DPRK’s Kim
String theory
MONDAY, April 16, 2018
Gambling
in the cards
for Hainan?
Opening-up idea sees island as global
tourist destination and free-trade zone
By LI XIANG in Beijing
and MA ZHIPING in Haikou
China’s plans to further open
its economy, including the lat-
est measure to build Hainan
island into an international
free-trade zone, reaffirmed the
country’s commitment to mar-
ket liberalization and its role as
a key driver of global growth,
experts said.
The tropical island province
of Hainan, known for its sandy
beaches and resort-dotted
coastline, gained prime atten-
tion from home and aboard
over the weekend after Presi-
dent Xi Jinping announced a
grand plan that helped define
the island’s future role.
The central government has
decided to set up an invest-
ment fund to support building
a free-trade port in Hainan by
2025. Foreign firms and multi-
national companies will be
encouraged to set up interna-
tional and regional headquar-
ters on the island, according to
a detailed official guideline
released on Saturday.
China also plans to build
Hainan into a global tourism
and consumption hub and will
support the development of
horse racing and other pro-
jects, including beach and
water sports in Hainan.
The island also will “explore
the development of a sports
betting and instant lottery on
large-scale international com-
petitions”, and also will gradu-
ally phase out sales of
traditional oil-fueled vehicles,
according to the guideline.
Li Renjun, a professor at
the Hainan Industrial Eco-
nomic Institute, said the
opening-up measures include
looking into whether intro-
ducing the gambling busi-
nesses will help boost the
island’s status as an interna-
tional tourism destination.
“The measures will have a
strong demonstrative effect in
terms of policy innovation,” Li
said, adding that the new plan
will generate huge investment
opportunities for foreign com-
panies in tourism, education,
and cultural and creative
industries.
Hainan is expected to attract
more than 80 million tourists a
year by 2020, including 1.2 mil-
lion from overseas. Total annu-
FRAUDS PREY ON SENIORS’ FRAILTIES
With his own parents victimized by scammers, man leads fight against bogus health supplements
By XING YI in Shanghai
C
hen Jie has gone all-
in with the battle
against fraudsters
who prey on the eld-
erly by selling dubious health
supplements with exaggerat-
ed claims of medical benefits.
The 43-year-old quit his job
as a wine salesman in June
and founded a company in
Chengdu, Sichuan province, to
help families whose elderly
relatives have been trapped in
scams.
Str
Top bi
billing for center’s May music
festiva
festival is the violin LIFE, PAGE 20


al tourism revenue will surpass
100 billion yuan ($15.9 billion)
by that time, experts estimate.
Yuval Golan, chairman of
Unique 1 Asia International, a
foreign consulting firm in
Hainan, said the government
should focus on developing
local tourism brands and prod-
ucts and improving infrastruc-
ture and services to attract and
retain foreign expert workers.
The new plan for Hainan
was widely seen as a concrete
market liberalization measure
following Xi’s speech at the
Boao Forum for Asia and as a
major embodiment of the
country’s next round of reform
and opening-up policies.
The move also sent a reassur-
ing message of China’s continu-
ous commitment to openness
and free trade at a time when
global growth is challenged by
rising trade friction, protec-
tionism and geopolitical uncer-
tainties, experts said.
Jon Taylor, a China specialist
and a professor of Political Sci-
ence at University of St. Thom-
as in Houston, Texas, said the
expansion of China’s openness
will create an environment that
fosters more stability, transpar-
ency and predictability for Chi-
nese and foreign firms.
The new opening-up meas-
ures will generate more foreign
investment and development
opportunities in China and will
benefit the global economy, as
it will help reduce trade barri-
ers, expand market access and
enhance global economic pros-
perity, Taylor said.
Robin Xing, chief China
economist at Morgan Stanley,
said Xi’s speech reaffirmed the
view that China is committed
to economic liberalization and
promotion of globalization.
Piyush Gupta, chief execu-
tive of DBS Group, a Singapore-
based financial service group,
said Xi’s announcement indi-
cated a strong desire to further
open up on several fronts.
Chen Weihua in Washington
and Jiang Xueqing also
contributed to this story.
Contact the writers at
lixiang@chinadaily.com.cn
Inside
Editorial > p8
He posts information about
how to recognize health sup-
plement frauds on websites,
listens to people’s complaints,
gathers evidence and reports
cases to government agen-
cies.
He does it all for free,
because he knows how affect-
Reunion of lifetime
Demonstrators take part in a protest against the US bombings in Syria outside the White House grounds on Saturday in Washington.
Similar protests took place across North America and in major European cities. MANDEL NGAN / AFP
Syria bombings raise global concerns
By WANG LINYAN
in New York
wanglinyan@chinadaily.com.cn
The US-led air attacks on
suspected chemical weapons
facilities in Syria have raised
grave global concern, with
protests calling for an end to
the raids and politicians call-
ing for a return to dialogue to
avoid escalated tensions.
A resolution condemning
the attacks by the US, British
and French bombardments
failed to pass in a United
Nations Security Council
emergency meeting on Satur-
day. The meeting was con-
vened at Russia’s urging 14
hours after the air raids began,
targeting sites suspected of
being related to Syria’s chemi-
cal weapons capabilities and
despite the arrival of a fact-
finding mission in Damascus.
Russia, China and Bolivia
voted for the draft; the United
States, Britain, France and
Foresight needed
to navigate future
By FU JING
and ZHOU WENTING
in Hangzhou
With mounting isolation-
ism, protectionism and even
military actions affecting
global unity, the world faces a
pressing task of sticking
together through President
Xi Jinping’s proposal of creat-
ing a common community
with a shared future for man-
kind, prominent scholars
said.
They have shed their light
at the second edition of
Vision China, a series of pub-
X 500
ed family members feel — his
own parents fell victim to such
frauds.
Numerous cases have been
reported over the years
around China, where 16.7 per-
cent of the population is older
than 60, and the problem
prompted authorities to
launch a nationwide crack-
down on health supplement
frauds in July.
The China Food and Drug
Administration, now incorpo-
rated into the new State Mar-
ket Regulatory Admin-
agrees to
stronger ties
WORLD, PAGE 11
five others voted against; and
four abstained.
The airstrikes, launched
Friday night, had been limit-
ed to three military locations:
a research center at the air-
port in Damascus, a suspect-
ed chemical weapons facility
near Homs and an equipment
storage site, also near Homs,
according to the US State
Department. Both US and
Russian sources indicated
there had been no civilian
casualties. UN Secretary-Gen-
eral Antonio Guterres said
the UN could not independ-
ently verify those reports.
China opposed the use of
force in international rela-
tions and called for respect for
other countries’ sovereignty,
independence and territorial
integrity, Ma Zhaoxu, China’s
permanent representative to
the UN, said after the vote.
“Any military action
bypassing the Security Coun-
cil runs contrary to the pur-
lic events organized by China
Daily, at the Hangzhou Inter-
national Expo Center on Sun-
day. Following the event was
the awards ceremony of the
2018 Grand Final of the China
Daily 21st Century Cup
National English Speaking
Competition.
“This is the vision,” David
Gosset, an expert in interna-
tional relations and founder
of the Europe-China Founda-
tion, said in reference to Xi’s
proposal of creating a com-
mon community with a
shared future for mankind.
“The contrast is clear:
istration, said on March 15
that the government investi-
gated 12,000 cases of fraud or
misleading advertising last
year, confiscating illegal prod-
ucts and handing out fines
totaling 360 million yuan
($57.3 million).
The case of Chen’s parents is
just one of many.
His father, once a soldier,
joined a “veterans’ club” in
2008. At first, he was invited to
lectures on current affairs at
the club, given by “military
experts”, which gave him a
Inside
• Editorial > p8
• Related story > p12
pose and principles of the UN
Charter and violates the prin-
ciples of international law
and the basic norms govern-
ing international relations,
and will further complicate
the Syrian issue,” Ma said.
In Beijing, Foreign Minis-
try spokeswoman Hua Chun-
ying urged on Saturday the
relevant parties to return to
the framework of interna-
tional law and resolve the
issue through dialogue.
She said that China believes
a comprehensive, impartial
and objective investigation
should be carried out to reach
a reliable conclusion that
could stand the test of time.
“Yet before that, a prejudg-
ment should not be made,”
she said, adding that political
settlement is the only viable
David Gosset, founder of the Europe-China Foundation, speaks
at the second edition of Vision China on Sunday at the Hangzhou
International Expo Center. GAO ERQIANG / CHINA DAILY
There is one country today in
the world, led by a man. This
country is the biggest econo-
my in the world. This man is
shifting from multilateralism
to unilateralism, which is not
the right path.”
sense of belonging. But then,
Chen said, his father started
bringing home expensive
health supplements.
Chen checked the products
and found they either lacked
an approved serial number or
had fabricated or expired
ones, but his father did not lis-
ten to him.
Meanwhile, his 70-year-old
mother spent 800,000 yuan
on various fraudulent “invest-
ments” and ineffective health
supplements in just six years.
She did not tell her son until
76 years after the Holocaust
separated friends, they meet
WORLD, PAGE 10
chinadaily.com.cn
 ¥2
‘Red wall’
opens
doors in
Beijing
GOVERNMENT
ACTION IN A NEW ERA
By DU JUAN
dujuan@chinadaily.com.cn
From adding elevators to
old apartment buildings to
making more parking lots
for local residents and from
setting up vegetable mar-
kets to clearing the sheds
that blocked streets, local
government officials in Bei-
jing’s Xicheng district have
taken on the task of solving
problems confronting resi-
dents in their daily lives.
As a group of people liv-
ing and working closest to
the Zhongnanhai leader-
ship compound, govern-
way out for the Syrian issue. ment officials and residents
Guterres said there is no in central Beijing’s Xicheng
military solution, only a polit- district are always aware of
ical one. “I urge all member their “special duties”.
states to show restraint in Since the headquarters
these dangerous circumstan- of China’s central leader-
ces and to avoid any acts that ship Zhongnanhai is in the
could escalate matters and district, people who live
worsen the suffering of the and work around the com-
Syrian people,” he said. pound have developed loy-
Russian Ambassador to the alty to the Party, a sense of
UN Vassily Nebenzia con- responsibility and a faith to
demned in the strongest pos- serve the public good.
sible terms the attack on Syria Since 1999, this common
and urged the US, Britain and awareness has been called
France to immediately end a “red wall consciousness”
“aggressive” actions. because of the color of walls
Syrian Ambassador to the surrounding Zhongnan-
UN Bashar Ja’afari said the hai.
US, Britain and France were In January 2016, the cen-
“liars”. He said if they knew tral leadership raised “Four
the locations of chemical Consciousnesses” of the
weapons makers, why had ideology, the whole, the
they not shared that with the core and the line — to help
Organization of Prevention of build the Party through
Chemical Weapons? inner-Party discipline and
directives.
Xinhua contributed to this As introduced by Lu
story. Yingchuan, Party chief of
the capital’s Xicheng dis-
trict, the “red wall con-
sciousness” is a reflection
of the “Four Consciousness-
es” at a basic level among
the grassroots.
“The government offi-
cials actively solve the
problems for every citizen.
The ‘red wall conscious-
ness’ is not a big word up in
the air. It’s concrete and
practical,” Lu said.
“Facing huge disputes
and pressures, the munici-
pal government still moved
out the Beijing Zoo clothing
wholesale markets for a
better development of the
city. The officials at the
Addressing an audience of street level try to create
more than 1,500, both from more green areas, which
home and abroad, at the cen- are called ‘tiny parks’, to
ter, which was the venue for improve the natural envi-
the G20 summit chaired by ronment. All of the above
have shown the ‘red wall
See Vision, page 6 consciousness’,” Lu said.
Xicheng has set an exam-
ple for other districts
Sales of health
supplements in China
Unit: billion yuan
through more involvement
from public opinions.
On Oct 29, Lu, together
with other district officials,
480.3*
went to local communities
400
to communicate with peo-
ple living in the area.
300
260 See Wall, page 3
193.2
200 162.4
116
100
0 A member of the
2012
2013
2014
2016
2020
Asia News Network
© 2018 China Daily
*Estimated
All Rights Reserved
Source: China Health Care Association
Vol.38 — No.11841
CHINA DAILY
国内统一编号:CN11-0091
国际标准编号:ISSN0253-9543
she suffered a stroke and 邮发代号:1-3
became immobile in 2016.
See Scams, page 5
 Monday, April 16, 2018

CHINA DAILY

2 PAGE TWO
Looking ahead
Candid camera: Return of the egrets
Events and stories coming up in the next few days

Information Office to review in the first quarter. Monthly updates of the

State-owned enterprises
The State Council Information Office will
hold a media briefing in Beijing on Monday.
Peng Huagang, deputy secretary-general
and spokesman for the State-Owned Assets
Supervision and Administration Commis-
sion of the State Council, will review the
economy in light of the operations of State-
owned enterprises in the first quarter. The
event is open to reporters from home and
abroad.
Statistics bureau to brief
media on Q1 economy
The National Bureau of Statistics will hold a
media briefing in Beijing on Tuesday to
review the country’s economic performance
country’s survey-based urban unemploy-
ment rate will also be released. GDP grew
by 6.9 percent last year, and this year’s
growth target is set at “around 6.5 percent”,
according to the Government Work Report.
Application system to start
for household registration
Beijing will launch its points-based applica-
tion system for household registration on
Monday, a move to meet the demand of
nonnative Beijing residents to stabilize
their living situations in the capital, accord-
ing to the city’s Human Resources and
Social Security Bureau. The points-based
system is aimed at qualified nonnative
Beijing workers who have stable employ-
ment in the city.

On chinadaily.com.cn
Visit for breaking news and exclusive content

People: Once-obese college Book: German story about

Two white egrets land on a tree in a forest park in Huai’an, Jiangsu province, on April 9. Every year, from April to August, many egrets
student transforms himself European refugees is winner migrate to the park for breeding. ZHOU HAIJUN / FOR CHINA DAILY
After half a year of The German novel Encounter by 70-year-old
exercise and diet, Bodo Kirchhoff was announced as the for-
Zhang Shuai has lost eign novel of theyear at the 21st Century
30 kilograms and Best Foreign Novel of the Year 2017 award
become a healthy, mus-
cular man. Zhang, 22, a
senior at the Heilong-
ceremony on Friday. The book recounts the
story of a down-on-their-luck German cou-
ple helping a refugee girl during their trip
Man’s best friendship is furever, tail and all
jiang Institute of to Sicily, Italy. Co-sponsored by China Pub- Whether or not you spell are wont to do. their officers drive them like
Technology in Jixi, lishing Group, People’s Literature Publish- their name backward, or As for their loyalty to us chickens and dogs.”
Heilongjiang province, ing House, Chinese Association of Foreign consider that they may in wayward folk, you may well Moving back to modernity,
once was a lead player Literature and Taofen Foundation China, it fact be the species with nine ask what’s in it for domesti- the staying power of the pop-
on his college basket- is the longest-running award in China. It is lives, as the number itself is cated dogs? ular pet is a testament to
ball team. But two aimed at discovering the best foreign novels fully spelled out within their I, for one, have no idea, but adaptability.
years ago, he gained 40 to be published in Chinese. very name, dogs (aka having said that, perhaps it’s Several millennia ago, dur-
kg in six months after an accidental injury. canines) are indeed sublime, a good thing they remain ing the pastoral stage of
All kinds of inconveniences that arose with Culture: Russian treasures perhaps even divine critters. speechless — having been social organization, dogs
obesity fired his determination to lose
weight. The effect of his strict diet and exer-
make their debut in Beijing As luck stuck with a single-word were bred for their ability to
Cultural would have vocabulary (woof! bow-wow! keep sheep and other vege-
cise routine is now clear. In addition, during it, Canis wan! ... pick your patois) tarians from running beyond
relics from
the process, he became focused on body- domesticus since we ditched the trees My dog Xiao Bai. the shepherd’s ken — while
Russia’s
building and won a provincial bodybuilding has for some and hit the savanna stand- eagerly awaiting their “mas-
Peterhof ANDREW PASEK / CHINA DAILY
competition. Zhang is now a part-time reason decid- ing. ters” to slaughter these same
State
instructor at a fitness center. ed to hitch its What if they were sudden- the rain …” said Li Bai (701- ruminants and then throw
Museum-
Reserve Andrew waggly tailed ly gifted with intelligible 762) in his Visiting the Taoist them a bone.
IAsk: Who is the creator are on dis- Pasek wagon to us speech, and admitted they Priest Dai Tianshan But Not As if a loyal pup’s wagging
of the China internet car? play in Second upright-walk- were only with us for the free Finding Him. tail and playful pouncing
He Xiaopeng is the chairman of Xpeng China for Thoughts ing — though lunch and protection from The mention evokes a when we arrive home each
Motors and also an well-known entrepre- the first time at the China Millennium hardly coyotes? sense of longing and melan- night isn’t enough to cement
neur in China’s internet industry. Last year, Monument in Beijing. The exhibit will run upright — schmucks. How depressing. choly, associated with a com- their friendship with us for-
Xpeng Motors earned an A-plus in a round through June 10. Chinese elements also At some point tens of Let’s see what the ancients mon background din that ever — let’s not forget that
of financing and Xpeng Motors’ mass pro- found their way into many showpieces thousands of years ago in the have to say. forms an aural construct when buildings crumble in
duction vehicles were offline. In this video, among the 243 cultural relics. One painting evolution of mankind, dogs The leading poetic rivals of around our memories. quakes or the sightless try
we talk with He to find out whether he can- features a Chinese-style study room in the decided to throw nature for a the Tang Dynasty (618-907) And Du Fu (712-770), in A and negotiate a busy inter-
create another business legend in the field Summer Palace of Peter the Great. Portraits loop and lose their lupus made a few references to Song of War Chariots, per- section, it’s not the cats and
of internet cars. of 14 tzars are featured in the exhibition, tendencies, preferring long man’s best friend in their haps unwittingly revealed goldfish that are called to
along with royal belongings, including cos- walks by our side and dry copious body of work. that we often take our bark- duty.
Animal: Giant dog model tumes, watches, fans and kitchenware. bones for snacks instead of “A dog’s bark amid the ing brothers for granted.
the loose flesh of our necks water’s sound/Peach blos- “Men of China are able to Contact the writer at
calls for pet healthcare as appetizers, as wolfpacks som that’s made thicker by face the stiffest battle/But andrew@chinadaily.com.cn
Onlookers were Travel: Journey of Lights
stunned when a adds fame to Chimelong
giant animat- Chimelong International Ocean Tourist This Day, That Year
ronic dog, five Resort in Zhuhai, Guangdong province, has
times bigger again been honored by the Themed Enter-
than the real- tainment Association for its Journey of This year marks the 28th that China would
life spaniel it Lights Parade. Chimelong stood out from anniversary of the country’s establish a
was modeled 300 international tourism companies to years participation in UN peace- 10-year $1 billion
after, was taken become the only Chinese recipient of the on keeping missions. peace and devel-
out for its first award for outstanding China has become “an opment fund to
walk in London. The giant dog took a team achievement. Journey of Editor’s Note: This year important force in safeguard- support the UN’s
of 10 special-effects experts a staggering Lights, an all-new marks the 40th anniversary ing world peace”, said Li Xiu- work.
2,000 hours to make. The model is operated parade spectacular at the of China’s reform and open- hua, deputy director of He added the
by three puppeteers. Passers-by stared in park, is the first night- ing-up policy. peacekeeping affairs at the country will help
amazement at the large dog, created for time float to interact Ministry of National Defense. train 2,000 peacekeepers play a constructive role in
Frontline Plus, a medication for treating with spectators. Found- Since joining United As a permanent member from other countries and maintaining world peace
fleas, in a bid to encourage owners to ensure ed in 1991, the associa- Nations peacekeeping opera- of the UN Security Council, launch 10 assistance pro- and regional stability.
that their pets are protected. It was made by tion is the most Scan it! tions in 1990, China has dis- China sent most of the grams to identify land mines Troops from China’s
the special-effects team, which worked on prestigious evaluation Read patched more than 36,000 troops on UN peacekeeping before 2020. Ground Force, Navy, Air
the hit play Harry Potter and the Cursed organization in the more on personnel. missions and provided major In September, the ministry Force and Logistics Force
Child and the 2012 London Olympics open- themed entertainment chinadaily. In April 1992, it sent its first funding for operations. announced that China had will undertake tasks such as
ing ceremony. industry. com.cn company of engineers to Cam- President Xi Jinping said registered an 8,000-strong combat readiness training
bodia, as reported in an item at the UN Peacekeeping standby peacekeeping force and disaster relief in China
that month in China Daily. Summit in September 2015 with the UN. The force will before any missions overseas.

