IN BRIEF (Page 2)

Xi extends greetings to British queen

President Xi Jinping has sent a congratulatory message to Queen Elizabeth, the United Kingdom's longest-reigning monarch, who will celebrate her 90th birthday this month. China's head of state met with Prince Andrew, the queen's second son, at the Great Hall of the People on April 5. The prince said the UK expects to push forward people-to-people exchanges and tangible cooperation with China to fully realize a "golden era".

Anbang Insurance drops Starwood bid

Anbang Insurance Group Co announced that it has abandoned its $14 billion bid for Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. The Chinese company said it would not proceed with a consortium - including JC Flowers & Co and Primavera Capital - to buy Starwood because of various market considerations. Analysts said price and the Chinese regulators' attitude might have played a significant role in the decision.

Soldiers' remains returned home

A funeral service was held on April 1 in Shenyang, Liaoning province, for 36 Chinese soldiers who died in the Korean War (1950-53), after their remains were returned from South Korea. The soldiers were members of the Chinese People's Volunteer Army. Their remains were found in South Korea over the past year and were handed over to a Chinese delegation led by Dou Yupei, vice-minister of civil affairs, at a ceremony on March 31 at Incheon International Airport in South Korea.

Architect who left mark on China dies

Zaha Hadid, the famed female architect known around the world for her works with sweeping curves and who drew occasional controversy when projects hit huge cost overruns, died on March 31 at the age of 65, her company said.

The award-winning Iraqi-British architect was best known in China for designing the Guangzhou Opera House, the Wangjing SOHO building in Beijing and the capital's Galaxy SOHO development. She also created the unusual aquatics center used for the 2012 London Olympics.

Police to target crimes at hospitals

Chinese police will crack down on hospital-related crimes and show zero tolerance to perpetrators who assault and injure medical personnel, Vice-Minister of Public Security Huang Ming said. Huang said the police should respond quickly to requests by medical institutions and disperse people who disrupt order when they set up funeral halls, place wreaths or block gates or roads at medical institutions.

El Nino may cause Yangtze River floods

China's flood control authorities are warning of possible big floods hitting the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River this summer because of the strong El Nino phenomenon - an oscillating band of warm surface water in the ocean. The weather and hydrologic factors closely resemble those of 1998, when floods killed at least 3,000 people nationwide.

Innovation centers due in eastern China

China will establish several new centers for driving innovation in eastern areas of the country this year, according to Yin Hejun, vice-minister of Science and Technology. The announcement was made only two days after an additional three regions were approved by the State Council, including areas in Henan, Shandong and Liaoning provinces. A total of 14 self-governing innovation areas have been established since the Zhongguancun technology hub in Beijing became the first in 2009.

Rail trips top 11m as holiday begins

More than 11.6 million rail journeys were made on April 2, the first day of the three-day Tomb Sweeping Day holiday, a year-on-year rise of 11.1 percent, China Railway Corp said. Nearly half of the trips were made by bullet train, thanks to the rapid development of China's high-speed rail network, the company said.

New cooling pump ready for nuke reactor

A Chinese company has developed the country's first 300-megawatt nuclear reactor cooling pump and is ready for bulk production. On April 3, the developer, Harbin Electric Corp, said the pump has passed state appraisal by the China Machinery Industry Federation. China has previously relied on imports to supply key components for pressurized water reactor nuclear power plants.

Xi's meeting with Obama 'eases tensions'

President Xi Jinping's meeting with US President Barack Obama has helped to alleviate tensions at a time when some countries have been playing up the South China Sea issue, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said. The meeting, which took place on March 31 on the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, was closely watched by the international community because many countries are pessimistic about the current state of Sino-US ties, Wang said.

Festival moviegoers set box-office record

China's box office revenues jumped by 51 percent to a record 14.47 billion yuan ($2.23 billion; 1.97 billion euros) in the first quarter, thanks to an increase in audience numbers during the Chinese New Year holiday season.

Data released on April 3 show that the weeklong Spring Festival holiday, from Feb 7 to 13, generated 3.6 billion yuan in ticket revenues, while February enjoyed the quarter's best returns with 6.9 billion yuan, according to China National Radio.

Thousands pay tribute to Yellow Emperor

More than 10,000 people gathered in front of the mausoleum to Huangdi, the Yellow Emperor, on April 4 to pay their respects to the figure, regarded as the initiator of Chinese civilization. The ceremony was held to coincide with Tomb Sweeping Day. It was sponsored by the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, the State Council's Overseas Chinese Affairs Office and the Shaanxi provincial government.

Target to raise equipment standards

China will make sure at least 90 percent of its standards for domestic equipment manufacturing are brought up to the international standards by 2020, according to the State Council. Breakthroughs will be made in key sectors including robotics, rail transportation equipment, agricultural machinery and high-performance medical equipment, the authority said on April 6.

Yao Ming elected to Hall of Fame

Retired NBA star Yao Ming has been elected to the Hall of Fame for helping to spread the sport's popularity to China, along with legends Shaquille O'Neal and Allen Iverson. Yao will be honored in September at a ceremony in Springfield, Massachusetts.

