China-Africa ties set to expand

China is set to become Africa's largest trading partner in a few years, eclipsing the continent's centuries-old ties with Europe. Yet for all the growth in recent years, China-Africa trade has been largely confined to exports of oil and other mineral resources from Africa and, until recently, exports of textiles, clothing and low-value machinery from China.

US should stop playing role of cop

On April 29, the United States government accused Chinese businessman Li Fangwei of opening shell companies to sell missile parts to Iran, a country under US sanctions. Moreover, the US State Department has announced a $5-million reward for any person providing information leading to Li's arrest.

Letters

Act is rude itself

From the Chinese press

Laws needed to protect kids

Advancing China-Africa ties

Frequent high-level exchange visits and more interactions between ordinary people will enhance communication and mutual trust

Cartoon

The return of the renminbi rant

China's currency, the renminbi, has been weakening in recent months, resurrecting familiar charges of manipulation, competitive devaluation, and beggar-thy-neighbor mercantilism. In mid-April, the US Treasury expressed "particularly serious concerns" over this development, underscoring what has long been one of the most contentious economic-policy issues between the United States and China.

Mission for today's youths

THE FUTURE OF A NATION DEPENDS ON THE quality of its young people.

Free passes not to blame

Traffic jams seem a sure companion of national holidays. On May 1, there were constant traffic jams on highways leading out of the several metropolises, the longest, according to reports, was 55 kilometers.

Terrorism will never hinder progress

The latest terrorist attack aimed at innocent people was an open challenge to the government, as the bomb attack at the railway station in Urumqi was carried out on the last day of President Xi Jinping's four-day inspection tour to the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region. However, the terrorists' attempts to defy the government and create panic and plant the seeds of hatred among different ethnic groups are doomed to fail.

The high cost water extracts in China

China is home to one-fifth of the world's population but has only 7 percent of its freshwater. Water is essential to human survival and social development, but it cannot be traded like other resources. Water is heavily subsidized in nearly all countries. Agriculture accounts for about 70 percent of global water use, and water for irrigation is basically free, or highly subsidized, all over the world. In many developing countries such as China, India and Brazil, electricity supplied to farmers for pumping water is also subsidized.

Letters

Continue fight against corruption