MON - TUE APRIL 16-17

3/14 Beijing 8/23 S 12/25 C Shanghai 10/18 C 11/20 C
14/24 2/17 Changchun 1/20 S 9/21 C Shenyang 2/20 S 9/21 S
13/20 Changsha 14/22 C 13/26 S Shenzhen 18/22 R 17/24 Sh
Chongqing 12/24 S 15/28 S Shijiazhuang 8/23 C 11/27 C
8/23 Dalian 7/16 S 9/19 S Suzhou 5/24 S 9/22 D
12/25 Fuzhou 15/22 O 15/24 D Taipei 18/22 O 18/21 D
4/17 Guangzhou 15/17 R 17/23 T MONDAY
Taiyuan 2/21 S 5/26 S
7/18 Guilin 15/20 C 12/28 C Tianjin 9/26 S 13/27 S TUESDAY
11/17
10/19 Guiyang 10/20 C 7/23 C Urumqi 14/24 S 13/20 S
10/25 Haikou 20/24 T 20/26 T Wuhan 9/22 C 10/25 S
12/27 10/18
11/20 Hangzhou 8/18 O 10/21 O Xi'an 7/24 S 10/26 S
23/38 Harbin -1/18 S 9/19 S Xiamen 17/24 D 17/24 D Abu Dhabi 20/36 O 23/32 C BuenosAires 8/19 C 10/24 C
22/39 18/22 Hefei 8/21 C 11/22 S Xining -3/21 C 0/24 C
15/17 18/21 Bangkok 29/36 D 28/35 D Caracas 24/25 D 25/26 D
17/23 Hohhot 1/20 S 5/23 S Yantai 4/20 S 7/23 S Colombo 25/32 D 25/31 D Chicago -2/3 Sn 1/5 R/Sn
24/39 Hongkong 19/23 R 18/23 Sh Yinchuan 4/23 S 8/27 S Dubai 22/34 O 25/31 S Houston 11/22 S 20/25 S
19/23 Jinan 11/23 S 15/25 S Zhengzhou 8/23 S 11/25 S
23/39 18/23 Hanoi 18/24 D 17/20 D Las Vegas 5/15 C 14/15 S
Kunming 10/18 Sh 10/20 Sh Zhuhai 17/20 R 17/23 Sh Islamabad 18/25 D 19/26 D Los Angeles 7/14 D 12/14 D
Lanzhou 3/24 S 5/26 S Jakarta 26/32 D 25/32 D Mexico city 14/17 C 15/21 C
29/36 Lhasa 1/14 O 2/15 D
28/35 Karachi 25/34 S 23/34 S New York 4/8 D 6/7 R
Lijiang 8/19 D 8/22 D Kuala Lumpur 25/30 D 25/29 D Ottawa -10/3 R/Sn -4/0 Sn
25/32 Macao 17/20 R 18/23 Sh Rio De Janeiro 20/22 D 21/23 D
26/30 25/32 26/35 Manila 26/35 D 25/35 D
25/35 Nanchang 12/21 O 13/24 C Mumbai 24/33 S 24/33 S San Francisco 0/9 D 7/13 D
25/32 Nanjing 8/20 C 9/22 C Athens 14/24 D 14/25 S
Berlin 0/5 O 0/10 R/Sn New Delhi 23/38 C 22/39 S Sao Paulo 13/19 D 13/18 D
Nanning 16/22 C 15/26 C Pyongyang 3/17 S 3/19 S Vancouver 2/7 C 3/8 D
25/30 Qingdao 7/14 S 8/13 S Brussels -1/5 Sn -2/11 Sn
25/29 Geneva 3/4 O 0/8 O Riyadh 15/32 S 17/27 S Washington 10/16 R 5/10 R
Sanya 25/28 T 24/28 T Seoul 4/17 S 7/18 S
Istanbul 10/20 D 11/21 O
26/29 London -1/3 C 0/7 R/Sn Singapore 26/29 D 25/29 R
25/29 Madrid 0/11 O -3/13 C Sydney 18/27 S 18/19 D Cairo 15/35 S 20/34 C
Moscow 5/18 D 5/17 D Teheran 4/9 D 4/9 C CapeTown 15/27 S 15/23 S
26/32 Paris 2/9 C 0/15 R/Sn Tokyo 11/17 O 10/19 D Johannesburg 10/18 D 11/18 D
25/32 Rome 4/10 S 3/11 S Wellington 13/20 D 15/19 D Lagos 25/27 D 25/27 D
Vienna 1/6 C -3/8 Sn Yangon 24/39 D 23/39 D Nairobi 16/23 D 18/23 D
 CHINA DAILY Monday, April 16, 2018
TOP NEWS
US again
declines to
say China
cheats with
currency
By CHEN WEIHUA
in Washington
chenweihua@
chinadailyusa.com
Amid growing trade tension
between China and the United
States, the administration of
President Donald Trump has
again declined to label China a
currency manipulator.
The US Treasury Depart-
ment, in its semiannual report
to Congress, found none of the
six major US trading partners
placed under monitoring —
China, Germany, Japan, South
Korea, Switzerland and India
— was manipulating its cur-
rency. India is new to the Trea-
sury list.
“We will continue to monitor
and combat unfair currency
practices, while encouraging
policies and reforms to address
large trade imbalances,” Trea-
sury Secretary Steven Mnuchin
said in a statement on Friday.
It was the third such Trea-
sury report issued by the
Trump administration since
taking office 15 months ago.
None of the reports labeled
China a currency manipulator,
unlike Trump’s rhetoric on the
campaign trail for the 2016
election when he repeatedly
bashed China as a currency
manipulator.
The Treasury report, titled
Macroeconomic and Foreign
Exchange Policies of Major
Trading Partners of the United
States, said China has an
“extremely large and persist-
ent” bilateral trade surplus
with the US, with a goods trade
surplus standing at $375 bil-
lion in 2017. But it noted that
China runs a trade deficit with
many other economies.
China’s current account sur-
plus expanded in nominal
terms to $96 billion, or 1.4 per-
cent of the GDP, in the second
half of 2017 from $90 billion, or
1.5 percent, in the second half
of 2016. “But it remains signifi-
cantly below its 2007 half year
peak over 10 percent of GDP,”
the Treasury report said.
The last time the US Trea-
sury labeled a country as a cur-
rency manipulator was in 1994,
when China was named. The
Treasury report also noted that
since the beginning of 2018,
China’s yuan has continued to
strengthen against the dollar,
up by 3.7 percent at the end of
March.
Speculation was rife last
week that China might depre-
ciate the yuan in case the
Trump administration impos-
es punitive Section 301 tariffs
on some $150 billion of
imports from China following
an investigation into China’s
intellectual property policies
and practices.
Yi Gang, governor of the Peo-
ple’s Bank of China, the central
bank, said on March 11 that
China had no intention of
manipulating its exchange rate
to try to boost trade.
Yi is expected to be in Wash-
ington in the coming days for
the 2018 IMF/World Bank
Annual Spring Meeting.
Stars turn out for Beijing film festival
By WANG KAIHAO
wangkaihao@chinadaily.com.cn
The eighth annual Beijing
International Film Festival
lifted its curtain on Sunday at
Yanqi Lake International Con-
vention and Exhibition Cen-
ter, gathering a star-studded
lineup on the red carpet.
The Tiantan Awards are the
highest awards at the festival,
which 659 films from 71 coun-
tries and regions have entered.
Fifteen films have been select-
ed as finalists and await the
all-star jury’s decision.
Hong Kong director Wong
Sea parade showcases
growing naval prowess
Carrier group,
newest nuclear
subs, destroyers
are pride of fleet
By ZHAO LEI
zhaolei@chinadaily.com.cn
The naval hardware seen in
Thursday’s sea parade repre-
sented the achievements
made by the People’s Libera-
tion Army Navy in its mod-
ernization drive, military
observers said.
Senior Captain Cao Wei-
dong, a researcher at the PLA
Naval Military Studies
Research Institute, said that
the Navy received a large
number of new weapons with
advanced capabilities over
the past five years and the
new hardware features a
higher information capability
and optimized joint opera-
tion system and thus can bet-
ter carry out sophisticated
joint operations.
The parade’s mixed group-
ing of ships, submarines and
aircraft in different strike
groups symbolized the Navy’s
enhanced capability of coor-
dinating and integrating mul-
tiple elements in combat
missions, he said.
The appearance of new-
generation nuclear-powered
submarines and a carrier bat-
tle group, Cao added, indi-
cates that the Navy has
become able to perform long-
range operations.
Cui Yiliang, editor-in-chief
of Modern Ships magazine,
said the Navy showed almost
all of its new hardware deliv-
ered during the past 10 years.
It is now capable of conduct-
ing every naval operation,
from strategic strike to
Kar-wai, a globally acclaimed
flag-bearer of New Wave, is the
head of the seven-person jury.
“No matter what genre the
candidates belong to, be it a
commercial or art-house pro-
duction, they have to do well
in storytelling,” Wong said of
the selection criteria. “We will
evaluate those with original
thoughts and creativity.”
Wong won a Tiantan Award
for best director in 2014 for his
martial arts film The Grand-
master.
This year’s shortlist of
potential winners includes
two Chinese productions:
A J-15 fighter jet and the CNS Yinchuan, a Type 052D guided-
missile destroyer, also take part in the sea parade on Thursday.
MO XIAOLIANG / FOR CHINA DAILY
amphibious assault, he said.
The technological advan-
ces of China’s submarine for-
ces was obvious in the parade,
Cui said.
“The nuclear-powered bal-
listic missile submarines
involved in the parade are of
the latest generation and
have many improvements
compared with their prede-
cessors. You can see from
their hull design that China
has made big strides in nucle-
ar-powered submarines,” Cui
said. “The new nuclear-pow-
ered attack submarines are
reportedly capable of launch-
ing cruise missiles. Mean-
while, some conventionally
powered attack submarines
in the parade have been
equipped with the advanced
Hold Your Hands, an art-
house film on villagers’
endeavor to get rid of poverty
in Hunan province, and Oper-
ation Red Sea, an action film —
and huge success in the box
office this year — inspired by
the evacuation of Chinese citi-
zens from Yemen in 2015.
The other finalists include
the Czech war comedy Bare-
foot, Canadian drama Eye on
Juliet and South African bio-
graphic film Krotoa.
Wong, noting that 2018
marks the 40th anniversary of
China’s reform and opening-
up policy, said he was eager to
air-independent propulsion
system that makes these
boats stealthier.”
Wu Peixin, a defense indus-
try analyst in Beijing, said the
PLA Navy has been steadily
and rapidly catching up with
the United States Navy in
terms of its hardware’s tech-
nological and operational
capabilities.
“Ten years ago, it would
have seemed a little unim-
aginable that we would
have a full carrier battle
group and could make it
basically deployable in the
decade to come. It would
also appear fantastic if
someone told you that we
would soon begin commis-
sioning a domestically built
carrier and several of the
find more abundant types of
films at the festival this time.
“Chinese cinema should
adopt a more open attitude to
encourage different styles,”
Wong said. “We need green
grass, and we also need red
flowers, and we can have flour-
ishing blossoms.”
Actor Duan Yihong, also a
jury member, called for more
support for young talent at the
Beijing festival.
“When I choose scripts,”
Duan said, “I usually don’t
work with the directors who
are very famous. I put more
value in whether the directors
The CNS Liaoning
aircraft carrier and a
new-generation
nuclear-powered
ballistic missile
submarine participate
in the sea parade on
Thursday.
ZHANG KAI AND HU
KAIBING / FOR CHINA DAILY
world’s mightiest destroy-
ers,” he said.
Wu gave the CNS Chang-
sha, a Type 052D guided mis-
sile destroyer that carried
President Xi Jinping during
the parade, as an example of
the Navy’s improved arsenal.
The Type 052D class is the
most capable fleet escort
deployed by the Navy, he said.
It has a full displacement of
nearly 7,000 metric tons and
a wide range of weapons,
including a single-barrel 130-
mm naval gun and a close-in
weapon system, as well as 64
vertical launching cells con-
taining HHQ-9 long-range
anti-aircraft missiles and
YJ-18 or YJ-83 anti-ship cruise
missiles. The fighting power
of a single Type 052D ship is
the combat force equal of sev-
eral previous models put
together, Wu said.
The PLA Navy had its larg-
est-ever sea parade on Thurs-
day morning off Hainan
province’s southern coast to
mark its achievements over
the past several years.
The spectacular event,
involving more than 10,000
Navy personnel, was the fifth
sea parade by the Chinese
Navy and the first in the
South China Sea. The last sea
parade was in 2009.
An armada of 48 ships and
submarines, including the
CNS Liaoning aircraft carrier,
took part in the unprecedent-
ed demonstration of China’s
naval prowess. Six nuclear-
powered submarines, includ-
ing two that carry nuclear-
capable intercontinental
ballistic missiles, appeared in
the parade.
Seventy-six naval aircraft
flew overhead, including heli-
copters, fighter jets, bombers
and electronic warfare air-
craft.
really care about people’s des-
tinies.”
The other jurors are Shu Qi,
an actress from Taiwan, Ruben
Ostlund, a Swedish director
acclaimed for his Palme
d’Or-winning The Square at
the Cannes Film Festival last
year, Jan Kaczmarek, a Polish
film score composer who won
an Academy Award for Find-
ing Neverland, Calin Peter
Netzer, the Romanian director
of the 2013 Golden Bear winner
Child’s Pose in Berlin, and
Jonathan Mostow, the Holly-
wood action director best
known for Terminator 3.
Mostow said the Beijing fes-
tival is a venue for different cul-
tures from all over the world to
communicate, and it will long
Revised rules set
for evolving PLA
By ZHAO LEI
zhaolei@chinadaily.com.cn
President Xi Jinping has
issued an order to publish a
set of revised regulations
governing the responsibili-
ties and discipline of mem-
bers of the People’s
Liberation Army.
Xi, who is also chairman
of the Central Military Com-
mission, recently ordered
that the three revised regula-
tions, which cover every
aspect of military life, includ-
ing administrative proce-
dures, duties and formalities,
as well as chains of command
and discipline, will take effect
on May 1, the CMC Training
Management Department
said in a statement.
The revisions are intended
as modifications in keeping
with the rapid evolution of
the PLA and to facilitate the
military’s modernization
efforts, the statement said.
They were based on Xi’s
thoughts on strengthening
the military, which have been
included in the regulations, it
said.
The new regulations high-
light combat training, have
specific clauses on the man-
agement of training and exer-
cises and stipulate that
negligence or cheating will be
punished.
Wall: ‘Street chiefs’
help out neighbors
From page 1
Requirements and sug-
gestions — 120 items in all,
including adding elevators,
setting up vegetable markets
and parking lots — were
raised during the meeting.
The government of
Xicheng district called on
different departments to
make a timetable to solve
those problems.
Since April 2017, Xicheng
district established a system
employing “street chiefs” to
take charge of improving
street outlooks and solving
problems for those who live
along the streets.
There are 1,402 street
chiefs in the district. Their
names and phone numbers
are displayed publicly on the
boards hanged on each
street. People can call to get
in touch with the street
chiefs to solve their issues.
Qi Zhengbin, street chief
of Shenyeli hutong, helped
have 37 coal storage sheds
removed after they blocked
the road for a long time.
Wang Junli, chief of Qian-
menxiheyan street, held
three meetings with the
local residents and a parking
management company to
resolve parking difficulties
in the area.
All street chiefs have a
sense of duty to make the
capital clean and beautiful
and to help their neighbors.
In addition to serving the
people who live in the
Xicheng district, “red wall
consciousness” also is shown
Some jury members of the Beijing International Film Festival make
their debut on the red carpet on Sunday. JIANG DONG / CHINA DAILY
inspire filmmakers, including
him. Ostlund revealed he will
be looking in China for the
right actors for his next film.
More than 300 events —
3
There are more and clear-
er instructions on behavior
and etiquette for PLA per-
sonnel. Members of the mili-
tary are required to control
their weight according to a
certain standard.
The previous tight control
on mobile phone use has
been relaxed. Military mem-
bers now are allowed to use
mobile phones and social-
networking applications aft-
er they register the hardware
and the applications’
accounts with their com-
manding unit.
Fourteen new ceremonies
were created for formal occa-
sions such as oath-taking,
establishment of new units
and saluting those killed in
the line of duty.
Clauses on online shop-
ping, prevention of training
injuries and psychological
consultation were also added
to the regulations.
A PLA researcher of regu-
lations, who wished not to be
identified, explained that the
revisions eliminated some
antiquated rules, such as
those on mobile phone use,
and took reasonable needs
from military personnel into
consideration.
In consequence, they will
extensively improve the
PLA’s management of servi-
ces members, he said.
toward laborers who work
for the district.
The labor union of the
Xicheng district started a
project last year to set up rest
stations for workers, such as
couriers, parking-lot attend-
ants, taxi drivers and sanita-
tion workers.
The rest stations have
water, air conditioning,
tables and chairs and first-
aid kits for emergencies.
There also are books and
magazines for them to read.
In Dashilan street, there
are 10 rest stations. Under
the plan, the labor union,
together with several cater-
ing companies, will establish
about 200 rest stations.
“This place has given us a
warm feeling,” said Xiong
Zhongbao, a sanitation
worker. “The rest stations
show the respect to people
who contribute to this city.”
Dennis Oldfield, general
manager of the Grand Mer-
cure Beijing Central in
Xicheng district, said “red
wall consciousness” encom-
passes integrity, loyalty and
taking responsibility, and
that’s “something which is
very strong in China over
the years that I’ve been
here”.
The head of the district
agreed.
The “red wall conscious-
ness” started in the Xicheng
district, but it won’t end
there. It will “grow” to all
areas in Beijing, which will
help the capital to become a
harmonious international
city, Lu said.
including forums, premieres,
and trade fairs — will be held
in the coming week for the
festival, which ends on April
22.
4
CHINA
Monday, April 16, 2018
CHINA DAILY » CHINADAILY.COM.CN/
Services for
foreigners
to improve
Organizational change will help
in many ways, vice-minister says
By ZHANG ZHIHAO
in Shenzhen
zhangzhihao@
chinadaily.com.cn
China will improve servi-
ces to attract foreign talent to
study and work in the coun-
try, Vice-Minister of Science
and Technology Zhang Jian-
guo said on Saturday.
“China has placed unprece-
dented importance on attract-
ing foreign talent since 2012,”
said Zhang, who is also direct-
or of the State Administration
of Foreign Experts Affairs.
He was speaking at the
opening ceremony of the
16th Conference on Inter-
national Exchange of Pro-
fessionals in Shenzhen,
Guangdong province.
Foreigners made around
960,000 trips to the Chinese
mainland last year, 60,000
more than in 2016, according
to the administration.
“We will have more posi-
tive, open and effective meas-
ures to attract foreign talent,”
Zhang said.
The administration
merged with the Ministry of
Science and Technology last
month as part of China’s lat-
est government revamp.
“The merger will improve
China’s recruitment systems,
expand platforms and opti-
mize services for foreign
experts, thereby creating a
more convenient and favora-
ble environment for them to
settle in China,” Zhang said.
Chen Dongmin, dean of
Peking University’s School
of Innovation and Entrepre-
neurship, said China has
improved greatly in fields
such as nuclear energy,
high-speed rail and satellite
communication, thanks to
talent exchanges with other
countries.
China’s technological
development also benefited
from having strong, well-
planned national support, as
well as major investments
from all parts of society, said
Daniel Calto, director of
solution services at Elsevier
Research Intelligence, a
global science analytics firm.
“Although China does not
have many permanent immi-
grants, its growing global col-
laboration with other
universities and institutes has
created a strong talent net-
work,” he said. “My advice is
to increase this type of collab-
oration. We will start to see
China gaining more influence
in multiple scientific fields.”
Steven Chapman, group
vice-president for China and
Russia at global engine man-
ufacturer Cummins, who has
been in China more than
three decades, said, “My first
impression of Chinese part-
ners is integrity.”
A foreign expert receives a certificate at the 16th Conference on
International Exchange of Professionals in Shenzhen, Guangdong
province, on Saturday. XUAN HUI / FOR CHINA DAILY
“We are living in a global-
ized world, and a nation’s eco-
nomic development depends
on foreign trade and talent
exchanges,” Chapman said.
“Cummins has brought its
technology and management
to China, and we have seen
healthy development based
on mutual innovation and
complementary advantages.”
Chapman, a recipient of
the Chinese Government
Friendship Award in 2016
and a Chinese “green card”
holder, said China’s policies
toward foreigners have
improved dramatically in the
past few decades.
“In the past, expats could
only stay in selected hotels,
and our visas expired in a
month,” he said. “It is now
much more convenient for
foreigners to visit, and there
has been a real effort in
establishing a positive and
healthy environment to
attract foreign talent.”
It is great to see
China on the path
of incrementally
improving services
for foreigners.”
Peter Lobie, medical professor
at Tsinghua-Berkeley Shenzhen
Institute
However, some issues pose
a challenge and cause trouble
for foreign experts, Chapman
said — for example, pollu-
tion, unfamiliarity with local
policies and the difficulty of
getting a Chinese green card.
Peter Lobie, a medical pro-
fessor at Tsinghua-Berkeley
Shenzhen Institute, said:
“China still has room to
improve in terms of helping
foreign experts settle in. But it
is great to see China on the
path of incrementally improv-
ing services for foreigners.”
Lobie has been working in
and out of China for more
than a decade, and four
months ago decided to
remain in China full time. He
said the growing convenience
of living in the country; the
large market for advanced,
potent drugs; and the high
level of appreciation for his
work were all reasons behind
his decision.
“As for other foreign
experts who might come, I
think it is just a matter of tak-
ing a leap of faith,” he said.
“You have to take the first step
of coming, and understand
that you are well supported in
China and you will have a
rewarding experience.”
Splash of heritage
People spray and splash water on each other at the Water Sprinkling Festival in the Xishuangbanna Dai autonomous prefecture, Yunnan province,
on Sunday. The festival, a traditional, auspicious celebration of the Dai ethnic group, was added to China’s intangible cultural heritage list in 2006.
LI MING / FOR CHINA DAILY
Drugs made overseas to be tax-free
By YANG WANLI
yangwanli@chinadaily.com.cn
Pharmaceuticals made
overseas, including cancer
drugs and traditional Chinese
medicines, will be exempt
from import taxes starting
May 1, as part of a package of
polices to improve drug access
and public health in China.
The move comes just over a
week after the central govern-
ment released measures to
boost the production and clini-
cal application of generic
drugs to help lower the cost of
medical bills.
The State Council, which
announced the exemptions aft-
er an executive meeting on
Thursday, also said the value-
added tax on the production
and import of drugs will be cut
by a large amount, a decision
experts say will be even more
effective in easing patients’
financial pressures.
Imports of innovative medi-
cines will be encouraged,
Trial of 15 alleged
gangsters concludes
By CAO YIN
caoyin@chinadaily.com.cn
A court in Shandong prov-
ince has concluded the trial of
15 defendants accused of mul-
tiple gang-related crimes and
rape.
Dongchangfu District Peo-
ple’s Court in Liaocheng
closed its proceedings on
Saturday night after a three-
day hearing and said a ver-
dict would be announced
later.
Prosecutors said the defend-
ants, led by Wu Xuezhan, orga-
nized and participated in
gang-related activities, extor-
tion, home invasions, illegal
detention, intentional injury
and rape.
Since 2010, Wu, 35, ordered
fellow defendants — some of
whom were employees of his
two registered real estate com-
panies in Guanxian county —
to use violence to collect debts
and destroy people’s property,
the court was told.
“The gang used threats to
influence government and
law enforcement officials,
damaged private cars, pre-
vented banks from issuing
loans and interfered in com-
panies’ operations,” prosecu-
tors said, adding that some of
the accused also raped wom-
en while carrying out gang-
related offenses.
95 percent
of the nearly 170,000
drug production projects
approved in China were
for generic medicines.
while the protection of drug-
makers’ intellectual property
rights will be strengthened,
the Cabinet said.
This month, the central gov-
ernment issued a notice
encouraging the development
and production of generic
drugs that are in short supply.
A generic drug is a medica-
tion that has the same active
ingredients as a brand-name
patented drug and yields the
same medicinal effects, but it
can be marketed only after the
patent has expired.
“Generic drugs are less
expensive because their manu-
facturers don’t have to dupli-
cate the original clinical trials
Wu and his co-defendants
came under national scrutiny
in March last year when Yu
Huan, a 22-year-old from Lia-
ocheng, accused them of
racketeering in his appeal of a
life sentence for killing a debt
collector.
Yu stabbed four men hired
by Wu to collect money from
his mother, Su Yinxia, in early
2016. One of them, Du Zhihao,
died from his injuries.
In February last year, Liao-
cheng Intermediate People’s
Court sentenced Yu to life in
prison for intentional injury.
He appealed, saying that the
debt collectors had used vio-
lence and insults, and that
his actions were in self-de-
fense.
The Shandong High Peo-
ple’s Court reduced Yu’s sen-
tence to five years in prison in
June.
Wang Wenguang, the lawyer
for Yu’s mother, attended the
three-day trial in Shandong.
He said on Sunday that his cli-
ent had accused 12 of the 15
defendants of using violence to
collect debts and other gang-
related activities.
“Wu denied all the accusa-
tions, and the others would
not confess,” he said.
Eight defendants pleaded
guilty during the trial to illegal
detention and home invasion,
he added.
There has been a real effort in establishing
a positive and healthy environment to
attract foreign talent.”
Steven Chapman, a recipient of the Chinese Government Friendship Award in 2016
for effectiveness and safety,
which lowers the cost of bring-
ing the drug to market,” said Yu
Li, an expert at the Beijing
Institute for Drug Control.
About 95 percent of the near-
ly 170,000 drug production pro-
jects approved in China were
for generic medicines, accord-
ing to the National Health
Commission.
The notice said government
departments will draft a list of
generic drugs that are in
demand and will support their
production with policies such
as preferential tax rates for
pharmaceutical companies.
To speed up the evaluation
process, a testing system will be
set up through several depart-
ments, including the nation’s
top health, drug and science
authorities, the notice said. It
also emphasized that the quali-
ty of generic drug production
should be enhanced.
Competition between drug-
makers was once unregulated,
and the quality of products
Partial to peonies
Women in traditional clothes take part in the opening ceremony
of a peony festival in Huai’an, Jiangsu province, on Saturday.
More than 30,000 visitors attended the ceremony. The festival
runs through early May. ZHANG WEI / CHINA DAILY
Flight diverted after
man takes hostage
By ZHANG YI
zhangyi1@chinadaily.com.cn
A male passenger on an
Air China flight from Chang-
sha to Beijing was detained
on Sunday after he used a
pen to take a crew member
hostage.
The man, identified only
as Xu, 41, from Anhua, Hun-
an province, was taken into
custody at 1 pm on Sunday
after the plane was diverted
to Zhengzhou Xinzheng
International Airport in
Henan province.
Xu, who reportedly has a
history of mental illness,
began acting abnormally
during the flight and took a
member of the cabin crew
could vary and even be unsatis-
factory, Xinhua News Agency
recently quoted an unnamed
official from the National
Health Commission as saying.
China is home to more than
4,000 pharmaceutical compa-
nies that produce generic
drugs, according to the China
Food and Drug Administra-
tion, which is now part of the
newly created State Market
Regulatory Administration.
The notice stressed that
strengthening safeguards for
intellectual property related to
drug innovation and produc-
tion will be a priority, with the
interests of patent holders bal-
anced with the public’s needs.
Infringing patents will be
prohibited, it said. However, the
government notice said that in
the event of a serious epidemic
or public health emergency that
threatens lives, compulsory
licensing and production of pat-
ented drugs will be initiated to
allow generic copies onto the
market as soon as possible.
hostage using a pen as a
weapon, according to the
Henan Public Security
Department. No injures were
reported.
The diversion of Flight
CA1350 to Zhengzhou was
made for “public safety rea-
sons” and the crew followed
proper procedures, aviation
authority said on Sunday.
Henan Airport Group
said the flight landed at 9:58
am, and all passengers were
led safely from the plane to
the terminal buildings at
10:50 am.
The flight had departed
Changsha in Hunan at 8:40
am and had been sched-
uled to arrive in Beijing at
about 11 am.
Briefly
BEIJING
Xi’s book on
security published
A book of extracts about
President Xi Jinping’s holis-
tic approach to national
security has been published
by Central Party Literature
Press and will be distribut-
ed across the country. The
book features four themes
and covers Xi’s remarks on
sticking to a holistic
approach to national securi-
ty; safeguarding national
security in key fields; realiz-
ing common, comprehen-
sive, cooperative, and
sustainable security; and
following the path of peace-
ful development.
YUNNAN
Police seize
30 kg of meth
More than 30 kilograms of
methamphetamine was
seized, local police said on
Saturday. One suspect was
detained, and an SUV and
66 bottles containing a total
of 30.78 kg of meth were
confiscated in Mengla
county on April 8.
XINHUA
Doctor
charged
in liquor
dispute
By CHINA DAILY
Prosecutors in northern
China have accused a doc-
tor of damaging the repu-
tation of a pharmaceutical
company by posting false
information online.
The reputation of a phar-
maceutical liquor made by
Hongmao Pharmaceutical
— which the company says
is good for health — had
been harmed, according to
a statement on Sunday
from police in Liangcheng
county, Inner Mongolia
autonomous region.
Distributors are demand-
ing refunds, resulting in
heavy economic losses for
the company, the police
said.
The company com-
plained to authorities in
December that online
information calling the
liquor a poison was false,
and a case was filed on Jan
2. Police found that an arti-
cle headlined “Chinese
magic pharmaceutical
liquor is a toxic substance
from heaven”, written by
Tan Qindong, had been
widely spread online.
Liangcheng police
detained Tan on Jan 10
based on what they said
was clear evidence, and
prosecutors issued an
arrest warrant on Jan 25.
A police document quot-
ed by Red Star News, an
online media portal for
Chengdu Economic Daily,
said the company claimed
to have suffered losses of
about 1.42 million yuan
($223,000) because of the
article, which led two phar-
maceutical distributors
and seven individual cus-
tomers to return the liquor
and ask for refunds.
According to Red Star
News, Tan, 39, lives in
Guangzhou, Guangdong
province, and holds a
master’s degree in anes-
thesiology from Central
South University in
Changsha, Hunan prov-
ince. He has a license to
practice medicine and
was an anesthesiologist at
the Third Affiliated Hospi-
tal of Southern Medical
University.
 CHINA DAILY Monday, April 16, 2018 CHINA 5

Scams: Health fraud a wealth hazard for elderly

From page 1

To make things worse, Chen’s

father insisted she take the cure-all
he bought from his club, and took
her to see the “experts” for treat-
ment instead of taking her to hospi-
tal for further rehabilitation.
After Chen learned how his moth-
er had fallen victim to the fraud-
sters, he was shocked. They
provided her with free physical
examinations and helped her carry
things she bought at markets.
“They even came to her home to
help with cleaning and cooking, and
became my mother’s ‘sons’ and
‘daughters’ to win her trust,” he said.
“They’re so sophisticated that sim-
ply telling my parents to be careful
didn’t help. Old people are easily
brainwashed by the people selling
health products.”
Despite numerous attempts, he
could not shake his father’s belief in
the dubious health products or stop
him from going to the club.
Frustrated, he decided to try his
best to help others. In December, he
opened an account named “Umbrel-
la Utopia” on WeChat, providing
advice on how to protect the rights
of the elderly when they are duped
by dubious health products.
It is a widespread problem.
In June, the daughter of an
85-year-old retired professor in
Xianyang, Shaanxi province, called
police to stop her father from buy-
ing a herbal mix claimed to be a spe-
cial ancient prescription that can
heal heart problems.
She told the local newspaper,
Huashang Daily, that there was no
manufacturer’s name or serial num-
bers on the packaging, and that her
father had spent more than 100,000
yuan on such “health products” Officers from the local market regulatory administration confiscate illegal health supplements in Huaibei, Anhui province. LI XIN / FOR CHINA DAILY
since 2009 and refused to listen to
her warnings.
In November 2016, a 74-year-old
woman died during a health lecture
after spending 320,000 yuan in
three years on various health prod-
ucts and refusing to go to hospital
when she became ill, China Central
Television reported.
Posts about how to dissuade par-
ents from buying dubious health
products are all over the internet.
On Zhihu, a popular Chinese Q&A
website, a post along those lines has
been viewed more than 1.5 million
times and has generated more than
300 answers.
Zhang Xin, an associate professor
of psychology at Peking University,
said in one reply that the elderly are
prone to being duped because their
source memory, which helps people
recall the source of information and
judge whether it is reliable, is
declining. So when the elderly are
told repetitively some products are
good, the idea will be inked into
their minds with a high degree of
certainty.
For some elderly people, going to
health clubs and buying health sup-
plements has become part of their
daily routines.
In Shanghai, small health clubs Left: The retired professor in Xianyang, Shaanxi province, sorts packages of health supplements, on which he has spent more than 100,000 yuan since 2009.
can be found in most old neighbor- Right: The herbs he bought online do not have a manufacturer’s name or serial numbers. PHOTOS BY XUE WANG / FOR CHINA DAILY
hoods, where many senior citizens
live.
In November, a Shanghai Con- than 50 were allowed to enter. In November, Hao Ruxiang, depu- extrajudicial punishment — and the deputies to the Shanghai People’s
sumer Council report on the con- He said its products include a liq- ty director of the industry and com- money taken was returned to the Congress, the city’s top legislature,
sumption of health supplements by uid tonic that supplies the body with merce administration in Shuozhou, elderly people. many elderly customers said they
the elderly said 13.8 percent of eld- various minerals and a krill oil that Shanxi province, led a joint raid on went there to chat with other senior
erly people spent more than 10,000 strengthens immunity. an illegal health supplement sales Longing for attention They’re so citizens and felt well treated by the
yuan a year on such products. “They are all legal products,” he event in the city. Similar raids have been taking employees.
About 90 percent of the 1,000 elder- said, although he refused to show The grey-haired Hao, 54, said he places across the country since July, sophisticated that “The life of the elderly is usually
ly people who took part in the sur- them. “Around 15,000 health sup- was approached by a salesperson on when the State Council issued a plan monotonous at home, and they long
vey said there are stores selling plements have been approved by the his way back from work, asking him for tightening supervision of the
simply telling my for attention and care,” said deputy
health supplements in their neigh-
borhoods.
China Food and Drug Administra-
tion, and one cannot paint them all
to join a four-day health lecture in a
local hotel.
health supplement industry and
cracking down on fraud.
parents to be Zhu Ru’an. “Some elderly people
know that the employees are look-
The council also received 375 with the same brush.” “They told me I could get 10 eggs The Beijing Municipal Industry careful didn’t help. ing to make money, but they’re still
complaints about frauds totaling One elderly woman said she had for free if I went,” Hao told CCTV. “I and Commerce Administration willing to pay.”
more than 3 million yuan last year. been invited to the health lectures knew there was something behind it investigated nearly 1,000 cases Old people are Liu Bo, a consumer behavior
Cui Lijuan, a psychologist at Chi- twice. Though she had not bought at once. I have dealt with so many involving false and exaggerated researcher affiliated with the Shang-
na East Normal University who any products, she was happy to similar cases.” advertising of health supplements easily brainwashed hai Academy of Social Sciences who
focuses on the elderly, said the phe- receive free gift cards that could be The next day, Hao went undercov- in the final quarter of last year, con- has conducted 20 focus groups with
nomenon is a result of elderly peo- redeemed for daily groceries such as er to the lecture, and saw some 500 fiscating illegal products and hand- by the people elderly people on their consumption
ple’s growing concerns over their cooking oil, soy sauce and rice at the elderly people in the venue, listen- ing out fines totaling 3.8 million of health products, found that elder-
health and their desire to stop aging. health club. ing to a lecturer who claimed to be a yuan. selling health ly people who seldom communicate
“The anxiety grows as one’s health Offering freebies is just one of graduate from Beijing Medical Uni- Despite stricter supervision, an products.” with their children are prone to
declines,” Cui said. “Since many the marketing strategies used by versity and who bragged about the official at the Shanghai Food and develop an obsession with buying
health supplements claim to be health supplement salespeople to therapeutic effect of a product in Drug Administration said the prob- Chen Jie, whose parents have health products.
high-tech and effective in improving persuade the elderly to buy their tackling hypertension and high lev- lem cannot be fixed by the authori- fallen victim to health But “it is impossible for children
one’s health, they become elderly products. els of blood sugar. Hao secretly took ties alone. supplement frauds to look after their parents all the
people’s natural resort. Although In a 2016 report by Shanghai Tele- videos to avoid being discovered by “It’s a social problem that has time”, Chen said. “Young or old,
everyone knows aging cannot be vision, a reporter went undercover security guards who stopped people existed for years,” the official said. everyone has his own life, his own
stopped, when emotion meets rea- to work as a salesperson at a popular from using smartphones. “The lack of care for the elderly from track.”
son, the former wins.” health products company and dis- After having collected enough evi- their sons and daughters is the other In recent months, Chen has
covered the company’s sales train- dence of false and exaggerated side of the coin.” devoted his time to listening to doz-
‘Sound like an expert’ ing notes, which read: “Talk one-on- advertising, Hao led a team of 80 About 118 million people older ens of fraud cases, helping to gather
Around the corner of a farmers’ one with the elderly; talk about officers from his office, the police, than 60 will be living on their own in evidence and reporting it to local
market in Shanghai’s Changning illness, and let them pay attention to and the local food and drug admin- China by 2020, according to the authorities. But he said he has seen
district stand two small health it; introduce the products that help istration to detain the sales group at State Council’s 13th Five-Year Plan more threats than substantial
clubs. Every morning, from 7 to 11, lessen the illness; give them promo- the hotel when they started selling on Development of China’s Under- progress.
the small rooms are filled with eld- tions; sound like an expert; make their products on the last day of the takings for the Aged, issued last “Sometimes, I feel downhearted. I
erly people listening to health lec- home visits; move them and sur- event. year. have tried so hard, but nothing gets
tures mixed with the implicit prise them.” When confronted by Hao, the lec- Without a companion at home, changed,” he said. “But I won’t give it
promotion of health supplements. Besides daily lectures, many of turer confessed that his degree was many elderly go to health clubs to up. If I keep trying, there’s still hope
Their glass doors are all frosted. the health product sales companies fake and that he had learned all his make friends and seek a sense of to win the battle.”
The 28-year-old manager of one also organize big events in hotels or health theories from the internet. belonging.
club, who has been in the industry free sightseeing trips to attract sen- The organizer was given five days of In an inspection of small health Contact the writer at xingyi@
for six years, said only people older iors. administrative detention — an clubs in November conducted by chinadaily.com.cn
6 VISION CHINA

Xi’s community vision praised by m

Voices of officials, scholars, media “In short, sharing is a great cul-
ture for human beings,” he said.
workers invoke shared worldview Devkota Pramila, a reporter
with the newspaper Naya Patri-

