Podcasts about hainan province

Hainan Province will broaden the scope of its offshore duty-free goods. The adjustment will take effect on Nov. 1. The southern island province's offshore duty-free shopping list will then cover 47 goods categories.

Hainan Province in southern China is set to launch island-wide independent customs operations, introducing zero tariffs on 74% of imports - a major milestone during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (01:05). China's consumer prices stabilized in September, with core inflation hitting a 19-month high, driven by strong consumer and industrial demand (36:25). And the U.S. government shutdown is impacting the economy, with federal layoffs, flight disruptions, and closures of major tourist attractions (21:12).

Typhoon Bualoi, the 20th typhoon of the year, has passed south of Hainan Province. Although it did not make direct landfall, it brought heavy rain and strong winds to the southern Chinese province.

Strong winds and heavy rain whipped South China's Hainan province and parts of Guangdong province on Sunday, as Typhoon Kajiki passed over open waters to the south of Hainan and headed toward Vietnam's central coast.周日，台风“剑鱼”经过海南南部的开阔水域，向越南中部海岸移动，强风和暴雨袭击了中国南部的海南省和广东省部分地区。A short video posted online by Guangdong Radio and Television showed winds snapping off tree branches, and heavily rocking a docked boat and sending waves sliding over the pier.广东广播电视台在网上发布的一段短视频显示，风刮断了树枝，一艘停靠在码头上的船剧烈摇晃，海浪滑过码头。Kajiki gained strength as it moved westward over the sea with maximum sustained winds of 162 kilometers per hour, China's National Meteorological Center said.中国国家气象中心称，“剑鱼”向西移动，在海上增强，最大持续风速为每小时162公里。Rainfall of 25 to 40 centimeters was forecast for southern parts of Hainan Island, including Sanya, a popular beach resort.预计海南岛南部地区将有25到40厘米的降雨，包括著名的海滩度假胜地三亚。Hainan took extensive measures to prepare for Typhoon Kajiki, amid fears that it could be the strongest typhoon to hit the region in the past 40 years.海南采取了广泛的措施来应对台风“剑鱼”，人们担心这可能是过去40年来袭击该地区的最强台风。As Typhoon Kajiki approached, the province raised its emergency response to the highest level. The typhoon, the 13th of the year, intensified from a severe tropical storm to a full typhoon at 2 am on Sunday. It gained strength and headed toward Hainan's southern coast, with landfall or a close pass expected on Sunday evening, said Cai Qinbo, spokesperson for the Hainan provincial meteorological bureau.随着台风剑鱼（Kajiki）的逼近，该省将应急响应提升至最高级别。今年的第13号台风于周日凌晨2点从强烈热带风暴增强为台风。海南省气象局发言人蔡钦波表示，台风增强并向海南南部海岸移动，预计将于周日晚上登陆或近距离通过。Authorities in Sanya evacuated 31,843 people from potentially vulnerable areas to safety by 3 pm on Sunday, according to the city's publicity department. Temporary shelters were set up at some local facilities like primary schools to receive the affected.据三亚市宣传部称，截至周日下午3点，三亚市有关部门已将31843人从潜在脆弱地区疏散到安全地带。在小学等一些当地设施设立了临时避难所，以接收受影响的人。Across the province, over 770,000 emergency supplies had been prepared for vulnerable areas. More than 2,800 rescue workers are on standby with necessary vehicles and equipment, said Wu Zhanchao, deputy head of the Department of Emergency Management of Hainan Province.全省为脆弱地区准备了77万多件应急物资。海南省应急管理厅副厅长吴占超表示，2800多名救援人员随时待命，配备了必要的车辆和设备。All 30,769 local fishing boats had either returned to port or were safely sheltered, with over 21,000 crew members moved to shore.所有30 769艘当地渔船要么已返回港口，要么已得到安全庇护，21 000多名船员已移到岸上。Residents were advised to avoid unnecessary travel, stay away from low-lying areas, temporary structures and the coast, and be alert for potential geological hazards.政府建议居民避免不必要的旅行，远离低洼地区、临时建筑和海岸，并警惕潜在的地质灾害。In Sanya, measures included closing schools, offices, business operations, suspending public transportation and shipping, and shutting scenic areas.在三亚，措施包括关闭学校，办公室，商业运营，暂停公共交通和航运，以及关闭景区。Hotels in Sanya took comprehensive steps to ensure guest safety. Atlantis Sanya provided multilingual notices in Chinese, English and Russian in each guest room, detailing the latest weather updates, temporarily suspended facilities, and offered alternative indoor activities within the resort.三亚的酒店采取了全面措施来确保客人的安全。三亚亚特兰提斯酒店在每间客房都提供了中、英、俄三种语言的通知，详细介绍了最新的天气情况、暂停使用的设施，并在酒店内提供了其他室内活动。"I'm not worried about the typhoon at all because the tour guide and travel agency have a lot of experience in dealing with it. They explained the precautions during the typhoon and reminded us to stay indoors as much as possible," said Yelena Rostova, a Russian tourist visiting Sanya as part of a tour group.“我一点也不担心台风，因为导游和旅行社在应对台风方面有很多经验。他们解释了台风期间的预防措施，并提醒我们尽可能呆在室内，”来三亚旅游的俄罗斯游客叶莲娜·罗斯托娃（Yelena Rostova）说。"I hope the typhoon passes quickly so that my family and I can enjoy the sunny beaches and our vacation," she added.她补充说：“我希望台风快点过去，这样我和我的家人就可以享受阳光明媚的海滩和我们的假期。”With strong winds and heavy rain lashing the city, Wang Wen, a resident of Sanya, chose to stay home over the weekend. "It has not significantly affected my daily life," she said.随着强风和暴雨袭击城市，三亚居民王文（音）选择在周末呆在家里。“这对我的日常生活没有太大影响，”她说。

China has activated an emergency response to flooding and typhoon in Hainan Province as the 13th typhoon of this year is approaching.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has called on the country's private sector to seize opportunities in the new era and advance modernization. He also shared his hopes and expectations for private entrepreneurs. The Chinese president was speaking as he met representatives from privately owned companies. In what ways did the symposium demonstrate the Chinese government's long-term support strategy for the private economy (00:45)?We'll also look at Hainan Province, which has announced a draft proposal to boost the low-altitude economy (19:13).

Typhoon Trami continues to affect Hainan Province in south China, as remnants bring heavy downpour and strong winds to the region.

The 11th typhoon of the year made landfall twice on Friday, first striking Hainan Province and later Guangdong Province.

A rocket carrying China's Queqiao-2 relay satellite has been vertically transported to its launch pad at the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site in Hainan Province.

The carrier rocket for China's Chang'e-6 lunar probe has arrived at the Wenchang Space Launch Center in Hainan Province.

The Long March 8 carrier rocket that will carry China's Queqiao II relay satellite into orbit has arrived at the Wenchang Satellite Launch Center in Hainan Province.

The US Commerce Department to hold meetings with industry on space situational awareness. The United Nations says countries need to improve collaboration on their space activities. Chinese Space News is reporting that construction of a new complex at a spaceport in Hainan Province has started, and more. Remember to leave us a 5-star rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Miss an episode? Sign-up for our weekly intelligence roundup, Signals and Space, and you'll never miss a beat. And be sure to follow T-Minus on Twitter and LinkedIn. T-Minus Guest Our guest for today's episode is Jack Cohen, Program and Mission Manager at Astro Digital.  You can follow Jack on LinkedIn and find out more about Astro Digital on their website. Selected Reading Commerce slates mid-July for next round of space traffic ‘industry engagements'- Breaking Defense U.N. opens “window of opportunity” to improve space governance- SpaceNews Construction on a new spaceport begins in S China's Hainan Province- CGTN BepiColombo braces for third Mercury flyby- ESA Orbex and Arianespace Look to Collaborate in Launch Sector- Via Satellite Venus Aerospace Adds Airbus Ventures to Investor Team Airbus Ventures Invests in Zero-Error Systems Building Semiconductor Solutions for Space- Via Satellite Texas Space Commission launches; how it could benefit local aerospace businesses- KXAN Deloitte Report: SpaceTech to Become Table Stakes for Future Business Strategies- PR Newswire AI-Fueled Satellites Are First-Movers In Launch Of The Space Economy- Forbes The coming of age of the global space economy- FT From malware to barf, dealing with the nasty side of space exploration- Are We There Yet- NPR Audience Survey We want to hear from you! Please complete our 4 question survey. It'll help us get better and deliver you the most mission-critical space intel every day. Want to hear your company in the show? You too can reach the most influential leaders and operators in the industry. Here's our media kit. Contact us at space@n2k.com to request more info. Want to join us for an interview? Please send your pitch to space-editor@n2k.com and include your name, affiliation, and topic proposal. T-Minus is a production of N2K Networks, your source for strategic workforce intelligence. © 2023 N2K Networks, Inc. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The third China International Consumer Products Expo has kicked off in Hainan Province. We take a look at some highlights from this year's Expo (01:17). / Heart to Heart - please send your audio questions to ezfmroundtable@foxmail.com (27:26) / Gym rats turn their passion into a side hustle (36:46). On the show: Heyang, Li Yi & Josh Cotterill

The Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference has wrapped up in Hainan Province, with discussions on AI technology, medicine and digital finance held on the last day of the event. (01:00) Dozens of pilgrims have died in a mishap at a temple in India during a religious festival. (11:16) And Donald Trump has become the first former president to be indicted for a crime. (16:53)

Industrial and supply chains are among the main issues for discussion at the ongoing Boao Forum in Hainan Province.

Police in Tennessee are investigating a deadly mass shooting at a school in Nashville (01:00). Officials at the Boao Forum for Asia in Hainan Province have released their annual report (08:49). And Israel's prime minister has delayed his government's judicial reforms following mass protests in the country (20:15).

A Chinese envoy has asked the United States and NATO to stop fueling the Ukraine conflict (5:31). A new generation of aerial refueling aircraft and China's most advanced stealth fighters will join the upcoming Changchun Airshow (6:23). Health authorities in Hainan Province say they have made big strides in the pandemic prevention and control battle (15:19).

