Caixin: Chinese Manufacturing PMI Remains Low
Xinhua: Five Unique Features of the Third Round of the Disciplinary Inspection Tour
Xinhua published an article on the third round of the tour that The Central Leading Group for Inspection Work conducted. The article highlighted five key features that are unique to this tour. 1) Among 31 companies or institutions to be inspected, 21 are financial institutions. Therefore the third round of the tour is also called the “Finance anti-corruption campaign.” 2) The head of the team members of the inspection group have extensive experience in both the discipline inspection work area and in their knowledge of finance. 3) The target of the inspection work is the Party organization and Party officials in the work unit and whether they carry out the directions that the central administration has issued. The focus is not on the operational part of the business. 4) Each inspection team will visit two companies and one inspection team will need to visit three companies. The inspection teams are expected to identify common issues and apply serious disciplinary measures to those who fail to deal with problems after they have been given advanced warnings. The effort is to show the determination of the central administration in dealing with disciplinary violations. 5) Those selected companies have expressed full cooperation with the inspection work and have issued statements to show zero tolerance for any violations while the inspection team is on site.
Source: Xinhua, November 6, 2015
http://news.xinhuanet.com/politics/2015-11/06/c_1117067924.htm
Aging Population to Accelerate in China; 70 Percent of Seniors are Empty Nesters
Guangming Daily reported that the National Senior Council published an estimate that, from 2015 to 2035, the senior population will increase by 10 million people each year. Currently 70 percent of the seniors in the middle to large cities are empty nesters. The statistics from the Council also indicated that China will enter into a period in which the growth in the number in China’s aging population will accelerate. The estimated growth from 2015 to 2035 was from 212 million to 418 million.
Source: Guangming Daily, November 9, 2015
http://politics.gmw.cn/2015-11/09/content_17653952.htm
The Social and Population Structure in Beijing Needs Improvement
Guangming Daily recently published an article on the results of a survey that was reported in the 2015 Beijing Society Bluebook. According to the statistics in the Blue Book, the social and population structure in Beijing still needs to be improved. The results showed that, in 2010, the middle class accounted for 35.85 percent of the population and the lower class accounted for 61.17 percent. The Blue Book estimated that, in 2015, the middle class grew to 40 percent of the population and could reach 50 percent by 2025. As to the quality of the population, Beijing still sees a shortage in the area of finding and keeping talent in the city. The population also sees an imbalance between the sexes. The Blue Book noted that 60 percent of the college graduates who took the survey, but who have resident status outside of Beijing, indicated that they plan to leave Beijing in the future due to the high cost of living or the lack of professional growth and financial improvement opportunities.
Source: Guangming Daily, November 6, 2015
http://economy.gmw.cn/2015-11/06/content_17627403.htm
How Money Flees China
On November 4, 2015, Laohucaijing published a report on how money flees China. The article stated that, typically, the newly wealthy Chinese use seven different ways to transfer their assets from China overseas.
Zeng Qinghong’s Niece No Longer Serves as a Government or Party Official
According to an article published in The Paper, on November 3, 2015, Wang Xiaoling, the niece of Zeng Qinghong’s wife, no longer serves as a Guangzhou Municipal Standing Committee member and the Party Secretary of the City Commission for Discipline Inspection. Zeng Qinghong is the Chinese regime’s former vice chair and a member of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Politburo Standing Committee. In the 1990s, Zeng was well known as a close ally and the right-hand-man of Jiang Zemin, the former CCP General Secretary and the Chinese regime’s former chairman.
According to Hong Kong Apple on July 22, 2015, Wang Xiaoling was promoted from her position as a nurse in the army and a clerk in a Trade and Industry Bureau to become the Guangzhou Municipal Deputy Mayor. Her position improved in just a few years because of Zeng Qinghong’s high ranking position. In the most recent two years, she was suspected in getting involved in corruption. Zeng Qinghong is also in trouble in the current CCP anti-corruption campaign. The Guangdong Provincial Committee has no intention of promoting Wang any further as she is 60 years old. According to the CCP’s rules, that is the age for a female cadre to retire if no more promotions are given. Zeng advised her to retire completely so as to avoid a “bad ending.”
Sources: The Paper, November 3, 2015; Hong Kong Apple, July 22, 2015
http://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_1392473
http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/realtime/china/20150722/54004420
China’s Financial Institutions Are Being Investigated for Corruption
State media Huanqiu reported that Zhang Yun, president of the Agricultural Bank of China has been taken into custody because of inquiries into corruption. The Agricultural Bank of China is one of the four State-owned commercial banks. The other three banks are the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the China Construction Bank, and the Bank of China.