SPEEDY RESPONSE

Medical workers in Shufu County in Kashgar Prefecture on October 26 collect swabs as part of the prefectures rapid response to recent new cases of the novel coronavirus disease in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region， northwest China.

The local government finished testing all 4.74 million residents in about four days. According to the regional health commission， Xinjiang had 45 confi rmed cases and 152 asymptomatic ones as of October 27， all in Shufu.

Fruitful Task

Workers of a wine brewery in Changli， a county in Hebei Province in north China， gather grapes at a local vineyard on October 26. The county has a complete industrial chain from grape planting and wine brewing to wine tourism and healthcare services.

U.S. Interference

A Chinese military spokesperson on October 27 voiced fi rm opposition to U.S. arms sales to Taiwan， urging the United States to immediately stop military contact with and arms sales to the island， Xinhua News Agency reported.

Ren Guoqiang， a spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of National Defense， made the remarks in response to the United States approval of a plan to sell Harpoon missile systems worth $2.37 billion to Taiwan.

The U.S. Government has once again approved arms sales to Taiwan， which severely violates the one-China principle and the three China-U.S. joint communiqués， Ren said.

The U.S. arms sales to Taiwan seriously interfere in Chinas internal affairs， undermine Chinas sovereignty and security interests， damage relations between the two countries and two militaries， and endanger peace and stability across the Taiwan Straits， the spokesperson said.

China has lodged solemn representations with the United States， he said.

The Taiwan question matters to Chinas sovereignty and territorial integrity and is vital to Chinas core interests， which allows no external interference， Ren said， adding that any attempt to contain China with the Taiwan question or count on military force to resist reunifi cation will lead to nowhere.

Cold-Chain Tracing

The Beijing Municipality has launched an online tracing platform to strengthen the supervision of imported cold-chain foods amid the novel coronavirus disease（COVID-19） pandemic， Xinhua reported on October 27.

Producers and marketers of imported frozen meat and aquatic products in Beijing are required to register on the platform， according to a circular jointly released by the municipal administration for market regulation and the municipal commerce bureau.

From November 1 these companies should upload information on the sources， circulations and other tracing data for imported frozen meat and aquatic products on the platform. Products should be labeled with corresponding tracing codes generated by the platform.

Food companies should not purchase， sell or process products without recording their tracing data on the platform， the municipal administration for market regulation said.

Customers can use the WeChat or Alipay mini programs on their phones to scan the tracing codes on product packages or freezers in markets to obtain the quality safety information and tracing data for the imported frozen meat and aquatic products they want to buy.

Government departments in Beijing will step up supervision and inspection efforts and expand product coverage on the tracing platform.

Satellite Launch

A group of new remote-sensing satellites were sent into orbit from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Sichuan Province in southwest China on October 26 to be used for electromagnetic environment detection and related technological tests.

The Long March-2C rocket that carried the Yaogan-30 satellites also carried a satellite for the Tianqi constellation. The constellation， developed by a Beijing-based hi-tech company， is for short-message communications. The satellite， Tianqi-6， will be used for data transmission.

It was the 350th mission of the Long March rocket series.

Revised Rule

The regulation on the national science and technology award system has been revised and Premier Li Keqiang has signed a decree to publish the revised regulation， Xinhua News Agency reported on October 27.

The revised version clarif eis that the science and technology awards should serve the countrys major strategies as well as the mid- and long-term development plan for science and technology. It will take effect on December 1.

It highlights that awards for basic research in natural sciences and applied basic research will be increased.

The nominations will be made by experts， scholars， organizations and authorities in relevant fi elds. Those who violate moral principles and engage in misconduct in research will not be eligible.

The revision also improves the system and methods of the review process. If any nominator or reviewer undermines fairness and transparency， they will be punished.

A Time to Celebrate

Senior couples in Nanchang， capital of Jiangxi Province in east China， raise their glasses to celebrate the Double Ninth Festival， October 25， a day to show respect to seniors.

Childhood Obesity

A plan has been issued to reduce the average annual growth rates of overweight and obese children and adolescents by 70 percent from a baseline in the next decade， Xinhua reported on October 27.

The baseline is the average of the yearly increase rates from 2002 to 2017， according to the plan issued by six departments including the National Health Commission and the Ministry of Education to prevent and control childhood and adolescent obesity.

The plan specifi es the responsibilities of families， schools， medical institutions and government bodies in achieving the goal.