Cyberpolitik: The Internet of Yesterday and Tomorrow— Bharath ReddyThe foundation of the internet was built on three pillars:Reliance on the private sector, Light regulatory oversight, Free speech and a free flow of information. The hope was that these values would also be accepted as the internet would be accepted across the world. However this utopian vision is far from the reality of today’s internet. Gradually the internet has become less secure, more fragmented and less free. Authoritarian regimes across the world have been able to leverage control of the internet to shape narratives that strengthen their control. The US needs to recalibrate and adapt to this new reality. So begins the Council on Foreign Relations report titled “Confronting Reality in Cyberspace: Foreign Policy for a Fragmented Internet”. The authors propose a three-fold approach to confronting the new reality in cyberspace. Firstly, they recommend that allies need to come together to preserve a trusted and secure internet based on international standards. This includes working towards a shared policy on digital privacy, tackling cybercrime, and helping developing nations build cyber capacity. Secondly, there should be discussions and negotiations with adversaries to avoid cyber operations against nuclear command, control and communications systems, election systems and financial systems. This includes holding states accountable for cyber threats originating from their territory. The last recommendation involves getting the domestic house in order, which includes building cyber security talent, minimising domestic cyber security risks and prioritising digital interests in national security strategies.The predictions of the end of the global internet are growing quite common. The predictions for a fragmented internet range from a splinternet to a bifurcation between a Western and a Chinese internet. With these possibilities appearing more likely each day, India needs to rethink its own approaches to cyber security.Matsyanyaaya #1: Fission Factor: The Big Bet on Small Reactors— Aditya RamanathanWhile the world’s attention is drawn to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, where Russian and Ukrainian forces are facing off, there are potentially more significant developments underway for the future of nuclear power. In July, the United States’ Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)  announced that it would certify the NuScale 50 MWe small modular reactor. NuScale’s reactor is only the seventh design which the NRC has ever approved in the history of nuclear power. It is also the first small modular reactor (SMR) that has received the green light in the United States. China is presently ahead of the US in SMRs. A couple of weeks before the NRC announcement, the China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) began the construction of an SMR demonstration plant in Hainan Province. CNNC calls the project the first “commercial onshore small modular reactor” in the world. Once the 125 MWe reactor is up and running, CNNC claims it will be capable of powering 526,000 households. The SMR PromiseThe International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) defines SMRs as reactors with up to 300 MWe capacity. As the name indicates, SMRs are much smaller than traditional reactors and modular in their design. For instance, the NuScale design is touted as being only  “about 1 per cent the size of a traditional power plant’s containment chamber, though it delivers 10 percent of a plant’s power output.” SMRs are modular for two reasons. Firstly, assemblies and components can be pre-fabricated on a factory floor and then put together on site. Secondly, additional units to t can simply be added on site to increase capacity.Proponents of SMRs have advocated their widespread adoption for several reasons. For one, SMRs need much lower initial investments and fewer operators and specialists to run them. Two, unlike traditionally large nuclear plants, finding the right patch of real estate for an SMR is much simpler. Three, proponents say SMRs are well suited to serve small communities and provide a reliable base-load for renewables. Four, the modularity of SMRs allows them to be easily scaled up as the needs of a community grow. SMR proponents argue that these reactors are safer because they are far less susceptible to human error and rely on passive safety features. For instance, NuScale designs don’t require external power sources to operate the cooling systems for their cores. Finally, if an accident occurs, the consequences with an SMR are likely to be much less severe than in previous nuclear accidents. While both the CNNC and NuScale reactors feature novel designs, they nevertheless draw from proven technologies. CNNC describes its Linglong-1 design as being a pressurised water reactor, while the NuScale design is a light water reactor. Both reactors appear to use clever design and engineering to simplify traditional reactors. This is a sensible approach to getting SMRs approved and operational. However, other companies are experimenting with more radical designs. The Ultra Safe Nuclear Corporation (USNC) has designed what it calls a Micro Modular Reactor (MMR). The MMR eschews water altogether, using helium as a coolant and transferring heat through molten salt. MMRs also use a ‘Fully Ceramic Microencapsulated’ (FCM) fuel, in which small kernels of Uranium fuel, each about 1 mm across, are encased in layers of ceramic and silicon carbide. According to USNC, this makes the fuel much safer to use and transport, gives it greater temperature stability, and makes it impossible to repurpose for military purposes. In April, the company started running a pilot plant for the production of FCM fuel. USNC expects demonstration units of the reactor itself to be operational by 2026.  Besides these there are several other SMRs under development, including so-called micro-reactors from start-ups like Oklo and NuGen as well as designs from established giants like General Atomics. Finally, there are companies pursuing larger reactors like the so-called pebble-bed design as well as the Bill Gates-backed TerraPower’s molten salt design.Nuclear RealitiesFor all the promises of SMRs, it’s worth keeping in mind that they are still a long way off. Even if SMRs are all they claim to be, it may be another two decades before they dramatically impact the global energy mix. Until then, renewables and traditional nuclear plants will remain important sources of low-carbon energy. There also remain many uncertainties around SMRs, many of which feature completely unproven designs. As with every other means of power generation, there are also likely to be some downsides. For example, a Stanford-led study concluded that SMRs could produce much more nuclear waste than traditional reactors. The study looked at designs from NuScale, Terrestrial Energy, and Toshiba and concluded that these small reactors would experience greater neutron leakage, which would, in turn, create more radioactive material. While such studies are by no means conclusive, they highlight how little we will really know until prototype SMRs run for years. SMRs are also likely to be subject to the same political and social uncertainties that afflict traditional nuclear power. The supply of Uranium fuel remains highly politicised and dominated by the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG). And popular perceptions of nuclear power appear to be poor. Nuclear engineers may point out that the chances of a major radiation event at the Zaporizhzhia plant are very low, despite the ongoing fighting in its vicinity. However, popular perceptions are unlikely to make much allowance for expert opinion. Matsyanyaaya #2: How can the US-India iCET Succeed?— Arjun GargeyasI know we talk about the intersection of technology and international affairs in this newsletter. This time I’m trying something different, elucidating the possibility of a new technology in India which can become the global standard and shake things up in the international E-commerce arena if implemented perfectly.Over the last few weeks, we met with Mr Sanjay Jain, a member of iSPIRIT and an engineer closely working on developing the India Stack applications. This was to understand better the newly launched Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) and how it functions. The ONDC was launched by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, Government of India as an e-commerce aggregator. The primary objective was to challenge the monopoly of E-commerce giants like Amazon and Flipkart while providing the local sellers a platform to be equally competitive. After having a couple of conversations with Mr Jain, who brilliantly explained the system’s backend, India had a sense of opportunity to set a global standard through which E-commerce operates. What is it?ONDC is a massive network that acts as a facilitator for buyers and sellers. It is not a platform such as Amazon. It is built on leveraging the network effects and positive externalities of E-commerce platforms, while aggregating all existing platforms to be on the same network. It is currently developed on the Beckn Protocol, an open-source software protocol. Now, for comparison's sake, it is similar to the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), which handles all UPI transactions. Why has it been introduced?One of the main reasons for introducing ONDC in India is the movement toward E-commerce while making it inclusive and accessible to the country’s large population. There is also the movement from platform-based to network-based technology in the E-commerce domain so that users are not locked into a particular platform only and can choose from multiple options. Including local merchants, sellers and buyers to make the network have over 15,000 retailers is another key objective of the platform itself. Increasing the share of Indians using E-Commerce (from 9 crores to 25 crores) and improving geographic coverage of E-Commerce (covering 75% of PIN codes) remains the core idea behind ONDC.How can it become the E-commerce domain standard?ONDC mainly revolves around two principles: Bundling and Interoperability. It helps separate the buyers and sellers while aggregating both on a single network. It addresses lock-in and unbundles E-commerce’s buying, selling and logistics aspects. Sellers need not register on an existing app but can come together with others to create seller apps with other retailers (location-specific retailer aggregation or delivery-specific services can have their platforms for end users to choose from). There’s no centralised payment processor, but seller-side apps determine the commission for whoever decides to get onboarded.Can India use ONDC and implement it in different countries just like its digital payments system? ONDC can soon be a perfect solution for preventing monopolies in the E-commerce domain. It can also provide local entrepreneurs with a perfect opportunity to reach the end users directly without being bullied by big firms who prefer to prop their own businesses.  The US has long been talking about breaking up Big Tech. Now, in the E-commerce space, ONDC has a shot (albeit a very long one currently) to become a credible alternative to the existing model (concentrated with a few giants who have captured the market) that other nation-states can use. With that, ONDC has the possibility of improving India’s own international reach (like UPI), thus helping the country gain some diplomatic heft in the E-commerce space. Our Reading Menu[Book] From Space to Sea : My ISRO Journey and Beyond by Abraham E. Muthunayagam.[Report] Green energy depends on critical minerals. Who controls the supply chains? by Luc Leruth, Adnan Mazarei, Pierre Régibeau and Luc Renneboog.[Article] Technology and the construction of oceanic space: Bathymetry and the Arctic continental shelf dispute by Daniel Lambach This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit hightechir.substack.com

Local authorities say Hainan Province has registered more than 2,800 confirmed COVID-19 cases and over 2,300 asymptomatic carriers since the province's current resurgence began on August 1.

The second China International Consumer Products Expo is underway in Haikou, Hainan Province.

The China International Consumer Products Expo has kicked off in Haikou, the capital of Hainan Province. This year's event is expected to help boost consumer spending as it gradually recovers from the COVID-19 outbreaks.

China is preparing to launch the Wentian space lab module from Hainan Province later this month (01:15). Rain-triggered mountain torrents have killed at least six people in Sichuan Province (10:17). South Korea's foreign minister is visiting Japan for the first time in four years (18:22).

This year's Boao Forum for Asia in Hainan Province includes delegates from governments, business, academia, and media from all over the world. They will discuss the post-pandemic development agenda for Asia and the world.

The Chinese president has inspected an economic development zone in Danzhou, Hainan Province.

