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BEIJING, Oct. 2 (Xinhua) -- Tropical storm Higos, the 17th this year, will drop heavy rain on parts of south China's Guangdong and Hainan provinces over the next two days, the National Meteorological Observatory said on Thursday.     The office advised everyone in those regions to prepare for therain, as well as lightning storms and gale-force winds.     Tourists in coastal cities of the island province of Hainan, such as Sanya and Bo'ao, have been advised to avoid offshore activities over the next three days.     Higos was centered about 700 km southeast of Zhuhai, Guangdong,as of 5 p.m. on Thursday, and it was moving north-west at 20 km per hour. Tourists stay at the beach in Haikou, capital of south China's Hainan Province, on Oct. 2, 2008. Tropical storm Higos, the 17th this year, is moving towards south China's island province of Hainan, the provincial meteorological station said on Thursday, affecting the ongoing National Day holidays.    The storm is gaining momentum as it nears eastern Hainan and the mid-west regions of Guangdong, according to the national observatory.     Higos, which formed on Tuesday in the Pacific Ocean, comes on the heels of storms Jangmi and Hagupit, which together killed some 20 people in China

GUANGZHOU, April 18 (Xinhua) -- Exhibitors at China's largest trade fair may have one more question to ask when their paper-thin profits are further squeezed by a fast-rising yuan.     "Are you willing to pay by euro?" Lu Jia, a sales manager from a local leather manufacturer at the Canton fair, ventured the final but most crucial question to her Turkish client after introducing her products.     "Honestly, starting clearing of euro transactions rather than the U.S. dollar is not easy for my company, but it is still worth a try given a faster yuan rise this year," the 23 year-old Lu said at the trade-promotion event in Guangzhou, capital of the southern Guangdong Province.     The Chinese currency, the yuan, breached the 7-yuan mark for the first time on April 10, gaining 4.47 percent this year and 18.27 percent since the government unpegged it from the dollar in 2005.     "The yuan appreciation far outpaced our business growth. Its weekly increases were even beyond our anticipation," said Cao Xiaojian, the Jiangsu Shuntian Co., Ltd vice chairman.     Like most other Chinese exporters, Cao earns dollar-denominated profits, which are on the decline as the dollar becomes cheaper. He said that a 1 percent rise in the yuan would result in a sales profit decrease of 2 percent to 6 percent and things were even worse for the garment industry.     "Profit margins for home electrical appliances are between 3 percent and 5 percent and the rising exchange rate has eaten them away," said Zhang Yujing, China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products vice chairman.     Most exhibitors at the fair had to raise their offers due to higher costs in raw materials, energy and transport. Yet, they were afraid too high prices might scare away orders faced with sagging demand due to a global slowdown.     "A small rise in offers is acceptable," said Khaldoun Kalbouneh, general manager of the Furniture World, a trading company headquartered in Palestine. "But if the prices are too high, I may consider other markets."     Zhang said export-oriented sectors should improve their product mix, add more value and use financial tools to evade risks by the yuan rise.     As China's largest listed textile manufacturer, the Jiangsu Shuntian has pulled investment from textile into other industries like chemical, finance and securities, mines and high-tech, among others.     But many other companies prefer price increases. Chinese leading home appliance maker Qingdao Haier said it would re-set its prices with overseas sellers once the yuan gained more than 3 percent. The new price would be determined by the specific foreign exchange rate.     Feng Bin, Suzhou Chunlan Air Conditioner Co., Ltd general manager, said he hoped to transact via the euro. "The offer will expire in three months if the client sticks to the dollar. The exchange rate changes too quickly."     Experts say the change of currency clearing system is still not feasible for most exporters as it involves adjustment of export markets and bargain with foreign buyers. Besides, such services in domestic banks are too complicated, they say.     Therefore, some companies are considering financial derivatives as a way out. Shen Zhiming, Zhejiang Cathaya International Co., Ltd manager, said his company had bought currency futures for two years. "It is a real learning process for Chinese enterprises, a process for internationalization."     The China Import and Export Fair has two phases, from April 15 to 20 and April 25 to 30. The first phase features textiles, garments, health products, household appliances, tools, small vehicles and hardware.     Food, tea, kitchenware, decorations, toys, sporting goods and office supplies highlights the second phase.