Family members should help children keep a healthy diet， foster the habit of exercising regularly and monitor their weight gains.

Schools are required to provide nutritious food and ensure time for physical activities.

Medical institutions should strengthen weight management and early intervention measures for childhood obesity. Government bodies should scale up support for the improvement of sport infrastructure for children and adolescents.

Enrollment Up

Colleges and universities saw a rise in the enrollment of students with disabilities from 2017 to 2019， the China Disabled Persons Federation said on October 27.

A total of 12，362 students with disabilities were admitted into universities in 2019， up from 10，818 in 2017 and 11，154 in 2018， according to the federation.

The organization has worked with relevant departments for years to facilitate the employment of college students with disabilities through special online and offl ine job fairs and an online service platform to help people with disabilities fi nd jobs or become entrepreneurs.

The More the Merrier

New couples attend a group wedding in Shaoyang， a city in Hunan Province in central China， on October 26. The wedding was held in accordance with the customs of the local Yao ethnic group.

AI Platform

A Chinese artifi cial intelligence （AI） innovation platform has attracted more than 1.57 million developers from home and abroad， Xinhua reported on October 26.

The platform was approved by the Ministry of Science and Technology as one of the fi rst batches of national open platforms for new-generation AI innovation in 2017. It is backed by Chinese voicerecognition giant iFlytek.

China has seen a surge in the number of AI-related applications after a plan for new-generation AI develop- ment was issued in 2017， aiming to make China the center of AI innovation in the world by 2030.

“Chinese companies are very active in developing AI technology and applications， and we see the possibility and prospects of AI technology meeting the demands of society，” Liu Qingfeng， Chairman of iFlytek， said.

Clean Energy

As China， the worlds largest market for new energy vehicles （NEVs）， maintains sound growth momentum， 60 percent of public buses have been replaced with electric vehicles in the drive for clean energy， up from 20 percent in 2015， Ministry of Ecology and Environment data showed.

In September， overall sales of passenger vehicles gained 8 percent year on year to hit 2.09 million units， while NEV sales surged 67.7 percent to 138，000 units.

The efforts were highlighted as part of a green transport system overhaul during the 13th Five-Year Plan （2016-20） period， which boosted the adoption of more clean energypowered vehicles and the phasing out of gas-guzzling transport.

China has the worlds largest NEV inventory and accounts for 55 percent of global NEV sales.

To meet the new demand generated by green consumption， the State Council approved a plan in early October to boost the NEV industry by promoting vital technologies and constructing infrastructure including charging facilities. International cooperation will also be strengthened.

The government， in response to climate change， has pursued greener development during the 13th FiveYear Plan period. Non-fossil fuels accounted for 15.3 percent of the energy consumption by the end of 2019.

A Tale of Two Cities

The Jinan-Taian Expressway in Shandong Province， east China， is put into operation on October 27. The 55.9-km expressway has shortened the travel time between the two cities to half an hour.

Capital Market

From being partially open， the capital market will now open wider to the world， Fang Xinghai， Vice Chairman of China Securities Regulatory Commission， said at the Second Bund Summit in Shanghai on October 24.

The government will ease crossborder investment and fi nancing restrictions， deepen institution and rule alignments， and continue to ensure its policies are predictable and stable， he said.

Opening up and cooperation have always been the principle of the capital market since its establishment 30 years ago and foreign institutional investors have gained a signifi cantly larger share in the A-share market in recent years.

Fang said both the capital market and products will be opened up further and the level of openness for securities， funds and futures industries will improve.

The authorities will work more closely with overseas regulators and international fi nancial organizations and crack down on fi nancial fraud in cross-border listings and securities issuance. Supervision will be strengthened amid higher-level opening up. This will be done by improving cross-border capital fl ow monitoring and advancing crossborder regulatory cooperation and law enforcement mechanisms.

Tesla Exports

U.S. carmaker Tesla began exporting its made-in-China Model 3 to Europe for the fi rst time with the fi rst batch of 7，000 sedans sent from Shanghai by sea on October 26.

The cars made at Teslas Shanghai Gigafactory are expected to arrive at the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium at the end of November. They will be sold in European countries including Germany， France， Italy， Spain， Portugal and Switzerland.

Tesla delivered the fi rst batch of made-in-China Model 3 sedans to the public earlier this year， one year after the company broke ground on its fi rst overseas plant.

“Despite the impact of the novel coronavirus disease （COVID-19）， the construction and operation of the gigafactory maintained rapid progress with the support and help of governments at all levels and partners，” Tom Zhu， Vice President of Tesla Global and President of Tesla Greater China， said.