By ZHANG YUNBI and Khan, a master’s student in

SHI XIAOFENG in Hangzhou
Senior foreign officials,
scholars and media workers
have hailed the vision outlined
by President Xi Jinping —
building a community of
shared future for mankind —
calling it a viable solution to the
rising challenges that plague
growth and development
across the globe.
Xi has recently reiterated his
call for people around the
world to work together toward
a shared future, making the
world peaceful, tranquil, pros-
perous, open and beautiful.
“With the future in mind, we
need to treat each other with
respect and as equals,” Xi said
in his keynote speech at the
opening ceremony of the Boao
Forum for Asia annual confer-
ence last week.
He has stressed the need to
promote dialogue and share
responsibility, engage in
cooperation for win-win
results, uphold inclusiveness
and seek harmony without
uniformity, as well as treat
nature with respect and trea-
sure the planet.
Muhammad Fardos Khan,
an official in charge of human
resources for the Pakistani gov-
ernment, said Xi’s vision sets “a
strategic direction for China’s
relationship with the rest of the
world”.
the China studies program at
Zhejiang University in
Hangzhou, Zhejiang province,
said he views the vision as pro-
viding “a new approach to
developing state-to-state rela-
tions — with communication,
rather than confrontation, and
partnerships, rather than alli-
ances”.
The vision will establish
comprehensive cooperation
among all countries for peace,
development and progress;
achieve sustainable security;
and abandon the outdated
mindset of seeking alliances or
confrontations, he said, adding
that it will also encourage
countries to respect one anoth-
er, help resolve issues between
sovereign states through dia-
logue and cast away and reject
a cold-war mentality.
Xi first proposed the concept
of a “community of shared
future” in 2013, and he elabo-
rated on the vision of building
such a community for man-
kind in a speech in Geneva,
Switzerland, last year.
The vision has been incorpo-
rated into resolutions and oth-
er documents of the United
Nations in recent years.
Seth Va of Cambodia, who is
also a China studies master’s
student at Zhejiang University,
said the community vision
means China will build strong
relations and cooperate not
With a good exam-
ple of cooperation
set by the commu-
nity, all nations
will be able to
share in common
development.”
Seth Va, Cambodian master’s
student at Zhejiang University
only with its neighbors in Asia
but with European countries
and others involved in the Belt
and Road Initiative. That’s
“putting the concept into prac-
tice”, he said.
The Belt and Road Initiative
has become a large cooperation
platform for countries involved
to realize their common devel-
opment, and “after the Belt and
Road is established, the trade
and infrastructure networks in
the community will be success-
fully developed”, he said.
“The connection between
Asia and Europe will be
strengthened, and with a good
example of cooperation set by
the community, all nations will
be able to share in common
development,” he said.
Seth Va hailed Xi’s “wise
direction and management”,
and voiced hopes that the mis-
sion of the concept will succeed.
ka National Daily in Nepal and
a China studies program stu-
dent, said China’s policy of
becoming friends and partners
with neighbors, as well as seek-
ing a friendly, secure and pros-
perous neighborhood, is
influenced and inspired by
ancient Chinese culture and
thought.
Xi’s community vision is
based on the traditional shar-
ing culture of the Chinese peo-
ple, and Xi has been stressing
policies that aim to end devel-
opment disparities among
nations, she said.
The China-led Belt and
Road Initiative and the Asian
Infrastructure Investment
Bank have been largely
inspired by China’s own devel-
opment experience with infra-
structure in achieving
economic growth, as well as
from its willingness to share
and provide funds for the
development of its neighbors,
she said.
“When development dispari-
ties among countries and with-
in countries are addressed, this
will lead not only to the better-
ment of human lives but also
provide a solution to the prob-
lem of terrorism and extrem-
ism. This will definitely help in
building a harmonious and
prosperous society,” she said.
Contact the writers at
zhangyunbi@
chinadaily.com.cn

Hangzhou’s blockchain project 55 patents in blockchain tech-

nology this year, along with
emerging fields such as virtual

to push innovation, mayor says reality and cloud computing. In

2016 alone, 40 fintech compa-
nies in Hangzhou received
Zhou Shuchun, publisher and editor-in-chief of China Daily (second from right), presents portraits as g
second edition of Vision China, a series of talks organized by China Daily, at the Hangzhou International

investment, with 15 getting

By LIU YUKUN
and MA ZHENHUAN
in Hangzhou
Hangzhou’s Blockchain
Industrial Park is already
attracting industry players,
underlining the eastern city’s
leading role in advancing Chi-
na’s new economy, the city’s
mayor, Xu Liyi, said on Sunday.
The city announced the
park’s launch on April 9 and
said 10 blockchain technology
companies had signed agree-
ments, with many more expect-
ed to follow.
In February, Hangzhou, Zhe-
jiang province, listed the block-
chain industry in its
Government Work Report as
an essential emerging sector,
along with artificial intelli-
gence, virtual reality, quantum
technology and commercial
aviation and aerospace.
A blockchain is a public ledg-
er of all transactions that may
be applied in a wide variety of
settings to provide security. It
was developed for the crypto-
currency Bitcoin, but many
other applications are possible.
Hangzhou, a city of innova-
tion and economic vitality, will
focus on innovative develop-
ment and highlight the leading
role of the new economy in its
blueprint, Xu said on Sunday in
a presentation at the second
Vision China event at the
Hangzhou International Expo
Center.
“Hangzhou is home to well-
known businesses such as
internet giant Alibaba, Hik-
vision — which provides inter-
net-of-things solutions — and
automaker Geely,” the mayor
said. “Its developments in
e-commerce, cloud computing
and big data represent the most
advanced internationally.”
The city’s GDP reached 1.2
trillion yuan ($191 billion) last
year, up by 8 percent year-on-
year. Meanwhile, the value add-
ed in new industries and
business models reached 425
billion yuan, an increase of 20.4
percent
from 2016.
The Gov-
ernment
W o r k
Report said
the city will
Xu Liyi, further
Hangzhou improve the
mayor positive
interaction
between finance, technology,
manufacturing and the econo-
my, with the aim of building
an international hub for finan-
cial technology.
“Hangzhou ranked No 1 in
the country for finance and
technology development as
well as collaborating with over-
seas companies to build a glob-
al hub for the internet and
finance,” Wu Aiqi, a professor at
Zhejiang University’s School of
Management, said after Xu’s
presentation.
The hometown of Alibaba
also has major financial compa-
nies. Alibaba-affiliated Ant
Financial, for example, received
funds from angel investors, 24
in A-round fundraising, three
in A-plus and nine in B.
“Hangzhou welcomes new
businesses and has set up a
good business environment for
startups,” Wu said, adding that
the success of Alibaba and Hik-
vision has attracted abundant
investment to the city, though
investors prefer new fields like
fintech. “The local government
also supports industrial devel-
opment,” he said.
Starting in 2016, Hangzhou
has been carrying out a plan
that defines specific areas for
new finance companies and
projects. The Xixi area, less
than 5 kilometers from pictur-
esque West Lake, is becoming a
center for finance and internet
development.
Zhou Wenting contributed to
this story.
Contact the writers at
liuyukun@
chinadaily.com.cn
Highlights from speakers
David Gosset, founder of the Europe-China Forum Lu Li’an, deputy director of Fuda a
Since President Xi Jinping became China’s top leader in 2012, the Languages and Literature and press
country has not only continued to inject dynamics into global economic Compatriots Friendship Associatio o
growth, but also share its “intellectual contributions” to beef up the Perhaps our time still needs to shee
multilateral global governance structure, which has been under threat. international trade protectionism, idee
With President Xi something new is happening. China goes to the world self-interest.
with ideas and solutions. I am constantly reminded of the in n
Among the impressive ideas is President Xi’s proposal of building a another, yet often shortsightedness a
community of shared future for humankind, which is in contrast with that we must share this world, that th h
some powers’ actions of advocating isolationism, unilateralism and particular superpower or hegemony;;
protectionism. and live on this planet.
It’s going to be increasingly important, and a strong intellectual con- But what exactly can we share, bee
tribution of China under the leadership of Xi Jinping, to have a better and movies?
world. Now the whole world is learning how to say the notion in Chinese We can share cultures by being op p
because it’s important and exactly what we need. We can share social values and ethicc
The global fears and threats brought by the world’s big demographic important and all-imposing. We can s
pressure and reverse trends of globalization and climate change have technological development by embraa
made Xi’s proposal of building a community of shared future for petition. We certainly can, and must,,
humankind matter. The school motto we hold dear to
To relieve such fears and threats, the world needs to look at how it of foreign languages, live up to the ass
can really build this community of shared future, which is the right of my college and university defines t
answer. Building a shared future, a better wo
We shall not be afraid of the unknoo
shall honor the lessons of history earr
wise and humble, and learn to share..

Vision: Xi’s idea seen as beacon to guide mankind to shared future

From page 1
Xi in September 2016, Gosset
said: “You all know, I am talk-
ing about the United States of
America and Donald Trump.”
In an interview before his
address, Gosset said the rapid
deterioration of the global sit-
uation in recent weeks, such
as trade tensions and air-
strikes in Syria by the United
States, France and UK, has
brought the world into what
he called, “Cold War 2.0.”
“However, we must remem-
ber China and President Xi
made intellectual contribu-
tions and the world should
join this force of uniting us for
a better future,” Gosset said.
“This vision doesn’t divide us;
it unites us.”
Lu Li’an, vice-director of
the College of Foreign Lan-
guages and Literature at
Fudan University and Greg
Fountain, a China Daily sen-
ior journalist, shared their
perspectives on building a
community with a shared
future for mankind.
In her opening remarks, Ge
Huijun, chairwoman of the
Zhejiang Provincial Committee
of Chinese People’s Political
Consultative Conference, said
the major initiative of “advanc-
ing the building of a communi-
ty with a shared future” put
forward by Xi five years ago has
become a bright flag to guide
the world trend and the direc-
tion of human progress amid
changing international situa-
tions.
Xu Liyi, mayor of Hangzhou,
said the concept of “a commu-
nity with shared future” put
forward by Xi provides Chinese
wisdom and solutions to tack-
ling common challenges, pro-
moting world peace and
development and facilitating
common prosperity.
The concept of the commu-
nity of a shared future for man-
kind, raised by Xi, also general
secretary of the CPC Central
Committee, has sparked wide-
spread echoes from people
around the world, said Zhou
China’s youth and expand their
global perspectives and hori-
zons.
In her speech, Lu, who also is
president of Shanghai Taiwan
Compatriots Friendship Asso-
ciation, interpreted her under-
standing of the relationship
between individuals and the
group under the background of
a shared community.
“We can share cultures by
being open-minded and differ-
ence-friendly. We can share
social values and ethical obser-
vations by not being self-im-
Ge Huijun, the chief publicity official of Zhejiang province and its top portant and all-imposing. We
political adviser, addresses Vision China on Sunday. can share educational devotion
WANG ZHUANGFEI / CHINA DAILY and technological develop-
ment by embracing coopera-
tion rather than competition,”
Shuchun, publisher and editor- that it also needs the active Lu said.
in-chief of China Daily. involvement on the part of This world belongs to all
“As China moves into its new youth. who breathe and live on this
era, I believe, the implications He said that China Daily will planet, and people should not
of the idea will be further continue to sponsor the 21st be afraid of the unknown and
revealed to the world, and Century Cup national English the different, Lu said.
inspire people from all over the speaking competition to better “And instead, we should hon-
world to actively participate in serve as a bridge and platform or the lessons of history earned
the endeavor of building a bet- to raise the cross-culture and the hard way, learn to be kind,
ter world,” Zhou said, adding cross-language capabilities of wise, and humble and learn to
share to build a better world,”
she said.
Fountain shared with the
audience his experiences at
China Daily by hosting the
“Good Luck China” and
“Decoding The New Era” vid-
eos, which provided him with
rich opportunities to witness
China’s breakthroughs in
reform and opening-up.
Fountain also explained his
understanding of China’s
development in internet indus-
tries, scientific and technologi-
cal innovations, ecological
conservation and the country’s
contributions in promoting the
Belt and Road Initiative and
participating in global govern-
ance.
“The objective of shaping a
community of shared future
for mankind is something
more than just a slogan. It’s a
maxim for the whole world, not
just China, to live by,” Fountain
said.
Contact the writers at Participants wait for the beginning o
fujing@chinadaily.com.cn province. WANG ZHUANGFEI / CHINA DAILYY

many around globe
ifts to guest speakers Greg Fountain (left), David Gosset (second from left) and Lu Li’an (right) at the
Expo Center on Sunday. WANG ZHUANGFEI / CHINA DAILY
an University’s College of Foreign
sident of the Shanghai Taiwan
on
ed human follies in the forms of
eological supremacy and political
nterconnectedness we owe one
and selfishness blind us. We forget
his world does not belong to some
; that it belongs to all who breathe
esides Gucci and Coach, iPhones
pen-minded and difference-friendly.
cal observations by not being self-
share educational devotion and
acing cooperation rather than com-
, share peace.
our bosom is: Command mastery
spirations of our nation. The history
the meaning of our endeavors:
rld.
own and the different. Instead, we
rned the hard way, learn to be kind,
. ating new ideas for the benefit of
of the second Vision China event at the Hangzhou International Expo Center in Hangzhou, Zhejiang
Y ZHOU WENTING
What they say
Since the Belt
and Road Initia-
tive was pro-
posed in 2013,
the number of
international stu-
dents at my school has skyrocket-
ed to over 300, originating from
45 countries. We are planning to
recruit more this year. Further-
more, the concept of the commu-
nity of shared future, showing
great foresight, will definitely gear
up China’s development as well as
that of nations around the world. It
will promote the realization of
mankind’s common goals, thus
realizing a harmonious society
and world.
Yu Muhong, professor and dean
of the School of International
Studies at Zhejiang University of
Finance and Economics
Before coming
here, I didn’t real-
ize China today is
so modern.
Hangzhou is a
very beautiful,
modern and peaceful metropolis,
and life here is not as stressful as
in Shanghai. Here we use mobile
phones to pay for everything,
which is impossible in Europe. It’s
so fast and convenient. Coopera-
tion between different countries is
becoming very important, espe-
cially now. We have to speak about
different problems, it is only
through talking and dialogue that
we can find a common way that
helps and benefits everyone.
Zdenek Balas, student at Zhe-
jiang University from Switzerland
This is my third
time to
Hangzhou and
always I see
progress being
made. My first
trip to China was
in 1983, and I can still remember
at that time people were eager to
learn, but they had no way of
learning. I think the concept of the
Greg Fountain, China Daily journalist new era is a fantastic one. It takes
I’ve hosted some of China Daily’s videos that documented the fruits a bold vision to make it happen
of China’s model of inclusive development and experience in rising and work.
from poverty to economic strength, now being put forward as the Chi- Herbert Lee, English instructor at
nese solution to global challenges. the University of Saint Joseph
Our team visited the Ningxia Hui autonomous region last summer in Macao
and saw how a burgeoning winemaking industry is helping to bring
prosperity to an arid, long-underdeveloped region. The concept of a
We visited Saihanba National Forest Park in Hebei province and dis- community of
covered a green oasis the size of Hong Kong that’s been reclaimed from shared future for
the encroaching desert through generations of innovation, dedication mankind put for-
and toil. ward by Presi-
Both show how a little Chinese wisdom can go a long way — deserti- dent Xi Jinping
fication is a problem facing numerous areas of the world, particularly in was a terrific
Africa, while the “Bordeaux of China” (as Ningxia is sometimes known) idea. The mission of the institution
is testament to how targeted investment, given government support, I work with is to bring financial and
can transform barren plains into award-winning vineyards. human capital that enables world-
China has much to offer in technological realms, too, with examples class science to go to market and
of bullet trains, speech recognition technology and big data. thrive. In Oxford, the scientists we
The country has entered a new era and is increasingly being looked work with are from all over the
to for ideas. Among them “a community of shared future for mankind” world and therefore we under-
has won international praise. The phrase was also written into United stand the importance of an inter-
Nations security resolutions — reflecting the concept’s acceptance national community. All the
within the wider international order. companies we work for are gener-
all humanity. That’s why one day
we need to communicate the idea
of an international community of
shared future to lots of other peo-
ple.
William Goodlad, principal of
Oxford Sciences Innovation
I was most
impressed by the
talk from Lu
Li’an today when
she mentioned
her dream for
children to have
a world of compassion. It seems
to me that care and compassion
for people all over the world is
really important and is closely
related to what I teach students.
We make business and, more
importantly, we make friends.
Money is not the only thing that
matters. People matter more
with feelings and connections.
Sometimes if you don’t know the
right etiquette, you can break a
very good contract. For this rea-
son and many others, people
from all countries and regions are
encouraged to learn more about
each other.
Maria Gutierrez, professor of
tourism business at Zhejiang
International Studies University
MA ZHENHUAN AND
Zhou Shuchun, publisher and editor-in-chief of China Daily, presents awards to the winners of the China
Daily 21st Century Coca-Cola Cup National English Speaking Competition. GAO ERQIANG / CHINA DAILY
Contest inspires speakers to
explore global challenges
By CHEN XUE in Hangzhou
chenxue@21stcentury.com.cn
Young participants in this
year’s China Daily 21st Centu-
ry Coca-Cola Cup National
English Speaking Competi-
tion offered deep insights into
the themes of the Belt and
Road Initiative and China’s
new era.
Zang Yingjie from Qufu
Normal University in Shan-
dong province, for example,
drew inspiration from his
experience growing up with
the scientific theories of Ste-
phen Hawking, the British
physicist who died recently,
and how the changing land-
scape in China’s technological
realm helped him understand
these theories better.
“We’re all made of particles
that have existed since the
beginning of the universe,”
Zang, 20, said in his speech.
“I’d like to believe those parti-
cles traveled through count-
less eras to create us, so that
we — the people, China and
the world — can stand on the
shoulders of giants, march
into the new era with our
head held high and make
people like professor Hawk-
ing proud.”
Zang emerged from among
12 finalists to claim the cham-
pionship in the college cate-
gory at Hangzhou Normal
University in Zhejiang prov-
ince, while Wang Huichen
from Shanghai Foreign Lan-
guage School won first place
in the senior high school cate-
gory.
They received their prizes
on Sunday with other win-
ners at a ceremony held at the
Hangzhou International
Expo Center in Zhejiang
province.
Zang and Wang also both
received the China Daily 21st
Century most-promising
Voices from the competition
During the
finals, we heard
from one of the
many talented
competitors.
He said that
the world is at a crossroads of
cooperation and confrontation.
That’s the choice we have. Chi-
na Daily, the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs, the city — all of you, by
your presence here, have made
that choice, and it is for coop-
eration, not confrontation.
Paul Boateng, chairman of the
English-Speaking Union
Our cultures
are different.
They are sour-
ces of pride in
our history and
our develop-
ment and how we got to be
where we are. We all have
things to learn from each other
Monday, April 16, 2018 CHINA DAILY
Parents take pictures of Yuan Youzhe (left) and Huang Yichen on
the stage, after they won awards at the competition.
GAO ERQIANG / CHINA DAILY
speaker award. Next month,
they will travel to London to
represent China in the annu-
al International Public
Speaking Competition.
Zhou Shuchun, China Dai-
ly’s editor-in-chief, said the
theme of the contest “aimed
to guide and inspire young
students to think about the
future of our country and the
world”.
Zhang Jianmin, director of
the Foreign Ministry’s Trans-
lation and Interpretation
Department, said: “In this
new era of exchanges
between China and the
world, the 21st Century Cup
will have an even bigger role
to play, especially in encour-
aging more Chinese students
to commit themselves to both
serving the country and
meeting the challenges fac-
ing all humankind.”
Zhang has been involved
with the 21st Century Cup
English-speaking contest for
many years.
Xiong Ziqin, runner-up in
the college category, started
his argument with a story
about attending the same col-
lege as his mother and grand-
mother. The audience got to
and share with each other. I’m
happy that the students are
able to express confidently and
clearly the part their culture
played in history.
Christopher Powers, executive
director at the TESOL Interna-
tional Association
The 21st Cen-
tury Cup story
is one of Chi-
nese students
striving to
improve their
English speaking and commu-
nication abilities, but more
important it’s a story of China’s
remarkable progress in open-
ing-up and its sincere efforts
for better mutual understand-
ing with the outside world.
Zhang Jianmin, director of the
Department of Translation and
Interpretation of the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs
see how Chinese education
has evolved from a time when
“China had a literacy of mere-
ly over 50 percent” to an era
where Xiong, as a college stu-
dent, could stand on a nation-
al stage and “tell a Chinese
story of the new era to all”.
Matthew Shean, the British
Council’s director of English
language services in East Chi-
na, said that before students
can articulate their culture to
other people, they need to
first acquire a thorough
understanding of it.
“All of us grow up in our
own cultures without really
analyzing them,” he said.
“This competition gives stu-
dents the opportunity to
actually look in detail at
aspects of their own culture.
From there, they’ll develop a
firm and solid confidence
and a foundation ... and can
share it with the world.”
The annual national com-
petition, sponsored by Coca-
Cola China and New Oriental
Education and Technology
Group, has been successfully
held for 23 years. This year,
nearly 1 million students
from across the country par-
ticipated.
The old era is
like a cocoon,
protecting us
from possible
dangers out-
side and pro-
viding us with warmth and
comfort. However, the cocoon
can also serve as a wall to bar
us from the beautiful world
outside. In order to make
brand-new attire or to build a
modern Silk Road, we have to
plunge the cocoons into hot
water and obtain the silk
despite the pain. So, ladies
and gentlemen, don’t be
trapped by the old era. Tran-
scend it, and embrace the
new one.
Ni Kan, a runner-up in the Chi-
na Daily 21st Century Coca-Co-
la Cup National English
Speaking Competition
CHEN XUE
8 Monday, April 16, 2018

COMMENT
EDITORIAL • OPINION
China Daily
chinadaily.com.cn/opinion

EDITORIALS

Strikes on Syria set a bad Li Min

example in world politics

T
he military strikes the United States and its allies
launched against government targets in Syria set
a very bad example, circumventing the United
Nations and making such military actions an
option the world’s superpower can use any time it
wants against any country it doesn’t like.
The excuse was a chemical weapons attack on
the town of Douma, which the Syrian government has repeatedly
denied, with the strikes launched immediately before a fact-find-
ing mission by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical
Weapons was about to begin. Why did the US and its allies not
wait until the investigation yields a result?
It reminds us of what happened to Iraq in 2003 when the Unit-
ed States invaded the country claiming Saddam Hussein had
weapons of mass destruction. But no such weapons were found,
and the war led to the protracted turmoil in Iraq and the rise of
the Islamic State group. For that war, the United States and its
allies owe the Iraqi people and the world an apology.
It is Syria this time, a country that entered its eighth year of war
in March. Nothing is more urgent than political stability and
national reconciliation for this country. At the time when the Syri-
an government forces have gained the upper hand in the civil war,
there seems no reason for it to use chemical weapons to provoke
the United States and its allies, which have long been considering
the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad.
Given the complexity of the situation in Syria, the military
strikes will only make it even more difficult for the parties
involved to work out a peaceful solution and for the country to
emerge from war.
The arbitrary and abrupt military action by the United States
and its allies will likely complicate the possibility of political solu-
tions to the settlement of other hotspot issues. Its spillover effects OPINION LINE
will have an impact on the denuclearization process on the Kore-
an Peninsula, in which the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea
will have reason to consider the possession of nuclear weapons as Military move only complicates Aggregators
the sole guarantee for it to avert such military strikes by the Unit-
must give up
ed States and its allies.
It is a pity that the Security Council of the United Nations on
Saturday failed to adopt a resolution to condemn the airstrikes.
But history may prove them as wrong just as it has the US’ mili-
the situation in the Middle East vulgar news
tary impulsiveness in Iraq. ON FRIDAY NIGHT LOCAL TIME, United States President Donald Trump ordered military strikes TOUTIAO, a popular news ser-
against Syria, in collaboration with the United Kingdom and France. What will be the consequences? Will they vice smartphone application, has
affect the US-Russian relationship? Two experts shared their views with China Daily’s Zhang Zhouxiang: been criticized for pushing vulgar
Hainan to set pace for an Zhao Guangcheng, a researcher at the Institute of A successful businessman, Trump hopes to maxi-
and other improper information to
users. Since April 9, at the order of
Middle Eastern Studies, Northwestern University mize US interests by authorizing the military action. the State Administration of Radio
open and inclusive economy The airstrikes were the result of the escalating con-
flict between the US and Russia. Now, with the US sup-
And contrary to its claim, US interests in the Middle
East lie in chaos instead of order, because only a cha-
and Television, it closed an improp-
er sub-app and WeChat public
ported rebels losing on the battlefield, the country has otic Middle East can offer enough excuses for the US account. Later, it withdrew its app

P
resident Xi Jinping’s remarks at the Boao Forum for Asia
in Hainan province on Tuesday, that China will further
broaden market entry, attract investment, strengthen
intellectual property rights protection and increase
imports, were a reassuring affirmation that China will continue to
advance reform and opening-up. What he said three days later
that China will turn Hainan Island into the world’s largest free
trade zone carries greater symbolic weight.
With Deng Xiaoping as the leading advocate, the decision was
made 30 years ago to make Hainan province the largest special
economic zone. It was eight years after the model had proved a
success in Shenzhen, but reform and opening-up had met stiff
resistance from some in the country.
However, it has proved to be a correct and timely decision,
transforming the island from a rubber farm to a regional trade,
logistics, economic and technology hub over the past three dec-
ades.
And, as Xi said, all great causes move forward by carrying on
the achievements of our predecessors.
That the central authorities’ decision has been made public
directly by Xi, demonstrates the importance that Beijing attaches
to the move. It comes at a time when the world’s largest economy
is pursuing a beggar-thy-neighbor approach. It drives home the
message that China will not shut its doors to the rest of the world
and that it has confidence in its chosen development path.
It is predictable that Hainan will enjoy more autonomy to lever-
age its potential in promoting the trade of both goods and servi-
ces, and the development of a modern economy.
But to realize these objectives, Hainan must, in the first place,
adapt its governance to the needs of these tasks. It has to realize a
good balance between economic growth and ecological preserva-
tion. This is extremely crucial to the island in its bid to become a
leading international tourist destination.
Hainan has played an important role in the past in pushing for-
ward reform and opening-up. Now it has been given the opportu-
nity to do so again. This time the island province has not only to
be a pioneer in developing its own economy, it has also to be a
forerunner setting an example for the country.
The upgrading of Hainan’s role from the regional to the glob-
al stage speaks volumes about how committed China is to
inclusive and shared development rather than seeking a zero-
sum trade game.
finally decided to take direct military action.
Looking at it from the US side, the Trump adminis-
tration hopes to make achievements in diplomacy so
as to support Trump’s image among domestic voters as
well as gain an advantage for the Republicans in the
coming midterm elections. That’s why the US has tak-
en rather strong measures in almost everything relat-
ed to Russia — from the case of a former Russian spy
being poisoned to the Syrian crisis, the US acted in
quite a strong manner.
However, by doing so, the Trump administration has
victimized the Syrian people. Seven years ago, it was
the “Arab Spring”, which supported by the US dragged
Syria into war. Today, it is still the US trying to prolong
their nightmare.
Therefore, it is too early to predict the tendencies of
the situation in Syria, but one thing is certain: The Syr-
ian people will suffer longer because of this decision by
the US.
Wang Jinglie, a researcher on Middle Eastern stud-
ies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences
Law needed on what to do with pets’ bodies
DATA SHOW THAT the number of pets in China reached 250 million in 2017. However, there is no legal
clause about what to do with their bodies when they die. Beijing News comments:
According to media reports, some owners contact
pet hospitals for help, while some simply dig a deep
hole in an open field and bury them. In the first case,
the hospitals might lack proper devices to deal with
the remains of the animals. In the second case, the
bodies might pollute underground water.
In some cities, there are also companies running
graveyards for pets. But there is no legal clause about
this new business, so when disputes arise, it is hard to
deal with them according to the law.
Currently, the only law that concerns the dead bod-
ies of animals is the Animal Quarantine Law, which
to intervene.
It is US’ strategy and the country’s competition with
Russia that has complicated the Syrian crisis. The US
has made at least two mistakes in the Middle East in
the past few years: First, it failed to play a dominant
role in the campaign against the Islamic State. Second,
it offended its own Arab allies by recognizing Jerusa-
lem as the capital of Israel.
In contrast, Russia successfully increased its influ-
ence in the region by actively coordinating with local
powers such as Iran and Turkey. It is fair to say Russia
has gained from its involvement in the Middle East.
That’s why the Trump administration decided to
launch airstrikes on Syria — it hopes to “frighten” Rus-
sia “back”. But that strategy will hardly prove effective
because Russia is determined to defend its interests in
the Middle East.
Especially, as the US and Europe have been trying to
“contain” Russia with the recent diplomatic crisis,
Russia is determined to break it in the Middle East.
Therefore there is hardly any possibility of Russia step-
ping back.
details what to do with the bodies of animals that were
sick. However, the law says nothing about the bodies
of pets that die a natural death.
In comparison, some developed countries have
detailed legal clauses about disposing of the bodies of
pets. In France and Singapore, the law requires the
bodies of pets be cremated after they die; in the United
Kingdom, there are over 320 pet cremation companies
providing such services. In Japan, there are similar
businesses.
It is time China improved its own legislation to close
this loophole.
from the Apple Store and other
smartphone app stores for three
weeks so as to make changes. On
April Wednesday, Zhang Yiming, its
CEO, issued a public apology letter.
Thepaper.cn comments:
Toutiao must be one of the most
popular smartphone apps, but it is
not a news agency. It works by
obtaining news releases and
updates from other websites and
pushing pieces it has selected to
users.
As early as 2016, statistics show
Toutiao had about 600 million
users, of which 140 million are
active users. According to a report of
Questmobile, an internet data com-
pany, every active user of Toutiao
spent an average 73.45 minutes on it
every day in 2017.
Toutiao used to let algorithms
decide which news to push to which
users based on their “preferences”.
In January, the internet regula-
tion authorities talked with the
company’s high executives, and aft-
erwards the company recruited
2,000 editors to examine their con-
tent.
But their last measure proved
ineffective and complaints about
Toutiao pushing vulgar and improp-
er news continued. Considering the
large number of users Toutiao has,
the damage would be huge if the
company did not correct its ways.
Six days have passed since Toutiao
withdrew its app from online stores,
and there are still two weeks to go.
This is a precious opportunity for
Toutiao to improve itself.

