frugality cam-paign and vowed to fight corrup-tion. Long before any efforts hadbeen launched, however, Wu Ren-bao had already set an examplein this respect.When fellow villagers moved intonew villas, Wu Renbao continuedto reside in his house that was builtin the 1970s. After retiring andaging well into his twilight years, hecontinued to work hard for the de-velopment of the village.The elder Wu had said he believedin socialism and regarded com-mon prosperity as one of its char-acteristics."I lived a poor life in the past. I feelsad when I see people live a poorlife. My biggest wish is to makepoor people live a good life. Com-munists should seek happiness for

the majority of the people," heonce said.Chinese President Xi Jinping saidSunday that Chinese peopleshould enhance their confidencein socialism with Chinese charac-teristics and make persistent effortsto realize the "Chinese dream."The Chinese dream of the great re-juvenation of the Chinese nation "isa dream of the whole nation, aswell as that of every individual," hesaid, adding that all Chinese de-serve the same opportunities toenjoy a wonderful life.Currently, Huaxi Village covers 30square kilometers and includes 16surrounding villages, with a totalpopulation of 35,000."If we truly understand the mean-ing of Chinese characteristics,there will be tens of thousands ofHuaxi Villages to emerge inChina," said Wu Xie'en.(Agen-cies)

Agriculture

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Communist farmer leavesbehind inspiring legacy

CHENGDU-- A local official saidMonday that rotten ducks foundfloating in a river in PengshanCounty of southwest China'sSichuan Province have been dis-posed of safely and will pose nothreat to human and livestockalong the river banks.

More than 1,000 ducks hadbeen fished out of the Pengshansection of the Nanhe River as ofMonday morning, said Liang Wei-dong, an official with the county's

publicity office. Tucked in some 50plastic woven bags, the corpseswere disinfected and buried threemeters underground in a desig-nated area, according to Liang.

The dead birds have beenhandled safely, posing no threat tolocal residents and livestock, theofficial added.

Local authorities have notidentified the cause of their death,and further investigation is underway to identify any farm responsi-

ble for the dumping.The incident comes after the

discovery earlier this month ofthousands of dead pigs floating inthe Huangpu River in Shanghai, anincident that has sparked greatpanic as well as satire among thepublic.

The Nanhe River, along themiddle reaches of the MinjiangRiver in Sichuan, is not a source ofdrinking water, according to thelocal authorities.(XINHUA)

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Agriculture

Fish fry released intoChaohu Lake, China'sAnhuiSome 500,000 fry of various breeds werereleased into the Chaohu Lake Tuesdayin a bid to increase the lake's fish stocks.Chaohu Lake, about 13,000 square kilo-meters in size, is one of China's fivelargest freshwater lakes.