一、“十四五”数字经济发展规划印发|China Plans to Boost Digital EconomyChina's State Council on Wednesday rolled out a plan to facilitate development of the digital economy in the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025).国务院周三印发《“十四五”数字经济发展规划》。 The country aims to raise the proportion of the added value of core digital economy industries in its GDP to 10% in 2025, up from 7.8% in 2020, according to the plan. By 2025, China will see the digital transformation of industries reach a new level, digital public services will become more inclusive, and the digital economy governance system will improve noticeably.《规划》提出，到2025年，数字经济核心产业增加值占国内生产总值比重将从2020年的7.8%增加到10%，产业数字化转型迈上新台阶，数字化公共服务更加普惠均等，数字经济治理体系更加完善。It details key tasks in eight areas, including optimizing and upgrading digital infrastructure, pushing forward the digital shift of enterprises, and expanding international cooperation on the digital economy.《规划》部署了优化升级数字基础设施、大力推进产业数字化转型、有效拓展数字经济国际合作等8个方面重点任务。According to the document, China will strengthen its support of 6G research and development, enhance innovation in strategic fields such as integrated circuits and artificial intelligence, and facilitate the development of new business modes.《规划》提出，要加大6G技术研发支持力度，增强集成电路、人工智能等关键技术创新能力，加快培育新业态新模式。The country will also explore establishing regulations in the fields of cross-border data flows, market access, anti-monopoly work, the digital yuan and privacy protection in the digital era, drawing on international rules and experience.积极借鉴国际规则和经验，围绕数据跨境流动、市场准入、反垄断、数字人民币、数据隐私保护等问题探索建立治理规则。二、12月CPI同比上涨1.5%|China's CPI Rises 1.5% in DecChina's consumer price index rose by 1.5% year-on-year in December, down from 2.3% in the previous month, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Wednesday.国家统计局周三发布数据显示，2021年12月，全国居民消费价格指数同比上涨1.5%，涨幅比上月回落0.8个百分点。 The slower growth of consumer inflation was mainly attributed to the decline in food prices, with pork price dropping 36.7% year-on-year in December.全国居民消费价格指数涨幅回落主要是由于食品价格下降，其中，12月猪肉价格同比下降36.7%。Prices of industrial consumer goods also saw slower growth, rising 2.9% year-on-year, according to NBS.据国家统计局称，工业消费品价格同比上涨2.9%，涨幅回落。The country's whole-year consumer inflation grew slower than expected, up 0.9% year-on-year.2021年全年，全国居民消费价格指数比上年上涨0.9%，涨幅低于预期。Meanwhile, China's producer price index rose 10.3% year-on-year in December, down from 12.9% in the previous month, NBS said.国家统计局称，2021年12月份，工业生产者出厂价格指数同比上涨10.3%，涨幅比上月回落2.6个百分点。三、博鳌亚洲论坛将于春季举办年会| Boao Forum for Asia to Hold its 2022 Annual ConferenceThe Boao Forum for Asia Secretariat held a press conference in Beijing on Jan 12 for its 2022 annual conference, where Secretary General Li Baodong talked about preparations for the conference.1月12日，博鳌亚洲论坛秘书处在北京召开2022年年会新闻发布会，论坛秘书长李保东介绍了论坛年会筹备情况。 Li confirmed that the Boao Forum for Asia will hold its annual conference in the spring at Boao of Hainan Province as usual, where leaders and government officials of various countries, including the host country China, politicians, heads of international organizations, guests from business and academia, as well as the media will gather and discuss the post-pandemic development agenda for Asia and the world.李保东表示，博鳌亚洲论坛将按惯例于2022年春季在海南博鳌举行年会，邀请包括东道国中国在内的国家和政府领导人、政府官员、国际组织负责人、企业代表、专家学者和媒体人士出席会议，共商疫后亚洲与全球发展大计。This year's annual conference will be an on-site occasion supplemented with online links. The exact date for the conference is yet to be released.年会将以线上线下相结合的方式举办，具体日期尚未公布。Li emphasized the necessity to actively seize and rein in the post-pandemic development trend with a forward-looking perspective, despite the uncertainty over when the pandemic would be over.李保东强调，虽然现在很难断言疫情什么时候会彻底结束，但我们必须着眼未来，积极把握和推动疫后世界发展大势。四、海南离岛免税购物消费火爆|Hainan Records Surging Duty-Free ShoppingThe southern Chinese island province of Hainan reported 49.5 billion yuan in offshore duty-free shopping in 2021, up 80% year on year, with more than 70 million items bought by 6.72 million shoppers.2021年，海南离岛免税购物金额495亿元，与上年相比增长80%，购物人数672万人次，购物件数7000余万件。 The per capita shopping amount registered in the offshore duty-free shops (DFS) of Hainan logged 7,368 yuan, an increase of 20.2% from 2020. Cosmetics, watches, and jewelry were among the top three best-sellers for the shops.海南离岛免税店人均购物金额7368元，与上年相比增长20.2%。其中，化妆品、手表、首饰的销售额位居前三。Notably, the island's number of DFS customers last year increased by approximately 50% year on year and the number of items they bought soared by 107%.2021年，海南离岛免税店购物人数、购物件数与上年相比分别增长近50%和107%。Three more duty-free shops opened last year in Hainan, raising the total number to 10. These shops host more than 720 brands in a total shopping area of 220,000 square meters.2021年海南新增离岛免税店3家，截至目前离岛免税店已增至10家，各免税店品牌进驻数量超过720个，免税店经营面积达22万平方米。Since July 1, 2020, Hainan has raised its annual tax-free shopping quota from 30,000 yuan to 100,000 yuan per person.自2020年7月1日起，海南离岛旅客每年每人免税购物额度从每年每人3万元提高至10万元。anti-monopoly英 [ˈænti məˈnɒpəli]；美[ˈænti məˈnɑːpəli] n. 反垄断；反垄断法secretariat英 [ˌsekrəˈteəriət]；美[ˌsekrəˈteriət] n. （大型国际组织、政治组织的）秘书处，书记处academia英 [ˌækəˈdiːmiə]；美[ˌækəˈdiːmiə] n. 学术界rein英 [reɪn]；美[reɪn] n. 缰绳；（幼儿佩戴以防走失的）保护带；控制v. 控制；驾驭；勒住

The first China International Consumer Products Expo is being held from May 7 to 10 Hainan Province.

China will launch a series of promotional activities in May to boost spending as the retail sector recovers from COVID-19-induced consumer caution. It will include a new consumer goods expo in South China’s Hainan Province. Expanding domestic consumption is a priority in China’s “dual circulation” economic strategy. China’s retail sales surged 34.2% year-on-year in March, stronger than the 33.8% jump in the January-February period. As China enters a five-day Labor Day break on May 1st, it will kick off a month-long spending campaign.

CITY OF HAIKOU INVITES WORLD'S TOP ARCHITECTS AND ARTISTS TO BUILD 16 PUBLIC ‘PAVILIONS BY THE SEASIDE' The new permanent landmark will combine cultural enterprise and pioneering urban development to establish Hainan Province as a model for future coastal living The masterplan, along 32km of coastline, aims to bring long-term and sustainable vitality to the ...

After the incredible annual sales of RMB 31.5 billion (about USD 47 billion) from Hainan duty-free shops in 2020, here comes the pros & cons.

The death toll in China's novel coronavirus eruption has touched 3,042 with 30 new deaths while the confirmed cases have risen to 80,552 amid signs that the dreaded was stabilizing, including in the epicenter Hubei region. China's National Health Commission said that it received reports of 143 new confirmed cases of coronavirus disease and 30 deaths on March 5 on the Chinese mainland. Among the deaths, 29 were in Hubei Province and one in Hainan Province, the National Health Commission said in its daily update of the coronavirus today. For now, 102 new suspected cases were reported taking the 482, it said. The overall confirmed cases on the mainland so far totaled to 80,552 by the end of March 5. This included 3,042 people who had died of the disease 23,784 patients still being treated and 53,726 patients discharged after recovery, the National Health Commission said. Also on March 5, 16 imported cases of novel coronavirus disease were reported on the mainland, including 11 in Gansu Province, four in Beijing and one in Shanghai. By the end of the day, 36 imported cases had been reported, said the commission. So far 104 confirmed cases including two deaths had been reported in Hong Kong, 10 confirmed cases in Macao, and 44 in Taiwan, including one death. Forty-six patients in Hong Kong, nine in Macao and 12 in Taiwan had been discharged from hospital after improvement, National Health Commission said. China's Hubei Province and it's capital Wuhan, the epicenters of the novel coronavirus eruption, reported 126 new confirmed cases of novel coronavirus disease and 29 deaths on Thursday. The latest report brought the total confirmed cases in the hard-hit province to 67,592. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/latestnewssuno/support

Welcome to the 45th installment of the Caixin-Sinica Business Brief, a weekly podcast that brings you the most important business stories of the week from China's top source for business and financial news. Produced by Kaiser Kuo of our Sinica Podcast, it features a business news roundup, plus conversations with Caixin reporters and editors. This week: We note that Hainan Province is flinging open its doors to international tourists, granting visa-free stays to 59 nationalities amid a push to transform itself into “China's Hawaii.” We find out about digital payments leader Alipay's launch of its service on buses. We learn that Putuoshan Tourism, the official travel agency of Mount Putuo, or Putuoshan, has postponed its IPO in the wake of a controversy over commercializing the country's religious sites. We discuss that China will further open its car market by allowing foreign automakers to take full ownership of their local joint ventures by 2022. We explore a recent report by China Orient Asset Management, a state-controlled asset management company, which indicates that Chinese banks have likely understated their bad debt. We hear that China's central bank said it will cut the amount of cash that most banks are required to hold as reserves — a move to release cash into the banking system. We analyze China's endorsement of “online hospitals,” an emerging concept that Chinese internet giants Alibaba and Tencent have bet on. We discover that Chinese authorities have released a doctor who called a well-known “medicinal” liquor a poison, after news of his three months in detention provoked national anger. In addition, we talk with Doug Young, managing editor of Caixin Global, about China's biggest telecom equipment makers such as ZTE and their problems with the U.S. We also chat with Liu Xiao, reporter for Caixin Global, about a story regarding Ant Financial. We'd love to hear your feedback on this product. Please send any comments and suggestions to sinica@supchina.com.  