C O N TA C T U S
China Daily HOT WORDS
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 CHINA DAILY Monday, April 16, 2018
Wang Xiaoxuan
Strong navy to better defend country’s interests
P
resident Xi Jinping, also
chairman of the Central
Military Commission,
said there had never
been a more pressing need for a
strong navy when he attended a
naval parade in the waters off
Hainan province on Thursday.
The display, involving more
than 10,000 navy personnel, and
a flotilla of 48 vessels, was held
ahead of the planned live-fire
military exercise in the Taiwan
Straits on Wednesday.
The display and naval drill
have been hyped by Western
media as China showing-off its
force, but such drills are essen-
tial for the People’s Liberation
Army Navy to develop its readi-
ness to safeguard national sov-
ereignty and maritime
interests. The parade was a spe-
Zhai Shilei and Xie Gang
It’s time Australia changed its China policy
T
he Australian media
have been trying to hype
the “China threat” theo-
ry — the latest example
being a piece of fake news which
says, “China will establish a per-
manent military base in Vanua-
tu” and claims the move will
change geopolitics in the South
Pacific. Another example is
the reports, based on hear-
say, which first surfaced
about a year and a half
ago, claiming China
was buying polit-
ical influence
in Australia —
which Beijing
firmly refuted
last year.
Although Australia
claims to have “cured” itself
of the Cold-War mentality, it still
accords excessive priority to
security over economic coopera-
tion. For proof, one has to just
look at Australia’s Foreign Policy
White Paper released in Novem-
ber 2017, which highly values the
country’s longtime partnership
with the United States and views
with suspicion the actions of Chi-
na, its largest trade partner.
Australia, it appears, believes
in the strategy of using both Chi-
na and the US to maximize its
security and economic interests,
but the fact is that the strategy
has hampered its long-term
development.
Thanks to its security-centered
strategy, Canberra backs the
Washington-led international
order. While it seeks a rule-based
order in the Asia-Pacific region, it
also seeks a military and political
alliance in the “Indo-Pacific” to
check China’s increasing regional
influence, but not its trade.
Signals from Australia have
been mixed. While on the one
hand the White Paper stresses
the need to consolidate the
US-Australia alliance and claims
Amitendu Palit
Boao leads the charge for globalization
T
hat China remains
committed to further
opening up its econo-
my, and deepening and
widening domestic financial
reforms were the central messa-
ges of President Xi Jinping’s
keynote speech at the Boao
Forum for Asia on April 10.
The address has created new
hope that the recent rise in trade
protectionism in some econo-
mies will be short-lived — and
thus not have a serious impact
on global economic growth. It
has also underlined the fact that
protectionism does not enjoy
broad-based global support
among world leaders. While
countries might have specific
constituencies demanding pro-
tection, as a global policy, protec-
tionism cannot benefit bigger
sections of the global population.
The series of trade protection-
ist measures taken by the United
States in recent days is serious in
several respects. To begin with, it
undoes the hard work done by
the World Trade Organization
over the last couple of decades in
bringing down tariffs across the
world. The multilateral rules-
based trade framework has
cial review of the navy’s devel-
opment.
Since the 18th National Con-
gress of the Communist Party of
China, the country’s leadership
has shown its determination to
build a strong military capable of
defending the country’s interests.
China has long strived to mod-
ernize its navy to guarantee mar-
itime security. To achieve that
goal, the Chinese navy has to
strengthen its comprehensive
capabilities both in terms of
hardware and operational effec-
tiveness.
China has held military train-
ing drills and exercises in other
areas such as the East China Sea.
And the drill and parade in the
South China Sea, is of no differ-
ence to any other drills in the
waters under China’s jurisdiction.
China is a “threat to the world
order”, on the other hand Austra-
lian President Malcolm Turnbull
said China was not a threat
before embarking on a visit to the
US in February.
Besides, Australia’s stance on
the China-proposed Belt and
Road Initiative is muddled and
confused. In fact, abc.net.au has
quoted Nick Bisley, a China
expert from La Trobe University,
worked well for the world. It has
generated new growth opportu-
nities for the developing world,
by giving less-developed coun-
tries’ goods and services access
to world markets, developing
global supply chains linking low-
income countries and enabling
the developing countries to
attract capital and technology.
The result has been the rise of
strong emerging market econo-
mies such as China, Brazil, India,
Mexico, Turkey and Indonesia.
Indeed, Asia’s current prominent
position in the world economy
has much to do with the expan-
sion of the global trading mecha-
nism under the WTO. The rising
specter of trade protectionism
works against not only this spirit
of the WTO but also the global
trade body’s principle of “most
favored nation”, or MFN.
By committing to MFN, the
WTO member economies com-
mit to allowing each other mutu-
al access to domestic markets
unless compelled by specific eco-
nomic conditions and circum-
stances. This principle of
reciprocal non-discriminatory
trade liberalization gets severely
affected — and multilateral trade
Considering the pains the
country suffered in its modern
history because of its weak
navy, it is determined to devel-
op a stronger navy to safeguard
its territory and people.
Besides, developing the Chi-
nese navy means it will also be
better able to contribute to the
world’s peace and stability and
humanitarian and rescue oper-
ations. To be a world-class navy,
the Chinese navy should catch
up with the world’s most
advanced navies.
However, it will take unremit-
ting efforts to achieve the goal of
building up a strong navy.
Despite the Chinese navy’s huge
progress, it should be recognized
that there exists a considerable
gap between the Chinese navy
and the navies of developed
as saying: “The challenge is to say
how do we show a little bit of
skepticism and caution without
necessarily saying, ‘Everything
you do, China, must be seen as a
threat to our national security’.”
Over the past 10 years, Australia
has benefited from its pragmatic
and practical diplomacy. But it
seems Washington’s political pres-
sure — perhaps using security as a
bargaining chip — prompted Can-
China’s policy
decisions to lower
tariffs, increase
imports and
expand foreign
ownership in major
domestic industries
are an effective
strategy for backing
globalization.
rules face serious challenges — if
countries resort to unilateral
protectionist moves like the US
has — by announcing additional
tariffs on steel and aluminum
imports, followed by extra tariffs
on $50 billion worth of Chinese
products, and most recently pro-
posing further tariffs on $100
billion of Chinese imports.
Another major problem with
countries both in terms of tech-
nology and scale. It is critical for
the Chinese navy to make break-
throughs in key technologies and
its operational capabilities so that
it can join their ranks.
Meanwhile, the Chinese navy
should maintain a scale in keep-
ing with its needs to defend its
interests. The Chinese navy
should increase its aggregate
tonnage of naval vessels, which
is currently relatively small, in
order to increase its capability to
confront the naval hegemonies
in the world.
But no matter how powerful
the Chinese navy grows, China
will always follow a defensive
defense policy and will never
deviate from it. Moreover, the
Chinese navy has never bullied
any other country in the past,
LIMIN / FOR CHINA DAILY
berra to adjust its diplomacy,
which has had a negative impact
on China-Australia ties.
Plus, what many call a loom-
ing trade war between China
and the US has put Australia in
a rather tough situation, where
its strategy of using both China
and the US will neither earn it
more profits nor strengthen its
security.
So it is necessary for Canber-
the US tariffs is their so-called
justification on national security
grounds. Since the establish-
ment of the WTO in 1995, the US
tariffs are the first example of a
WTO member economy describ-
ing imports as “damaging” for
the domestic economy and
national security. This would
give other WTO members the
opportunity to use national secu-
rity as a ground for resorting to
protectionist measures.
Besides, if national security
becomes the major factor decid-
ing international trade relations,
the prospects for global trade
will hardly look bright. Tariffs
raised on national security
grounds further undermine the
credibility of the WTO, which
offers its members large latitude
in tackling economic difficulties
arising from large flows of
imports, including safeguards
against import surges as well as
anti-dumping actions. These are
in addition to the institutional
processes for settling inter-econ-
omy disputes. By not resorting to
the WTO’s “checks and balances”
and acting unilaterally, the US
has undermined the importance
of the WTO — through its pro-
and will not do so as its strength
increases. China will continue to
carry out a defensive strategy and
contribute to the maritime peace,
and to fulfill those tasks requires
it to build up a strong naval force.
It should be noted that some
other countries constitute a
severe challenge to China’s
interests and maritime peace,
especially some powers that
threaten China’s sovereignty
and interests in its waters in
the name of “freedom of navi-
gation”.
The international community
should realize that a rising China
with a strong navy will be better
able to safeguard its own nation-
al security and regional peace.
The author is a Beijing-based
military expert.
ra to adjust its cooperation
strategy, and accord the deserved
importance to its relations with
China, which is not only the larg-
est investor in Australia but also
Australia’s largest market. Add to
that the fact that China is the
source of the largest number of
foreign tourists and students to
Australia, and we have a perfect
recipe for win-win trade coopera-
tion and cultural communication
between the two countries.
That Beijing-Canberra rela-
tions have the support of the peo-
ples of both countries is also
evident in a poll conducted by
Australia’s Lowy Institute, which
says over the past five years, most
Australians have come to recog-
nize China as a friend, and an
important trade partner despite
the rise of anti-China sentiment
in some parts of world after
2008. Moreover, Pew Research
Center data in July 2017 showed
people aged between 18 and 29
years in developed countries,
who have been witness to China’s
remarkable development and
achievements, hold a more posi-
tive attitude toward the country.
Given their mutually bene-
ficial trade cooperation
and positive pub-
lic opinion,
Australia
and China
should
make more
efforts to strengthen their rela-
tionship — for example, by form-
ing a new international
cooperation platform based on
the Belt and Road Initiative — to
further promote mutual prosper-
ity and better safeguard regional
stability.
Zhai Shilei is a researcher and
Xie Gang an associate researcher
at the Center for Australia Stud-
ies, China University of Mining
and Technology.
tectionist actions — and created
problems for the orderly func-
tioning of global trade.
But counter-protectionism is
not the answer to tackling pro-
tectionism. The best way to
address the protectionist actions
is to demonstrate the benefits of
economic globalization and to
stay committed to the process.
In this respect, Xi’s address at
the Boao Forum underlines the
contrast in the views of world
leaders on globalization. The US’
effort to use protectionist meas-
ures to settle trade imbalances
means it is moving in a direction
opposite to global economic inte-
gration.
On the other hand, China’s
policy decisions to lower tariffs,
increase imports and expand
foreign ownership in major
domestic industries are an effec-
tive strategy for backing globali-
zation. In the long run, and as
history has shown, this is what is
crucial for global welfare.
The author is a senior research
fellow and research lead (trade
and economic policy) at the Insti-
tute of South Asian Studies in the
National University of Singapore.
VIEWS 9
Zhou Yongsheng
Japan has much
to gain by
improving
ties with China
D
uring his first visit to Japan as
State councilor and foreign minis-
ter from Sunday to Tuesday, Wang
Yi will co-chair the fourth China-
Japan High-Level Economic Dialogue with
Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono in
Tokyo, which is welcome news for both
countries.
Since September 2012, when the Japanese
government decided to “nationalize” China’s
Diaoyu Islands, bilateral relations have suf-
fered one blow after another. Even though
President Xi Jinping and Japanese Prime
Minister Shinzo Abe met at the Asia-Pacific
Economic Cooperation meeting in Beijing in
November 2014, bilateral ties remained cold.
The deep structural problems between the
two countries are yet to be solved. For China,
Japan’s illegal “nationalization” of the Diao-
yu Islands and its leaders’ distortion of the
country’s history before and during World
War II are unacceptable.
As some differences
between China and
Japan ... cannot be
resolved overnight, the
two sides should try to
narrow down their
differences and reach
agreements on other
issues ...
Besides, Japan’s attempts to amend its
pacifist Constitution to build a regular mili-
tary, and its moves to break the regional bal-
ance pose a threat to China’s national
security. And that Japanese leaders wrongly
assume China is a threat to their country
further complicates the situation.
Another factor that plays a vital role in
Japan’s attitude toward China is the United
States’ Asia-Pacific policy, especially its Chi-
na policy. Japan has been following the US
in diplomacy since the end of World War II.
But with the seemingly maturing Sino-US
relationship — thanks to Xi’s visit to the US
and US President Donald Trump’s visit to
China last year — suffering setbacks over the
past few months, Japanese politicians are
uncertain about future Sino-US ties.
Hopefully, some economic data for 2017
will make Abe realize he should no longer
hesitate to improve ties with China. China
contributed more than 30 percent to world
economic growth; Sino-Japanese trade
increased by over 10 percent to reach $300
billion again last year; Japanese enterprises
invested about $3.2 billion in China, 5.3 per-
cent more than in 2016; and over 7 million
Chinese tourists visited Japan and spent
about $14 billion there. Only one conclusion
can be drawn from the data — that Japan
has no option but to improve its relations
with China. Of course, China will also be
able to accelerate the upgrading of its indus-
tries if bilateral ties improve.
History shows bilateral cooperation pro-
duces win-win result for any two countries
and antagonism hurts both. As some differ-
ences between China and Japan, such as his-
torical issues and territorial disputes, cannot
be resolved overnight, the two sides should
try to narrow down their differences and
reach agreements on other issues, so as to
deepen cooperation.
China’s Belt and Road Initiative is a good
framework for the two sides to restart their
cooperation. Chinese enterprises are good
at making plans but not so good at evaluat-
ing risks and analyzing details, while Japa-
nese companies are good at maximizing the
use of every penny but not so good at strate-
gic planning. If the two countries’ enter-
prises work together under the framework
of the Belt and Road Initiative, they could
produce high-quality and long-term win-
win results.
The China-Japan High-level Economic
Dialogue, resuming after eight years, is
expected to cover three topics: Japanese
enterprises’ investment in China, further
opening-up of Japan’s market to Chinese
enterprises, and their detailed cooperation
programs under the Belt and Road Initia-
tive. The topics gain added importance in
the light of Xi’s keynote address at the Boao
Forum for Asia on April 10, where he said
China will further open up its market to the
outside world. It offers Japan an opportunity
as well as a challenge: If Japan deepens
cooperation, it will prosper together with
China, but if it fails to do so, it could be mar-
ginalized.
Therefore, Wang’s visit not only offers
Japan a golden opportunity to improve
bilateral ties, but also a chance to deepen its
domestic reform to achieve faster economic
growth. And let us not forget that improved
China-Japan relations will be a boon to East
Asia and the Asia-Pacific region as a whole.
The author is a professor of Japanese studies
at China Foreign Affairs University.
10 WORLD
Ireland’s
tallest
tower
reopens
to public
DUBLIN — Ireland’s
O’Connell Tower reopened
to the public on Saturday
after it closed 47 years ago
following a bomb attack
whose perpetrator has still
not been officially identi-
fied.
Hundreds of tourists,
both local and foreign,
were seen coming in from
different corners of the city
to visit the tower on the
first day of its reopening to
the public.
Located in the north of
Dublin city, the tower was
built in 1855 in memory of
Daniel O’Connell, one of
the greatest political fig-
ures in the first half of the
19th century in Ireland,
who was most famous for
his fight for the equal politi-
cal and civil rights of
Catholics in the country.
O’Connell, born in 1775,
died in Italy in 1847 while
on a pilgrimage to Rome.
According to his wish, his
heart was buried in Rome
while the rest of his
remains were buried in a
coffin placed at the base of
the tower.
Measuring 55 meters in
height, the cylindrical tow-
er, which was built with
stones, is the tallest of its
kind in Ireland and pro-
vides a 360-degree view of
Dublin city and its neigh-
boring counties of Wicklow
and Meath.
The four windows at the
top of the tower make it
one of the greatest attrac-
tions for tourists in the
country.
O’Connell Tower in Dublin
However, in 1971, a huge
bomb containing 10
pounds of gelignite hit the
base of the tower, causing
structural damage and
destroying the interior
staircase.
The explosion was
blamed on loyalist paramil-
itaries from Northern Ire-
land, but it has never been
officially confirmed who
really conducted the attack,
said officials in charge of
the maintenance of the
tower.
In 2016, Glasnevin Trust,
the largest funeral services
provider in Ireland, which
also runs Glasnevin Ceme-
tery among others, started
the work to restore the
destroyed staircase that
leads to the top of the
tower.
Officials with Glasnevin
Cemetery said the
destroyed staircase has
been restored strictly
according to what it looked
like in the past.
Made of wrought iron,
the spiral staircase consists
of 198 hand-carved wooden
steps ascending to the top
of the tower with 6 landing
platforms.
With the reinstatement
of the staircase, the ceme-
tery expects to make the
tower once again a famous
tourist destination in
Dublin.
XINHUA
Powder play
A devotee gets his face smeared with vermillion powder during the “Sindoor Jatra” festival at Thimi, in Bhaktapur, Nepal, on Sunday.
NAVESH CHITRAKAR / REUTERS
Journalists in Gaza strive
to ‘tell truth’ despite danger
Hundreds of
people wounded
in Friday’s mass
demonstration
GAZA — Palestinian jour-
nalists have recently realized
that they have become a target
of Israeli soldiers while they
were covering the mass pro-
tests on the border between
the Gaza Strip and Israel.
On April 6, Yasser Murtaga,
a 30-year-old cameraman
from Gaza city, was shot dead
by Israeli troops east of the
southern Gaza town of Khan
Younis while he was filming
for a local news and TV pro-
duction company.
As part of the six-week
ongoing protest called “the
Great March of Return”, which
started on March 30, the Pales-
tinians have staged five rallies
in eastern Gaza Strip along the
border with Israel.
The rallies are expected to
last until May 15, the day after
the 70th anniversary of Israel’s
declaration of independence
but marked by the Palestini-
ans as the Nakba Day, or “Day
of the Catastrophe”.
The Gaza Health Ministry
South Africa’s heroine Mandela laid to rest
SOWETO, South Africa —
South Africa laid to rest anti-
apartheid heroine Winnie Mad-
ikizela-Mandela on Saturday,
after 40,000 people from across
the political spectrum mourned
her at a funeral ceremony in her
township of Soweto.
Madikizela-Mandela’s death
on April 2 at the age of 81 after
a long illness was met by an
outpouring of emotion across
the country, with the ruling
African National Congress
and opposition parties hold-
ing memorials to remember
her courage in the struggle to
end white-minority rule.
The official funeral service
for the ex-wife of the late Nel-
son Mandela took place on Sat-
urday morning in Soweto — the
Johannesburg township at the
forefront of the battle against
said that 35 Palestinians have
been killed, including two
Hamas militants, and more
than 2,800 were wounded
since the start of the rallies.
Israel, on the other hand,
claimed that most of the killed
were Hamas militants and
that some militants used to
disguise as civilians.
Thousands of Palestinians
gathered at the eastern area of
the Gaza Strip to carry on their
protests in the third consecu-
tive Friday mass rally against
Israelis, in which Palestinian
women were on front lines
with Israeli soldiers. Hun-
dreds were wounded, Gaza
health officials said.
The heavy shooting of bul-
lets and tear gas by Israeli army
did not prevent women dem-
onstrators from joining the
weekly rallies in border areas.
Near Salsabil, Sarah, a
20-year-old girl, carried car
tires to demonstrators and
helped young men pull up
barbed wire placed by the Israe-
li army before the border fence.
“The Palestinian women are
an integral part of the society
... today they are to prove this,”
Sarah said after she gave a car
tire to a masked protester.
“The national struggle and
defending the refugees’ right
to return are not limited to
apartheid where she lived.
President Cyril Ramaphosa
said that, just as South Africa
grieved for Madikizela-Man-
dela, it was comforted by the
profound meaning of her life.
“In death, she has demon-
strated that our many differ-
ences along political party and
racial lines and the numerous
disputes we may have are
eclipsed by our shared desire
to follow her lead in building a
just, equitable and caring soci-
ety,” he said.
The afternoon burial cere-
mony at Fourways Memorial
Park Cemetery, north of
Johannesburg, ended a nearly
two-week mourning period
declared by the government.
Earlier, mourners sang and
cheered as Madikizela-Man-
dela’s body was brought into the
We will do our best
to convey the
truth, regardless of
the dangers we are
facing.”
Omer al-Zain, a local journalist
men. Palestinian women are
always at the forefront,” she
said proudly.
During the confrontation,
three journalists were wound-
ed, including one in critical
condition, while covering the
events.
Spokesman of the Ministry
of Health in Gaza, Ashraf
al-Qedra, said that Ahmed
Abu Aalwa and Mohammed
al-Hajjar, both journalists
working for local Palestinian
organizations, were moderate-
ly wounded in northern Gaza.
’Convey the truth’
Ahmad Abu Hussein, a local
radio operator, was severely
wounded in the same area by a
gunshot in the abdomen, said
Qedra.
Military pallbearers carry the coffin of apartheid icon Winnie
Madikizela-Mandela, in Soweto, South Africa, on Saturday. AP
40,000-seat Orlando stadium.
Many mourners were clad
in the green and yellow colors
of the ANC. Members of the
leftist Economic Freedom
Fighters party also attended in
large numbers.
EFF leader Julius Malema,
an admirer of Madikizela-
Mandela who echoes her fiery
rhetoric, said she had always
put the country “above her
own personal safety” in the
fight against apartheid.
“She lived in constant naked
contact with danger, prepared
to lose her life, even the lives of
her own children, who were
put into danger by her politi-
cal activities,” Malema said to
Later in the day, a number of
other journalists suffocated
amid tear gas Israeli soldiers
hurled at media teams cover-
ing the protests.
In a statement, the Union of
Palestinian Journalists accused
the Israeli troops of shooting at
journalists covering the peace-
ful protests.
“Israel bears full responsi-
bility for the casualties of jour-
nalists and its continuing
crimes against them,” the
Union said in a statement.
Ministry of Information in
the Palestinian Authority con-
sidered the “deliberate” target-
ing of press and media crews
as a blatant violation of the UN
Security Council resolutions.
The ministry said in a state-
ment that the injury of the
three journalists was Israel’s
accountability, adding the UN
Security Council held an
urgent meeting to implement
resolution 2222 to protect the
journalists.
Despite all difficulties, jour-
nalists continue to cover the
ongoing events to provide
updated information.
“We will do our best to convey
the truth, regardless of the dan-
gers we are facing,” said Omer
al-Zain, a young local journalist.
XINHUA
loud cheers in the stadium.
Madikizela-Mandela’s legacy,
however, was later tarnished.
As evidence emerged in the
dying years of apartheid of the
brutality of her Soweto enfor-
cers, known as the “Mandela
United Football Club”, some
South Africans questioned her
‘Mother of the Nation’ sobri-
quet.
In 1991, Madikizela-Man-
dela was convicted of kidnap-
ping and being an accessory to
assault, but her six-year jail
sentence was reduced to a fine
and a two-year suspended sen-
tence on appeal.
REUTERS
Monday, April 16, 2018 CHINA DAILY
Dark side of play
for S. Korea’s
female gamers
SEOUL, South Korea —
When US video game maker
Riot Games held a highly
anticipated League of Leg-
ends championship match in
South Korea last year, about
half the spectators in the
packed arena were women.
While the pastime is tradi-
tionally seen as the preserve
of young men, the number of
female gamers in hyper-
wired South Korea has grown
rapidly in recent years.
But the South’s $4.2-billion
gaming industry has been hit
by allegations of sexism and
censorship targeting female
gamemakers, likened by some
to a modern-day witch-hunt.
South Korea is the world’s
sixth-biggest video game
market, boasting 25 million
players — half the population
— and multiple TV channels
dedicated to broadcasting
eSports competitions.
About 65 percent of South
Korean women aged 10 to 65
play video games, compared
to 75 percent of men, and
mobile games attract more
female players than male.
Women now account for
42 percent of all gamers in
the country, according to
industry tracker Newzoo.
But female gamemakers
account for less than a quar-
ter of the male-dominated
industry.
Despite its technological
and economic advances,
South Korea remains a patri-
archal society in many
respects, and behind the
facade of the global game
powerhouse lies a heavily
male-oriented culture.
‘Anti-social ideology’
The latest row began when
the CEO of Seoul-based IMC
Games launched a probe into
Childhood Holocaust survivors exchange photographs at the
Los Angeles Holocaust Museum memorial on Wednesday. AP
Friends separated by
the Holocaust reunite
LOS ANGELES — When
Alice Gerstel bid an emotion-
al farewell to her family’s
closest friends in October
1941, she was hopeful she’d
see “Little Simon” Gronow-
ski again. And she did 76
years later and half a world
away from where they were
separated in Brussels.
Gerstel and her Jewish
family had hidden in the
Gronowskis’ home for nearly
two weeks before her father
sent word from France that
he had reached a deal with a
smuggler who would get her,
her siblings and their mother
safely out of Nazi-occupied
Belgium.
The Gronowskis, also Jew-
ish, decided to stay. They hid
for 18 months until the Nazis
came knocking at the fami-
ly’s door and put Simon, his
sister and mother on a death
train to Auschwitz.
“I thought the entire family
was murdered. I had no idea,”
Gerstel (now Gerstel Weit)
said on Wednesday, the day
after their tearful reunion.
She and her friend clutched
hands at the Los Angeles
Museum of the Holocaust as
they recounted their story.
“You didn’t know that I
jumped off the train?” asked
Gronowski, now 86.
“No, no. I didn’t know any-
thing,” his 89-year-old friend
replied.
The two will return to the
whether a female employee
harbored “anti-social ideolo-
gy” after complaints about her
personal activity on Twitter.
Sung Hye-jin had followed
several feminist groups and
retweeted a post featuring a
slang term describing sexist
men.
Some of the industry’s key
clientele of young, male gam-
ers demanded her sacking,
calling her a “cancer-like
creature” who “followed a
dirty ideology”.
Sung apologized for the
perceived offense, vowing to
unfollow the groups in ques-
tion.
She kept her job after CEO
Kim Hak-kyu decided her
actions were “just a mistake
but not a crime”, but he
assured customers he would
“remain endlessly vigilant”
to prevent a recurrence.
Rights groups and the
country’s top labor union have
condemned the investigation.
“This misogynistic action
... has left many women in
shock and fear,” the Korean
Confederation of Trade
Unions said in a statement.
South Korea’s own game
sector has a history of sack-
ing women labeled as sup-
porters of Megalia, a
controversial online feminist
group accused by many gam-
ers of ridiculing men.
“It’s common sense that
one should not be punished
at the workplace for personal
beliefs that have nothing to
do with work,” said a the
female CEO of one gaming
company.
“But that common sense is
not accepted at all in this
industry right now, especial-
ly for women.”
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
museum on Sunday to
recount to visitors how the
Holocaust ripped apart a pair
of families that had become
fast friends after a chance
meeting at a Belgian beach
resort in 1939. How it put the
other family on a perilous
journey through occupied
France that reads like a scene
from the film Casablanca.
And, finally, how those
separate journeys culminat-
ed three-quarters of a centu-
ry later in a joyful, tear-
streaked reunion in Los
Angeles just before Yom
HaShoah or Holocaust Com-
memoration Day.
There was much hugging,
kissing and crying on
Wednesday as the two old
friends held hands tightly
while sitting outside on a
museum patio to share mem-
ories from a long-ago past.
Gerstel Weit’s family
immigrated to the United
States, where she married,
had two sons and eventually
settled in Los Angeles.
She learned “Little Simon”
was alive six months ago
when her nephew searched
her maiden name online
looking for more family his-
tory. He came across Gro-
nowski’s 2002 memoir, “The
Child of the 20th Train”, in
which her family is men-
tioned prominently.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
 CHINA DAILY Monday, April 16, 2018
Spring storm
blasts central US
with snow, winds
MINNEAPOLIS — A
storm system stretching
from the Gulf Coast to the
Great Lakes has buffeted the
central United States with
heavy snow, winds, rain and
hail, forcing flight cancella-
tions, creating treacherous
road conditions and killing
at least three people, includ-
ing a sleeping 2-year-old
Louisiana girl.
In the Upper Midwest, the
early spring storm brought
snow to a region pining for
sunshine and warmth.
Around 400 flights were can-
celed at Minneapolis-St. Paul
International Airport, which
grounded all flights starting
on Saturday afternoon as
heavy snow made it difficult
to keep runways clear and
planes deiced, while blizzard
conditions forced the airport
in South Dakota’s biggest
city, Sioux Falls, to remain
closed for a second straight
day.
Authorities closed several
highways in southwestern
Minnesota and driving con-
ditions were difficult across
the southern half of the
state. The National Weather
Service predicted that a
large swath of southern Min-
nesota could get up to 51 cen-
timeters by the time the
storm blows through on
Sunday.
“It’s a cool experience for
me, the best Minneapolis
experience,” Niko Heiligman,
from Germany, said as he
braved the snow on Saturday
to take a walk in downtown
Minneapolis. “I’m only here
for the weekend, so I guess
that’s how it goes. There’s
snow and it’s cold. So it’s
good.”
The storm is expected to
continue on Sunday in Min-
nesota, Wisconsin and
Michigan before moving
into New York state and New
England.
Up to 46 cm of snow had
fallen by early Saturday in
parts of northern Wisconsin,
with another 36 cm expected
by Sunday evening. Winds of
Demonstrators take part in a protest in Chennai on Saturday over
the gang rape and murder of an 8-year-old girl in northern India.
ARUN SANKAR / AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
up to 90 kilometers per hour
caused blowing and drifting
snow, along with ice shoves
in Green Bay.
The NWS also warned of
potential coastal flooding
along Lake Michigan in
Wisconsin and Illinois,
where Chicago residents
were warned that waves
could reach as high as 5.5
meters.
Snow and wind gusts of up
to 80 km/h whipped through
parts of South Dakota for a
second straight day on Satur-
day, causing blizzard condi-
tions that made travel all but
impossible.
Two storm-related deaths
occurred early on Saturday.
In Louisiana, winds downed
a tree onto a mobile home in
Haughton, killing a sleeping
2-year-old girl inside,
according to the Bossier Par-
ish Sheriff’s Office.
In Wisconsin, a woman
was killed when she lost con-
trol of the minivan she was
driving on a slippery high-
way and struck an oncoming
SUV near Lewiston.
On Friday, a truck driver
from Idaho lost control of his
rig on snow-covered Inter-
state 80 near Chappell in
western Nebraska and
slammed into a semi that
had become stranded,
according to the Nebraska