BEIJING, Oct. 5 (Xinhua) -- China's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) under new chief Ma Jiantang is likely to reform its statistical system to ensure the authenticity and timeliness of data and help the government to better cope with the uncertainties of outside economic influences, the minutes of an NBS meeting show.     After his inauguration as the NBS director, Ma has said he felt pressure, but was confident of taking over "the baton of statistical reform and development."     "The changing world economy, especially the financial turmoil triggered by the U.S. sub-prime mortgage crisis, had increased the uncertainties of China's macro-economic development and stability and set new tasks for statisticians," said Ma.     "I would like to work with all NBS staff together to advance reforms and innovations in statistical systems, indices and methods to make sure statistical work could better serve the pursuit of scientific development to shift the target of economic expansion from quantity to quality, and building a moderately prosperous society."     According to the minute, Ma gave no details of his reform plans. But his predecessor, Xie Fuzhan, who was transferred to head the Research Office of the State Council, admitted in his leaving speech that the foundation for China's statistical work remained feeble, with a lot to be done in optimizing statistical methods and management.     "Both the status of statistical departments and the capability of statisticians needs to improve to meet their obligations and fulfill their tasks," Xie said. He took up the post two years ago after his predecessor Qiu Xiaohua fell over fund scandal.     Authorized by the State Council to examine and calculate the economic output nationwide and to collect and compile economic figures for almost all industries and sectors, the NBS offers basic statistical information and policy advice for higher authorities and government departments.     Ma, a doctor of economics who graduated from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, viewed authenticity and timeliness as "the lifeblood of statistics work" and "the way for statisticians to conduct themselves".     He said the essence and core of statistics was to reflect facts, analyze real situations and seek truth, according to the minute.     Ma also urged NBS staff to resist all fabrications of data, secure the quality of figures and work with professionalism.     Under the current management system, local statistical departments serve two bosses, with the NBS giving them statistical assignments but local governments in charge of their personnel and finance. The NBS was only authorized to assist governors, municipal mayors and autonomous region chiefs in managing the heads of NBS branches.     Prestige-minded local officials looking for advancement have often tested the integrity of statisticians within their jurisdiction.     To remedy the situation, China's legislature revised the implementation rules of Statistics Law in 2006, which authorized NBS investigation teams to undertake independent statistical surveys and reports in all provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions.     Under the Statistics Law, leading members of local authorities who alter statistical data without authorization, fabricate statistical data, compel or prompt statisticians to tamper with figures will be subject to administrative sanctions. Officials who retaliate against statisticians who refuse to fabricate data face criminal penalties.     After more than two decades of sizzling growth at the cost of depleted resources, increased energy consumption and environmental damage, the Chinese economy is undergoing a tough rebalancing that puts more emphasis on quality than quantity.     As global economic slowdown could dampen exports -- a major growth engine -- more than expected, the government has become increasingly careful with monetary tools like interest rates, deposit reserve ratios as well as industrial and fiscal policies so as not to plunge the expanding economy into recession.     Senior decision-makers have been demanding precise and more timely statistics for earlier warnings in the event of slowdown or other ailments.     Ma was appointed vice governor of Qinghai in December 2004 and used to work with the State Economic and Trade Commission and the Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council.

丹东褪黑色素

BEIJING, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- As a 6.1-magnitude aftershock hit southwest China's Sichuan Province, the country's quake relief headquarters held its 24th meeting on reconstruction here on Tuesday, reiterating its dual focuses: livelihoods and the environment.     At the meeting presided over by Premier Wen Jiabao, the headquarters urged giving priority to the basic needs of the survivors of the May 12 earthquake in Sichuan Province. It also promised to improve the local environment step by step, ensuring "fast and sound" reconstruction. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao (back R) speaks at the 24th meeting of the general headquarters of quake relief under the State Council in Beijing, capital of China, on August 5, 2008.It vowed to spend three years ensuring several goals: that every family has a house; every household has an income; every person has insurance, and that the infrastructure, economy and environment all improve.     A special team on reconstruction planning was set up jointly by the national Development and Reform Commission and the governments of the quake-hit Sichuan, Gansu and Shaanxi provinces.     Since May 23, the team has been continuously touring the quake zone and collecting opinions from local officials for a final scheme.     The plan involves 19.87 million people in 51 counties.     The earthquake measuring 6.1 on the Richter Scale occurred in Qingchuan County at 5:49 p.m. on Tuesday, leaving one dead and 23 others injured. On Friday afternoon, an aftershock of the same magnitude hit Pingwu and Beichuan counties in Sichuan, injuring 231 people.

UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 3 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations and China will co-organize a high-level meeting on climate change early next month, with a special focus on technology development and transfer, the world body announced Friday.     UN Undersecretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs Sha Zukang and China's Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations Liu Zhenmin briefed member states at the UN Headquarters on the Nov. 7-8 Beijing High-Level Conference on Climate Change: Technology Development and Technology.     "Technology transfer is of enormous importance in tackling climate change," Sha said. "Together with financing technology transfer, it is one of the means of achieving adaptation and mitigation action."     Effective international action on climate change will require progress on the question of technology transfer, which is addressed in the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)and also forms a core aspect of the Bali Action Plan, Sha noted.     "In this context, the conference will provide a forum for open, practical and pragmatic discussions on technology transfer and climate change," Sha said. "The conference will focus on practical options and solutions for overcoming barriers to technology development and transfer."     "We hope it will be an opportunity for member states and other stakeholders engage openly, away from the constraints of the negotiating setting," he said.     Sha said that the aim of the conference is to support the UNFCCC process, particularly the forthcoming UN Climate Change Conference in Poznan, Poland in December 2008.     Calling for "broad, high-level participation from member states," Sha said that the conference will be opened by Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and that UNFCCC Executive Secretary Yvo de Boer and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair have confirmed their participation.     In his remarks, Liu said that over the years, the international efforts to develop and transfer clean technologies are lagged behind the needs, and the relevant mechanism and financial support are not yet put in place.     With many countries having divergent views on the issue, communication and dialogue will help countries deepen mutual understanding, find common ground and work together to promote technological development and transfer, Liu said.     "The purpose of the high-level conference is to provide a platform of dialogue for international cooperation in the relevant technological development and transfer," Liu said.     "We hope this conference will help countries form some consensus on development and transfer of technologies for addressing climate change so as to further promote the efforts to address climate change," Liu noted. 

WASHINGTON, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Deputy Governor of the People's Bank of China Yi Gang called for international cooperation here on Saturday to restore global financial stability.     "Our current priority is to enhance international cooperation to prevent further deterioration and spillover of the crisis and restore global economic and financial stability," Yi said.     The deepening and widening of the U.S. financial crisis have triggered a major global slowdown and escalating uncertainty, Yi Gang said in a statement at the 18th meeting of the International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC) held here Saturday.     While the advanced economies have slowed significantly since the U.S. sub-prime crisis, the emerging market economies have maintained robust growth but the deteriorating external environment is putting the resilience of their macroeconomic policies to the test, he said.     The crisis has underscored shortcomings in the financial markets, Yi said. He expressed his hope that the stabilizing measures of the advanced economies will have the positive effect of calming the markets and restoring confidence.     "China is willing to strengthen its cooperation with other countries and, through such joint efforts, we hope global financial stability can be safeguarded," he said.     In line with their status, Yi said, the major reserve currency issuing countries should shoulder the responsibility for preventing further spillovers and minimizing shocks to other economies -- especially to the emerging markets.     To promote balanced and steady global growth over the longer term, efforts should be made to advance structural reforms and increase savings, he pointed out.     The International Monetary Fund -- at the core of the international monetary system -- should carry out its mandate to safeguard global economic and financial stability, he said. The IMFC is the steering committee of the 185-nation lending institution.     Yi also noted that as the impact of the crisis on the real economy is much worse than expected and the recovery more protracted and difficult, the risks of deflation in some countries as a result of the credit crunch have increased significantly.     "It is imperative that the major advanced economies coordinate rapid implementation of bailout packages to avoid deflation and facilitate the global recovery," said Yi.     "However, we should be aware that the injection of liquidity from these emergency measures could be a potential source of inflation in the medium and long term," the deputy governor said.