2017-06-12 Special EnglishThis is Special English. I&`&m Mark Griffiths in Beijing. Here is the news.China&`&s new cyber security law, which went into effect recently, is not aimed at limiting foreign companies&`& access to the Chinese market.China&`&s Internet regulator said the law is designed to safeguard China&`&s cyberspace sovereignty, national security, public interest, as well as the rights and interests of citizens, legal persons and other organizations.The Cyberspace Administration of China said in a statement that it does not restrict foreign companies or their technology and products from entering the Chinese market, nor does it limit the orderly, free flow of data. The document said China is entitled to make laws and rules to regulate its cyberspace sovereignty following international practice.The law was passed in November 2016 at a bimonthly session of the National People&`&s Congress Standing Committee after a third reading.A regulation requiring Internet products and services that may affect national security to undergo a security review will go into effect on the same day as the cyber security law.Reviews focus on whether the products or services are secure and sufficiently managed, and on assessing the risk of illegal control, disruption or interruption.They also evaluate the risk of providers using their products or services to illegally gather, store, process or make use of user information.This is Special English.Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has called on Germany to help China-developed large passenger plane C919 get an airworthiness certificate from the European Union.Li made the call during his talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin. He was on an official visit to Germany for an annual meeting between the two heads of government, a mechanism that has been in place since 2004.The twin-engine C919 made its maiden flight on May 5 in Shanghai with five crew members on board but no passengers. The success makes China the fourth jumbo jet producer after the United States, Western Europe and Russia.With a standard range of 4,075 kilometers, the narrow-bodied jet is comparable with the updated Airbus 320 and Boeing&`&s new generation 737 planes, signaling the country&`&s entry into the global aviation market.China has taken pride in developing the homegrown jumbo jet, regarding it as a symbol of national strength.In 2007, the State Council approved plans to develop a large passenger jet. In November 2015, the first C919 jet rolled off the assembly line. More than 200,000 technicians worked on the project.A total of 23 foreign and domestic customers, including China&`&s national carrier Air China, had placed orders for 570 aircraft as of May 5.You&`&re listening to Special English. I&`&m Mark Griffiths in Beijing.U.S. space firm SpaceX has launched supplies to the International Space Station, including an experiment from a Chinese university that will test the effects of space environments on DNA.The SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft lifted off on the company&`&s Falcon 9 rocket at 5:07 p.m. local time from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.Around 10 minutes later, the rocket&`&s first stage achieved a successful landing at SpaceX&`&s Landing Zone 1, just south of the launch site at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.On this trip, the Dragon will deliver almost 2,700 kilograms of supplies, including solar panels, tools for Earth-observation and equipment to study neutron stars.Among the cargo is a 3.5-kilogram device from the Beijing Institute of Technology that seeks to answer questions including "Does space radiation and microgravity cause mutations among antibody-encoding genes and if so, how does it happen."There is a U.S. law in place, known as the Wolf amendment, that bans cooperation between the U.S. space agency NASA and Chinese government entities, but this deal is purely commercial and therefore considered legal.NASA spokesperson Kathryn Hambleton confirmed to China&`&s Xinhua News Agency that there is a Chinese experiment that has been launched on this mission, known as SpaceX CRS-11.You&`&re listening to Special English. I&`&m Mark Griffiths in Beijing.China&`&s manned submarine Jiaolong has conducted its first dive of the year in the Yap Trench.Jiaolong began diving at 8:43 a.m. local time on a rainy day on 4th of June, reaching a depth of 4,177 meters.A staff member on board said Jiaolong was not afraid of the bad weather, but the rain did make it a bit more difficult for the dive. He said they cannot hear each other clearly due to the rain, so they have to be extra careful during the operation.There will be five dives for Jiaolong in the Yap Trench, with the last dive being planned for June 12.According to scientists on the ship, the dives will focus on research in deep-sea biotic communities and gene resources.Jiaolong completed a series of dives in the Mariana Trench on June 1 and was transferred aboard its support ship to the Yap Trench afterwards.The Mariana and Yap trenches are located in the west Pacific Ocean. The Yap Trench has a depth of 8,527 meters, and the Mariana Trench, the deepest known point of Earth&`&s oceans, has a depth of 11,034 meters.Named after a mythical dragon, Jiaolong reached its deepest point of 7,062 meters in the Mariana Trench in June 2012. This is Special English.A network of remote sensing satellite ground stations that cover all of China&`&s territory and 70 percent of Asia has passed its final acceptance examination.The network is headquartered in Beijing and features three ground stations in a suburb in Beijing, in Kashgar in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and Sanya in Hainan Province.According to the examination committee, it will be used to support various remote-sensing systems, especially for the western part of the country and the South China Sea. The project began in 2007. You&`&re listening to Special English. I&`&m Mark Griffiths in Beijing. You can access the program by logging on to crienglish.com. You can also find us on our Apple Podcast. Now the news continues.India has launched its heaviest rocket, along with a satellite, that is now believed to be able to send humans into space in the future.The domestically-produced rocket, named Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle or Mark III, lifted off from the southern spaceport in Andhra Pradesh state at 5:28 p.m. local time.The state-owned Indian Space Research Organisation said the communication satellite that the rocket carried weighs more than three tonnes.The countdown for the launch of the 640-tonne rocket began on Sunday.In another development, India has successfully test fired its first all-weather tracked-chassis Quick Reaction Surface-to-Air Missile.India&`&s state-run broadcaster All India Radio said the missile was launched from a mobile launcher in the Integrated Test Range off the Odisha coast at Chandipur at around 12:39 p.m. local time.The broadcaster reported that the test was carried out for validating various parameters of the sophisticated weapon system to further strengthen its air defence system. This is Special English.A survey of the California Current System along the U.S. West Coast of the United States found persistent, highly acidified water throughout the ecologically critical nearshore habitat.Led by Francis Chan, a marine ecologist at Oregon State University, researchers participating in the survey said conditions will continue to worsen because the atmospheric carbon dioxide primarily to blame for the increase in acidification has been rising substantially in recent years.While the findings of the study, which was published recently in Nature Scientific Reports, identified "hotspots" of pH, or the potential of hydrogen, measurements as low as any oceanic surface waters in the world, there were "refuges" of more moderate pH environments that could become havens for some marine organisms to escape more highly acidified waters.The threat of ocean acidification is global and though it sometimes seems far away, it is happening on the West Coast of the United States and those waters are already hitting the beaches. Chan said that ten years ago, they were focusing on the tropics with their coral reefs as the place most likely to be affected by ocean acidification. But the California Current System is getting hit with acidification earlier and more drastically than other locations around the world.You&`&re listening to Special English. I&`&m Mark Griffiths in Beijing.The Federal Agency for Nature Conservation has raised concerns that meadows and pastures are becoming increasingly endangered in Germany and has released a new red list to the German Press Agency.The new red list of endangered biotypes, serves as a handbook for future conservation plans and is an update from the previous 2006 red list.Federal Minister for the Environment Barbara Hendrick from the Social Democratic Party of Germany, presented the findings that indicated almost two-thirds of the 863 species present in habitats in Germany are under severe threat from intensive agriculture, among other causes. The threat has particularly worsened in pastures or grasslands; meadows are also under increasing pressure.The Federal Office for Nature Conservation has reported some positive developments in coastal regions as well as next to rivers and streams which are benefiting from restoration or environmental protection plans as well as better sewage treatment plants. However, figures are much less positive for groundwater due to high nitrogen pollution caused by fertilizers from intensive farming. Many stagnant water volumes are also affected.There are many types of natural habitats in Germany including 46 types of water environments and 20 types of arable and fallow arable land. This is Special English.A study on young female mice reveals how puberty hormones might trigger changes in neural communication in the frontal cortices and impede some aspects of flexible youthful learning.Scientists have found that the onset of puberty hits something like a "switch" in the brain&`&s frontal cortex that can reduce flexibility in some forms of learning.The study was led by Linda Wilbrecht, an associate professor of psychology and neuroscience at the University of California, Berkeley, and the senior author of the study published in the journal Current Biology.The changes occurred in a region of the frontal brain that is associated with learning, attention and behavioral regulation.Overall, children have been found to have greater brain flexibility or "plasticity" than adults, enabling them to more easily master multiple languages and other elementary scholastic pursuits.While they continue to learn after puberty, their cognitive focus in adolescence is often redirected to peer relationships and more social learning.The study noted that if hormonal changes start as early as second or third grade, when children are tasked with learning basic skills, a shift in brain function could be problematic.Puberty onset is occurring earlier and earlier in girls in modern urban settings, driven by such factors as stress and the obesity epidemic, and has been associated with worse outcomes in terms of school and mental health.This is Special English.America&`&s first Nutella Cafe opened recently in downtown Chicago, with more than 400 customers lining up for their favorite treat.This is the first standalone Nutella Cafe owned by parent company Ferrero. Its menu items include grilled baguettes, fresh-roasted hazelnut, gelato and some Italian specialties.Noah Szporn, head of marketing at Nutella North America says there&`&s an incredible dining culture in the city, and Nutella is all about the idea of sharing good food with friends and family; and they thought that Chicago would be the perfect place to do that.（文稿请浏览周六微信。）

