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Briefings - 836. page

China’s Huge Highway Liabilities Relate to Years of ‘Great Leap Forward’ Development

On September 25, 2012, People’s Daily published an article related to the nation’s highways asking, “How can highways survive with over one hundred billion yuan in highway liabilities?”  The liabilities of the 19 listed highway companies amounted to 124.79 billion yuan (US$19.8 billion) for the first half-year of 2012, compared to 105.33 billion yuan (US$16.72 billion) for the same period last year.

On August 2, 2012, China’s State Council announced a plan to lift road tolls for passenger cars taking the highways during major Chinese holidays in order to promote tourism and related industries. At present, the listed highway companies are affected because they have little other income except toll revenue. They have entered into a cycle of “over charge tolls, build more highways, borrow more money, and build more highways.”

Source: People’s Daily, September 25, 2012
http://politics.people.com.cn/n/2012/0925/c70731-19097317.html

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

Ministry of Commerce: China May Miss This Year’s Target for an Increase in Exports

China Review News (CRN) recently reported that, by the end of August, Chinese exports recorded a growth of 7.1 percent. The annual target set at the beginning of the year was 10%. In June, the spokesman for the Ministry of Commerce said he was “confident” that the goal would be achieved. However, recently, the spokesman suggested that the export situation is “critical.” He expressed the belief that the growth in the coming months will actually be weaker than the previous months. He cited the decrease in demand, the increase in overall costs, and a global downturn in the trade environment as the main causes of the situation. Meanwhile, international trade friction is on the rise. Both the European Union and the United States are having trade disputes with China. In order to improve competitiveness, many Chinese manufacturing companies are relocating to Mid-Western China, where labor costs are lower. Some companies are also adjusting their product lines to produce more value-added products.
Source: China Review News, September 21, 2012
http://www.chinareviewnews.com/doc/1022/4/3/5/102243571.html?coluid=10&kindid=253&docid=102243571&mdate=0921181807
Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

Housing Ministry: Housing Not Ready for a Resurgence in Price

Xinhua reported that a key official from the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development made some comments on the recent trend of housing price increases in several cities following a two year long market adjustment in national housing prices. On the demand side, the housing market has warmed up since June because the market has seen an increase in supply and lowered interest rates. On the supply side, new construction and existing inventory remain high. The Ministry is still taking the position of questioning the readiness for an across the board resurgence in housing prices. The primary government focus is still on constructing more housing for low income citizens, while real estate taxes are in the planning stage. The central government is determined to suppress speculative investments in the housing market.
Source: Xinhua, September 23, 2012
http://news.xinhuanet.com/fortune/2012-09/23/c_123749038_2.htm
Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

Xinhua: The Third China-Arab States Forum Was Very Successful

Xinhua recently reported that the Third China-Arab States Economic and Trade Forum attracted investments totaling RMB 218.7 billion (around US$34.7 billion). The Forum had more than 7000 attendees, who were from 71 countries, regions, or international organizations. The investments will fund 124 projects. The main areas covered are the new technology industry, the energy industry, the chemical industry, modern agriculture, infrastructure construction, trade and logistics, culture, and tourism. The Forum’s Guest Country of Honor was the United Arab Emirates with a delegation of 113 people. The Forum also delivered the Framework Agreement for the China-Arab Financial Development Strategy, which extends the China-Arab trade relationship to the financial field. In the past 7 years, the China-Arab trade volume growth rate has averaged 30 percent.
Source: Xinhua, September 18, 2102
http://news.xinhuanet.com/2012-09/18/c_123727214.htm
Briefings | | |   Geo-Strategic Trend

Guangming Daily: China Has Established 42 Confucius Institutes in the Middle East and Africa

The website of the United Front Work Department of the Chinese Communist Party carried an article which was originally published by Guangming Daily. According to the article, China has set up 380 Confucius Institutes in 108 countries around the world. Among those, there are 31 Institutes and five Confucius classes in Africa, while 11 Institutes were established in the Middle East.