丹东蝴蝶斑

BEIJING, May. 13 -- China's trade surplus decreased slightly last month from a year ago amid declines in international trade growth triggered by the global economic slowdown.     Monthly surplus reached 16.68 billion last month, down 1.14 percent year-on-year but up 24.5 percent from 13.4 billion U.S. dollars in March, the General Administration of Customs said yesterday.     Exports in April rose 21.8 percent year-on-year to 118.71 billion U.S. dollars, while imports rose 26.3 percent to 102.03 billion U.S. dollars. China's trade surplus decreased slightly last month from a year ago amid declines in international trade growth triggered by the global economic slowdown.(    The sharp decline in April's export growth after a 30.6 percent rise in March should be seen as a return to the medium-term trend rather than a sudden weakening in China's exports, said Sun Mingchun with Lehman Brothers.     He said year-on-year growth of exports in March 2008 was abnormally strong given exports in March 2007 were extremely weak because exporters had frontloaded their shipments last February.     China's trade surplus has been narrowing since the government took measures to curb exports of resource-intensive and heavily polluting products and started to encourage imports from last year.     The World Trade Organization has predicted global trade growth will decline to 4.5 percent, 1 percentage point lower than last year. It could be the slowest rise since 2002.     "The global economy is facing more uncertainties this year given the possible shrinkage in US demand and inflationary pressures. Both these factors are expected to aggravate the global economic slowdown, further affecting trade," said Liang Yanfen, a researcher with the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation.     "Slowing external demand may take more time to impact export growth, but the weakening trend is becoming more evident both in and outside the US. Higher commodity prices and currency appreciation would check the continued rise in trade surplus," said Ken Peng, a Citi analyst.     Export growth stayed robust at 21.8 percent but is under pressure as even Asian demand has started to slow, suggesting that a weakening in the final product markets is affecting upstream producers while imports continue to be supported by a stronger currency, high commodity prices and government controls over trade in food and resources out of inflation concerns, he said.     The country's trade surplus in the first four months narrowed to 57.99 billion U.S. dollars, 5.31 billion U.S. dollars lower than a year ago.     Exports in these four months amounted to 424.6 billion U.S. dollars, up 21.5 percent, or 6 percentage points less than a year earlier. Imports were 366.6 billion U.S. dollars, up 27.9 percent, or 8.8 percentage points more than a year earlier.     Realized foreign investment reached 35.02 billion U.S. dollars during the four months, up 59.32 percent year-on-year, the Ministry of Commerce said.

BEIJING, July 12 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese government will modify its temporary subsidy plan for quake survivors starting in September, with each survivor experiencing financial hardship to get 200 yuan (29 U.S. dollars) per month, a State Council statement said on Saturday.     "Life in most parts of the area will return to normal by September but, in some worst-hit areas, some people might still suffer difficulties. To help them, the government decided to continue financial assistance after the present policy ends," said the statement issued after a cabinet meeting presided over by Premier Wen Jiabao. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao (C) presides over the 23rd meeting of the quake relief headquarters of China's State Council in Beijing, capital of China, July 12, 2008. The quake, on May 12, left millions of people homeless and destitute.     The policy will cover such categories as orphans, the elderly and the disabled without family support, those whose relatives were killed or severely injured, those who were displaced and those whose residences were destroyed, it said.     Since the disaster, every needy survivor has been eligible to receive 10 yuan and 500 grams of food a day. The policy has covered about 8.82 million people but will end in August. The new system won't include any food allotment.     Some types of survivors could receive more than the minimum. Under the present policy, about 261,000 orphans, elderly and disabled without family support have received 600 yuan a month. Under the new policy, they will receive more than 200 yuan, the statement said, without elaborating.     The new policy will expire in November, the statement said. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao speaks at the 23rd meeting of the quake relief headquarters of China's State Council in Beijing, capital of China, July 12, 2008    The meeting heard a report by an experts' committee on the Wenchuan County-centered quake and ordered it to keep monitoring aftershocks in the quake zone for another two months.     The panel was also told to forecast areas that might be affected by major secondary disasters and evaluate possible losses to help reconstruction. The experts were also told to locate sites where quake debris can be stored for long periods for later investigation and take measures to protect such sites.     The meeting endorsed an assessment report by central and provincial authorities, which listed 10 counties and cities, including Wenchuan County, Beichuan County and Dujiangyan City, as the worst-hit areas.     Another 41 counties, cities and districts were characterized as heavily affected and other 186 were said to be moderately affected.     The first two categories will be covered by the national reconstruction plan, it said.     The 8.0-magnitude quake has claimed nearly 70,000 lives, injured more than 374,000 people and left another 18,340 missing.