2017-05-01 Special EnglishThis is Special English. I'm Mark Griffiths in Beijing. Here is the news.More than 3,100 government officials have been held to account for the poor implementation of pollution control measures. Environmental problems have been uncovered in all seven provincial level regions included in the environmental inspections by the central authorities. Inspectors have conducted their month-long reviews in Beijing, Shanghai and Chongqing municipalities as well as in other provinces since late November. The performance audits exposed more than 15,000 violations.The inspection reports featured the complaint that governments have not focused enough attention on the environment. The failure has resulted in worsening air and water quality in some areas. In one case, Gansu province in northwest China made plans to control air pollution, but inspectors found that it had not fully implemented the measures. The province has failed to meet its air pollution reduction targets for 2014 and 2015. Inspectors also found a lack of assessment in Beijing, where seven districts failed to meet targets for 2014. The municipality did not release information or punish the officials responsible. This is Special English.China's manned submarine Jiaolong has gone through a dive simulation in Hainan Province to prepare for a deep descent in the South China Sea.The submarine stayed underwater for 18 minutes in the drill before returning to its support ship. The crew completed tasks including underwater training, practical operation and emergency escape.The ship's forthcoming South China Sea dive is part of the second stage of China's 38th ocean scientific expedition. The expedition will last for around four months.Officials say the drill was necessary to test the equipment and personnel. Currently the Jiaolong's "technological status" is stable and the cooperation among various departments is smooth.The submarine completed a deep-sea operation in the northwestern Indian Ocean earlier this year. It will also conduct surveys in the Yap Trench and the Mariana Trench.Named after a mythical dragon, the Jiaolong reached its deepest depth of 7,062 meters in the Mariana Trench in June 2012. You're listening to Special English. I'm Mark Griffiths in Beijing.China has begun a series of changes to the rules regarding permanent residence for foreign nationals in the country.A plan has been issued by the Ministry of Public Security. The "foreigner's permanent residence card" will be renamed as the "foreigner's permanent residence identity card".Similar to the identity cards used by Chinese citizens, foreigners' identity information will be embedded in the chips on the machine-readable cards. The information will be shared by railways, airlines, insurance agencies, hotels and banks.The old version cannot be read by machines, and foreigners often face difficulty in identity authentication. The reform aims to provide foreigners with easier access to public services.The new card can be obtained at the original registration authority, while the old version can still be used until the expiry date. Related technical work is expected to be finished by June, and then foreigners can apply for the new cards.Last year, 1,600 foreign nationals became permanent residents of China, an increase of 160 percent over the previous year. This is Special English.China is aiming to increase the scale of its cloud computing industry by more than 2.5 times from 2015 levels by 2019.According to a new government plan, the scale of the cloud computing industry will be expanded to 430 billion yuan, roughly 62 billion U.S. dollars, by 2019. The action plan was issued by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.Other targets include making breakthroughs in core technology, increasing cloud computing in manufacturing and government affairs, and strengthening the global influence of Chinese cloud computing companies.The ministry expects that two to three Chinese cloud computing companies will lead the global market within three years. It says cloud computing should be a strong support for China's manufacturing and Internet industries and help other social and economic sectors.The ministry pledged to enhance cloud computing network security and improve security regulation and relevant laws, as many users from key industries are still hesitating due to safety concerns.In the next three years, China will help boost cloud computing technology and encourage local governments to work with leading cloud computing companies to build public service platforms.You're listening to Special English. I'm Mark Griffiths in Beijing.Chinese search engine Baidu has succeeded in using artificial intelligence to reconnect a man with his family 27 years after he was abducted.The company is working with a charity group dedicated to connecting missing children and their families. Baidu uses its cross-age facial recognition program to analyze pictures of abducted children and identifies potential matches through the comparison of selected facial features. The missing children's pictures were uploaded by the victims and their birth families. Thirty-three-year-old victim Fu Gui was born in Chongqing Municipality in western China. He was abducted in 1990 and later transferred to Fujian Province in southeastern China. He registered in 2009, and his birth family did the same in early 2017.Baidu's facial recognition program was able to draw up a short list of potential identities for the man from pictures uploaded to the site, and a DNA test later verified the correct match.Baidu has around 200 million sample pictures that it uses to improve the sensitivity and accuracy of its facial recognition program, which can be over 99 percent accurate.Baidu's founder and CEO Robin Li says artificial intelligence systems, including facial recognition, could be used to help find missing children. The company has suggested that there should be a central database with missing children's information installed. You're listening to Special English. I'm Mark Griffiths in Beijing. You can access the program by logging on to crienglish.com. You can also find us on our Apple Podcast. Now the news continues.Psychologists at the University of Manchester in Britain have revealed that they have come up with a new way of helping people overcome their fear of spiders.Dr. Warren Mansell says rather than encouraging arachnophobias to face their spider fears, which is the current approach of many therapists, giving people control over how much they approach or avoid what they are afraid of is more likely to help.Mansell based his findings on a theory known as Perceptual Control Theory. The study was published in Journal of Anxiety Disorders.People with a fear of spiders sat in front of a screen and they themselves were able to control how close or distant the spider would appear.He said Perceptual Control Theory predicts that it is vital for a client to have control over their experience of important elements of the environment including the sources of threat. He said control itself is pivotal for health and well-being.The team recruited a large sample of people with high levels of spider fear and asked them to list their reasons for avoiding spiders but also their reasons for approaching spiders.After completing a simple task, people reported avoiding spiders less in their everyday lives two weeks later, despite their fear, and without any prompting to do so.You're listening to Special English. I'm Mark Griffiths in Beijing.A new study suggests that when Coffea arabica plants were subjected to even short-duration heat waves, they became unable to produce flowers and fruit. This means there would be no coffee beans and no coffee to drink.Researchers from the United States investigated how leaf age and heat duration affected Coffea arabica's recovery from heat stress during greenhouse testing. The study found that the younger "expanding" leaves were particularly slow to recover compared to mature leaves, and that none of the plants that endured the simulated heat waves produced any flowers or fruit.Coffea arabica is the dominant coffee-plant species on the globe. It grows in 80 countries in four continents in the tropics, accounting for 65 percent of the commercial production of the 9 billion kilograms of coffee consumed globally each year.The findings emphasized how sensitive Coffea arabica is to temperature. The leaf temperature is higher than the surrounding air temperature, which is a realistic result of global climate change.This is Special English.A British researcher says governments worldwide should invest in global approaches to learn how carbon capture and storage works, which is a realistic way of reducing carbon emissions. That's according to a commentary published online recently by the journal Nature Energy.David Reiner from the University of Cambridge, author of the commentary, said that like many new technologies, it is only possible to learn what works and what doesn't by building and testing demonstration projects at scale. He argues that by giving up on carbon capture and storage instead of working together to develop a global "portfolio" of projects, countries are turning their backs on a key part of a low-carbon future.Reiner says carbon capture and storage works by separating the carbon dioxide emitted by coal and gas power plants, transporting it and then storing it underground so that the carbon dioxide cannot escape into the atmosphere.However, the technologies have fallen out of favor with private and public sector funders in recent years. Corporations and governments worldwide, including most recently the UK, are abandoning the same technology they championed just a few years ago.The researcher says there are several reasons why carbon capture and storage seems to have fallen out of favor with both private and public sector funders, including costs, commercial pressure and timescales, as well as a lack of international cooperation.You're listening to Special English. I'm Mark Griffiths in Beijing.A special edition of the "Ukraine-China" magazine has been launched to mark the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Ukraine. The magazine features celebration remarks by the leaders of the two countries, as well as expert opinions on the historical path and the current state of China-Ukraine friendly relations.The publications highlight topics including the strategic partnership between China and Ukraine, interregional cooperation, trade and economic relations, as well as collaboration in science and education.The "Ukraine-China" magazine was first published in 1999 by the Kiev-based Institute of Oriental Studies. It was previously issued on an irregular basis, and became a periodical this year.This is Special English.An exhibition featuring conventional craftsmanship in Anhui Province has opened to the public at Beijing's Palace Museum.The exhibition showcases 85 works by 20 successors of national intangible cultural heritage from the eastern Chinese Province. The items on display include ink stones, ink and brush pens, lacquer ware and bamboo carvings. In ancient times, most calligraphy supplies used by Chinese emperors came from Huangshan city in the province. The Palace Museum and the city government launched a workshop last year, aiming to promote the craftsmanship and tourism development in the city.Mount Huangshan is a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site. It is known for its elegant architecture and high-quality green and black tea.That is the end of this edition of Special English. To freshen up your memory, I'm going to read one of the news items again at normal speed. Please listen carefully.（全文见周六微信。）

2017-03-27 Special EnglishThis is Special English. I&`&m Ryan Price in Beijing. Here is the news.A Long March-7 carrier rocket has arrived at a launch center in south China in preparation for the launch of China&`&s first cargo spacecraft in April.After around a week of ocean and rail transport, the carrier rocket arrived in Hainan Province. It will undergo assembly and testing prior to the April launch of China&`&s first cargo spacecraft Tianzhou-1.The Tianzhou-1 is expected to dock with the orbiting Tiangong-2 space lab three times and conduct propellant refueling in orbit. It will also conduct other space experiments before getting back to earth. Tiangong-2 will remain in orbit and continue its experiments.The Long March-7 is a medium-sized carrier rocket that can carry up to 14 tonnes of cargo to low-Earth orbit. It is able to carry cargo spacecraft and man-made satellites. It made its maiden flight in June last year.The launch of Tianzhou-1 will complete the second phase of China&`&s manned space program. It is a crucial step for China in building a space station by 2020. This is Special English.China and the United States have the greatest potential to lead advances in disruptive technology. That&`&s according to a recent report by an international accounting firm KPMG.The annual report is called "The Changing Landscape of Disruptive Technologies". It is based on a survey of over 800 global technology leaders including start-up entrepreneurs and Fortune 500 executives.This year&`&s poll reflected a slight uptick for China. Twenty-five percent of respondents said they believe China can be a leader in disruptive technology, compared with 23 percent last year.Those endorsing the United States declined slightly from 29 percent a year ago to 26 percent now.China continues to make rapid gains as it moves from a reliance on manufacturing to an innovation powerhouse.Through the use of disruptive technology, including cloud computing and the Internet of Things, Chinese companies are jumping on the new business opportunities.Visionary entrepreneurial leaders including Jack Ma of Alibaba are known and greatly respected globally.Shanghai was identified as the top leading technology innovation hub in addition to Silicon Valley over the next four years, followed by New York, Tokyo and Beijing. The city&`&s ranking was based on its strong regional position in financial markets and numerous hi-tech parks. You&`&re listening to Special English. I&`&m Ryan Price in Beijing. China&`&s top health authority has urged tightened supervision over the clinical use of antibiotic drugs to contain drug-resistance strains.A warning has been issued by the National Health and Family Planning Commission, China&`&s health watchdog.The commission said health departments and medical institutions at all levels should reinforce supervision on antibiotic use and carry out inspections at least twice a year.It encouraged medical institutions to join the efforts to monitor the clinical use of antibiotic drugs and drug-resistant strains to improve the early warning mechanism.Abuse of antibiotics can give rise to new strains of hardy bacteria that can live and even thrive despite the use of the medication.At present, drug-resistant infections have become a major challenge to global public health, causing the death of 700,000 people and 230,000 newborns worldwide every year.In August last year, the commission issued a national action plan to tighten supervision over antibiotic production, sale and use. This is Special English.China&`&s first big data research center for children&`&s health was founded in central China&`&s Hubei Province in a bid to improve children&`&s medical care system.The center was set up by Wuhan University and a Beijing-based pediatric technology firm. It aims to develop a more complete medical care system for children in disease prevention, diagnosis and personalized treatment.The center has collected information on more than 200,000 children in 70 hospitals across seven provinces. The collection will expand to 300 hospitals by the end of this year, and 1,000 by 2020.The research center said it will develop into a national cloud platform for children&`&s health information, offering standards on personalized medical care and clinical treatment.You&`&re listening to Special English. I&`&m Ryan Price in Beijing.The forest coverage of Beijing has more than tripled from 13 percent to 42 percent since China launched a national tree-planting campaign three decades ago.The proportion of green land in urban Beijing increased from 20 percent in 1980 to 48 percent last year.A total of 200 million saplings have been planted since the campaign began in the early 1980s.Last year, the city planted trees on 13,000 hectares of land. This year, the city will plant one million more trees.The tree-planting campaign has led to fewer barren mountains, and authorities have encouraged residents to register to take care of the trees.In 1979, China designated March 12 as National Tree Planting Day.This is Special English.Ceremonies have been held to commemorate the 92nd anniversary of the death of Dr. Sun Yat-sen. Sun was a renowned statesman who led the revolution that ended imperial rule in China in 1911.Representatives from all walks of life attended a ceremony in a park named after him in Beijing.Officials and residents of east China&`&s Jiangsu Province marked the day at Sun&`&s mausoleum in Nanjing, the province&`&s capital city, honoring his achievements and role in the revolution.Sun was born in 1866 and is known to the Chinese people as a "great revolutionary and statesman" for his leading role during the 1911 Revolution, which ended more than 2,000 years of feudal rule in China.Sun died in Beijing in 1925. You&`&re listening to Special English. I&`&m Ryan Price in Beijing. You can access the program by logging on to crienglish.com. You can also find us on our Apple Podcast. Now the news continues.China will publish the Analects of Confucius in foreign languages this year. The book is a collection of ideas and sayings from the Chinese philosopher.The China Confucius Foundation and a publishing group in east China&`&s Shandong Province will jointly complete the translation and publication of the collection. The five foreign languages are Arabic, Mongolian, Czech, Portuguese and Spanish.The translations will be distributed to the countries through the foundation and global Confucius institutes.The thoughts of Confucius constitute the root of Chinese traditional culture and have profoundly influenced Chinese society over the past 2,500 years.Confucius was born in Shandong in 551. He founded a school of thought that influenced later generations and became known as Confucianism. He is believed to be the first person to set up private schools in China and enroll students including the poor.The Analects is a collection of his famous sayings, reflecting his political views, moral principles and educational ideas. Among his classic sayings are "How happy we are to have friends from afar" and "Do not do to others what you don&`&t want to be done to you".The Analects has already been translated into English, Japanese, Russian, Korean, French and German.This is Special English.Two special exhibitions are underway at the National Gallery Singapore to showcase the evolution of Chinese ink painting and its impact on Singapore art history.The exhibition is entitled "Rediscovering Treasures". It is the first comprehensive survey by a national museum to focus on collections from Xiu Hai Lou, one of the most important ink collections in Singapore.The exhibition offers important insights into how art collecting and patronage developed in Singapore during the early 20th century. It provides visitors with the chance to see rare masterpieces by prominent artists in China.Chen Chong Swee was one of the first artists in Singapore to use Chinese ink painting techniques to depict local landscapes. The exhibition "Strokes of Life: The Art of Chen Chong Swee" is a major retrospective survey of Chen&`&s artistic career spanning six decades, and it focuses on his key contributions to artistic developments in Singapore from the 1950s to the 1980s.Many of the masterpieces are rarely seen in public.The exhibitions will run till the end of this year. The National Gallery Singapore will organize a series of complementary programs to encourage greater appreciation of ink art, including lectures by respected academics and practitioners, and hands-on activities for visitors of all ages.You&`&re listening to Special English. I&`&m Ryan Price in Beijing. A survey shows that Hong Kong&`&s customer service industry is in need of young talents. It also notes that only around a third of local young job seekers consider working in the industry as full-time.The survey was conducted by the Hong Kong Association for Customer Service Excellence. It interviewed 1,300 local customers, customer service employers and graduate job seekers in December last year.Only 32 percent of the young job seekers considered working in customer service industry as full-time. The long working hours and high pressure are the key problems of their concern.At the same time, 74 percent of customer service employees shared the same perception.Given the tight supply of young joiners in the market, employers must put considerable resources on recruiting and retaining job talents, including offering competitive salary and providing better career path and a happier workplace.Helping young people understand the positive sides of the customer service industry and focusing on work-life balance are also two effective ways to attract more talents.The survey also showed that 80 percent of local customers have experienced good customer service in the past 12 months, and the data has been at a high level since 2013.This is Special English.Local authorities in Southwest China&`&s Guizhou province began a search for possible siblings of a girl who was abandoned around 10 years ago and was later adopted by a Canadian couple.If they succeed, the girl will have a good chance of curing her disease through a bone-marrow transplant.The girl, named Hosanna, was left alone on the doorsteps of a county police station in 2007. When they failed to find her parents, the police sent her to a local welfare house.Greg and Cathy Crowell, a couple who already had four children, adopted her later that month, knowing that she had a disease. They called her &`&Hosanna&`&, which is Hebrew for "savior".Hosanna suffers from a severe hereditary blood disorder resulting from the poor ability of red blood cells to carry oxygen.Following doctors&`& advice, Hosanna spent her life receiving blood transfusions every two to three weeks, as well as daily injections to remove excessive iron from the transfusions.Hosanna can survive with blood transfusions, but she will need them for her entire life.In the past decade, Hosanna, who will celebrate her 11th birthday this spring, has been living in Alberta, Canada, with the couple. They have returned to the welfare house during that time, but have had no luck in finding her biological parents.Doctors in China and Canada have told the couple that the only way to cure Hosanna is through a bone-marrow transplant, which requires a match that is most likely to be found in siblings.The couple recently posted an open letter online, announcing a search for relatives of the girl. They offered to cover the cost of the blood tests to find a match.The letter caught the attention of the authorities in the county where Hosanna was originally found. The authorities have pledged to assist the couple in their search.While there have been no leads so far, the couple said they remain hopeful.（全文见周六微信。）