State Patrol. He died at the
scene.
In Arkansas, a tornado
ripped through the tiny
Ozark Mountain town of
Mountainburg on Friday,
injuring at least four people
and causing widespread
damage.
The storm made its mark
in Texas, too, where hail the
size of chicken eggs fell on
areas south of Dallas and
Fort Worth, according to
meteorologist Patricia San-
chez. In Austin, fire officials
said strong winds helped
spread the flames after light-
ning struck two houses that
suffered heavy damage.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
DPRK top leader Kim Jong-un meets Song Tao, the head of the Communist Party of China Central Committee’s International Depart-
ment, who led an art troupe to Pyongyang on Saturday. KCNA VIA REUTERS
DPRK pledges to deepen
friendship ties with China
Kim extends greetings to Xi as art
troupe arrives in capital for festival
PYONGYANG — The top
leader of the Democratic Peo-
ple’s Republic of Korea, Kim
Jong-un, pledged to jointly
write a new chapter in the
friendship with China during
a meeting with a senior Chi-
nese official in Pyongyang.
Kim, chairman of the Work-
ers’ Party of Korea and chair-
man of the State Affairs
Commission of the DPRK,
met with Song Tao, head of the
International Department of
the Communist Party of China
Central Committee at the
headquarters of the WPK Cen-
tral Committee on Saturday.
During the meeting, Kim
extended his greetings to Gen-
eral Secretary of the CPC Cen-
tral Committee Xi Jinping and
welcomed the Chinese art
troupe headed by Song that
will attend the April Spring
International Friendship Art
Festival in Pyongyang.
Another rape reported amid protests over brutal assaults
MUMBAI — Days after the
arrest of a lawmaker from
India’s ruling party in connec-
tion with the rape of a teenag-
er, another case of the brutal
rape and murder of a girl was
reported on Sunday in the
western state of Gujarat.
News of the incident fol-
lowed days of protests by
activists, who have accused
authorities of failing to investi-
gate attacks on women.
Kim said that not long ago,
he made a historic visit to Chi-
na, during which he had long-
time and meaningful talks
and exchanges with Xi.
The two leaders reached an
important consensus and the
meeting achieved fruitful
results, he said.
As the friendly relations
between the DPRK and China
are moving towards a new and
higher stage, Xi sent a high-
level and large-scale troupe to
the DPRK, showing that Xi
highly values the relationship
with the DPRK, he said.
Kim said he hopes the two
countries will take the oppor-
tunity to consolidate the
friendship between the two
peoples and write a new
chapter of the DPRK-China
friendship.
For his part, Song conveyed
Xi’s greetings and wishes to
Kim.
The protests have been driv-
en in part by the Bharatiya
Janata Party lawmaker’s arrest
last week for an alleged assault
in the northern state of Uttar
Pradesh, which the ruling BJP
governs.
Sunday’s reports concerned
an incident that took place on
April 5 in Surat, the city’s
police commissioner, Satish
Sharma, said.
He added that the victim —
Song said that the two lead-
ers held a historic meeting in
Beijing and reached impor-
tant consensus, which
opened a new chapter of the
China-DPRK relations.
He said that the visit of the
Chinese art troupe to the
DPRK aims to implement the
consensus, enrich the China-
DPRK friendship, promote
exchanges and cooperation
between the two parties and
enhance cultural and artistic
exchanges between the two
countries.
He said that the Chinese art
troupe felt that Kim, the WPK
and the DPRK people attach
great importance to China-
DPRK relations, and also felt
their show of friendship
toward Xi, the CPC and the
Chinese people from the
moment the delegation
arrived in Pyongyang.
The two sides also
exchanged views on strength-
ening exchanges and cooper-
ation between the two parties
and two countries, as well as
who was 11, according to the
post-mortem — has not yet
been identified and that police
from Gujarat’s neighboring
states have been asked to help
trace her family.
“We have put our best teams
in place with all senior police
officials. To nab the criminals
we first need to identify the
body,” Sharma said.
A separate case of gang rape
and murder of an 8-year-old
international and regional
issues of common concerns.
Kim said he hopes he can
learn from the experiences of
the CPC and strengthen
exchanges and cooperation in
various fields between the
two parties and countries.
Song said it is an unswerv-
ing policy of the CPC and the
Chinese government to pre-
serve, consolidate and devel-
op relations with the DPRK.
China is willing to work
with the DPRK to implement
the important consensus
reached between the top lead-
ers and jointly contribute to
promoting the development
of bilateral relations in the
new era, improving the wel-
fare of the two peoples and
safeguarding peace on the
Korean Peninsula, Song said.
Kim and his wife, Ri Sol-ju,
held a grand reception for the
Chinese art troupe on Satur-
day night with participation
of senior DPRK officials.
XINHUA
girl in India-controlled Kash-
mir has also caused national
anger as details emerged of
how the girl was kidnapped,
drugged and held in captivity
as eight men assaulted her.
The United Nations is
among the international bod-
ies that condemned the brutal
assaults.
“We are deeply concerned
about the prevalence of gen-
der-based violence, including
WORLD 11
Latin
American
states in
corruption
pledge
LIMA, Peru — Leaders of
Latin American states pledged
to tackle the crippling corrup-
tion that has been holding
back many of the region’s
developing countries at the
two-day Summit of the Ameri-
cas on Saturday.
Heads of state and top
envoys from member coun-
tries of the Organization of
American States adopted the
Lima Commitment to eradi-
cating corruption, which con-
tained more than 50 concrete
steps to promote transparency
and accountability.
“We have concluded a com-
mitment in Lima, endorsed by
everyone, that comprises 57
points that the heads of state of
all the nations that have partic-
ipated pledge to fulfill,” Peruvi-
an President Martin Vizcarra
told a news conference.
The measures include
strengthening an independ-
ent judiciary to prevent impu-
nity, protecting journalists
and whistleblowers who
investigate and uncover
crimes, and ensuring open
and transparent public-sector
procurement procedures, as
well as urging greater private-
sector responsibility in com-
bating corruption.
“The people of Latin Ameri-
ca and the Caribbean are
being let down by their gov-
ernments and the private sec-
tor,” Jose Ugaz, chair of
Transparency International,
said in its annual report Glob-
al Corruption Barometer.
Increasing transparency,
along with other measures,
such as promoting greater inte-
gration, could transform Latin
America into an important
regional trade bloc with twice
the population of the European
Union, said Luis Alberto
Moreno, head of the Inter-
American Development Bank.
“Together, we would be an
irresistible magnet for invest-
ment,” he added.
XINHUA
sexual violence against wom-
en and girls, which we are wit-
nessing in India,” Yuri
Afanasiev, the UN resident
coordinator in India, said in a
statement last week.
India registered about
40,000 rape cases in 2016, up
from 25,000 in 2012, govern-
ment data show. Activists say
thousands more go unreported.
REUTERS
12
WORLD
Monday, April 16, 2018
CHINA DAILY » CHINADAILY.COM.CN/WORLD
Briefly
YEMEN
Govt says Iran
armed Houthis
The Yemeni government
on Saturday accused Iran
of supplying Shiite Houthi
rebels with drones used
for cross-border attacks
into Saudi Arabia. Riyadh
said on Wednesday it had
shot down two drones in
the south of the kingdom
as well as intercepting
ballistic missiles fired
from rebel-held parts of
Yemen, the latest in a
series of similar incidents.
The Saudi-backed govern-
ment said in a statement
on Saturday that the
drones are “made in Iran”.
It added that Yemen’s mil-
itary did not possess such
aircraft and it was
“impossible to manufac-
ture them locally”.
NIGERIA
Troops kill 7 Boko
Haram fighters
The Nigerian military on
Saturday confirmed seven
Boko Haram fighters
were killed in an ongoing
operation aimed at clear-
ing remaining terrorists
from the country’s north-
east region. Military
spokesman Onyema Nwa-
chukwu said the terror
fighters were neutralized
in separate ambushes on
the troops on Friday.
Some of the Boko Haram
fighters were killed inside
the Sambisa Forest,
known as the former larg-
est training camp of the
group in the northern
state of Borno, Nwachuk-
wu said.
MALI
One dead in
‘terror’ attack
A rocket and car bomb
attack left one UN peace-
keeper dead, a dozen
wounded and another doz-
en French soldiers hurt at
Timbuktu’s airport area,
Mali’s security ministry
said on Saturday. “A terror-
ist attack” targeted France’s
Barkhan camp as well as
UN troops stationed out-
side the northern Mali city
during the afternoon, the
ministry said. A dozen
rockets were fired at the
two camps with gunmen
dressed as UN blue hel-
mets riding two vehicles
rigged with bombs.
UNITED STATES
Boston marks 5
years since attack
Boston marked the fifth
anniversary of the deadly
Boston Marathon bomb-
ings with solemn remem-
brances and charitable
acts. Mayor Marty Walsh
and Governor Charlie Bak-
er laid wreaths early on
Sunday at the spots along
downtown Boylston Street
where two bombs killed
three spectators and
maimed more than 260
others on April 15, 2013.
Director Milos
Forman dies at 86
Oscar-winning film direct-
or Milos Forman, celebrat-
ed for One Flew Over the
Cuckoo’s Nest and Ama-
deus, has died aged 86, his
agents told AFP on Satur-
day. “I heard from (Form-
an’s wife) Martina Forman
very early this morning let-
ting me know Milos passed
away at Danbury Hospital
near his home in Warren,
Connecticut,” his friend
and agent Dennis Aspland
said. Czech news agency
CTK quoted Martina Form-
an as saying her husband
died suddenly on Friday
after a short illness.
AFP—XINHUA—AP
Protests in US cities
after airstrikes on Syria
British prime
minister faces
backlash over
her decision
WASHINGTON — Dozens
of anti-war protesters gath-
ered outside the White House
on Saturday against US-led
airstrikes on Syria.
Protesters were chanting
“hand off Syria”, while most
of them were holding yellow
banners that carry such slo-
gans as “No US War on Syr-
ia!” and “Bombing Syria
Doesn’t Protect People. It
Kills Them.”
The rally was part of a
series of protests in US cities
scheduled over the weekend
against US airstrikes on Syr-
ia, launched collectively with
Britain and France on Friday.
The air raids targeted Syrian
government forces in
response to an alleged chemi-
cal weapon use in Syrian town
Douma near the capital city of
Damascus on April 7.
US-based anti-war and civil
rights group, the ANSWER
Coalition, denounced the air-
strikes as “an outrage,” while
condemning Washington for
what the group called “a crimi-
nal assault against the people
of Syria”.
Some US lawmakers have
also questioned President
Donald Trump’s ordering of
the airstrikes.
Senator Tim Kaine, a Dem-
ocrat from Virginia, said that
the president’s decision to
“launch airstrikes against the
Syrian government without
Congress’s approval is ille-
gal”.
Senate Minority Leader
Chuck Schumer warned the
US against being drawn into a
larger war with the Syrian gov-
ernment.
UN Secretary-General Anto-
nio Guterres on Saturday
expressed concern over the
US-led strike in Syria, and
called for adherence to the UN
Charter and international law
on the issue.
The operations came under
question for its legitimacy due
to the complete lack of proof
that the Syrian government
was behind the chemical
attack. It has been widely criti-
cized by Syria, Russia and
Iran, among other nations.
May faces backlash
British Prime Minister
Streak of a missile across Damascus’ sky
DAMASCUS, Syria — It was
not an explosion that woke us
up, but a call from a friend in
Damascus to alert us: The
strikes had begun. It was just
after 4 am on Saturday. I
rushed out of my hotel room
up to the Associated Press
office a few floors above.
By the time I got there, anti-
aircraft guns were at work,
their tracers dotting the night
sky over the Syrian capital.
Our office, facing east, provid-
ed an almost theatrical view.
To the left was the mountain
overlooking Damascus from
which Syrian air defenses
were firing. Straight in front of
us was the orange glow from
fires on the city outskirts
where the airstrikes carried
out by the United States, Brit-
ain and France had hit.
I was already all set up. Days
earlier, I had put my camera in
place on its tripod out on the
balcony, hooked to a remote
control so I could operate it
from inside.
Clockwise from top left: Ma Zhaoxu, the permanent representative of China to the United Nations;
Vassily Nebenzia, Russian ambassador to the United Nations; Nikki Haley, United States ambassador to
the United Nations; and Bashar Jaafari, Syrian ambassador to the United Nations. XINHUA, AP, AFP
Theresa May faced a backlash
from the domestic opposition
after launching military
strikes on Syria without con-
sulting parliament.
As the Conservative leader
explained her rationale for the
air strikes, opposition parties
claimed the attacks were legal-
ly dubious, risked escalating
conflict and should have been
approved by lawmakers.
The shadow of the 2003
invasion of Iraq still lingers in
the corridors of Britain’s par-
liament, when MPs backed
then-prime minister Tony
Blair in joining US military
action.
“Bombs won’t save lives or
bring about peace,” said Jer-
The Scientific Research Center in the Barzeh neigborhood
northeast of Damascus, after Saturday’s missile strikes by the
US, the UK and France. MONSEF MEMARI / XINHUA
The surface-to-air missiles
began to fire. This was the shot
I had planned for. My first pic-
ture was no good it was out of
the frame. But the second
captured the moment: The
streak of the missile, drawn
out in the long exposure,
lanced up into the night,
emy Corbyn, the veteran leftist
leader of the main opposition
Labour Party.
“This legally questionable
action risks escalating fur-
ther... an already devastating
conflict.
“Theresa May should have
sought parliamentary approv-
al, not trailed after Donald
Trump.”
Corbyn has written to May
seeking assurance that there
would be no further bombing
raids and urged the govern-
ment to negotiate a pause in
the Syrian civil war.
Athens protest
Thousands of Greeks
turned up at a rally and march
another one further behind it.
The AP team had arrived in
Damascus from Beirut earlier
in the week. We were far from
the only spectators in those
pre-dawn hours.
Many Damascus residents
had spent the past nights on
their rooftops watching for an
in central Athens organized by
the Communist Party of
Greece to protest the US-led
airstrikes against Syria.
The protesters gathered Sat-
urday at Athens’ central Syn-
tagma Square before
marching to the US Embassy,
chanting anti-US slogans and
carrying banners.
Police vehicles barricaded
access to the embassy and pro-
testers left peacefully.
CPG General Secretary
Dimitris Koutsoumbas blast-
ed Greek politicians for
believing “flimsy excuses
about a use of chemical weap-
ons” by Syria.
XINHUA—AFP—AP
attack. If they were fearful
about where the standoff
between Syria, Russia and the
US over an alleged chemical
attack was going, few showed
it.
There was no sense of
dread, and Damascus’ main
market, Souq al-Hamidiyya,
was packed with thousands of
people the day before the
attack.
Hours after the strikes, offi-
cials took journalists to the
Syrian Scientific Research
Center on Damascus’ eastern
edge. The strikes had reduced
the complex to smoldering
rubble.
But the sense of defiance
was in full force on Saturday.
Residents massed in the
streets, waving Syrian flags
and chanting in support of
President Bashar Assad. In the
eyes of government support-
ers, it seemed, the strikes had
come and gone.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Russia: Western
nerve agent found
MOSCOW — Russian For-
eign Minister Sergei Lavrov
said on Saturday the nerve
agent used to poison former
Russian spy Sergei Skripal in
Britain could have been the
BZ substance — which was
never produced in the Soviet
Union or Russia.
Lavrov said experts from a
laboratory based in the
Swiss town of Spiez had ana-
lyzed a sample of the sub-
stance used in the
poisoning.
Citing a report from the
lab dated March 27, Lavrov
said the evidence suggested
the nerve agent used could
be in the arsenal of the Unit-
ed States and Britain.
Lavrov read out parts of
the report that he said
showed the substance had
traces of the BZ agent.
“This formulation was in
the inventory of the United
States, Britain and other
NATO states,” Lavrov said, at
an assembly of the Council on
Foreign and Defence Policy.
The global chemical
weapons watchdog conclud-
ed on Thursday that the poi-
son that struck down the
former Russian spy and his
daughter Yulia last month
was a highly pure type of
Novichok nerve agent, back-
ing Britain’s own findings.
British Prime Minister
Theresa May has said it is
Festive fun
People play with water, during Songkran Water Festival celebra-
tions, to commemorate the Thai New Year in Bangkok,
Thailand. SOE ZEYA TUN/ REUTERS
‘No appetite’ for
major TPP change
SYDNEY — There is “no
appetite” among the
Trans-Pacific Partnership
signatories for major rene-
gotiations to accommo-
date the United States,
Australia said on Sunday
after US President Donald
Trump indicated he was
considering rejoining the
pact.
Trump said on Thursday
the US could re-enter the
TPP if it could get a “bet-
ter” deal, a major U-turn
after leaving the Pacific
trade pact last year and
calling it a jobs killer.
But Australia’s Trade
Minister Steven Ciobo said
he “can’t see any appetite
for any kind of wholesale
renegotiations of the TPP
deal to accommodate the
United States”.
“Now don’t get me
wrong, that’s not saying we
don’t want the Americans
back in, we do,” Ciobo told
Sky News Australia.
“But what I am saying is
I can’t see us unpicking all
the stitching that brought
this deal together to
accommodate the US at
this point.”
Eleven Asia-Pacific
nations signed a slimmed-
down version of the trade
agreement, now known as
the Comprehensive and
Progressive Agreement for
This formulation
was in the inven-
tory of the United
States, Britain
and other NATO
states.”
Sergei Lavrov, Russian foreign
minister
highly likely that Moscow
was behind the attack.
Russia has repeatedly
denied any involvement in
the poisoning.
Lavrov on Saturday said
the report from the Swiss lab
mentioned no nerve agents
by name, such as Novichok,
but instead gave a long
chemical formula that
points to a substance that
has been developed by many
countries.
“We, as you understand,
have abilities to receive con-
fidential information. And
as this information concerns
questions of life and death,
we won’t keep this informa-
tion secret,” Lavrov said.
REUTERS
Trans-Pacific Partnership,
in March.
Apart from Australia,
the pact also includes Bru-
nei, Canada, Chile, Japan,
Malaysia, Mexico, New
Zealand, Peru, Singapore
and Vietnam, representing
together 13.5 percent of
the global economy.
The 11 states form a mar-
ket of 500 million people.
The deal was signed just
before Trump slapped
steep tariffs on imported
steel and aluminium.
Japan will propose set-
ting up a new framework
to discuss trade issues
with the United States in a
summit next week, in
hopes of persuading it to
rejoin the TPP, the Nikkei
newspaper said on Satur-
day.
Prime Minister Shinzo
Abe will make the propos-
al when he meets Trump at
Mar-a-Lago, the presi-
dent’s Florida resort, on
Tuesday and Wednesday,
the paper said.
Economy Minister
Toshimitsu Motegi is likely
to lead the Japanese dele-
gation, with his counter-
part likely to be US Trade
Representative Robert
Lighthizer, the paper said,
without citing sources.
AFP—REUTERS
 LIGHTS & CHIPS
BUSINESS
SOEs SCORE HIGH 503 firms’ 2017 profits up 54% to $94 billion p17
CHINA DAILY » CHINADAILY.COM.CN/BUSINESS Monday, April 16, 2018
Asset managers enter new era
Tighter regulation
aims to mitigate
financial risks,
protect investors,
safeguard growth
By CHEN JIA
chenjia@chinadaily.com.cn
China’s 120 trillion yuan
($19 trillion) asset manage-
ment segment, which com-
prises trust funds, insurance,
securities, public and private
funds, and commercial banks’
wealth management products
or WMPs, is on the cusp of a
new era of tighter regulation
and balanced growth free of
systemic risks.
The new regulatory guide-
lines were approved by the
country’s top policymakers on
March 28. The unified stan-
dards and the clear classifica-
tion of various asset products
were released in the form of a
draft guideline in November
by the central bank.
Backed by the 252 trillion
yuan banking industry, the
asset management segment
had grown rapidly, haphaz-
ardly and dangerously in
recent years. It is now consid-
ered as important as the banks
themselves and the financial
markets. Hence, any trouble
there could have far-reaching
implications.
More so because in China,
commercial banks play a dom-
inant role in the asset manage-
ment segment, which has a
multi-layer structure that
offers complex products.
Divided into two basic cate-
gories — publicly offered prod-
ucts and privately offered
products — the asset manage-
ment segment will cover equi-
ties, commercial and financial
derivatives, mixed products
and fixed-income instruments
like deposits.
As conventional invest-
ments like stocks, bonds and
realty lost some of their allure
due to reasons like risk, mar-
ket volatility and low returns,
WMPs and the like appear to
be the preferred destination of
investors seeking high
returns, experts said.
Over the past several dec-
ades, high wealth accumula-
tion in China has pushed the
general public searching for
better investment opportuni-
ties to prefer WMPs, said Jin
Li, chair professor of finance
and associate dean of the
Guanghua School of Manage-
ment, Peking University.
But insufficient risk man-
agement and aggressive use of
financial leverage in the asset
Commercial banks get wealth act together
By JIANG XUEQING
jiangxueqing@
chinadaily.com.cn
Commercial banks are
accelerating efforts to adjust
their wealth management
products or WMP business
according to new regulatory
requirements, as China is step-
ping up control over financial
risks.
It is expected that China will
soon formally launch guide-
lines to tighten rules on the
asset management business of
various financial institutions.
Top leaders of the country
have approved new regula-
tions for the asset manage-
ment sector to tackle off-
balance-sheet lending and
eventually address China’s
debt problems, bankers said.
Gu Shu, president of Indus-
trial and Commercial Bank of
China Ltd, the country’s larg-
est commercial lender by
Gunnar Eberhardt pilots Osram’s high-tech drive p15
Source: BIS
MA XUEJING AND SU JINGBO
/ CHINA DAILY
$19 trillion
the scale of the asset
management segments
in China
management segment often
results in massive fluctuation
of asset prices, and the capital
raised by the financial prod-
ucts does not always flow into
the real economy, said Jin.
Asset management firms
raise funds from investors by
offering higher rates of inter-
est and lend such money to
high-risk borrowers on terms
that are seen as liberal but are
116.18
trillion yuan
volume of 2016 asset man-
agement business in China
assets, has a positive attitude
toward the regulatory tighten-
ing.
“To develop the asset man-
agement business well … there
should be regulations and
standardized development,”
Gu said at a recent news con-
ference.
As at the end of 2017, the bal-
ance of ICBC’s wealth manage-
ment products stood at 3
trillion yuan ($477 billion), up
11.4 percent from the previous
year. The bank ranked first
among its peers in terms of the
stock and the increase of
Why shadow banking
needs to be reined in
trillion
market size in 2016
1.4%
Share of shadow banking
assets in the overall
banking system in 2010
15.5%
Share of shadow banking
assets in the overall
banking system in 2016
shadow banking assets as
share of China’s total
financial assets in 2017
generally outside the purview
of normal regulation (and
hence not prudential).
Typically, borrowers tend to
be real estate companies, local
governments’ financing plat-
forms and the like.
According to a note by Sun
Guofeng, head of the People’s
Bank of China’s financial
research division, returns on
WMPs are generally higher
than bank deposit rates. For
example, in June 2017, the
average yield of a WMP was
4.66 percent annualized,
while the official deposit rate
was 1.5 percent.
Returns on WMPs are high-
er because the products are
not subject to reserve require-
ments, and not covered by
WMPs, he said.
“We are designing net-
worth wealth management
products, which are in line
with regulatory requirements.
We are also doing research on
transforming non-standard
asset investment into stan-
dard asset investment. In
terms of risk control, we are
simplifying our product sys-
tem and reducing embedment
to increase penetration of
WMPs according to new
rules,” he said.
So, Gu is confident that
ICBC’s asset management
business will develop in a sus-
tainable and more standard-
ized way after the new
regulations take effect.
Zhao Huan, president of
Agricultural Bank of China
Ltd, said regulatory tightening
will motivate commercial
banks to operate legally and in
compliance with rules and
thus contribute to sustainable
$7
14%
deposit insurance, said Sun.
The segment is being sought
to be dovetailed with the goals
set for the financial services
sector in general and the
banking industry in particu-
lar, to align them with the
country’s pursuit of high-qual-
ity economic growth through
structural reforms.
The set of new rules, jointly
issued by the PBOC and the
supervisors of various finan-
cial markets, is the country’s
first regulatory benchmark to
oversee the asset management
segment.
New rules specify that asset
managers should clarify about
their actual investors and
investment targets and will be
supervised.
and healthy development of
banks.
“We will follow new regula-
tions on interbank and asset
management businesses so
that the interbank business
will head in the direction of
bridging the short-term fund-
ing gap, and the asset manage-
ment business will meet the
requirements of serving the
real economy, shifting towards
net-worth wealth manage-
ment products that are similar
to open-end funds, and lower-
ing the risk of maturity mis-
match,” Zhao said.
Under the overall policy,
these two types of business
will remain relatively stable,
he said.
While streamlining their
asset management business,
many banks made moves to
meet growing client demands
for globalized asset manage-
ment portfolios.
Last year, ICBC set up a
The PBOC is aiming to unify
rules covering asset manage-
ment products issued by vari-
ous financial regulators in the
past.
The new rules, which have
been drafted since late 2016,
became necessary as the seg-
ment’s growth threatened to
snowball into a systemic risk
imperilling not only the credit
scene but the larger economy.
Experts said tighter regula-
tion is also aimed at improv-
ing market transparency and
disclosure norms for complex
asset management products.
This, they said, would help
reduce contagion risks from
asset management companies
See SCRUTINY page 14
Visitors check out new financial products at ICBC’s booth at the Beijing International Wealth Manag-
ment Expo in 2015. FAN JIASHAN / FOR CHINA DAILY
company in Hong Kong
for international asset
management. Just a year
later, the latter’s assets
under management have
reached over HK$100 bil-
GOING
GLOBAL
NetDragon’s
Elernity
promotes equity
in education
worldwide p14
Talking Business
Rules spark fears
and raise hopes
By CHEN JIA
chenjia@chinadaily.com.cn
After more than 10 years of
wild expansion, will China’s
credit, which has accumulat-
ed to 178.73 trillion yuan
($25.3 trillion) by February
in terms of total social
financing, be tamed by a
newly formed regulatory
framework for the asset
management segment?
About 8 million financial
practitioners in the Chinese
asset management segment
may start thinking about
their future jobs, or take the
earliest opportunity to
change careers, before what
they see as the regulatory
hurricane’s landfall. The
sweeping new guidelines for-
bid many profitable but
high-risk businesses.
A friend of mine, who is
working with a large securi-
ties company and leads its
asset management team,
said that those working in
the sector worry they might
lose jobs when the new rules
take effect. “The most profit-
able but risky businesses will
be stopped when the regula-
tors set leverage ceilings on
asset management prod-
ucts,” he told me.
According to the new regu-
lations, the total assets of an
open-ended public offering
product should not exceed
140 percent of the product’s
net assets, while the total
assets of a closed-end public
offering product should not
be greater than 200 percent
of its net assets.
Other worries come from
retail depositors, especially
people who bought a large
amount of wealth manage-
ment products from com-
mercial banks. As investors
and savers, they are afraid
that the “safe” products with
predictable returns might no
longer be guaranteed by
fund managers.
Depositors may shift their
money out of banks to invest
in bonds, stocks or else-
where, searching for higher
returns if the safe invest-
ment cannot be guaranteed
any more, some analysts pre-
dicted.
So the question is, could
this set of tightened regula-
tions become a cage to con-
trol financial risks or evolve
into an earthquake shaking
the very foundation of the
Chinese financial system?
In the wake of the 2008
global financial crisis, credit
expansion was stimulated in
lion ($12.74 billion).
As at the end of 2016, the
volume of the asset manage-
ment business in China
reached 116.18 trillion yuan,
according to a report pub-
... Risky busi-
nesses will be
stopped when
the regulators
set leverage
ceilings ...
China during 2009-10. Bank
lending was reshaped into
different asset management
instruments such as wealth
management and trust prod-
ucts, to support economic
development. But, this also
boosted regulatory arbitrage
or window-dressing among
financial institutions.
Now, 10 years after the
GFC, the country’s top finan-
cial regulators are set to rein
in the side-effects of the
financial stimulus, champi-
oning the cause of deleverag-
ing, to prevent large credit
defaults that may lead to sys-
temic collapse. The new asset
management regulation
could be the sign of a “new
era” in credit expansion.
Over the past decade, rap-
id credit growth was mainly
driven by the existence of
some form of implicit guar-
antee for financial products.
Some of China’s commer-
cial banks, which dominate
the domestic financial sector,
may seek to create more
complex and non-transpar-
ent instruments, or informal
financing channels, to reclas-
sify their assets and escape
regulatory scrutiny. Any such
moves may have implica-
tions for non-performing
loan provisions and loan-to-
deposit ratio ceilings.
Many researchers said
small and medium-sized
enterprises rely on informal
financing as their access to
formal credit is limited.
Tighter scrutiny, whether
activity-based or entity-
based, could be expected
soon, along with the restruc-
turing of the regulatory sys-
tem. The top policymakers
have shown strong determi-
nation toward that end.
Deleveraging, however, is
an art, not a financial tech-
nique, which requires proper
pace as well as the right
amount of intensity. Rome
was not built in a day. A radi-
cal process could spark new
risks and push the whole sit-
uation out of control, some
industry observers fear.
lished by the China Banking
Association.
Some 497 commercial
banks issued 100,107 accumu-
See LEVERAGE page 14
14 BUSINESS
GOING GLOBAL
Promoting education equity
Elernity, an arm of
NetDragon, is set
to exploit tech and
the internet to
improve learning
By CHENG YU
chengyu@chinadaily.com.cn
Fujian-based education pro-
vider Elernity, a subsidiary of
NetDragon Websoft Holdings
Ltd, believes China’s Belt and
Road Initiative will present it
huge opportunities to contin-
ue to expand overseas.
Its mission, according to its
website, is “to leverage the
power of the internet to
improve education, by com-
bining superior educational
resources with advanced
information technologies”.
The “mission” boosted Eler-
nity’s 2017 overseas revenue by
31 percent year-on-year to 300
million yuan ($47.8 million),
which accounted for over 80
percent of parent NetDragon’s
total revenue, according to the
subsidiary’s latest financial
report.
Elernity already offers its
services in nearly 100 coun-
tries and regions including the
United States, the United
Kingdom, Indonesia and Tur-
key, and has a strong presence
in some B&R economies such
as Russia.
“We’ll continue to bolster
our businesses in the foreign
markets, especially some
B&R ones, this year and
improve the quality of educa-
tion in different countries
and regions,” said Xiong Li,
CEO of NetDragon, in an
exclusive interview with Chi-
na Daily.
Xiong noted that the com-
pany is in talks with the Turk-
ish government and is likely to
ink a “big”deal which will rev-
olutionize the country’s teach-
ing environment in the
coming years.
Elernity’s parent NetDragon
is a leading online gaming
firm with over 65 million users
across 180 countries and
regions. Two of its games fig-
ure among the most down-
loaded titles in the past two
years.
Elernity, founded in 2010,
was established to help Net-
Dragon to tap into the educa-
tion sector and transform the
parent from a games-only
player to a games-and-educa-
tion firm.
Over the last three years,
Elernity has developed and
launched a string of integrat-
ed educational devices
including smart boards, pan-
els, tables, feedback and eval-
uating systems. These mainly
help teachers to teach and
interact with students more