Xu Ling, chief executive of the Confucius Institute, disclosed the above data during her meeting with the Principal of Tel Aviv University in Israel, which was about collaborating with the University to establish a Confucius Institute there. The agreement suggested that Tel Aviv University will provide the building, facility, personnel, and related expenses, while China will come up with US$150,000 in funding each year. They also discussed a plan to set up a Confucius Institute at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Source: The United Front Work Department of Chinese Communist Party, September 19, 2012
http://www.zytzb.cn/publicfiles/business/htmlfiles/tzb2010/S2012/201209/731637.html

Briefings | | |   Geo-Strategic Trend

Guangming Daily: Party Organizations Reached 3,264 in China’s Accounting Firms

The website of the United Front Work Department of the Chinese Communist Party carried an article which Guangming Daily had originally published. According to the article, under the directives of the Party organizations in the Ministry of Finance, starting in 2008, a strategic effort has been under way for the Party organization to achieve total coverage and membership in all accounting firms. By the end of July 2012, there were 3,264 Party organizations formed within the accounting firms with Party membership reaching 34,842.

Source: The United Front Work Department of Chinese Communist Party, September 18, 2012 http://www.zytzb.cn/publicfiles/business/htmlfiles/tzb2010/S2012/201209/731552.html

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

BBC: China Faces Challenge of an Aging Population

The BBC’s Chinese edition published a report on China’s aging population and the related social challenges China will face as a result.

According to the report, at the end of 2011, China had 180 million people who were 60 years of age or older; they accounted for 13.7 percent of the total population. By 2015, the number will reach 200 million. The United Nations estimated that, by 2050, China will have 440 million people who are 60 years of age or older.

One of the social issues related to the aging population is caring for the elderly. Not only have people’s lifestyles changed, but families have fewer children. It has been estimated that the current senior living homes in China can only accommodate one percent of the elderly population versus the international standard, which is five to seven percent. Another issue is the shortage of laborers. According to the data disclosed by the Ministry of Statistics, in 2012, the number of Chinese laborers between the ages of 15 and 64 declined for the first time since 2002. Currently, there are five to six laborers to support each retired person. However, by 2030, there will only be two laborers to support each retired person. The aging population not only affects the population structure but will also affect the ability to innovate, which will weaken China’s competitiveness in the international market.

Facing the rapid growth in the aging population, many experts have asked the Chinese government to drop the one child policy but the government has not yet given up this policy. Some have suggested raising the retirement age from 60, the current legal retirement age, to 65, but many people object to the proposal. Meanwhile, the Chinese government also recognizes that it will face major challenges in providing 100 percent of the pension coverage to all retirees in the cities and in the countryside.

Source: BBC, September 20, 2012
http://www.bbc.co.uk/zhongwen/simp/chinese_news/2012/09/120920_china_ageing.shtml

Briefings | | |   Social Stability

China Says the United States Is not Qualified to Act as a “Mediator” on the Diaoyu Islands Issue

Xinhua used the column called “Chen Fu Discusses the Military” to published a statement about the possible role of the U.S. in the Diaoyu Islands dispute. The statement said, “U.S. Defense Secretary Panetta’s visit to China happens to be at a time when the East China Sea dispute over the Diaoyu Islands is growing more intense. Many people believe that it is inevitable for Panetta to discuss the Diaoyu Islands issue during his visit to Japan and China. Some people even expect the U.S. to act as a ‘mediator’ during the dispute.” 

The Xinhua statement dismissed such reports, saying that “Panetta’s China visit was scheduled previously. It’s just a response to Chinese Defense Minister Liang Guanglie’s U.S. visit.” 
The statement explained further that “the United States is part of the cause of the dispute over the Diaoyu Islands. On the one hand, the U.S. states that it does not maintain any position on the Diaoyu Islands dispute. On the other hand, the U.S. has repeatedly stressed that the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty applies to the Diaoyu Islands, which is an ambiguous but tendentious attitude. Therefore, the United States does not have the qualifications to act as a ‘mediator.’ It is also not possible for U.S. to act as a truly neutral ‘mediator.’ At the same time, China and Japan can resolve the issue by themselves. There is no need for a third party to act as a ‘mediator.’” 
Source: Xinhua, September 20, 2012
http://news.xinhuanet.com/mil/2012-09/20/c_123737948.htm
Briefings | | |   Defense/Military