IN BRIEF (Page 2)

Goliath of skies: Biggest seaplane launched

China completed production of the massive amphibious aircraft AG600 in the southern city of Zhuhai on July 23. The 37-meter-long AG600, with a wing span of 38.8 meters, is by far the world's largest amphibian aircraft, about the size of a Boeing 737, according to Geng Ruguang, deputy general manager state aircraft maker Aviation Industry Corp of China. The plane has a maximum takeoff weight of 53.5 metric tons, maximum cruising speed of 500 kilometers per hour, maximum flight range of 4,500 km, and maximum endurance of 12 hours, officials said. It's planned uses include fighting forest fires and marine rescue missions.

China, US agree to boost trust

Beijing and Washington vowed on July 25 to boost mutual trust and effectively control differences, in the highest-level visit by a White House official since an arbitration tribunal's ruling on the South China Sea intensified regional tensions. "China is willing to work with the US to ... boost mutual trust, deepen cooperation and manage and control differences in a constructive way," President Xi Jinping told US National Security Adviser Susan Rice, in China for talks with officials in preparation for US President Barack Obama's attendance at the G20 summit in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, in September. Her visit also came amid tensions in the South China Sea after Beijing rejected a July 12 arbitration ruling in a case unilaterally brought by the Philippines.

Attack by tiger fuels heated debate

A woman was attacked and dragged away by a Siberian tiger after stepping out of a car on July 23 at Badaling Wildlife World in Beijing. A man and an elderly woman, reportedly the woman's husband and mother, rushed from the car and tried to help her. The mother was killed at the scene and her daughter was severely injured. The husband was not hurt. The park has been suspended from business, as the tiger is still being kept there. No reason has been given for why the woman suddenly left the car. The tragedy has triggered heated discussion on whether zoos should be held responsible if visitors ignore safety reminders.

Minister vows prudence in dealing with debt

Faced with lingering uncertainties globally and mounting debt at home, China has decided to apply greater fiscal prudence in its reform process, Finance Minister Lou Jiwei said at the G20 meeting of finance and central bank officials in Chengdu, Sichuan province, on July 24. Lou said China will be cautious in using public funds to intervene in the market unless there is a systemic crisis. Intervention is not an issue to be taken lightly, he said.

Ex-military leader gets life in bribery case

A Chinese military court sentenced Guo Boxiong, former vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission, to life in prison on July 25 for accepting bribes. Guo, 74, was also deprived of his political rights for life and stripped of his rank as general, a statement from the court said. The military court ruled that Guo had taken advantage of his position to assist the promotion and reassignment of others, and had accepted huge amounts in bribes both personally and in collusion with others. His personal assets were seized, and all his illicit gains were confiscated and turned over to the state treasury.

Govt plans to assist private investors

The National Development and Reform Commission said on July 25 that government investment has not crowded out private investors, and the central authorities will make every effort to facilitate private investment. Zhang Yong, vice-minister of the NDRC, said the two types of investment focus on different fields. Investment by governments at various levels using national budgeted funds accounts for only 5 percent of overall national investment. Such investment is concentrated in infrastructure construction and key livelihood projects, where private capital is unwilling to invest, Zhang said.

Bottled gasoline may have fed bus fire

Investigators said that five plastic bottles filled with gasoline may have exacerbated a bus fire in Taiwan that claimed the lives of all 26 passengers on board on July 19. They maintained that human error may have caused or worsened the inferno. Two bottles were found near the driver's seat and three on the lower deck of the luggage compartment. There were also traces of gasoline near the driver's seat and front door.

Panchen Lama's teaching praised

High-ranking Tibetan monks and Living Buddhas have praised the recent Kalachakra teaching delivered by the 11th Panchen Lama in southwestern Xigaze city. The four-day sacred event, which concluded on July 24, drew thousands of Buddhist pilgrims, monks and nuns from many Chinese provinces.

Olympic rider surprises with change of mount

Rio de Janeiro-bound Chinese equestrian Alex Hua Tian, the only Chinese rider qualified for the upcoming Olympics, announced on July 26 he would take Don Geniro, a 9-year-old horse, to Brazil. He passed up Harbour Pilot C, a 17-year-old racing horse that had long been seen as Hua Tian's first choice. Hua Tian won the second leg of the Event Rider Masters with Don Geniro at the Equi-Trek Bramham International Horse Trials in June.

