Quotable

"We should slash total emissions by 30 to 50 percent to give the people the clear air they want."

Zhai Qing, vice-minister of the Ministry of Environmental Protection, the national environmental watchdog, says the country is to strengthen its efforts to reduce pollutant emissions in response to complaints from the public about a lack of improvement in air quality.

"Organizers of activities that include more than 1,000 people must submit security plans as well as the details of venues, hosts and helpers."

Wang Jucheng, head of the Beijing Public Security Bureau's security management unit, says safety is the top priority for large-scale events. The Beijing city government has been strengthening safety measures for Spring Festival.

"Red envelopes are a must-have feature for attracting new mobile payment users during Spring Festival. This market is booming."

Wang Weidong, an analyst at iResearch Consulting Group. More than $1.12 billion is expected to be spent by Internet firms during Spring Festival to lure new mobile payment users via cash-filled or coupon-filled red envelopes.

(China Daily European Weekly 02/20/2015 page3)