This is Special English. I&`&m Ryan Price in Beijing. Here is the news.Chinese President Xi Jinping is calling for efforts to enhance virtue in Chinese families and make them "an important foundation" for national development, progress and social harmony.Xi made these remarks when he met the participants at a Beijing conference to honor model families across the country. He said people from all walks of life should work for a new trend toward socialist family values featuring love for the nation, family and one another. The conference was the first of its kind to honor model families selected nationwide. A total of 300 families won the honor in a selection that highlights patriotism, observation of law, and commitment to public welfare.Xi said though family education has many aspects, the most important was in character building, stressing that sound moral values should be passed down to children from an early age.This is Special English.It is estimated that China&`&s aging population will reach a peak of 400 million by 2055, with large numbers of elderly in rural areas and a prevalence of female senior citizens.A new report shows that the aging population is expected to climb to 280 million by 2030, and the number of people who are 65 years of age and older will account for 20 percent of the total population. The figure will become 400 million by 2055, with an accompanying percentage of 27 percent.The report, issued by Social Science Academic Press, pointed out that the disproportionate female population is a result of the longer average life expectancy of women compared to men.Population experts say that different from other countries, Chinas&`& aging problem is largely due to the decades long family planning policies, which had led to a low birth rate for many years. You&`&re listening to Special English. I&`&m Ryan Price in Beijing. A documentary has been broadcast on TV in China, providing rare footage of the Tokyo Trials. The three-episode-documentary began broadcasting on Tuesday, December 13, which is China&`&s National Memorial Day for the Nanjing Massacre Victims.This year marks the 70th anniversary of the Tokyo Trials, when the Allied Forces brought to trial Japanese war criminals at the International Military Tribunal for the Far East in Tokyo after World War Two. The proceedings played an important part in shaping the postwar Asia-Pacific order.Some rare footage, including witnesses&`& testimony as well as war criminals defending themselves in court is broadcast for the first time in China.In 2014, China designated Dec. 13 as the National Memorial Day for Nanjing Massacre Victims.This is Special English.China has vowed to strengthen the management of online streaming, prohibiting unlawful and obscene content.The country&`&s media watchdog says authorities will crack down on activities that use live streaming to break the law or undermine people&`&s interests. In 2016, the authority handled more than 100 cases suspected of violating laws and regulations. The cases included online dramas, films and other audio-visual products. A regulation on live streaming has been in effect since December 1. It requires presenters to register with their real names and service providers to censor content and blacklist users who break the rules, prohibiting them from registering again. It also bans the use of live streams to undermine national security, destabilizing society, or infringing upon others&`& rights or interests.Online streaming has grown rapidly in China in recent years, generating huge business opportunities while bringing challenges to regulators. By the end of June, the number of streaming service users reached 500 million, accounting for 70 percent of China&`&s Internet population. Reports show that watching video online has become the primary form of entertainment in China, followed by gaming and reading literature online.You&`&re listening to Special English. I&`&m Ryan Price in Beijing. The South-to-North Water Diversion project has benefited 87 million people while easing the water crisis in Northern China. That&`&s according to a news conference held recently to mark the two year anniversary of the project&`&s launch.Among the beneficiaries is Li Wenlan, a senior citizen living in southwest Beijing&`&s Fengtai district. Li&`&s neighborhood now receives water from a nearby water plant, a facility built specifically for receiving water from the transfer project. Now, almost 70 percent of the water running in Beijing&`&s underground pipes comes from the diversion project. Statistics show that the hardness of pipe water, a metric showing the amount of potential water scale, has dropped to around 120 milligrams per liter, which is only one-third of what it used to be before the project. China began to build the project in 2002 after nearly 50 years of expert evaluations. The first stage of the eastern line of the project, which directs water from the Yangtze River in Jiangsu province to Shandong province, was launched in 2013. Initiated one year later, the middle line diverts water from a reservoir in central China to Beijing and Tianjin through Hebei province. The Water Diversion Office says the project eased water shortage in North China and improves the water security levels along the route.This is Special English.A photo exhibition has been held in Haikou, the capital of southern China&`&s Hainan Province, to commemorate the 70th anniversary of China&`&s recovery of the South China Sea Islands.Running from Monday to Sunday in Hainan Museum, the exhibition displayed 150 groups of photos showing the recovery, development and other historical events of the South China Sea Islands over the last 70 years. Some of the photos are on public display for the first time.In November and December 1946, China took over the Xisha and Nansha Islands in compliance with the Cairo Declaration and Potsdam Proclamation, which ended Japan&`&s illegal occupation of the islands. You&`&re listening to Special English. I&`&m Ryan Price in Beijing. You can access the program by logging on to newsplusradio.cn. You can also find us on our Apple Podcast. If you have any comments or suggestions, please let us know by e-mailing us at mansuyingyu@cri.com.cn. That&`&s mansuyingyu@cri.com.cn. Now the news continues.A survey has found that female employees in China are more loyal to their employers and have higher brand satisfaction than their male counterparts. The survey, entitled China Best Employers 2016, is based on feedback from more than 4 million respondents, around 53 percent of whom were women. The results were jointly published by Peking University&`&s Institute of Social Science Survey and Zhaopin.com, a Chinese human resources website.The report found that 38 percent of the female respondents have never changed their jobs, 11 percent higher than their male counterparts. Twenty percent of the females have been in their current job for more than five years, while for males, it was half that number, 10 percent. The survey also found that female employees care more about soft aspects of the workplace, including a positive and comfortable work environment, while at the same time, they desire equal pay for equal work. While female employees attach great importance to learning vocational skills as their career develops, the survey found that male employees care more about promotions. Women with work experience of less than one year are the most eager to improve their skills. The survey found that 56 percent of such women think improving their skills is the most important aspect of their career over the next three years. The report says recognition of personal capabilities and self-fulfillment are also a top concern for women, which "shows females are more worried about being replaced and more eager to win recognition".This is Special English.The southwestern Chinese city Chongqing will invest 15 billion yuan, roughly 2 billion U.S. dollars, to build a film and television industry park in a scenic mountainous area.The park will have a film shooting base, a tourist town, a theme park, as well as office buildings for film industry enterprises.The park is named after China&`&s Belt and Road Initiative, a cooperation scheme for countries along the ancient Silk Road.The park is located in the mountainous Wulong County. Construction will begin in early 2017. Cooperation partners from a dozen foreign countries have been invited to participate in the construction of some of the projects including the theme park and the tourist town.Local officials said the park will serve as a platform to promote exchanges and cooperation among film enterprises from China and other countries. It is expected that the park will integrate the art of film with online entertainment, gaming, and other new technology.You&`&re listening to Special English. I&`&m Ryan Price in Beijing. Reindeer living on the Arctic island of Svalbard are getting smaller - and scientists say climate change may be the cause.Scientists from Britain and Norway have found that adult Svalbard reindeer born in 2010 weigh 12 percent less on average than those born in 1994.Ecologist Steve Albon of Scotland&`&s James Hutton Institute says rising temperatures in the Arctic mean Svalbard is getting more rain, which is creating a hard ice sheet that the island&`&s reindeer can&`&t easily break through to reach food.Reindeer populations are also increasing due to warmer summers, stoking the competition.Albon says researchers think there is a correlation between rising temperatures and reindeer weight. He says more research is needed to confirm the link.Their findings were presented recently at a meeting of the British Ecological Society.This is Special English.Almost 20,000 ancient trees on the renowned Mount Tai in Shandong province now have "digital ID cards" holding basic information on the trees. The system provides basic information about the trees to help rangers examine the trees&`& growing environment, and make it easier for disease control and prevention. There are 18,000 ancient trees on Mount Tai, and 1,800 of them have been classified as first-class ancient trees, meaning they are either more than 300 years old, or are particularly rare. One of several very popular trees is a pine tree named Yingkesong, or Guest-Welcoming Pine. As one of the most popular tourist attractions, the more than 500-year-old pine is one of the items on the UNESCO World Cultural and Natural Heritage list. This is the end of this edition of Special English. To freshen up your memory, I&`&m going to read one of the news items again at normal speed. Please listen carefully.This is the end of today&`&s program. I&`&m Ryan Price in Beijing, and I hope you can join us every day, to learn English and learn about the world.