东港凹陷瘢痕

BEIJING, Sept. 5 (Xinhua) -- The Communist Party of China (CPC) will launch a 1.5-year campaign from this month to learn and implement the Scientific Outlook on Development, the CPC Central Committee Political Bureau said here on Friday.     The campaign aims to push Party members, especially leading Party members and government officials, to learn how to implement the Scientific Outlook on Development and carry it out effectively, a statement issued after a CPC Central Committee Political Bureau meeting said.     The meeting was presided over by and CPC Central Committee General Secretary Hu Jintao, also Chinese president.     As Hu explained in his keynote speech at the 17th CPC National Congress in October 2007, the guideline takes development as its essence. It puts people first as its core with comprehensive, balanced and sustainable development as its basic requirement. Overall consideration is its fundamental approach.     "The Scientific Outlook on Development is an important guiding principle for China's economic and social development and a major strategic thought that we must uphold and apply in developing socialism with Chinese characteristics," said the statement.     Through the campaign, the CPC expects its officials to change their way of administration that don't meet the requirements of scientific development and to find solutions for the problems that hold back its implementation and the issues people complain about most, the statement said.     In the campaign, the CPC also aims to develop the administrative system that can boost scientific development and to improve the Party's ruling capability, it added.     The CPC Central Committee Political Bureau asked all Party members to take part in the campaign, especially senior Party members and government heads at county level and above

BEIJING, Sept.1 (Xinhua) -- China's securities watchdog on Monday required fund companies to make their information release more transparent and rolled out a draft regulation on brokers, its latest moves to boost the healthy development of the country's stock market.     The information of stock-oriented funds, such as their periodic results, would be regularly publicized on the website of the China Securities Regulatory Commission, according to a standard format in the eXtensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL), starting from Jan. 1 next year, the CSRC said in a statement on Monday night.     "The move was to further improve the quality of information release by fund companies," said the CSRC.     The new rule was expected to help third-party agencies to appraise and supervise the management of fund companies. Previously it was difficult for a third party to collect and analyze the first-hand information of funds, which was not available to all.     Meanwhile, the CSRC said a new regulation on securities brokers would prohibit them from surpassing their authority by manipulating customers' accounts or providing investment counseling.     The dealers would also be forbidden to "offer or spread false, misleading information", or "tempt customers to make unnecessary deals," said the CSRC. Nor could they make agreements on sharing investment proceeds with customers, or promise gains or compensation for losses.     "It was aimed at protecting the legal interests of fund investors and ward off risks caused by ill regulation of securities dealers," said the CSRC in a separate statement.     The watchdog's actions were part of China's recent efforts to straighten out the stock market order and lay a sound foundation for a long-term development.     The CSRC announced earlier this month it would raise the refinancing threshold for listed companies, saying the dividend they pay to shareholders in the recent three years should be no less than 30 percent of its distributed profits, compared with the previous set line of 20 percent.     Refinancing plans of listed companies had led to share price declines and complaints in China as liquidity concerns loomed over the stock market. Investors also blamed their losses on insider trading and opacity of fund companies.     Last week, a draft amendment to the Criminal Law was submitted to China's top legislature, stating that employees of financial institutes will face criminal prosecution for insider trading. Currently there were no relevant provisions in the Criminal Law.     China's benchmark Shanghai Composite Index has shed more than 60 percent from its peak in mid October last year.     In the first half, 364 funds in the country incurred a record loss of 1.08 trillion yuan (about 154 billion U.S. dollars), more than 90 percent coming from stock-oriented or hybrid funds, according to statistics from the TX Investment Consulting Co..