efficiently.
In China, Elernity promoted
its interactive PowerPoint
platform across China and
garnered 1.2 million users by
the end of 2017.
Experts say tariff clash betrays US anxiety
BEIJING — Anxiety over
China’s rising economic and
technological power is the ulti-
mate reason behind recent US
moves on trade disputes with
China, analysts said.
Deterring Chinese exports is
not the real goal of the aggres-
sive trade moves by the United
States, according to Ye Fujing,
head of the Institute of Inter-
national Economic Research,
which is part of the Chinese
Academy of Macroeconomic
Research.
“The hidden agenda behind
the US trade deficit and forced
technology transfer claims is
to check China’s high-end
industrial development and its
ongoing economic transfor-
mation,” Ye said.
Less than two days after Chi-
na matched the earlier $50 bil-
lion tariff wager on the US side
with a similar one of its own,
the Trump administration
threatened extra duties on Chi-
Visitors try out virtual reality products of NetDragon at a symposium at Harvard University in January last year.
Staff of Promethean, a subsidiary of Elernity, interact with the audience at an exhibition of educational
equipment in January last year. PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY
We’ll continue to
bolster our busi-
nesses in the for-
eign markets,
especially some
B&R ones ...”
Xiong Li, CEO of NetDragon
Backed by a gaming special-
ist, Elernity has been able to
apply advanced technologies
like virtual reality or VR into
its products. Users (students)
get immersive experiences
nese goods worth $100 billion.
In its national security strat-
egy last year, the US adminis-
tration painted China as a rival
power eroding US security and
prosperity, a country whose
share of the world’s economy
was only 1.8 percent 40 years
ago but is now the world’s sec-
ond-largest economy with
leading technologies in many
sectors.
China’s rapid advancement
in key technologies has made it
a target in the US 301 Section
investigation, accusing China
of forced technology transfer
from US companies via
requirements for joint ven-
tures and shareholding.
“The aim of the Made in Chi-
na 2025 plan is certainly to
strengthen China’s manufac-
turing industries via techno-
logical innovation, but the
plan itself has not violated any
principles,” said Huang Qun-
hui of the Chinese Academy of
from the products’ vivid sce-
narios.
“We expanded our business
overseas mainly through M&A
(mergers and acquisitions).
We chose to cooperate with
local partners as part of our
go-global strategy,” said Xiong.
He said the market does not
wait for Elernity or any other
company to evolve at its own
pace. Both education and
technology are developing at
an unprecedented speed. So,
educational service providers
need to keep pace and stay on
their toes. This will cost both
money and time, especially
when a firm decides to go glob-
al alone, he said.
“That’s why we choose to
cooperate with local compa-
nies that are strong in chan-
nels, talents and technologies
Social Sciences.
Meanwhile, by putting US
products such as soybeans,
automobiles and aircraft on
the list of China’s retaliatory
tariff plan, China’s resolute
response has already hit the
US where it hurts.
“Imposing tariffs on soy-
beans and other farm produce
would make a massive impact,
although their per unit prices
are relatively low,” said Bai
Ming, a researcher with the
Chinese Academy of Interna-
tional Trade and Economic
Cooperation.
Aiming at items such as
automobiles and aircraft also
“threw a punch” at US manu-
facturing industries, Bai said.
“China is in the process of
further opening up its services
sector. The US risks losing the
whole Chinese market if it
pushes too hard,” said Yu Miao-
jie, deputy director of the
National School of Develop-
to make the best of the both
sides while further strength-
ening our businesses abroad,”
he said.
Elernity has acquired 100
percent stakes in firms such as
London-listed Promethean,
which specializes in combin-
ing hardware and software
solutions. For instance, its
interactive whiteboards called
ActivBoards come with exclu-
sive ClassFlow software.
When Elernity acquired
Promethean, the latter’s prod-
ucts were being used already
in over 100 countries and
regions and in 1.3 million
classrooms globally.
The acquisition has provid-
ed parent NetDragon with a
strong brand, global sales and
marketing channels. It also
helped Promethean come out
Maintenance staff at work at a high-speed railway yard of CRRC’s
Malaysia subsidiary. High-speed trains symbolize the Chinese man-
ufacturing sector’s prowess, which has sparked envy and admira-
tion among economic competitors. XINHUA
ment at Peking University.
The US tariff list is harming
its own enterprises. It will
affect many high-tech and
advanced manufacturing
products made by US firms
operating in China, according
to Professor Wang Xiaosong of
PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY
of losses and post a profit. Pro-
methean’s 2017 profit was 53
million yuan, a rebound from
a loss of 50.6 million yuan in
2016.
At the time of the takeover
by Elernity, Jim Marshall, then
CEO of Promethean, said:
“We’re extremely excited to
join NetDragon where we will
be able to continue our mis-
sion of empowering students
and teachers by encouraging
them to engage, interact and
collaborate.”
Promethean is now imple-
menting a digitalization
project in Moscow, which is
expected to benefit 7,600 class-
rooms and serve 14,500 teach-
ers when finished.
NetDragon has also
acquired Cherrypicks Alpha,
an augmented reality or AR
service provider, and estab-
lished a joint venture called
ARHT Media to bolster its
competiveness in applications
of VR and AR in education and
entertainment.
“The world is unfair in
terms of education resources
as a great many developing
countries lag behind in educa-
tion quality, not to mention
education embedded with
technologies. However, it’s
also where we can engage in,”
said Xiong.
He also said a lot of coun-
tries have a strong desire for
improving education quality
and efficiency, which presents
both opportunities and chal-
lenges for Elernity.
“In the future, we hope to
cooperate more with the gov-
ernments of these countries to
leverage technology in educa-
tion and promote education
equity on a global scale.”
the Renmin University of Chi-
na.
If the trade friction esca-
lates, US firms are expected to
see losses in their share in the
Chinese market, he said.
XINHUA
Monday, April 16, 2018 CHINA DAILY
Scrutiny: AMCs
see rules creating
transparency
From page 13
or AMCs to the whole finan-
cial system.
Another key target is to
minimize regulatory arbi-
trage, thus cutting rent-seek-
ing, according to the
country’s top financial regu-
lators.
The new rules shall retain
provisions related to
restricting the so-called
non-standard assets, such as
trustee loans, that are less
transparent and more risky,
by financial players and
investors, and eliminating
complicated structured
instruments, to guard
against risks and make the
financial sector better serve
the real economy.
One of the key changes, as
seen in the final version of
the guidelines, is to assess
the value of financial assets
as per market prices. This
will help measure their net
value instead of setting rates
of expected return, to better
reflect the market risk.
Companies that offer
WMPs and other investment
products are required not to
guarantee returns of princi-
pal and profit. Any violation
of this rule will make them
liable for punishment, the
guideline said.
Such rules come in the
wake of proliferation of
credit by type and volume,
including the so-called shad-
ow banking sector, a space
where certain financial enti-
ties carry out potentially
risky credit and related
activities outside the regu-
lated banking system.
Tighter rules are seen as
regulators’ efforts to rein in
rapid growth of shadow
banking, or the less-super-
vised asset management
products, which have con-
tributed a large part to such
growth, becoming a poten-
tial risk in the form of banks’
unprotected loan exposures.
A report from Standard &
Poor’s, a global credit ratings
agency, said the new rules
will speed up the changes in
the shadow banking struc-
ture.
There are signs that addi-
tional regulatory scrutiny of
shadow banking activities
will continually increase in
China, which could be a net
positive for financial stabili-
ty and liquidity risk preven-
tion, said experts.
Through shadow banking
activities, banks are believed
to have hid loans using alter-
native accounting practices,
thus circumventing regula-
tory restrictions such as
credit allocation con-
straints. And those activities
are mainly channeled
through third-party finan-
cial institutions, including
other banks and non-bank
financial institutions.
Given that the global mar-
kets are interconnected
these days, shadow banking
could lead to unpredictable
asset price volatility, and
pose challenges to monetary
policy regulation and finan-
cial risk management. In
recent years, it has been seen
as a major threat to financial
stability not only in China
but the world over.
Leverage: Efforts on
to clean up WMPs
From page 13
lative WMPs. The outstand-
ing balance of WMPs
reached 29.05 trillion yuan,
or 25 percent of the entire
asset management business
nationwide, at the end of
2016.
Since last year, the coun-
try’s top banking regulator
has been issuing a number of
directives to reduce financial
leverage, address noncompli-
ant practices and improve
risk management.
As at the end of January,
$45
trillion
size of the shadow bank-
ing assets worldwide by
the end of 2016
As per data from the
Financial Stability Board or
FSB, by the end of 2016, the
worldwide shadow banking
assets reached $45 trillion,
accounting for 13.2 percent
of total global financial
assets. It was a 7.6 percent
increase from a year earlier.
In China, shadow banking
products increased to $7 tril-
lion in 2016, rising from 1.4
percent of total global shad-
ow banking assets in 2010 to
15.5 percent in 2016, mark-
ing a 40.1 percent com-
pound annual growth rate
on an exchange rate-adjust-
ed basis, according to the
FSB.
It showed that shadow
banking assets have exceed-
ed 14 percent of China’s total
financial assets, and it is
nearly 65 percent of the total
GDP in 2017. The segment is
now the second-largest glo-
bally, just behind the United
States where the segment
accounts for 31 percent of
the GDP.
As China’s banking indus-
try still dominates the over-
all financial sector, banks’
WMPs accounted for the
largest part of the asset
management segment.
As a result of increased
regulation, smaller Chinese
banks, that rely on the inter-
bank market and shadow
banking for liquidity, may
see rising funding costs,
while larger banks with
stronger deposit franchises
may be relatively better
insulated than smaller, less
capitalized peers, experts
said.
Fitch Ratings’ Grace Wu,
who covers China banks,
wrote in a research note,
“The FSB’s narrow measure
of shadow banking may not
fully capture the range of
activities in China due to
their complexity”, although
it is still manageable per-
centage-wise.
The Fitch analyst saw Chi-
na’s shadow banking “as
more systemic and com-
plex” relative to more devel-
oped markets, with
significant interconnectivity
and risk for the banks.
“If the authorities’ meas-
ures do not slow growth in
credit trends, the system will
become more difficult to
control,” said Wu.
In addition, the newly
combined supervisory agen-
cy for the banking and insur-
ance industries can support
efforts to move toward a
more comprehensive regu-
latory framework that can
address risks across the
financial system, said Fitch
Ratings.
“A more unified approach
could enhance regulatory
oversight and help to limit
contagion risks, which
would be positive for the
long-term stability of the
financial system,” it said.
the balance of interbank
WMPs dropped by 3.6 trillion
yuan year-on-year. The
growth of the wealth man-
agement business fell to 1
percent, down by 26.6 per-
centage points from the pre-
vious year.
The war on financial risks
will continue this year, with
renewed efforts to crack
down on shadow banking
activities and further rectifi-
cation of financial irregulari-
ties, said Guo Shuqing, head
of the regulator for the bank-
ing and insurance industries.
 CHINA DAILY Monday, April 16, 2018
Bolstering China with chips, lights
Gunnar Eberhardt drives customization of Osram’s high-tech products for the domestic market
By ZHU WENQIAN
zhuwenqian@chinadaily.com.cn
Osram’s semiconductor-
based technologies power
products used in fields like
virtual reality, autonomous
driving and smart lighting
solutions — all big themes in
China. The country has
emerged as “one of the most
important markets” for the
company for future growth
and innovation, said Gunnar
Eberhardt, president and
CEO of the local arm of the
Munich-headquartered mul-
tinational.
So important that in 2017,
Osram’s China business
clocked sales of 837 million
euros ($1.04 billion), up nearly
18 percent year-on-year,
stronger than the market
growth rate of 8 to 9 percent.
China now accounts for
more than 20 percent of
Osram’s global annual turn-
over of 4 billion euros, and it is
the second-largest market aft-
er the United States for the
lighting business, Eberhardt
said.
Osram has more than 5,000
employees in China, account-
ing for nearly one-fifth of its
total workforce globally.
“We’re not a lamp company
per definition anymore, and
we’re a high-tech company.
For us, China is an advanced
and diverse marketplace, and
the Made in China 2025 strat-
egy has helped to create a lot
of business opportunities.
“We’re pretty confident that
we’ll continue our growth in
China. Going forward, in the
next few years, it’d also be my
ambition to grow Osram fast-
er here than in other markets,”
he said during an interview in
Beijing.
As the Chinese economy
gears up for slower but more
sustainable growth driven by
domestic consumption, it
opens up more opportunities
Engineers at work at the photoelectric semiconductor manufacturing base of Osram in Wuxi, Jiangsu
province. PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY
for multina- where Osram makes automo-
tionals like tive lighting products. The Fos-
Osram, he han plant’s capacity is also being
said. raised to meet growing demand
The compa- for its products in China.
ny has four “For the automotive lighting
manufactur- area, this is also a significant
Gunnar Eber- ing sites in manufacturing location for us
hardt, CEO of China. The to do export business, and the
Osram China one in Wuxi, products made here are sold
Jiangsu prov- globally,” Eberhardt said.
ince, produces products based With five research and
on semiconductor technolo- development centers in China,
gies. Its size will be doubled by Osram plans to further
the year-end. increase its R&D footprint in
Two other plants are in Kun- the country and ensure that
shan, Jiangsu province, and China plays an important role
Foshan, Guangdong province, in the company’s global R&D
network, he said.
The company is innovating a
number of products for the
China market. For instance, it
designed automotive lighting
products that do not produce
glare but help increase visibili-
ty on the road. This quality is
suitable for road conditions in
China.
On a personal note, Eber-
hardt regards moving to China
as his most significant experi-
ence, given the size and the
dynamics of the country.
He has held various leader-
ship positions and risen
through the ranks at Osram.
He had worked in Germany
and several emerging mar-
kets, including Latin America,
the Middle East and Africa.
A native of Germany, Eber-
hardt loves Chinese martial
arts. He has managed to take
some time to learn the Chinese
language and culture.
During his four years in
China, the biggest value he
has learnt is to always see the
positives in things and be pro-
active.
“I’m an ambitious manager,
and I try to improve things,
make things successful and
deliver growth. We know that
we have to be innovative and
enter new business fields that
we aren’t in yet,” he said.
In 2015, the automotive
industry experienced a down-
turn. He was instrumental in
guiding Osram through the
painful phase that lasted sever-
al months. He ensured the
company reached out to new
customers, built itself up in
new markets and ramped up
new innovations.
“Normally as a German, you
become cautious and try to
compare a tough situation
with that in other countries ...
Chinese people are bustling
and open-minded. They just
accept a tough situation as it is
and try to find ways to work
around it, and come out of the
situation stronger. And this is
what we did.”
Eberhardt’s family compris-
es his Italian wife, a 6-year-old
son and a 4-year-old daughter,
all of whom enjoy living in
Shanghai, where Osram’s
country headquarters are
based.
A frequent traveler, Eber-
hardt has visited numerous
places across China. He said he
likes the stunning, verdant
landscapes of mountainous
Guilin in the Guangxi autono-
mous region and cannot have
enough of the sunshine of
Hainan province.
BUSINESS 15
On the move
Alibaba takeover to bring
new team to Ele.me
Alibaba
Group Hold-
ing Ltd’s April
2 announce-
ment that it
has
increased its
stake in app-based food deliv-
ery service Ele.me to 100 per-
cent is expected to lead to a
new management team at
the latter. Alibaba and its affil-
iate Ant Small and Micro
Financial Services Group
owned about 43 percent of
Ele.me prior to the stake
increase, a deal valued at $9.5
billion. Once the transaction
receives regulatory approvals,
Ele.me founder and CEO
Zhang Xuhao (pictured) will
chair the company board and
also serve as special advisor
to Alibaba’s CEO Zhang Yong
on New Retail strategies.
Wang Lei, the current vice-
president of Alibaba, will be
appointed the new CEO of
Ele.me. Zhang said he is con-
fident Wang’s experience in
management and sales will
continue to prove useful.
Jing Xiandong rises to the
top at Ant Financial
Alibaba Group Holding Ltd
announced on April 9 the
appointment of current CEO
Jing Xiandong as the new
president of its affiliate Ant
Small and Micro Financial
Services Group, a financial
services provider focused on
small to medium-sized busi-
nesses. Ant’s former chair-
man Peng Lei will be the new
CEO of Lazada, an e-com-
merce platform serving the
Southeast Asian markets.
Lazada is backed by Alibaba
that invested $2 billion in it
recently. According to Jack
Ma Yun, founder and chair-
man of Alibaba, the executive
appointments reflect the
group’s intent to groom a
younger management team,
which Ma believes will add
more vigor to operations and
strategy. Jing said he will lead
Ant Financial to a brighter
future with support from his
colleagues.
Beingmate names founder
Xie as president, CEO
Chinese baby food firm
Beingmate announced the
appointment of Xie Hong as
its new CEO and president.
As the founder of Beingmate,
Xie led the group’s sweep of
the baby food market in Chi-
na, with over 100 million yuan
($15.8 million) in milk powder
sales in 2011, the company’s
first year. Sales soared to 6.1
billion yuan in 2013. But busi-
ness development suffered
due to a 1.7 billion yuan loss
in the 2016-17 period. Experts
said that appointment is like-
ly to help the group return to
the black. Xie left the group
in 2011 due to personal rea-
sons. Until the latest appoint-
ment, the position of
president remained vacant.
LinkedIn China appoints
Lu Jian as president
LinkedIn Corp, an online
social network for profes-
sionals, has appointed Lu
Jian as president of its China
operations. Upon joining, Lu
will be responsible for
research and business devel-
opment of LinkedIn China,
and will report directly to
Mohak Shroff, senior vice-
president of LinkedIn. Shroff
said Lu is a perfect candi-
date for the job as he dem-
onstrated great business
acumen and technical quali-
fications. Under Lu’s leader-
ship, LinkedIn China will
scale new heights, he said.
Prior to joining LinkedIn Chi-
na, Lu was CEO of CCtalk, an
interactive education plat-
form under Hujiang Educa-
tion Technologies Co Ltd, a
language learning service
provider.
CHINA DAILY—AGENCIES
16 BUSINESS
UK firms seek Chinese partners
British Airways,
retailers keen to
exploit sharp rise
in mainland
tourists to the isles
By OSWALD CHAN
in Hong Kong
oswald@chinadailyhk.com
British airlines and retailers
are finding Chinese business
partners to make the most of
increasing number of Chinese
tourists visiting the United
Kingdom.
The number of Chinese visi-
tors to the UK has soared by
over 150 percent in the five
years since 2012. In 2017 alone,
the UK received more than
500,000 visitors, a record.
New West End Company,
representing over 600 retail,
restaurant, hotel and property
owners across London’s West
End shopping district, com-
missioned Pricewaterhouse-
Coopers to conduct a survey of
the latest status of visitor
arrivals in London.
The PwC survey revealed a
27 percent year-on-year
growth in Chinese visitors to
London last year.
So, British Airways or BA,
which already operates 17
weekly flights to Beijing and
Shanghai from the UK, will
develop its networks further
in China, its top executive
said.
“We’ll continue to develop
the existing traffic and contin-
ue to work with local partners
to identify as quickly as possi-
ble ways to develop the Chi-
nese market network,” said
Alex Cruz, BA chairman and
CEO.
Emaging to export maglev blowers to US
By YANG CHENG in Tianjin
yangcheng@chinadaily.com.cn
Tianjin Emaging Technolo-
gy has become China’s first
exporter of magnetic levita-
tion or maglev blowers to the
United States.
Praxair, a Fortune 500 US
company based in New York
state, which specializes in
industrial gases, has decided
to adopt Emaging’s products
and use them in Asia, Europe
and the US.
A maglev blower uses mag-
netic bearings and high-tech
to compress and transport air
to the desired place in an ener-
gy-saving and environmental-
ly friendly way.
Such blowers find applica-
tions in waste water and solid
waste treatment, pharmaceu-
ticals, chemicals and food pro-
duction sectors.
Praxair’s decision to source
maglev blowers from Emag-
ing Tech follows an unsatisfac-
tory experience with previous
suppliers from Europe.
Praxair used to invest mas-
Unilever, Alibaba’s Tmall join forces to set up R&D center for health products
By ZHU WENQIAN
in Shanghai
zhuwenqian@chinadaily.com.cn
Rotterdam-based consumer
goods company Unilever Plc
and Tmall, Alibaba’s online
marketplace for reputable
retailers, have built a new
research and development cen-
ter to promote health-related
products.
The center will seek to
explore new opportunities in
China’s healthcare market.
In early April, the two sides
co-launched Tmall Innovation
Center and Unilever Joint
Innovation Lab at the R&D
center of Unilever in Shanghai,
one of the six biggest global
R&D centers of the company.
The center will focus on the
R&D of health products, such
as personal care products, and
water and air purification
products, leveraging the
advantages of supply chain
management abilities of Uni-
This file photograph shows a British Airways plane emblazoned with panda-like black-and-white features, after it landed at the Chengdu
Shuangliu International Airport. Its crew received a warm welcome from local staff dressed as panda mascots.
eager to engage with startups
to bring more innovative and
150 percent smart travel services to Chi-
nese customers.
“There is a tremendous
rise in the number of Chinese amount of innovation being
visitors to the UK in the five created in China at the
years since 2012 moment. We’re engaging with
other Chinese groups of start-
ups to understand how to
develop customer proposi-
tions better,” Cruz told China
Part of International Air- Daily.
lines Group or IAG, BA already For its part, IAG is mulling
has code-share ticketing how to integrate Alipay and
arrangements with China WeChat Pay into its payment
Sothern Airlines and China systems so that its subsidi-
Eastern Airlines. BA is also aries can accept mobile-
The magnetic levitation blower
is the future of this segment
due to its high performance and lower
energy cost.”
Hong Shenping, chairman of Tianjin Emaging Technology
sive amounts of time and not much of a surprise, given
money in the research and that Emaging is the top player
development of special-pur- in the field in China, in terms
pose maglev blowers. Its previ- of revenue and technology.
ous suppliers could provide “We won the (Praxair) order
only part of the solutions, the not due to the low costs. We
company said. wouldn’t worry that the (Chi-
A Chinese-born engineer na-US) trade tension may
working with Praxair found result in a tariff hike on our
information about Emaging’s blowers. We’ll increase the
high-performance products price accordingly, if necessa-
online and contacted Hong ry.”
Shenping, the Tianjin compa- Emaging Tech’s data show
ny’s chairman, last year. Tests the company’s revenue from
followed. Eventually, Praxair maglev blowers was 150 mil-
found Emaging’s products to lion yuan ($23.8 million) last
its liking. year, which made it No 1 in
Hong declined to share the China.
Praxair deal size and other This year, the figure is
details citing confidentiality. expected to surge by 50 per-
He, however, said the deal is cent, according to Hong. “Cur-
Researchers from Unilever show the latest body wash sample at the Tmall Innovation Center & Unilev-
er Joint Innovation Lab in Shanghai on April 9. PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY
lever, and the big data and new worldwide to improve their
retail resources of Alibaba. health conditions. Toward
Unilever said it would help that end, the company
more than 1 billion people acquired some companies that
based e-payments.
To meet future demand, BA
is investing 4.5 billion pounds
($6.4 billion) over the next
five years on improving air-
craft facilities. It is also
investing 600 million pounds
in its Club World business
class to lure more high-end
customers.
Chinese visitors’ spending
in the UK contributes to the
growth of not only the local
aviation industry but the retail
sector.
According to Global Blue, a
global tax-free shopping infor-
mation service provider, Chi-
rently, exports account for a
minor part of Emaging’s reve-
nue, but the exports to US rep-
resent a significant step for the
sector and the company.”
Maglev products account
for less than 10 percent of
China’s blowers. Globally, the
technology is considered to
be nascent. Other types of
conventional blowers, which
are low on technology but
consume high power, account
for a major part of the seg-
ment.
“The magnetic levitation
blower is the future of this seg-
ment due to its high perform-
ance and lower energy cost,”
Hong said.
Currently, Germany-based
Piller and Finland-based ABS
are market leaders in this
field. Chinese companies are
relatively less known in the
global market for blowers.
China’s maglev blower
exports are on a small scale,
with some presence in Asian
countries.
“Looking forward, export
growth will face challenges
produce healthcare products,
such as air purifier manufac-
turer Blueair and water purifi-
er maker Qinyuan.
nese tourists’ spending in
London surged 32 percent last
year compared to the 5-per-
cent growth in the eurozone in
the same period as Chinese
travelers took advantage of a
weakened British pound.
Premier Tax Free, a tourist
tax-free refund service pro-
vider, said Chinese shoppers
were expected to spend near-
ly 40 million pounds in the
London West End’s shopping
area in the Spring Festival
holiday period this year, rep-
resenting a yearly growth of
14 percent. Actural data is
awaited.
such as the need to build both
brands and customer trust,”
Hong said.
Another challenge could be
production expansion for
Emaging and other Chinese
companies.
Emaging’s biggest domestic
rival, Nanjing-based Magnetic
Valley, had announced it
would build a production cen-
ter in Guizhou province, to
expand its market presence.
Emaging itself has evolved
from 2006. Earlier, its focus
was on making maglev bear-
ings, high-speed motors and
generators, high-frequency
drivers, vacuum molecular
pumps and conventional
blowers.
Over the last three years,
the company spent 150 mil-
lion yuan on R&D of maglev
blowers. Foreseeing a bright
future for maglev technology,
it has beefed up investment
in magnetic refrigerator-
compressors and air com-
pressors, spending up to 1
billion yuan on each segment,
Hong said.
$1.27
trillion
estimated size of China’s
healthcare-related sectors in
2020
In 2016, the Chinese govern-
ment proposed the “Healthy
China 2030” initiative, the
country’s first national-level
medium- to long-term strate-
gic plan for national health
and wellbeing.
Currently, the health sector
in China contributes about 6
percent to the GDP, which is
lower than the average 10 per-
cent of developed countries.
The initiative forecasts that
by 2020, the total scale of
healthcare-related sectors in
China will exceed 8 trillion
yuan ($1.27 trillion).
By 2030, that will likely
Monday, April 16, 2018 CHINA DAILY
Bright prospects
cause reverse brain
drain to China
BEIJING — Timothy Tian,
CEO of SF Technology,
recently made a trip to the
United States to recruit tal-
ent for his company, one of
five involved in LinkedIn’s
recruitment campaign for
artificial intelligence or AI
professionals.
“While working here (in
the US), I felt that mostly I
was enjoying the benefits
of technology. But in Chi-
na, I feel that I’m using
technology to make a dif-
ference to people around
me. And that’s amazing,”
said Tian.
He returned to China six
years ago after two decades
in the US. There are many
Chinese like him — “sea tur-
tles” or foreign-educated,
highly skilled professionals
returning to serve a trans-
forming motherland and, in
the process, actualize their
full potential amid growing
opportunities to strike it
rich.
Already, demand is high
for overseas professionals in
China. And sea turtles are in
even higher demand.
During his hiring drive in
the US, Tian repeatedly
referred to the strong sense
of accomplishment of work-
ing in China, which struck a
chord among many compa-
triots in the audience like
Leo Zhang, a data engineer
with a robotics startup in Sil-
icon Valley.
“Many friends briefed me
about rapid changes in the
tech sector, when I went
home for Chinese New Year
a few months ago. I was
really impressed. Return-
ing to China for a new
career and life is worth a
try,” Zhang said.
SF Technology’s recruit-
ment event in the US attract-
ed over 800 jobseekers.
“This is the seventh joint
overseas recruitment cam-
paign for China-based
firms. We see growing
interest among overseas-
trained professionals and
the Chinese working over-
seas to return to China,”
said Linda Wang with
LinkedIn China.
The online network has
Visitors watch a robot painter developed by Chinese returnee
students at the 2017 China overseas talent exchange confer-
ence in Guangzhou, Guangdong province.
TAN QINGJU / FOR CHINA DAILY
reach an estimated 16 trillion
yuan. The market has become
the new favorite for many
investors and companies.
Unilever said the new R&D
center will enable its personal
care brands, as well as Blueair
and Qinyuan, to further coop-
erate with Alibaba.
For instance, the center has
introduced a new skincare
product, which was developed
based on consumer demand
analysis. The period from R&D
to the launch of a product has
also been shortened to six
months from two years.
“We applied a flexible supply
chain management model. The
core of the mechanism is that
the capacity will be smaller and
more flexible, and we can quick-
ly respond to any problems,”
said Zhao Wenfeng, director of
personal cleansing products at
Unilever North Asia.
Meanwhile, more than 500
outlets of Qinyuan across 100
cities in the country will coop-
We see growing
interest among
overseas-trained
professionals and
the Chinese work-
ing overseas to
return to China.”
Linda Wang, LinkedIn China
helped about 100 Chinese
firms find staff from over-
seas, especially those with
expertise in AI, data analysis
and cloud computing.
The clients used to be
mainly big fish like Baidu
and NetEase, but now start-
ups and traditional sectors
are also interested, Wang
said.
The inflow of returnees
picked up speed significantly
in 2012. Over 2.3 million Chi-
nese who graduated over-
seas returned to China in the
past five years.
A report from the Center
for China and Globaliza-
tion showed that China is
facing the biggest wave of
returnees since 1949. The
bright prospects for the
domestic economy and sta-
ble society were the top rea-
sons for returning
alongside factors like fami-
ly and culture.
“China is developing so
fast and that is the biggest
draw for them,” Wang said.
Local governments also
want overseas professionals.
Emerging cities like Chong-
qing, Wuhan and Chengdu
have partnered with Linked-
In to bring more profession-
als from abroad.
“It’s a rather good time to
return now. Come back to
China and visit Shenzhen or
our company. See for your-
self what is happening and
what is driving things there,”
Tian said.
XINHUA
erate with Tmall online and
offline, and consumers will be
able to experience the prod-
ucts at the brick-and-mortar
stores, and then scan the QR
or quick-response codes at the
stores to shop online.
In the next few years, Uni-
lever and Tmall will expand
their cooperation to more sec-
tors and grab more business
opportunities together. Both
sides aim to integrate more
R&D and innovation resour-
ces and make more compre-
hensive and precise forecasts
of the future consumer trends.
“Brands should build good
online platforms, and the
related data and member ser-
vices should also be integrated
online and offline. Besides,
brands should outline clear
pictures of their targeted con-
sumers and launch products
that are more precisely tai-
lored,” said Neil Wang, presi-
dent of consulting firm Frost &
Sullivan in China.
 CHINA DAILY Monday, April 16, 2018 Markets | BUSINESS 17