This is Special English. I'm Mark Griffiths in Beijing. Here is the news. China has launched a campaign to tackle school bullying. The State Council, the country's Cabinet, has sent a notice to local education bureaus. The campaign aims to curb bullying in primary and middle schools, including physical and verbal. Cyberspace bullying will also be targeted. The campaign targets all primary and middle schools across the country, including middle vocational schools. Campus bullying is a serious issue in China. Last year, a student was stabbed to death by three of his classmates in Guangdong Province. In another incident last year, a video clip showing schoolgirls slapping and kicking another girl in Jiangxi Province went viral online. The event triggered a widespread discussion of campus bullying. According to the notice, the inspector will be responsible for monitoring all schools in his or her school district. The inspector is required to report any bullying to the school and to the local education inspection department. Schools are required to invite public security and justice departments to provide anti-bullying education. The notice is urging schools to create procedures to prevent and handle campus bullying as well as to clarify responsibilities of school staff members regarding the issue. This is Special English. Aiming to improve students' overall fitness, the education authority is calling for greater emphasis on physical education in school admissions and assessment of officials. To encourage students to exercise more, the Ministry of Education is urging high schools and colleges to give more consideration in admissions to students' PE class attendance, fitness level and on-campus athletic performance. It also asks that the work evaluation of local education and school officials be partially based on students' results. The call is in response to a regulation issued recently by the State Council, the country's Cabinet, aimed at highlighting physical education's role in China's education system. Under the ministry's monitoring, if students' overall fitness is found to have declined for three consecutive years, the school leaders and local officials in charge will be punished, and will not be eligible for promotion. PE tests are currently included in China's high school entrance exams. However, students' PE performance is not part of the scoring system of the national higher learning entrance exam, or gaokao. That has led students in senior grades to focus more on academics than sports, and schools to replace PE classes with extra tutoring. A lack of physical exercise was partially blamed for students' fitness decline in the National Fitness Survey released last year. You're listening to Special English. I'm Mark Griffiths in Beijing. The support ship of a new deep-sea submarine has been delivered to its owner, the Chinese Academy of Sciences in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou. The 94-meter-long vessel has a full-load displacement of almost 6,300 tonnes, with a range of 10,000 nautical miles. It is equipped with 10 permanent research labs and two removable labs. The ship will serve as the support ship for a new submarine currently under development and for future expeditions of sea floor trenches. The vessel is scheduled to sail from Guangzhou to a port in Hainan Province for off-shore tests. If all goes well, the ship will sail to the Mariana Trench for a research mission in the near future. The new manned submarine can reach a depth of 4,500 meters under water and is likely to go through off-shore testing in the first half of next year. China's current manned submarine, the "Jiaolong", reached a depth of 7,000 meters in the Mariana Trench in June 2012. This is Special English. A robot has been developed aiming to get enrolled in first-class Chinese universities next year. The robot will then try to get into prestigious and comparatively more difficult Peking University or Tsinghua in 2020, after beating 12th graders. The robot will sit three exams, namely math, the Chinese language, and a comprehensive test of liberal arts including history and geography. A company in Chengdu in southwest China won the bid for the artificial intelligence program on the robot's math test held by the Ministry of Science and Technology last year. Like the other examinees, the robot will have to finish the tests in designated time. It will take its exams in a closed room without anyone else present, except for proctors and a notary. The robot will be linked to a printer before each exam, and the electronic examination paper will be fed into the robot's program at the start of the examination. The robot will be totally disconnected from the internet and will solve the problems with its artificial intelligence program. Finally the answers will be outputted through the printer. Experts say the robot is just one example of the boom in artificial intelligence after Google's AlphaGo beat a world-class player in the ancient board game Go in March. You're listening to Special English. I'm Mark Griffiths in Beijing. British scientists have discovered three earth-sized planets orbiting a dim and cool star 40 light years from Earth. The discovery was made by the University of Cambridge. It is believed to be the best place to start searching for extra-terrestrial life. Didier Queloz is a professor from the University of Cambridge's Cavendish Laboratory. He says the discovery of a planetary system around such a small star opens up a brand new avenue for research. Scientists used a telescope at the European Southern Observatory's La Silla Observatory in Chile, to view the star. Known as TRAPPIST-1, it is in the Aquarius constellation. The scientists found that the dim and cool star faded slightly at regular intervals, indicating that several objects were transiting, or passing between the star and the Earth. Detailed analysis showed that there were three planets of a similar size to the Earth. TRAPPIST-1 is an ultra-cool dwarf star, and as such is much cooler and redder than the Sun and is barely larger than Jupiter. Such stars are very common in the Milky Way and very long-lived, but this is the first time that planets have been found around one of them. This is Special English. British researchers have developed the world's tiniest engine, just a few billionths of a meter in size. The engine uses light to power itself. The researchers say the nanoscale engine can form the basis of future nano-machines that can navigate in water, sense the environment around them, and even enter living cells to fight disease. The researchers at the University of Cambridge published their study results in the U.S. journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The prototype device is made of tiny charged particles of gold, bound together with temperature-responsive polymers in the form of a gel. When the nano-engine is heated to a certain temperature with a laser, it stores large amounts of elastic energy in a fraction of a second. As the polymer coatings expel all the water from the gel and collapse, it forces the gold nanoparticles to bind together into tight clusters. But when the device is cooled down, the polymers take on water and expand again, and the gold nanoparticles are strongly and quickly pushed apart, like a spring. The research suggests how to turn Van de Waals energy into elastic energy of polymers and release it very quickly. Van de Waals energy refers to the attraction between atoms and molecules. You're listening to Special English. I'm Mark Griffiths in Beijing. You can access the program by logging on to newsplusradio.cn. You can also find us on our Apple Podcast. If you have any comments or suggestions, please let us know by e-mailing us at mansuyingyu@cri.com.cn. That's mansuyingyu@cri.com.cn. Now the news continues. China's TV singing contest "Super Girls" will return to screens after a ten-year break. The show is to be re-launched by Hunan Satellite TV, in Changsha, the capital of central China's Hunan Province. "Super Girls" is similar to "American Idol", offering ordinary people a chance at stardom. Around 610,000 people have registered to enter the contest. Women above the age of 18 can apply to be a contestants. They will be scored by the judging panel and public votes. Twenty finalists will be announced in June. "Super Girls" was first produced in 2004, and at its height, 200 million people tuned in to watch the live, three-hour finale of "Super Girls 2005" show. Now a celebrity, Li Yuchun was then a student with Sichuan Conservatory of Music. She won the contest in 2005. Li later appeared on the cover of Time Asia Magazine as one of the 25 Asian Heroes of the year. A set of stamps were issued featuring the singer. Since the run-away success of the format, Chinese TV producers have competed to make similar shows, including the popular "Voice of China" series. However, there are concerns that the new "Super Girls" show may not be able to achieve its past glory. This is Special English. （全文见周六微信。）

Eugene is currently in the Hainan Province in China, the breeding ground for the underground house church. Earlier in the day Eugene was speaking to a number of businessmen when he was interrupted by a leader who informed him that he had to evacuate the area immediately...

While in the Hainan Province, Eugene has been spending some time teaching and preaching at a meeting of business people from all around China. We want to share some information on BAM (business as mission) and how BTJ is involved in it.