Exporting the Model 3 sedans to Europe is a milestone in the development of the Tesla Shanghai Gigafactory， proving to the world Chinas speed in construction as well as the quality of made-in-China products， Zhu said.

Film Industry

Hengdian， a city in Zhejiang Province in east China， is seeing fi lm and television crews rushing back to resume production after work was suspended due to COVID-19.

According to statistics from Hengdian World Studios， October saw 47 fi lm and teleplay crews fi lming and 65 making preparations， a year-on-year increase of 67 percent and 41 percent， respectively.

Due to the surge in shoots， extras are also in high demand.

Zhu Guoqiang， an offi cial with the administration committee of the studio， said there are currently about 6，000 extras registered with the actors guild at the studio， an increase of 10 percent over previous years.

“This year has also seen signifi -cant growth of modern TV series and cinema shoots， leading to the recovery of the industry，” Zhao Yongqing， General Manager of Zhejiang Dongyang Hengdian Movie Center Management Service， said.

Besides the boom in fi lm and teleplay production， the recent strong performance of cinemas has also sent a positive signal of revival.

During the National Day holiday in early October， Chinas box offi ce recovered to more than 80 percent of its performance during the same period last year， with nearly 93 million moviegoers.

“Investors， talents and audiences are still here，” Rao Shuguang， President of China Film Critics Association， said， adding that the rapid recovery has shown great resilience and space for the development of the domestic fi lm and television industry.

A Silk Lining

Farmers put silkworms onto cocoon frames in Xidong， a village in Zhejiang Province， east China， on October 21. Silkworm farmers have signifi cantly improved profi tability after cooperation with sericulture companies and scientifi c researchers began in 2018.

Ant IPO

Ant Group， the parent company of leading mobile payment business Alipay， announced its initial public offering （IPO） on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on October 27， and plans to list its shares on November 5.

The company is offering over 1.67 billion shares at a price of HK$80 （$10.3） apiece， and is set to raise around HK$132 billion （$17.01 billion）， according to its prospectus.

The company will also be listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchanges sci-tech innovation board， commonly known as the STAR Market， on the same day as well， raising up to 132.2 billion yuan （$19.72 billion）. The dual listing in Hong Kong and Shanghai is expected to become the worlds biggest IPO.

“Our business is built on three major pillars： digital payments， digital fi nance， and digital daily life services. That is today， but we will continue to evolve with a focus on the future，” Eric Jing， Executive Chairman of Ant Group， said.

According to the prospectus， Alipay has over 1 billion users， 80 million merchants， as well as 2，000 partner fi nancial institutions worldwide. In the 12 months ended June 30， the total portfolio value（TPV） transacted on the platform on the Chinese mainland reached 118 trillion yuan （$17.6 trillion）， while international TPV transacted reached 622 billion yuan （$92.77 billion）.

Last year， Ant Group earned 18.07 billion yuan （$2.7 billion） in profi t on 120.6 billion yuan （$17.99 billion） in revenue.

Macao Fairs

The 2020 Portuguese-Speaking Countries Products and Services Exhibition opens in Macao Special Administrative Region on October 22. Two other exhibitions also kicked off that day， the 25th Macao International Trade and Investment Fair and the Macao Franchise Expo 2020.

Ferrero at CIIE

Ahead of the Third China International Import Expo （CIIE） in Shanghai， which is being held from November 5 to 10， Italys confectionery giant Ferrero said it will bring more than 20 varieties of products， including eight new ones， to the expo.

“It will be the second time for Ferrero to participate in the CIIE，”Mauro de Felip， General Manager of Ferrero China， said. “In 2019， Ferrero made its debut at the Second CIIE and achieved great success. More than 12，000 potential buyers， dealers and consumers visited Ferreros booth last year.”

According to de Felip， the CIIE has become an important platform for Ferrero to strengthen its communication with key stakeholders.

Expressing his confi dence in the Chinese market despite the shadow of the coronavirus， he said holding the Third CIIE as scheduled amid the gloomy global economy is a signifi cant act.

“The Chinese economy has achieved a quick rebound amid the pandemic， faster than the rest of the world. Ferrero would like to tap the opportunity arising from the Chinese economic recovery by participating in the CIIE，” he said.

For this years CIIE， Ferrero said it managed to transport the products from other overseas markets to China by leveraging its global supply-chain system.