SOEs’ profits reveal

reforms are effective
503 enterprises’ 2017 revenues up 17%
to $2.34 trillion; income up 54% to $94 b
BEIJING — State-owned
enterprises or SOEs, the back-
bone of the Chinese economy,
registered a strong financial
performance last year and
made headway in China’s
reforms, especially those relat-
ing to the supply side.
So far, 503 out of 984 non-fi-
nancial SOEs listed in China
have filed their 2017 annual
reports with the Shanghai and
Shenzhen stock exchanges,
according to Wind Info, a
financial information service
provider.
Their total revenue rose 17
percent to 14.72 trillion yuan
($2.34 trillion), while the com-
bined net profits surged 54
percent to 593.5 billion yuan
last year.
Among them, 111 SOEs,
mainly from the non-ferrous
metal, chemical, coal and
transportation sectors, saw
net profit growth of more than
100 percent. Meanwhile, 26
firms suffered losses, down
from 40 in 2016.
The overall strength of list-
ed SOEs was in line with the
performance of all SOEs, as
their total profits rose 23.5
percent to 2.9 trillion yuan
last year, according to the
An employee polishes equipment at an electrical circuitry equip-
ment workshop at Jinzhou Hangxing Group Co Ltd, a SOE in
Jinzhou, Liaoning province. LI TIECHENG / FOR CHINA DAILY
Ministry of Finance.
Since 2015, the central lead-
ership has stressed “supply-
side structural reform”, with
major tasks including tax
cuts, lowering corporate
costs, tackling overcapacity,
reducing inventories and
deleveraging.
Cutting overcapacity in
bloated sectors like steel and
coal has been high on the gov-
ernment work agenda in
recent years as production
gluts ate into corporate profits
and dragged economic
growth.
Last year, China completed
the task of cutting steel capaci-
ty by about 50 million metric
tons and coal capacity by more
than 150 million tons.
Lowered capacity meant
less supply and allowed the
sectors to focus more on rais-
ing the quality of products
instead of engaging in price
wars.
Wind Info data showed 12
State-owned steel makers
posted total net profits of 29.6
billion yuan, up 543 percent
from a year ago, while 19 SOEs
in the mining industry saw net
profits surge 1,190 percent.
China Shenhua, the coun-
try’s largest coal miner, report-
ed net profits of 45 billion
yuan, up more than 98 percent
from a year ago, citing high
coal prices, thanks to the
capacity cuts.
China has vowed to cut inef-
fective steel capacity by 30 mil-
lion tons and coal capacity by
150 billion tons this year,
according to this year’s Gov-
ernment Work Report
unveiled in March.
Listed SOEs also made
progress in lowering the lever-
age ratio.
The 503 listed SOEs saw
total assets grow 7 percent
year-on-year, faster than a
6-percent increase of liabili-
ties.
Their average ratio of liabili-
ties to assets dropped from
50.03 percent in 2016 to 49.07
percent last year, one of the
main reasons behind a
0.6-percentage point drop in
the ratio for all major industri-
al companies.
Deleveraging was further
emphasized this year as an
important aspect of winning
the “tough battle” of forestall-
ing and defusing financial
risks.
Local governments and
companies, especially SOEs,
must decrease leverage as
soon as possible to contribute
to the gradual decline in the
country’s overall leverage
ratio, according to a statement
following a Monday meeting
of the Central Committee for
Financial and Economic
Affairs.
SOEs are also fighting pollu-
tion, another “tough battle” to
be won by 2020.
On April 9, Sinopec, the
largest oil refiner in China,
launched its “Green Action
Plan” in a bid to become a
clean, efficient and low-car-
bon enterprise by 2023.
Within the next six years,
the company will see the share
of its clean energy output
exceed 50 percent of its total
and build another 1,000 natu-
ral gas stations for vehicles.
XINHUA
An employee shifts the LNG pipeline after filling the transport vehicle at the CNPC LNG center in Jiangsu province.
XU CONGJUN / FOR CHINA DAILY
Trade tiff may hurt US LNG exports, oil prices
By ZHENG XIN
zhengxin@chinadaily.com.cn
Liquefied natural gas or
LNG exporters in the United
States, which have been eye-
ing opportunities in China,
might rue the current Sino-
US trade friction, said ana-
lysts.
Demand for LNG in China
has soared in recent years fol-
lowing accent on gas usage in
place of coal and other pollut-
ing fuels.
“We can’t exclude the possi-
bility that the US may lose the
opportunity to export more
LNG to China if the trade war
spreads from LPG to oil and
LNG,” said Wang Lu, an Asia-
Pacific oil and gas analyst at
Bloomberg Intelligence.
Analysts also expressed
concern that any escalation of
tensions between the world’s
two biggest economies would
have a negative impact on
global oil prices.
Bloomberg Intelligence
expects that Chinese LNG
imports may grow at com-
pound annual growth rate of
17 percent from 2017 to 2020.
Simply put, the rise in domes-
tic production and pipeline
imports are not enough to
meet the soaring demand,
necessitating more LNG
imports.
China has surpassed South
Korea to become the world’s
second-largest LNG importer
in 2017. China’s imports grew
46 percent on the year in 2017
to 37.8 million mt, and are
expected to reach nearly 49
million mt in 2018, Platts data
showed.
In the past few years, Bei-
jing adopted many policies
targeted at curbing coal out-
put, reducing coal power gen-
eration, and promoting
natural gas consumption, in
order to increase the share of
gas in the energy mix from
the targeted 10 percent by
2020 to 15 percent by 2030.
According to Wang, the US
was China’s fifth-largest LNG
supplier and exported 1.53
million tons of LNG to the
country last year, which were
from the spot market.
Private companies such as
Guanghui Energy and ENN
Group have also joined State-
owned CNOOC, PetroChina
and Sinopec in the LNG
$644
million
worth of last year’s LNG
trade from US to China
receiving terminals business,
increasing channels for spot
LNG imports from the US,
she said.
BI estimates last year’s
LNG trade from US to China
was worth about $644 mil-
lion, or 0.2 percent of the
trade gap of $375 billion.
While US Commerce Secre-
tary Wilbur Ross encourages
China to import more LNG to
reduce the deficit, the contri-
bution would be marginal.
According to Wang, though
it can’t close the gap, increas-
ing exports of oil and LNG to
China could reduce the US
trade deficit with China, albe-
it marginally.
China proposed an extra 25
percent tariff on a list of US
products, such as soybean
and pork, last week in
response to the steep US tar-
iffs on $50 billion worth
imports of Chinese products.
S&P Global Platts estimat-
ed earlier China would
account for 21.5 percent of US
LNG exports this year, put-
ting China on track to poten-
tially becoming the largest
buyer of US LNG this year.
Besides LNG, there would
be a risk for oil prices if China
uses the bazooka option on
US crude oil exports, said
Geneva-based consultancy
Petromatrix. Bazooka option
refers to a possible steep
increase in Chinese tariffs
on crude oil imports from
the US, which could poten-
tially penetrate several lay-
ers of the US economy.
China is the second-biggest
importer after Canada of US
crude oil, to the tune of about
400,000 barrels per day.
“If China were to impose
counter tariffs on US crude, it
would become quickly very
heavy for the US supply and
demand picture, resulting in
US crude oil price pressure
that would have a negative
impact on global oil prices,”
Petromatrix said in a report.

Weekly Stock Market Performance Gainers

Gainers
and and
Losers
Losers International Stock Markets
Weekly YTD Weekly Weekly Weekly YTD % Chg
Index Close % Chg % Chg GAINERS Close % Chg LOSERS Close % Chg Close % Chg –20% 0% +20%
Shanghai Stock Exchange Composite Index 3159.05 +0.9 –4.5 Hang Seng Index 30,808.38 3.2
Shanghai Stock Exchange
3600 Hang Seng China Ent Index 12,261.23 2.5
Hunan Salt Industry Co 16.78 61.19 Wintime Energy Co Ltd 2.36 –21.85
3490 Fujian Apex Software 71.50 46.40 TaiyuanLionhead Cement 10.39 –20.38 TAIEX Taiwan Stock Index 10,965.39 1.3
3380 Lanhai Medical Invst 7.43 28.32 Raisecom Technology Co 19.24 –19.02 Nikkei 225 21,778.74 1.0
Jiayou Intl Logistics 87.37 27.86 Wuxi Acryl Technology 39.76 –16.72 Sensex 34,192.65 1.7
3270 KOSPI 2,455.07 1.0
GuangdngDcntAtoPartsSt 12.14 25.54 Lawton Development Co 8.72 –16.23
3160 S&P/ASX 200 5,829.08 0.7
Cashway Technology Co 29.06 25.20 Xinjiang Bai Hua Cun 9.08 –15.53
3050 ZhenhaiPetrochemiclEng 25.17 24.91 Wanxiang Doneed Co Ltd 10.47 –14.11 New Zealand 50 Gross Index 8,414.77 0.3
Xinjiang Torch Gas Co 46.09 24.43 JiangsuProtrulyVisnTch 1.72 –14.00 Straits Times Index STI 3,501.30 1.7
Chengtun Mining Group 10.76 24.39 Lanpec Technologies 7.38 –13.99 Bangkok SET Index 1,767.17 1.6
Liuzhou Iron & Steel 6.79 21.90 Hainan Haiqi Trans 11.71 –13.07 Bursa Malaysia KLCI Index 1,868.47 1.7
Shenzhen Stock Exchange Component Index 10,687.02 0.0 –3.2
VN-Index 1,157.14 –3.6
11,700 Shenzhen Stock Exchange Dow Jones 24,360.14 1.8
11,200 ShandongHumon Smelting 12.60 13.92 GuangdongJANUSIntllgnt 6.03 –16.25
SGIS Songshan Co Ltd 6.64 13.50 Shaanxi J&R Optimum En 4.67 –15.86
10,700 ChongqingZhifeBlgclPrd 35.91 12.22 WuhShnrngSnqIntrctEntN 15.25 –12.96 Commodities
10,200 Tahoe Group Co Ltd 29.05 11.77 ChineseAllDigiPublshng 10.49 –12.66 Weekly YTD % Chg
CECEP Solar Energy Co 5.36 10.29 Valiant Co Ltd 9.96 –10.03 Close % Chg –20% 0% +20%
9700 Sumavision Tech 4.05 10.05 BeijingOrintNtCmmSc&Te 15.75 –9.64 Brent Crude Oil (USD/bbl.) 72.45 8.0
ShanxiTaigangStnlssStl 6.00 9.69 Guoxuan High-Tech Co 19.60 –9.59 Gold (USD/t oz.) 1347.90 0.9
XinjiangBeixinRod&Brdg 11.20 9.27 Shenwu Envir Tech 12.75 –9.57 Silver (USD/t oz.) 16.66 1.8
Transfar Zhilian Co 18.21 9.24 ShenzhnTchndEclgy&Envr 10.12 –8.00 Copper (USD/lb.) 3.07 0.4
Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 Index 3871.14 +0.4 –4.0
RiseSun RealEstate Dev 10.66 9.22 North Huajin Chem In 8.32 –7.86 Aluminum (USD/MT) 2371.00 17.0
4400 Corn (USD/bu.) 3.95 –0.6
Hang Seng Wheat (USD/bu.) 4.89 3.6
4000 CNOOC Ltd 12.30 10.02 Power Assets Holdings 59.05 –2.80 Soybeans (USD/bu.) 10.65 1.9
Sunny Optical Tech 156.00 9.09 Swire Pacific Ltd 78.60 –2.12 Coffee (USD/lb.) 1.20 1.7
3600 Sands China Ltd 44.20 6.76 CK Infrastructure 63.00 –0.16 Sugar #11 (USD/lb.) 0.12 –1.1
PetroChina Co Ltd 5.70 6.15 China Resources Power 14.18 0.14 Palm Oil (MYR/MT) 2399.00 –4.2
3200 CITIC Ltd 11.52 6.08 Lenovo Group Ltd 4.04 0.25

Cross Currency Rates ETFS

Shanghai B-Share Stock Price Index 326.46 +0.3 –4.5 Weekly
USD EUR CNY HKD GBP KRW BRL RUB JPY INR CAD EQUITY ETFs Ticker Close % Change
365
USD 1.234 0.159 0.127 1.424 0.001 0.292 0.016 0.009 0.015 0.793 China 50 510050 2.72 0.85
355 China AMC CSI 300 Index 510330 4.19 0.50
EUR 0.811 0.129 0.103 1.154 0.001 0.237 0.013 0.008 0.012 0.643
345 China CSI 500 510500 6.34 0.24
335 CNY 6.275 7.734 0.799 8.947 0.006 1.834 0.101 0.058 0.096 4.981 China SME 159902 3.52 0.57
HKD 7.850 9.684 1.251 11.179 0.007 2.294 0.127 0.073 0.120 6.228 China Universal CSI Consumer Staples Index 159928 2.19 –0.90
325
GBP 0.702 0.866 0.112 0.090 0.001 0.205 0.011 0.007 0.011 0.557 E Fund ChiNext Price Index 159915 1.72 –0.64
315 E Fund CSI 300 510310 1.65 0.80
KRW 1069.720 1319.460 170.597 136.271 1525.930 313.109 17.295 9.973 16.403 850.050
E Fund CSI 300 Financials ex Banks Index 512070 1.89 1.18
BRL 3.423 4.221 0.545 0.436 4.873 0.003 0.055 0.032 0.052 2.715 E Fund Hang Seng China Enterprises Index 510900 1.24 2.14
Shenzhen B-Share Stock Price Index 1140.25 –0.6 –2.0
RUB 61.961 76.434 9.896 7.893 88.237 0.058 18.102 0.577 0.947 49.171 E FUND SZSE100 INDEX FUND 159901 4.78 –0.17
1250 Fortune SGAM Xianjin Tianyi Money Market 511990 100.04 –0.02
JPY 107.360 132.450 17.134 13.677 152.895 0.100 31.370 1.733 1.646 85.168
Guangfa CSI 500 510510 1.67 0.06
1190 INR 65.215 80.341 10.393 8.308 92.959 0.061 19.056 1.053 0.606 51.914 Guotai Shanghai Stock Exchange 180 Financial Index 510230 6.03 1.26
CAD 1.261 1.555 0.201 0.161 1.795 0.001 0.368 0.020 0.012 0.019 Harvest CSI 300 Index 159919 4.21 0.62
1130 Huatai-Pinebridge CSI 300 510300 3.87 0.44
Shanghai SSE180 510180 3.30 0.61
Data provided by
1070 SSE Pledge Urban Investment Bond 511220 94.06 0.74
A M J J A S O N D J F M A Yinhua Traded Money Market Fund 511880 101.33 0.05
18 Monday, April 16, 2018

Motoring CHINA DAILY

VW names Diess CEO

in sweeping overhaul
to set future course
Volkswagen AG picked a
new leader in a management
shakeup to ready the world’s
largest automaker for a wave
of technological change
upending the industry’s tradi-
tional business models.
Herbert Diess, the head of
VW’s namesake brand, will
become chief executive officer
as well as overseeing technol-
ogy across the organization,
the company said Thursday in
a statement.
The manufacturer will be
grouped into six business
areas, with the truck and bus
division to be prepared for a
potential stand-alone stock
listing.
“My most important task
will now be to join with our
management team and our
group workforce in consis-
tently pursuing and pushing
forward our evolution into a
profitable, world-leading pro-
vider of sustainable mobility,”
Diess said in the statement.
The new CEO held a press
conference Friday at Volkswa-
gen’s Wolfsburg, Germany,
headquarters, laying out his
plans.
The realignment focuses
battery-powered self-driving
cars.
One sign of the overhaul
gaining traction is VW enter-
ing the home stretch for
a potential share sale in its
heavy-truck division, the big-
gest organizational shift since
the aftermath of the diesel-
emissions crisis.
The unit, which shares little
or no overlap with the manu-
facturer’s other divisions, will
change its legal structure to
prepare its access to capital
markets, VW said in a sepa-
rate statement.
Granting the truck unit
more independence from the
larger passenger-car busi-
ness marks the culmination
of efforts by division chief
Andreas Renschler.
He has worked since 2015
on welding the commercial-
vehicle operations more tight-
ly together to reduce costs by
sharing development.
Diess, a former BMW AG
executive, who joined VW
two months before the emis-
sions cheating came to light,
pledged from the beginning Vehicles await inspection at the import port of China Customs in Haikou, Hainan province. PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY
to pursue new technology
while reining in spending

Reduced tariffs to spur more

power in Diess’s hands, as he
will continue to oversee the
namesake division.
Rupert Stadler, who runs
the Audi luxury brand and
growth.
That project became much
more urgent as the diesel
scandal generated massive
costs, and meant taking on

imports in domestic car market

who has repeatedly been
under fire over the unit’s role
in the diesel crisis, will take on
responsibility for group sales.
The company’s auto units
will be grouped into volume,
premium and super-premium
segments.
Diess’s appointment to suc-
ceed Matthias Mueller, who
stepped down immediately,
will be key to reassuring inves-
tors that the highly central-
ized German industrial behe-
moth is capable of reform.
Excessive spending and
poor budget discipline were
eroding profit margins even
before the carmaker’s diesel-
emissions scandal erupted in
September 2015.
His term will be judged
early on by whether he can
scale up his revamp of the VW
brand to the entire 12-brand
group to prepare for an era of
Herbert Diess, the head of VW’s namesake brand, will become chief
executive officer of the automaker. REBECCA COOK / REUTERS
established interest groups.
Bernd Osterloh, the com-
pany’s powerful labor leader,
balked at negotiating with
him during tough contract
talks in 2016, but Diess pre-
vailed with a landmark deal
that paved the way to cutting
as many as 30,000 jobs and
saving 3.7 billion euros ($4.6
billion).
“There have been historic
episodes where cost cutters
have been brought in to sort
out the namesake VW brand,
but who then leave or are
squeezed out before their
work is really done,” Sanford
Bernstein analyst Max War-
burton wrote in a note.
“Instead of being squeezed
out, he has been pushed
upward, and has been made
CEO. It’s a sign of real change
at VW.”
BLO OMBERG
Overseas brands could become more competitive in world’s largest auto market
By HAO YAN
haoyan@chinadaily.com.cn
China’s plans to reduce
tariffs on imported vehicles
could actually benefit Chi-
nese customers and carmak-
ers in the long run, according
to industry experts.
If tariffs are cut, more
imported vehicles will enter
the Chinese market at a
lower price range and pos-
sibly drag down the prices of
domestically made vehicles.
A tariff-c utting plan
for imported vehicles will
be proposed promptly, in
expectation that it would be
approved and implemented
as soon as possible, accord-
ing to the Vice-Minister of
Finance Cheng Lihua.
She made the remark on
April 11, the day after Presi-
dent Xi Jinping said China
will significantly lower
import tariff rates for vehi-
cles at the opening ceremony
of the Boao Forum for Asia
Annual Conference 2018.
The country currently
imposes a 25 percent tariff
on all imported vehicles.
Last year, Chinese cus-
tomers purchased more
than 1.2 million imported
cars, accounting for about 4
Dongfeng percent to the country’s entire
automobile market.
Renault’s The price cuts on imported
main strategy cars are expected to most ben-
efit overseas brands which
is to localize currently struggle in the Chi-
nese market, an unnamed
our products expert told China Daily.
“Companies solely trad-
in China and ing imported cars that have
a small market share will
specifically have the impulse to lower
the price first, in an aim for
for Chinese a bigger volume,” said the
customers.” expert.
“As soon as one brand
Laurent Diot, deputy starts the price cut, the rest
general manager of of the car importers will fol-
Dongfeng Renault low collectively to defend
Automobile their positions.”
Most models imported
into the Chinese market
are mainly positioned in
the premium segment and
are targeted at meeting the
demands of a more niche
group of consumers.
BMW, Mercedes-Benz,
Toyota, Ford, Porsche, Jaguar
Land Rover and Volkswagen
are among the imported
brands that achieved major
sales in the Chinese market
last year.
By targeting a more exclu-
sive market, the price of
imported vehicles are deter-
mined by many factors with
the tariff rate only a minor
factor, according to the
expert.
Several imported mod-
els are sold in the Chinese
market at a reduced price
in order to counteract the
tariffs.
As a result, companies
such as Tesla and BMW actu-
ally lose money on certain
models sold in China.
Sources from super luxu-
ry car makers said they are
still not sure whether the
lower tariff will help them
much since they also face a
10 percent luxury purchase
tax imposed on vehicles
priced above 1.5 million yuan
($238,100).
While awaiting the specific
tariff plans, Laurent Diot, dep-
uty general manager of Dong-
feng Renault Automobile
foresees a climb in import
volume for Renault models.
“A good, fair increase in
the volume of imported
Renault is possible, while
Dongfeng Renault’s main
strategy is to localize our
products in China and spe-
cifically for Chinese custom-
ers,” he said.
Dongfeng Renualt sold
2,599 imported Renault
Capture sport utility vehi-
cles and Espace multi-pur-
pose vehicles in the Chinese
market last year.
Ford has said that it is also
encouraged by the tariff cut
comments, and looks for-
ward to learning more about
it in the near future.
Seven international
automakers including Toy-
ota and Renault who have
imported car business in
China said that they will
pay great attention to the
coming detail plan. Three
industry insiders said they
are positive about the future
tariff-cutting plan.