更多内容，请关注我们今日的微信，搜索：英语环球 NEWSPlusThis is NEWS Plus Special English. I'm Liu Yan in Beijing. Here is the news.China's sports minister said soccer should not take the place of other sports at school, but rather help lead their development.Liu Peng, head of China's General Administration of Sports, said promoting soccer at school does not mean it should replace other sports.He stressed that all sports should be fully developed although soccer does play a special role in leading sports development.Liu's comments came after media reports that some schools were putting a stop to other sports in order to promote soccer after China unveiled a soccer reform plan. The ambitious plan was passed a month ago by China's central reform group chaired by President Xi Jinping. The plan aims to increase the number of schools featuring soccer from 5,000 to 20,000 by 2020, and to 50,000 by 2025.Some media reports cited a statement released by the provincial education department in East China's Shandong province, saying the provincial authorities will suspend basketball and volleyball leagues at universities this year and include soccer in campus tournaments.The education department later deleted the statement from its official website and denied that they will suspend basketball and volleyball leagues, saying the media had misinterpreted their comments.This is NEWS Plus Special English.China's Xinhua News Agency and The Associated Press of the United States, the world's two leading news agencies, have agreed to strengthen cooperation in social media.To deal with the challenges of a transforming media environment, Xinhua laid eyes on social media where traditional news outlets are losing competitiveness. Xinhua President Cai Ming-zhao told his AP counterpart Gary Pruitt that Xinhua has been turning out new-media products to meet the new demands of its clients. The new products integrate text, photo and video, and were launched on various platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. After touring Xinhua's newly established Social Media Operation Center, Pruitt said he was impressed by Xinhua's input in the sphere.Pruitt said The Associated Press also attaches great importance to social media, and Xinhua and the AP should share what they do.Xinhua officially unveiled its global social media presence on March 1, after rebranding its Facebook, Twitter and YouTube accounts under the unified name "New China".As of the end of last month, its Facebook account got more than 900,000 "likes", while almost 1,500,000 people followed Xinhua on Twitter. Its YouTube account attracted 50,000 "subscribers".This is NEWS Plus Special English.Peng Liyuan, the wife of Chinese President Xi Jinping, has attended a south China campus event promoting the prevention of AIDS and tuberculosis. She took part in the event in Hainan University in Hainan Province, alongside Zambia's First Lady Esther Lungu and US billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates. Before the event, Peng Liyuan met with Bill Gates and highly praised the health promotion efforts of the Bill-and-Melinda Gates Foundation in China as well as around the globe. She encouraged further cooperation between the foundation and China in this regard.Peng later watched shows with Esther Lungu and Bill Gates in the university auditorium, where they enjoyed dances, musicals and an AIDS prevention sketch by college volunteers. An anti-discrimination short film featuring Peng was presented at the show and was warmly received.Peng is a goodwill ambassador of the World Health Organization for tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS.The campus event was launched in Peking University last year and has been held in three separate colleges previously. It aims to spread knowledge about the prevention of AIDS and tuberculosis by using the influence of public figures.You are listening to NEWS Plus Special English. I'm Liu Yan in Beijing. The battle to dispel smog, cut greenhouse gases and solve the energy crisis is moving to space.Chinese scientists are mulling the construction of a solar power station 36,000 kilometers above ground.If it comes to fruition, the solar power station will become the largest-ever space project, surpassing the scale of the Apollo project and the International Space Station.The power station will be a super spacecraft on a geosynchronous orbit equipped with huge solar panels. The electricity generated will be converted to microwaves or lasers and transmitted to a collector on Earth.An economically viable space power station will be really huge, with the total area of the solar panels reaching 5 to 6 square kilometers. That's equivalent to the size of 12 Beijing's Tian'anmen Squares, the largest public square in the world, or almost the size of two New York Central Parks. People on Earth will possibly see the station with naked eye, like a star in the night skies.But why build a power station in space? Scientists explain that the electricity generated from the ground-based solar plants fluctuates with night and day and the weather, while a space-based generator can collect energy 99 percent of the time.When space solar energy becomes the main energy, people will no longer worry about smog or the greenhouse effect; and power cables will not be needed anywhere in the world.

This is NEWS Plus Special English. I'm Yun Feng in Beijing. Here is the news. China will mark its first Martyrs' Day with events across the country on September 30th. China has designated September 30th every year as a national holiday to commemorate the country's martyrs. The move is aimed at publicizing martyrs' achievements and spirits, and cultivating patriotism and socialist moralities so as to consolidate the Chinese nation's cohesiveness. This is the third national memorial day in China, following the "Victory Day of the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression" on September 3rd and "National Memorial Day for Nanjing Massacre Victims" on December 13th. The "martyrs" refer to people who sacrificed their lives for national independence, prosperity, and the welfare of the people in modern times. China has around 20 million martyrs and around 300 people have been identified as martyrs annually in recent years. The authorities say that the setting on September 30th, one day before China's National Day on October 1st, has great significance, as people will take time for a more somber occasion before celebration. In addition, September 30th was also the day on which the foundations were laid for the Monument to the People's Heroes, which stands at the heart of Beijing's Tiananmen Square. This is NEWS Plus Special English. The world's largest duty-free shop has opened its doors in the coastal city of Sanya in China's southernmost Hainan Province. The "Haitang Bay" duty-free shopping center has attracted almost 300 international brands. For several of them, including Prada and Rolex, it is the first time they have appeared in a duty-free shop on the Chinese mainland. With an area of 72,000 square meters, the center replaces an existing duty-free shop which is just one seventh of the new store's size in downtown Sanya. China International Travel Service Group, CITS, has invested 5 billion yuan, or around 814 million U.S. dollars, in the center, which is run by China Duty Free Group under CITS. Officials say the new store excels any others in the world in space, functions and the number of brands; and its opening is a milestone for China's duty-free market. China grants Hainan permission to run a trial duty-free program in a bid to make the island province a world-class tourist destination by 2020. You are listening to NEWS Plus Special English. I'm Yun Feng in Beijing. China has set up a special fund in a bid to better finance the protection of the Great Wall. The Cultural Relics Protection Foundation has raised more than 18 million yuan, or almost 3 million U.S. dollars, from donations; and a committee was set up to manage the fund. The Great Wall has a total length of more than 21,000 kilometers and is one of the most iconic landmarks of China. The aging world heritage site is confronted with pressing challenges including a lack of protection and most notably a shortage of renovation fund in some undeveloped regions. This is NEWS Plus Special English. The renowned Mogao Grottoes in northwest China's Gansu Province have been well-protected from sand erosion and encroaching desert following 70 years of continuous effort. A combined system consisting of barriers and plant belts have been installed to ward off erosion of the Grottoes, a World Heritage Site of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. The accumulated sand in the grottoes has mostly been removed thanks to sand control projects, greatly minimized the damage to murals and sculptures. Since the 1940s, various measures have been taken to stop the drifting sand, and in the late 1980s, the Dunhuang Academy started cooperating with international organizations to protect the grottoes. A project launched in 2008 has also strengthened the sand control system around the grottoes. The Mogao Grottoes have gained global recognition for their huge collection of Buddhist artwork, boasting more than 2,000 colored sculptures and 45,000 square meters of frescoes in almost 740 caves carved along a cliff. It became China's first UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987. You are listening to NEWS Plus Special English. I'm Yun Feng in Beijing. Net users say the teenage students who were prevented from attending classes in Beijing for not meeting their school's hairstyle requirements were going a hair too far. The No. 1 Middle School of Huairou District blocked three male students from their first day of classes after claiming they did not comply with the school's dress and style code. All male students must sport a crew cut, while females must wear their hair in a braid or tied up. According to the regulation, students are also forbidden from wearing nail polish or having long finger nails. Violators will be suspended on the spot. Though the school argued the code aims at helping students focus on their studies, many feel the policy is too rigid. Some net users said the rules are ridiculous because there is no such scientific study that shows a hairstyle has any link with one's academic performance in school; and that the education system kills personality. Others, however, support the move by the school, saying it can prevent students from spending too much time comparing each other's hairstyle.

完整文稿请关注周末微信或登录我们的网址： http://english.cri.cn/7146/2014/05/30/2582s829231.htm This is NEWS Plus Special English. I'm Mark Griffiths in Beijing. Here is the news. The yield of China's new hybrid rice breed has topped almost 15,000 kilograms per hectare, with the country set to break the world record in rice output through large-scale planting. Rice variety "Longliangyou 1813" set the record in the country's largest southern breeding base in Sanya, Hainan Province. The record yield is the achievement of the fourth phase of China's hybrid rice development program and is made possible by a new high-yield breed, advanced cultivation technology and nanotechnology-supported fertilizer. Chinese scientist Yuan Longping, the "father of hybrid rice", is leader of the new breed's development team. Yuan says the goal of achieving a new super rice strain with an expected yield of 15,000 kilogram per hectare will be achieved before next year. The new breed will be planted in large-scale breeding bases in other provinces such as Hunan in central China to test its productivity later this year. It is expected to achieve a higher yield, as those regions enjoy more favorable environments for rice growth than Hainan. The new breed is pest-resistant. Nanotechnology-based fertilizer is being used for the first time in breeding hybrid rice. The fertilizer can activate microbes in the soil, not only fertilizing the breed, but also the soil itself. Scientists also designed a specific cultivation pattern for the breed to grow faster. You're listening to NEWS Plus Special English. I'm Mark Griffiths in Beijing. They suffer searing headaches, a burning fever and so much pain in their joints they can barely walk or use their hands. It's like having a terrible flu combined with an abrupt case of arthritis. Hospitals and clinics throughout the Caribbean are seeing thousands of people with the same symptoms. They are victims of a virus with a long and unfamiliar name that has been spread rapidly by mosquitoes across the islands. The first locally transmitted case was confirmed in December last year. 34-year-old patient Sahira Francisco says she feels it in her bones, her fingers and her hands; and it's like everything is coming apart. The southern Dominican Republic has seen a surge of the cases in recent days. The virus is chikungunya, derived from an African word that loosely translates as "contorted with pain". People encountering it in the Caribbean for the first time say the description is fitting. The virus is rarely fatal, but it is extremely debilitating. Outbreaks of the virus have long made people miserable in Africa and Asia. But it is new to the Caribbean. The first locally transmitted case was documented in French St. Martin last December. It is likely to have been brought in by an infected air traveler. Health officials are now working feverishly to educate the public about the illness, knock down the mosquito population, and deal with an onslaught of cases. This is NEWS Plus Special English. The human placenta is not as sterile as once thought, but rather harbors a small but diverse group of microbes that may influence the course of pregnancy. The findings by U.S. researchers hint at an association between the composition of the placental microbial community and preterm birth, which means birth of a baby at less than 37 weeks gestational age. Scientists characterized the bacteria in more than 300 placentas to investigate the idea that the placenta is a sterile environment. Researchers say the placental micro biome is low in terms of microbial abundance, but not as sterile as doctors previously thought. They suspected that oral microbes might slip into the mother's bloodstream and end up in the placenta. The finding has important implications on the likely importance of oral health during pregnancy. It reinforces long-standing data relating to periodontal disease to risks of preterm birth. It could lead to rapid breakthroughs in not only identifying women at risk for preterm birth, but developing new and worthwhile strategies to prevent preterm birth. You're listening to NEWS Plus Special English. I'm Mark Griffiths in Beijing. Once again, the world hit record heat levels recently. The average global temperature a month ago tied the hottest April on record four years ago. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in the United States say April's average temperature was 14.5 degrees Celsius. That was almost 0.8 degrees warmer than the average last century. The last time the globe's monthly temperature was cooler than normal was February 1985. Scientists said April's heat was driven especially by Siberia and Eurasia. The United States and Canada were the few exceptions. Canada was slightly cooler than normal and the United States was a little warmer than usual.