Capital flight eases in first half of year

China's net foreign exchange purchase amounted to $173.8 billion in the first half of 2016. But its capital outflow significantly slowed in the April-June period, statistics released by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange indicate. After registering 124.8 billion in foreign currency in the first quarter, Chinese banks sold in the second quarter $49 billion more in foreign currency than they purchased. The monthly net purchase of foreign exchange declined from $54.4 billion in January to $12.5 billion in May and was at $12.8 billion in June. While international financial markets have remained stable and the US Federal Reserve has postponed its interest rate hikes, China's economic conditions also have remained sound.

Risks still facing nation's economy

China's economic growth still faces heavy downward pressure, a meeting of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee presided by General Secretary Xi Jinping heard on July 26. Participants agreed that in the second half of this year, the nation should continue to press ahead with supply-side structural reform, Xinhua News Agency reported. The report also said a proactive fiscal policy and prudent monetary policy would be adopted, and various taxes and fees lowered to anchor economic growth and resolve potential financial risks. The meeting also decided that reform of state-owned enterprises and financial sectors should be deepened, key to the country's efforts to cut excessive production capacity.

Big circus expected to boost Hunan visits

Zhangjiajie, Hunan province, plans to create a performing center for a Russian-style grand circus in 2017. The project is an element of Sino-Russian tourism and cultural cooperation and a manifestation of the city's ambition to build itself into an international tourism destination. The circus would cover 43,000 square meters, with hotels covering another 24,000 sq m. Total investment is expected to reach 800 million yuan ($120 million; 108.5 million euros) and add 20 percent more tourist visits. Another 1.2 billion yuan will be spent building up the area as a Russian-style entertainment park.

Three held in protests at KFC restaurant

Three men have been detained for organizing protests to impede the operations of US fast-food chain KFC in Henan province, police said. The men "illegally organized netizens to block two KFC restaurants", according to a local police micro blog. A man surnamed Li was placed under administrative detention for 15 days, while the other two, surnamed Yuan and Liu, were detained for 13 days each. The incident was apparently triggered after a tribunal appointed by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague ruled in favor of the Philippines in a case against China over the South China Sea.

Stone collector finds fossil teeth

A stone collector in Shiyan city, Hubei province, has uncovered two fossilized teeth of a long extinct mammal in a village field. The unnamed collector took the fossils to Huang Xu, an animal expert working in Shiyan Museum, who identified them as stegodon teeth. Stegodon is a genus of extinct mammals that exceeded 9 meters in length and 5 meters in height. Their fossils have been found several times before in Shiyan.

'Flying objects' curbed for G20 summit

Authorities have imposed rules to manage small aircraft and "flying objects" - including unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones - with the approach of the G20 summit in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province. The gathering will be held on Sept 4 and 5. The Zhejiang Public Security Department said restricted aircraft are those that either fly slow or very low, or that are difficult for radar to spot. In some areas, small aircraft and other objects are banned during the summit.

Jobs growing in less developed regions

Job opportunities grew during the second quarter in the central and western part of China and in third-tier cities, thanks to e-commerce and the sharing economy, according to a report released by Chinese job recruitment website Zhaopin and the China Institute for Employment Research. First-tier cities, as well as the country's eastern region generally, continued to generate the majority of new job opportunities. Eastern China generated 73 percent of them, the report said. Yet the employment situation in the less-developed middle and western regions of China had improved, compared with the same period last year. New jobs in Central China grew at the fastest rate.

Imported fever case confirmed

China's health authority has confirmed an imported case of Rift Valley Fever, the first of this type of fever, in a man returning from Angola. The 45-year-old, surnamed Tang, from Henan province, developed a fever and headache and suffered pains in his joints and muscles on July 14 in Angola, the National Health and Family Planning Commission said on July 24. The man was in critical condition and receiving treatment, the commission said.

(China Daily European Weekly 07/29/2016 page2)