Cooperation sought to ensure safe G20

China is seeking assistance from the international community to ensure a safe G20 meeting in September, as the country faces what one official called the "grim task" of fighting terrorism. Assistance includes evaluations of the risk of attacks against world leaders who will come to China to attend the summit, and lists of possible terrorists and terrorist organizations, according to the Ministry of Public Security.

Claim of assault at hotel triggers outrage

An online post in which a woman claimed she was assaulted at a four-star Beijing hotel and that workers turned a blind eye led to calls for more protection for women in China. Wring under an assumed name, the woman said a stranger attacked her in Yitel Hotel at about 11 pm on April 3, and that several passers-by and a hotel employee did nothing. Beijing police said on April 6 they are investigating. The hotel has apologized.

More energy reserves found

China's domestic energy discoveries last year helped fuel economic growth and reduce reliance on imports, the Ministry of Land and Resources said on April 6. China discovered 1.12 billion metric tons of proven oil reserves in 2015, the 13th year that discoveries have exceeded 1 billion tons, according to the ministry. Of the reserves, 217 million tons were technically recoverable oil. Natural gas deposits also rose sharply, with new proven reserves totaling 677 billion cubic meters in 2015, of which 375 billion cubic meters were technically recoverable.

Museum tells tale of the Long March

A museum dedicated to the Long March, which the Communist army undertook in 1934 and 1935 to escape the Koumintang, will open in May in Dayi county, Sichuan province. It will feature about 1,000 artifacts and 600 photographs. The project has been designed by Yung Ho Chang, head of the architecture department at MIT, and funded by entrepreneur Fan Jianchuan.

Netizens hope to see mating pandas

Website ipanda.com has launched a live 24-hour feed from the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda in Ya'an, Sichuan province, offering Internet users the chance to observe the animals during mating season. Twenty cameras have been placed throughout the facility. Mating in captivity had long been a challenge for pandas, researchers said.

Ancient tea tree's crop sells for $92,600

Next year's entire harvest from a 410-year-old tea tree was bought for 600,000 yuan ($92,600; 81,400 euros) at an auction in Baojing county, Hunan province, on April 6. The tree is 4.5 meters tall and is the oldest in Huangjin village, which has more than 2,000 tea trees dating back to the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties. It produces about half a kilogram of tea leaves a year.

Inspection dogs help protect ports, borders

More inspection dogs will be deployed at entry-exit ports across China after two national centers for breeding and training are built in the next five years, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine said on April 5. Faced with increasing pressure to ensure biosafety, entry-exit inspection and quarantine authorities will also increase their capacity to keep out hazardous elements such as diseases, viruses and invasive species, the authority said.

Beijing restricts trade with Pyongyang

Beijing banned imports of iron ore from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea on April 5 along with the export of jet fuel and oil products used to make rocket fuel, as China's restricts trade with its neighbor. The Ministry of Commerce said it also would ban imports of gold and rare earth elements in line with new UN sanctions on the DPRK.

Ex-military leader to be prosecuted

Guo Boxiong, the former vice-chairman of China's Central Military Commission, has been charged with corruption, it was announced on April 5. Investigations by military prosecutors found Guo, who retired in 2012, accepted bribes to arrange promotions, Xinhua News Agency reported.

Unified entrance exam on way for EMBAs

Universities will no longer be able to select students for their executive master of business administration programs, the Ministry of Education said. The China National MBA Education Supervisory Committee announced that, from next year, a nationwide exam will be the only way to apply.

Fake-brand baby formula probe ordered

China Food and Drug Administration has demanded a thorough investigation into the whereabouts of 17,000 cans of fake-brand baby formula - sold nationwide - to eliminate risks.

The Supreme People's Procuratorate said in March that six people were arrested in Shanghai in January for producing and selling the fake-brand formula, from which they profited to the tune of nearly 2 million yuan ($309,000; 272,000 euros). Quality inspections by police in Shanghai showed that the formula met national standards and posed no safety threat, according to the administration.

China planning its deep-sea Dream

China plans to build its own ocean-drilling research vessel to enhance the country's exploration of deep-sea resources. The vessel, dubbed Dream, would be the third in the world if completed, following the United States' JOIDES Resolution and Japan's Chikyu. A feasibility study into the vessel's construction has already begun, according to Wu Lixin, head of the Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology, which is spearheading the project.

Courts seek to ease suits against govt

Suing government agencies will become easier, as further streamlining of the system is being explored to polish procedural rough edges and to find innovative solutions for settling disputes. A guideline handed down by central authorities last May made things easier by requiring courts to cut unnecessary barriers and accept a dispute at the time a suit is registered, rather than after a preliminary review of its merits, according to Li Shaoping, vice-president of the Supreme People's Court.

Chinese ink art goes for $34.8m

Peach Blossom Spring, a large ink and color work by Chinese painter Zhang Daqian (1899-1983), fetched HK$270 million ($34.8 million; 30.5 million euros) at a Sotheby's auction in Hong Kong on April 5, setting a record for the artist's work.

Beijing bans e-bikes from 10 roads

Beijing's traffic authority has banned two-wheeled e-bikes from 10 roads in the capital, including the main thoroughfare, Chang'an Avenue, and around Tian'anmen Square. Riders face a 20 yuan ($3; 2.70 euros) fine if caught. The ban does not apply to bicycles.

China Daily

(China Daily European Weekly 04/08/2016 page2)