Ford bets on locally-produced new lineup to turbocharge sales in China

By LI FUSHENG
lifusheng@chinadaily.com.cn
After an almost two-year
lull in its product cycle, Ford
Motor Co is poised to ratchet
up its efforts in China, start-
ing with locally produced
new Focus and Escort mod-
els that will hit the market by
the end of the year.
In what was the global pre-
miere for the all-new Focus in
Chongqing last week, the car-
maker said the latest model
will be “the most innovative,
spacious, connected and fun-
to-drive Focus ever.”
Focus variants unveiled
at the event include sedans,
hatchbacks and the sporty
Focus ST-Line.
As one of the most popular
models in its segment, about
2.6 million Focuses have been
sold so far in China.
Nigel Harris, president of
the US carmaker’s joint venture
Changan Ford, said the decision
to debut the Focus in China
shows the importance of the
market. He added that the lat-
est model has been tailored for
the Chinese market using local
customer feedback — such as
more legroom for passengers.
According to the carmaker,
the model’s wheelbase has
been extended more than 50
mm compared with its prede-
cessors, offering more space for
passengers’ shoulders, knees
and legs.
The all-new Focus is also
the first Ford model to feature
its Co-Pilot360 — a suite of
advanced driver assist technol-
ogies to help drivers control the
vehicle more safely and freely.
Available technologies
include Adaptive Cruise Con-
trol enhanced with Stop & Go,
Speed Sign Recognition and
Lane-Centering.
The all-new Focus and new
Escort models are just the start
of Ford’s plan to offer 50 models
in China by 2025, and all the
models produced at Changan
Ford will come with new energy
car options.
According to the carmaker,
the number of Ford models
available in China will double
by 2021 from now.
“Chinese customers like new
products,” Harris said.
“And we all agree between
Ford and Changan that we need
at least two major launches a
year, which is important for us
and for our dealers.”
And we all agree
between Ford and
Changan that we
need at least two
major launches a
year...”
Nigel Harris, president of Changan Ford, introduces the all-new Focus in Nigel Harris, president of the
Chongqing on April 10. PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY US carmaker’s joint venture
Changan Ford
Another important weapon to take shape within the year. ucts it produces while another
for Ford’s performance in China Currently Ford China is Chinese joint venture, JMC,
is a new national distribution responsible for selling imported has its own distribution net-
and service network, which is cars, Changan Ford sells prod- work. The new organization,
which will be part of Changan
Ford, will be responsible for
marketing, sales and servic-
es associated with all Ford-
branded passenger vehicles,
to offer a simplified and
consistent experience for
customers, according to the
company.
Harris said even current
preparatory work for the
division has brought about
changes such as closer coop-
eration and faster decision-
making, but more tangible
effects may take a longer
time to reveal themselves.
Among others, Harris said
the division will ensure that
Chinese customers’ voices
are heard so that the US
carmaker’s global team can
become more responsive to
the Chinese market.
 CHINA DAILY Monday, April 16, 2018
Automobile sales cruise ahead in Q1
Chinese market continues to grow at a steady pace in the first three months of the year, Li Fusheng reports.
C
armakers in China sold
7.18 million cars in the
first quarter of the year,
up 2.8 percent from
a year ago, according to data
released by the China Association
of Automobile Manufacturers on
Wednesday.
The growth was primarily the
result of a 4.7 percent growth in
March sales, which reached 2.66
million cars in the month.
Despite the rise in the first
quarter, sales were 4.2 percent-
age points lower than the year-
on-year growth figure for January
to March 2017, according to the
association.
Shi Jianhua, deputy secretary-
general of the association, said
the upturn was in line with those
seen in the same period over the
past few years, signaling that the
Chinese car market is growing
steadily.
In the first quarter, passenger
car sales, which accounted for the
bulk of total car sales, reached
6.1 million, up 2.6 percent year-
on-year.
In March, the sales were 2.17
million units, up 3.5 percent year-
on-year.
The growth in the first quar-
ter was mainly the result of SUV
sales, which grew 11.3 percent
year-on-year to 2.66 million units.
Although the growth rate has
slowed down a lot compared with
last year, it was the only segment
that saw a double-digit growth.
In the same period, sedan sales
posted a meager 0.8 percent growth
rate, with 2.86 million units sold,
but remains the largest segment
by size.
Sales of multi-purpose vehicles
fell 16.5 percent, and that of mini-
vans slumped 37.2 percent in the
same period.
Cars with smaller engines were
the most popular choices. Statis-
tics from the association show that
those with engines no larger than
1.6 liters totaled 4.17 million units
from January to March, accounting
for 68.3 percent of passenger car
sales in the period.
In the first quarter, cars bear-
ing Chinese marques accounted for
45.2 percent of total passenger car
sales, half a percentage point lower
than the same quarter last year.
Shi said it was a quite a feat for
Chinese brands to hold a 40-per-
cent-plus share in the vast and
Domestic carmakers ramp up smart development, connectivity
By HAO YAN
haoyan@chinadaily.com.cn
Chinese carmakers are con-
tinuing to make progress in the
development of intelligent con-
nected vehicles by leveraging the
domestic market’s preference for
high-tech functions and more
premium brands.
Two domestic automakers
announced their intelligent devel-
opment strategy on Wednesday
in Beijing. The companies will
use Baidu Inc’s Apollo platform in
their latest products which were
launched at the event.
Chery Automobile revealed its
CheryLion intelligent develop-
ment plan, and launched its first
smart model Tiggo 8, a mid- to
large-size sport utility vehicle.
Dongfeng Motor’s passenger
vehicle brand Dongfeng Feng-
guang’s iX5 smart crossover
model was also launched at the
same event.
“We will keep upgrading very
frequently, and we will progress
with our intelligent manufactur-
ing,” Chen Anning, general man-
ager of Chery Automobile, told
China Daily.
Chen Anning said, “China is
leading the world in intelligent
manufacturing. The slow motion
in refreshing car models is not an
approach in the intelligent era.
“The international giants’
five-to-10-year duration between
each generation of models won’t
fit into today’s customer needs,
while user behaviors are evolving
very fast.”
Chinese OEMs have setup
meaningful levels of automation,
that is, integrated well coordi-
nated automation can be titled
as having the most intelligent
systems in place, according to
Michael Adick, managing direc-
tor, auto industry, Accenture
Greater China.
He told the reporter, “Chinese
A Toyota Corolla twin-engine hybrid sedan attracts attention at an auto show in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province. SHI JIANXUE / FOR CHINA DAILY
We are confident in
new energy cars and
see no problems in
their sales reaching 1
million units in 2018.”
Xu Haidong, an assistant to
the secretary-general of the
China Association of Automobile
Manufacturers
fierce Chinese market.
They were followed by German
brands, which had a 20.9 percent
Zhu Guohua, executive director of Chery Automobile’s intelligent vehicle business unit, demonstrates Tiggo 8’s
connectivity with mobile devices at the model’s launch ceremony on Wednesday in Beijing. PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY
China is leading the
world in intelligent
manufacturing.
The slow motion in
refreshing car models
is not an approach in
the intelligent era.”
Chen Anning, general manager of
Chery Automobile
market share, 1 percentage point
higher than the same period in
2017.
Japanese brands saw their mar-
ket share edge up a little bit, while
the market shares of American and
South Korean brands dipped in the
period.
New energy cars, which consist
of electric cars, plug-in hybrids and
fuel-cell cars, saw solid growth.
A total of 67,778 units were sold
in March, surging 117 percent year-
on-year. Sales in the first quarter
reached 142,577 units, a 154 percent
growth year-on-year.
Some industry insiders said part
of the reason for the fast growth is
because the authorities have said
that such cars will be entitled to less
subsidies starting from June.
But Xu Haidong, an assistant to
companies are in general in the
forefront of innovation and intel-
ligent development. The chal-
lenge is the meaningful integra-
tion of distal intelligent solutions
and automation.
“The next level of this intel-
ligent production system is the
digital Integration of the whole
supply chain.”
Zhu Guohua, executive director
of Chery Automobile’s intelligent
vehicle business unit, said the
manufacturer will upgrade its
entire value chain through digi-
talization and intelligent tech-
nologies.
“CheryLion is a platform across
all functions and values that will
not only benefit our manufac-
turing side, but also cover the
the secretary-general of the asso-
ciation, said policy changes might
produce some effects, but the con-
tinuous sales growth also shows
the demand for such cars is also
growing fast.
In an earlier interview, Xu
said:“We are confident in new
energy cars and see no problems in
their sales reaching 1 million units
in 2018.”
China sold 777,000 such cars last
year. It is estimated that China has
now 1.9 million new energy vehicles
on its roads.
The country overtook the United
States as the world’s largest new
energy car market in 2015.
Charging networks for such
vehicles have also been growing
rapidly, with a total of 253,074 pub-
lic charging poles built by the end
customer side from more flex-
ible orders to meet individual-
ized demands,” he said in a group
interview.
Baidu Inc announced its Apollo
project last year. It is an open
autonomous driving platform,
and the internet giant claims it
has gained more than 90 partners
for the platform so far.
Chinese automotive executives
have continued to highlight con-
nectivity and digitalization as
a key priority, followed by the
increased adoption of big data
analytics to create value, accord-
ing to a KPMG’s Global Automo-
tive Executive Survey 2018.
Global consultancy Deloitte
discovered in earlier research
that Chinese car makers enjoy an
of March, according to the China
Electric Vehicle Charging Infra-
structure Promotion Alliance.
The number of private charging
poles in the country totaled around
393,000 as of March.
Commercial cars, including
buses and trucks, also reported
a decent sales performance. In
March, 488,000 vehicles were sold,
a 5.8 percent rise from the same
month last year. That brought sales
in the first quarter to 1.08 million
units, up nearly 4.1 percent year-
on-year. Of these, bus sales were
97,000 units, up 2 percent from the
same period last year and truck
sales stood at 985,000 units, a 4.3
percent growth year-on-year.
Contact the writer at lifusheng@
chinadaily.com.cn
advantage in these fields because
they work in a progressive way
with technology companies.
Deloitte also found that Chi-
nese customers perceive the
brands and vehicles with such
technologies as more premium
than those that don’t.
On Thursday in Chongqing,
State-owned car maker Chongq-
ing Changan Automobile joined
hands with Tencent Holdings,
another Chinese internet giant,
in developing intelligent and con-
nected vehicles.
Zhu Huarong, president of
Changan Automobile said it was
an inevitable trend that con-
nectivity and cloud computing
inject new power to the automo-
bile industry, and that vehicles
in the future are set to be more
intelligent.
Industrial insiders have said
that local car makers are try-
ing to lure customers with the
cutting-edge technologies for the
younger generation who appre-
ciate gadgets. “Chinese brands
provided tech equipment without
extra charge, before international
giants discovered it’s an effective
approach to catching the eyes of
younger customers,” said Li Qin-
gwen, president of the Car-Bingo
Academy.
“Chinese carmakers have sur-
veyed customers and know they
like them,” he added.
Equipment that is currently
popular includes tablets, connec-
tivity, voice control and remote
control in mobile phone apps.
Overseas auto brands are follow-
ing the lead of Chinese carmakers
in offering some of these gadgets
in their standard models.
Surveys show that the average
age of Chinese customers is below
that of most major overseas mar-
kets, they are early adopters of
new technologies and tend to
replace the car at shorter inter-
vals.
Motoring 19
Short Torque
Tmall sponsors Renault F1
team for Shanghai GP
The Renault Formula One team
unveiled Tmall as its latest car sponsor
in Shanghai on Thursday. It is the first
major brand campaign since French
car manufacturing group, Dongfeng
Renault Autmobile, and Alibaba Inc
entered into a partnership on March 7.
The two parties have joined hands to
offer the Koleos 120 anniversary limited
edition model through the Renault
Tmall store at a price of 208,800 yuan
($32,975.81) for the 2-liter version
and 222,800 for the 2.5-liter version.
Tmall is expecting to fuel Renault’s
car business with the big data from its
customers.
Renault Sport joined hands with Tmall
and unveiled the latest F1 racers’ car,
R.S. 18, with Tmall logo on Thursday in
Shanghai. PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY
Porsche’s first quarter
sales up 3% in China
Porsche AG delivered around 63,500
vehicles worldwide in the first quarter
of 2018, with an increase of 6 percent
compared with the previous year. This
represents the most successful first
quarter in the sports car manufacturer’s
history. China was again the largest
individual market for Porsche. With
more than 18,600 vehicles sold, the
Chinese market exceeded last year’s
result by 3 percent from 18,126 units
from the same period in 2017. Once
again, the most successful model was
the Macan. More than 23,000 of the
sporty SUVs have been sold worldwide.
Lamborghini Urus SUV to
debut at Beijing Auto show
Automobili Lamborghini will bring
an unprecedented lineup to the 2018
Beijing Auto Show, presenting the
Lamborghini Huracán Performante
Spyder in its Asian debut, the world’s
first Super SUV Urus in its public debut
in Asia, and the roadster version of
the V12 flagship model Aventador S.
Representing the three model lines
of Lamborghini, the lineup is set to
demonstrate the brand’s passion on
stage from April 25.
General Motors orders
increase domestically
General Motors said that sales in the
first three months of this year totaled
986,052 units, up 8 percent from the
same period last year. GM and its
Chinese ventures delivered 352,346
vehicles in March, up 2 percent year-
on-year, according to a statement
published by GM on its website
on April 8. Its brands Cadillac and
Chevrolet performed well in March.
Sales of Cadillac rose 46 percent to
18,007 units last month. Chevrolet
grew 35 percent from a year earlier to
47,017 units, and Buick deliveries rose 4
percent to 92,007 units. Sales of Wuling
and Baojun vehicles fell 7.9 percent and
5.4 percent in March when compared to
a year earlier.
Alibaba-backed carmaker
aims to raise over $1.6b
Xiaopeng Motors, the Chinese car
startup that is backed by Alibaba Group
Holding Ltd and Foxconn Technology
Group, plans to raise more than 10
billion yuan ($1.6 billion) this year in
a bid to take on rivals in the world’s
biggest market for electric vehicles.
The company plans to start pre-sales
of its first model, the G3 Crossover,
by the end of this month, founder He
Xiaopeng said. Xiaopeng is among
many startups striving to become
China’s Tesla Inc, and reshape
the auto industry as the country
promotes new-energy vehicles.
Mercedes plans electric
S-Class to challenge Tesla
Mercedes-Benz is developing a battery-
powered sedan about the size of its
$90,000 flagship S-Class, to challenge
the Tesla Model S for high-end electric-
car buyers. The new full-size sedan,
dubbed the EQ S, will be part of
Daimler AG unit’s push to introduce
10 all-electric vehicles by 2022, Chief
Executive Officer Dieter Zetsche said
Wednesday. The EQ line will be flanked
by plug-in hybrid models offering a
“totally different” battery range than
today, while conventional vehicles will
feature so-called mild hybrids with
48-volt technology in a shift away from
pure combustion power.
MOTORING - AGENCIES
20
LIFE
Monday, April 16, 2018
CHINA DAILY » CHINADAILY.COM.CN/LIFE
PITCH PERFECT
This year’s NCPA May Festival will see some of the world’s
most talented violinists take to the stage. Chen Nan reports.
A
s he slowly lifts two
valuable violins
from their cases, a
1734 violin made by
Giuseppe Guarneri and a 1699
violin made by Antonio Strad-
ivari, both famous Italian vio-
lin makers, Chinese violinist
Lyu Siqing tries to avoid
touching the glossily var-
nished wood on the bodies of
the musical instruments.
“The lines on the wood are
so beautiful, aren’t they?” asks
Lyu, turning the violins over.
Then the 48-year-old musi-
cian displays the versatile
sounds of the violins by play-
ing the tune Meditation from
the opera Thais by French
composer Jules Massenet.
“Music touches and influen-
ces our emotions. The violin
has the magic to touch our
most sensitive nerves,” says
Lyu. “Unlike the piano, which
Chinese audience are quite
familiar with, thanks to those
great young Chinese pianists
who have achieved interna-
tional acclaim, such as Lang
Lang, Li Yundi and Chen Sa,
the violin still needs more
exposure in China.”
With the goal of populariz-
ing the violin, promoting Chi-
nese violinists and violin
concertos by Chinese compos-
ers, Lyu is once again taking
up the position of artistic
director for the National Cen-
ter for the Performing Arts
May Festival.
The theme for the upcom-
ing event, which runs from
May 9 to 26, will pay tribute to
the violin by staging 18 shows,
gathering together nearly 20
violinists and orchestras from
around the world.
“This is my fourth year in
the role as artistic director for
the NCPA May Festival and
this is the first time that we
are taking a musical instru-
ment as the theme. I hope the
audience will get a full picture
of the violin during the festi-
val,” says Lyu at the NCPA.
With those two centuries-
old violins, Lyu also will
perform at the festival.
Two concerts will open the
festival. On May 9, four Chi-
nese violinists, Lyu, Ning
Feng, Huang Mengla and
Huang Bin, all winners of the
prestigious Premio Paganini
International Violin Competi-
tion, will share the stage by
giving solo performances in
the first half of the concert
and teaming up in the second
half to perform repertoires
including J.S. Bach’s Double
NCPA opera being turned into film with new technology
By CHEN NAN
chennan@chinadaily.com.cn
While The Dawns Here Are
Quiet, an original opera pro-
duction by the National Center
for the Performing Arts, is
being staged at the NCPA
through Monday, a film pro-
duction team from Shanghai
Media Group is shooting an
opera film by using new ultra
high-definition 4K resolution
based on it.
According to the opera’s
director Wang Xiaoying, The
Dawns Here Are Quiet made
its debut at the NCPA in 2015,
and is again being staged at the
Beijing venue since Friday — its
fourth round of performances.
The opera, composed by
From left: Violinist Liu Yuxi, Wang Luli, the deputy director of the performance department of the NCPA, violinist Lyu Siqing (pictured on top) and violinist Jiang Zhenyi at the
news conference of the NCPA May Festival, where violin will be the theme. PHOTOS PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY
From left: Violinists Huang Mengla, Chen Xi, Jiang Zhenyi and Ning Feng, who will play at the NCPA May Festival.
Violin Concerto, Antonio
Vivald’s Concerto in B minor
RV 580 for Four Violins and
Niccolo Paganini’s 24 Caprices.
Young Chinese violinists
Chen Xi, who won the top
prize at the 12th International
Tchaikovsky Violin Competi-
tion in 2002, at the age of 17 —
the youngest top prize winner
in the history of the competi-
tion — and Liu Xiao, who
graduated from the Conserva-
Tang Jianping with libretto by
Wan Fang, is based on Russian
writer Boris Vasilyev’s novel of
the same title. It tells the story
of five female soldiers fighting
German troops during World
War II.
The opera was first staged to
mark the 70th anniversary of
the end of the war.
Speaking about the film,
Wang says: “This is a ground-
breaking production that is
part of the NCPA’s opera film
HD series. Those who have
seen the live performances of
opera singers, such as Liu
Songhu and Zhang Yang,
under the baton of Lyu Jia, can
get a different experience.”
Wang also says that unlike
opera performances in thea-
toire National Superieur de
Musique in Paris, with five
solo albums under his belt,
will join the concert.
On May 10, a concert will be
held to pay tribute to Chinese
composers. Established
Chinese violinist, Liu Yuxi,
will perform with the younger
generation of Chinese
violinists, including Lyu,
Jiang Yiying and Jiang
Zhenyi.
ters, the film production gives
the opera a more “cinematic”
look, which requires the actors
to modify their performances,
and look at the cameras rather
than the conductors.
The costumes and stage sets
have also been redone.
“We have made new wigs for
actors, which look more natu-
ral,” says Wang, adding that the
NCPA initiated the opera film
project in 2013 and of the 76
opera productions the NCPA
has done since it opened in
2007, nearly 30 have been
turned into opera films.
In 2017, the NCPA held an
international opera film exhi-
bition from August to October,
which screened 14 such films
in 10 cities, including Beijing,
“I’ve seen the repertories for
the upcoming concerts during
the May Festival and I am very
excited because many of the
pieces are rarely performed.
The audience will get the
chance to see the vibrant
scenes of Chinese violinists of
different ages and many
original concertos for violin
by Chinese composers,” says
Liu, 80, who is teaching at the
Central Conservatory of
Shanghai and Shenzhen.
Teng Junjie, a renowned
director from the Shanghai
Media Group, is directing the
latest opera film.
Teng is also the director of
the first Chinese film using
homegrown 3D technology to
capture the Peking Opera,
Farewell My Concubine, which
premiered in Shanghai in May
2015.
The 3D adaptation, based on
the classic love story between
besieged warlord Xiang Yu and
his beloved concubine Yu Ji,
combines traditional Chinese
culture and contemporary
technology.
Speaking about the
technology he is using for the
film, Teng says 4K resolution is
Music in Beijing and is
planning a tour of France later
this year.
The legendary violinist
comes from a musical family.
His father, Liu Beimao (1903-
1981), was a renowned com-
poser and music educator. His
uncles Liu Bannong
(1891–1934) was a linguist and
poet, and Liu Tianhua (1895-
1932) was a musician and com-
poser best known for his
four times sharper than
ordinary high definition, and
is emerging as the new
technology used by film
companies worldwide. Also,
unlike 3D, 4K technology does
not require special glasses.
Speaking about the
potential of the new medium,
Teng, who was in New York as
a team member when the
Metropolitan Opera House
broadcast its production of
Mozart’s opera, The Magic
Flute, in 2007, says: “Theaters
worldwide are using more
alternative content, such as
opera films, to appeal to
customers. So, combining the
latest technology with opera is
a great way to attract
audiences.”
innovative work for the Chi-
nese folk instrument, the erhu.
According to Liu Yuxi, the
violin was among the first
group of Western instruments
that was brought to China by
missionaries during the Ming
and Qing dynasties (1368-
1911). During the 1920s and
1930s, a 16-member orchestra
was founded at Peking
University and his uncle, Liu
Tianhua, was one of the
members.
“My uncle Liu Tianhua
learned violin before he
picked up the erhu. The con-
nection between the violin
and erhu was very close for
him as a musician and com-
poser,” says Liu Yuxi.
The first original Chinese
violin composition was Diffi-
cult Road (Xinglu Nan), com-
posed in 1919 by famous
geologist Li Siguang, who was
pursuing his studies at the
University of Birmingham in
Britain at that time.
Chinese composers are
keen on writing works for the
violin and among the pieces,
The Butterfly Lovers violin
A scene from The Dawns Here Are Quiet, an original opera
production by the National Center for the Performing Arts.
PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY
concerto, which was written
in 1959 by two Chinese
composers, He Zhanhao and
Chen Gang, then students at
the Shanghai Conservatory of
Music, was one of the most
well-known pieces of music of
the time.
During the concert on May
10, Lyu will play The Butterfly
Lovers.
“I can still remember that
almost 40 years ago, Lyu, who
was about 10 years old, came
to the Central Conservatory of
Music in Beijing from his
hometown of Qingdao,
Shandong province, accompa-
nied by his father. The young
boy displayed quite a talent
when he played violin in front
of us and since then he has
become a star,” says Liu Yuxi.
“The training of young violin-
ists has never stopped in Chi-
na. With more and more
children learning Western
instruments, we’ve seen many
child prodigies. They have a
good balance between master-
ing the solid techniques and
the private emotional inter-
pretations required for indi-
vidual pieces.”
Four internationally
acclaimed violinists will also
join the May Festival, includ-
ing Israeli-American violinist
Pinchas Zukerman, US Gram-
my Award-winning violinist
Joshua Bell, Italian violinist
Fabio Biondi and the German
violinist of South Korean
descent, Clara-Jumi Kang.
In other highlights of the
festival, the Leipzig String
Quartet will perform a pro-
gram of Joseph Haydn’s most
iconic works on May 16, such
as String Quartet in D minor,
Op. 103, Hob. III83, String
Quartet in D major, Op. 64, No.
5, and The Seven Last Words.
The Melbourne Symphony
Orchestra will perform with
Lyu with programs including
Max Bruch’s Violin Concerto
No. 1 in G minor, Op. 26, on
May 24.
According to Wang Luli, dep-
uty director of the performance
department at the NCPA, the
annual festival started in 2009
and has become a major event
for the NCPA, which focuses on
chamber music.
So far, the festival has show-
cased more than 140 concerts,
not only at the NCPA’s concert
halls, but also at public spaces
in Beijing, such as subway sta-
tions, schools and museums.
Contact the writer at
chennan@chinadaily.com.cn
 CHINA DAILY Monday, April 16, 2018 Fun | LIFE 21
Language tips
Horoscope
BETTER CHINESE
Crossword Capricorn (DEC. 22-JAN. 19)
Don’t mince words if someone pressures you. Be firm and back
away from situations that are fraught with uncertainty, confusion
or frustration. Focus on who and what are most important to
菜单
you.

Menu
Aquarius (JAN. 20-FEB. 19)
例：这是菜单。
Be prepared and practical at all times. Setting a tight budget will
help ward off the temptation to overspend. Listen to your body 
 

and take better care of your health. This is the menu.

Pisces (FEB. 20-MARCH 20) 西餐

Your efforts will not be in vain. Making personal or professional


changes will help secure your financial future. Greater opportuni- Western food
ties are heading your way. Romance will improve your life.
例：这家餐厅也有西餐。
Aries (MARCH 21-APRIL 19) 

 

Look for a creative outlet that will keep you occupied and ease This restaurant also serves Western food.
your stress. Anger is not the way to respond to situations that
could hurt your reputation or position. 中餐厅
 

Taurus (APRIL 20-MAY 20) Chinese restaurant
Put more effort into the way you look and how you present your
skills and expertise to others. A steady pace and a solid plan will 例：这是一家中餐厅。
lead to greater opportunities and success. 
  

This is a Chinese restaurant.
Gemini (MAY 21-JUNE 20)
Let your personality shine. Take charge and put a positive spin on 食堂
whatever you pursue. Helping others will be rewarding and will  
encourage you to make new acquaintances. Canteen
Cancer (JUNE 21-JULY 22) 例：学生食堂也有西餐。
Engage in worthwhile activities. Trying something different will    

change your perspective on your career and cohorts. The students’ canteen also offers Western food.
Leo (JULY 23-AUG. 22) 宫爆鸡丁
Look at your available options and lean toward the simplest and 
most cost-efficient one. You can bring about change if you are Kung pao chicken
practical and moderate.
例：我不想吃宫爆鸡丁。
Virgo (AUG. 23-SEPT. 22)   

A business trip or meeting will result in new options that can help I don’t want to eat kung pao chicken.
you get ahead. A chance to show off your expertise will impress
Across 27 Arise 50 “Homeland” air- 12 Embezzles, e.g. someone special.
AA制
1 “Hilarious!” 28 Amount before er, for short 13 ___ Park !! 
5 Flight alterna- bonuses 51 Foolish 19 Sex-ed subject Libra (SEPT. 23-OCT. 23) Go Dutch
tives 32 Slips 53 Jacob’s father- 21 Foolish Nurture your relationships with the people you live or regularly
10 Tag, for example 34 Hill dweller in-law 24 “___ thee to hell deal with. It’s important to live within your means if you want to
35 Foolish 54 Thomas who for shame”: 例：我们AA制吧。
14 HH avoid discord with someone you share bills with or owe money
"#!! $
15 Centipede crea- 36 Dedicated to headed the 9/11 “Richard III” to.
tor 37 Fort ___ (Civil Commission 25 Beatitude Let’s go Dutch.
16 “Lionel Asbo: War landmark 56 Bach’s “Musical 27 Jon of “Two and Scorpio (OCT. 24-NOV. 22)
State of near Savannah) Offering” a Half Men” 四周
England” novel- 40 Gravy go-withs includes one 28 Comic book
Take care of personal business and nurture important relation-
ships. A romantic gesture will improve your love life.
 
ist, 2012 41 City on 58 Simple sound effect Around
17 Some paper- Amtrak’s Bos- 59 Supermarket 29 Question in Sagittarius (NOV. 23-DEC. 21)
work: Abbr. ton-to-Chicago chain until 2015 response to an 例：学校四周有很多餐厅。
18 Well-built line 60 ___ Rock, N.J. insult, maybe Make a personal change that will encourage a better lifestyle and    

standard of living. Engage in healthy activities that will foster
20 Ran 42 Osprey, 61 Displays near 30 Some wax friendships with positive people. There are a lot of restaurants around the school.
21 Foolish for one gates, briefly 31 Phone inits.
22 Curriculum ___ 44 Once-common 62 Stack of papers 33 Top class: Abbr.
23 Sub rosa building materi- 63 “Who ___?” 38 Be idle From Let’s Speak — Phrasebook of Mandarin Chinese, by China Intercontinental Press
25 Bourbon drinks al 39 Grammy cate- Bridge
26 Off 48 Sequel Down gory
1 When its sec- 40 Off I hope all of my readers
Friday’s solution ond syllable is 43 ___ Alto have a great time over the BETTER ENGLISH
drawn out, “Are 44 “Shoot!” coming holiday.
you out of your 45 Byes Now for this year’s compe- 部、委、局、办有什么区别？英文又怎么说？
mind?!” 46 The “O” in televi- tition.
2 Skipping sion’s OWN 1. How should South plan 三月十三日，国务院机构改革方案草案提请十三届全
record? 47 Title locale the play in four hearts after 国人大一次会议审议。根据该方案，改革后，正部级机
3 Command for 49 Foolish … or, 构减少8个，副部级机构减少7个；除国务院办公厅外，
when read as West leads the club king?
turning sharply Please do not be influenced 国务院设置组成部门26个。
right three words,
4 Biblical mount how this puz- by the given East-West
zle’s other four hands. 细心的读者可能会注意到，
此次改革，不仅涉及到国务
5 “Groundhog 院组成部门还有国务院的一些所属机构，
这两者有什
Day” director “foolish” 2. Suggest a bidding
6 Whatsoever answers are sequence with South as the 么区别？
7 How one might arranged dealer and assuming East-
fall in love 52 Robe-wearing West pass throughout. 而在新的26个国务院组成部门中，除中国人民银行和
8 Hunted trainer of cine- 3. Suggest a bidding 审计署外，其它组成部门仍有部和委两种不同的叫法，
9 Be idle ma sequence with West as the 如新组建的生态环境部和国家发展改革委。那么部和
10 Region border- 55 Dr. Mario con- dealer. mond, and North overcalls 委有什么区别呢？还有各种局、总局呢？
ing Lebanon sole 4. Look only at the South one heart. What should East
11 Recreational 57 Abbr. in a beach 而且，国务院还有个国务院办公厅，
这个办又怎么
bag hand. do?
soccer, to Brits 称呼？英语又分别怎么说？
(a) North opens one dia- (b) North opens one
mond, South responds one no-trump, and South raises 学习时代(微信ID：XiMoments)整理了部、委、局、办的
heart, and North rebids one to three no-trump. What 区别，跟读者科普一下。
Comics spade. What should South should East lead? What
do now? should he lead if West dou- 根据《国务院行政机构设置和编制管理条例》 ，国务
DILBERT (b) South opens one heart, bles three no-trump, and it is 院行政机构根据职能分为国务院办公厅、 国务院组成
West overcalls four spades, passed out? 部门、国务院直属机构、国务院办事机构、国务院组成
North doubles, and East Mail your entry to Phillip 部门管理的国家行政机构和国务院议事协调机构。
passes. What should South Alder, c/o Andrews McMeel 负责协助国务院领导处理国务院日常工作的国务院办
do? Syndication, 1130 Walnut 公厅(General Office of the State Council) ，自然保留
5. Look only at the North Street, Kansas City, MO 不变。而依法分别履行国务院基本的行政管理职能的
hand. West opens and closes 64106. Or email it to 国务院组成部门，面临国家新的历史发展阶段， 各部、
the auction with seven phillip@bridgeforeveryone. 各委员会、 审计署这次均进行了较大的调整。
clubs! What should North com.
lead? Please take as read all of 部(Ministry)值得注意的是，
只有国务院组成部门中的
6. Look only at the East the usual disclaimers, and 机构才能称之为部(ministry)，属于正部级，是在特定
hand. remember that this is prima- 的某一方面履行行政管理职能，比如教育部。
(a) West opens one dia- rily for fun.
F-MINUS 本次国务院机构调整之后，
有六个部是重新组建或者
新增的，
分别为：
Kakuro
自然资源部(Ministry of Natural Resources)
生态环境部(Ministry of Ecological Environment)
农业农村部(Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs)

文化和旅游部(Ministry of Culture and Tourism)

退役军人事务部(Ministry of Veterans Affairs)
应急管理部(Ministry of Emergency Management)
PEANUTS
委(Commission)
部之外，同属于正部级的还有委员会(commission)。
相对于部来说，委员会(commission)有一定的综合
性，通常处理的事务比较多。

To be continued ...

A Kakuro consists of a playing area To learn more hot words,

of filled and empty cells similar to a please log on to http://language.chinadaily.com.cn/
crossword puzzle. Some black cells Follow us on weibo at http://weibo.com/languagetips
DRABBLE contain a diagonal slash from top
left to bottom right with numbers in
them, called “the clues”. A number
in the top right corner relates to an
“across” clue and one in the bottom
left a “down” clue. The object of a
Kakuro is to insert digits from one
to nine into the white cells to total ChinaDaily 中国日报
the clue associated with it. However Friday’s solution 手机报免费体验 双语新闻微信
no digit can be duplicated in an entry.
22 LIFE | Travel
Visitors take a selfie in flowering trees during the recent Qingming holiday in Daoxian county, Hunan province.
FROM MAPS TO APPS
A growing number
of Chinese are
using online
tools to guide
their travels.
Xu Lin reports.
C
hen Chen will travel
to Japan this month.
She used apps to
book air tickets and
hotels, read travel tips and
make a reservation at a Miche-
lin-starred restaurant.
The Beijing office worker
plans to read novels on her
phone while waiting for her
flight, use a translation app to
order food and ask for direc-
tions, and use another app to
identify flowers.
“Such mobile apps make
independent traveling conve-
nient,” Chen says.
“But you shouldn’t spend too
much time on the apps. It’s
more important to truly experi-
ence the moment and local life.”
She enjoys using aiPlants,
which can identify over
10,000 common plants from
photos taken by users with 85
percent accuracy. It also pro-
vides encyclopedic informa-
tion on the plants from the
database of the Chinese Acad-
emy of Sciences’ Institute of
Botany. People often use the
app at such attractions as sce-
nic areas, botanical gardens,
parks and nature reserves.
Chen is among a growing
number of Chinese who
increasingly use a growing
number of apps to travel inde-
pendently.
More than 85 percent of the
subjects constantly use their
phones while traveling — that
is, an average of six hours a
day, according to a recent
report Chinese tourism web-
site Mafengwo released with
More Chinese opting for
sharing-economy lodging
By YANG FEIYUE
yangfeiyue@chinadaily.com.cn
Zhou Chao prefers home-
stays to hotels.
Price is part of the appeal.
The Beijing resident
booked a two-bedroom apart-
ment in Osaka for 800 yuan
($127), which is about 200 or
300 yuan cheaper than the
neighborhood’s economy
hotels.
“There’s usually a kitchen
and washing machine so I
can cook and do laundry,” he
says.
Zhou believes sharing-econ-
five app providers about how
Chinese use apps during trips.
The results are based on data
from about 3,500 subjects born
in the 1980s and 1990s, 65 per-
cent of whom are women.
“The report tells us about
users’ behaviors and preferen-
ces,” Mafengwo’s travel research
center head Feng Rao says.
“For example, we can use big
data to recommend museums,
galleries, exhibitions and relat-
ed products to users who enjoy
culture and history.”
The apps that most young
Chinese use while traveling are
for maps and transportation,
tourism, photography, social
networking, music, videos,
reading, fitness and learning,
the study found.
People often use apps to read
when waiting for or taking
transportation, before bed and
during rests at such places as
cafes and parks. The most pop-
ular books are novels, litera-
ture, tourism, history and
biographies.
Outbound tourists often rely
on dictionary and translation
apps to communicate with
locals, read menus and take
omy accommodation also ena-
bles him to live like locals and
interact with interesting peo-
ple.
Chinese made over 130 mil-
lion overseas trips last year, 7
percent more than in 2016.
Visitors from the world’s larg-
est source of outbound travel-
ers spent $115.2 billion, or 5
percent more than in 2016, the
China Tourism Academy
reports.
A growing number are stay-
ing in sharing-economy lodg-
ing.
Major Chinese travel-ac-
commodation platform Tujia’s
Top: Li Weiliang from Yunnan province visits India. He uses apps to
stay fit while traveling. Above: A Chinese visitor scans a code with
her phone during a trip to Rovaniemi, Finland, where travelers can
use Alipay, China’s popular mobile-payment app, for payments.
PHOTOS PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY
transportation. Some use these
apps before their trips to learn
simple phrases and travel-re-
lated words.
Over half of the fitness-con-
scious continue to work out
when traveling. The most pop-
ular sports are walking, run-
ning, yoga, aerobics, cycling
and swimming.
Nearly one in five among this
group diet while traveling.
Nearly 60 percent will enjoy
trading volumes grew fivefold
and available housing grew
threefold last year, chief oper-
ating officer Yang Changle
says.
The platform’s overseas
business has expanded to offer
over 400,000 places to stay in
more than 1,000 destinations.
The company projects thirty-
fold growth in its overseas
business this year.
Over half of the 10 million
Chinese guest arrivals record-
ed by United States-based
home-sharing service provid-
er Airbnb since 2008 took
place last year.
HE HONGFU / XINHUA
local dishes but avoid fried
foods and desserts, while near-
ly a quarter don’t worry about
what they eat.
Half of the fitness-conscious
prefer hotels with gyms and 41
percent prefer ones with swim-
ming pools.
Li Weiliang uses apps to stay
fit while traveling.
The 31-year-old, who works
in advertising in Yunnan prov-
ince, typically does two hours
Sweetome, formerly the online business of the platform Tujia, diversifies its apartment offerings to satisfy different tourist needs.
PHOTOS PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY
The company also doubled
its accommodations in China
in 2017, when about 3.3 mil-
lion inbound travelers used
the service. Shanghai, Beijing
and Sichuan province’s capi-
tal, Chengdu, are the most
of strength training four or five
times a week.
Li watches training videos
on the app Keep to guide his
resistance-band workouts if he
doesn’t hit the gym.
“Exercising while traveling
improves your mood and expe-
riences,” he says.
Cheng Shi uses short-video
apps to document and share
his travel experiences.
The 35-year-old started film-
ing his experiences on the road
in 2014. He uses his mobile, a
GoPro to shoot underwater
and a drone for aerial filming.
Special moments he has cap-
tured include a romantic mar-
riage proposal by a tourist at
Chiang Mai’s Water Splashing
Festival and a giant whale
swimming with its baby.
“I feel a great sense of accom-
plishment because those who
appear in my short videos like
them. Some of the people I’ve
only met once. Some have
become my friends. It feels
more authentic than the likes I
get from random netizens,”
says Cheng, who works in film
and animation in Shanghai.
“It’s easy for newbies to film
and edit short videos using
mobile apps, which offer many
effects. It’s great fun. They
should learn to shoot from dif-
ferent distances and angles,
and include transitions. If all
the footage is just of one person
introducing a site, it’s more like
a talk show.”
For instance, if a user is
making a short video about
food, it’s advisable to show
such scenes as entering the
restaurant and the action of
serving the dishes to make the
video more narrative, he says.
Indeed, it seems likely that
even more Chinese will use
more apps to guide their trav-
els as developers race to
answer growing demand.
Contact the writer at
xulin@chinadaily.com.cn
popular destinations.
The trend is partly fueled by
the large number of unoccu-
pied dwellings.
China is estimated to have
had 70 million unoccupied
residences by 2016.
Monday, April 16, 2018 CHINA DAILY
In Kiev, borscht,
Maidan and a side
trip to Chernobyl
By NICOLE EVATT
in Kiev, Ukraine
Through years of political
upheaval and economic tur-
moil, Ukraine’s capital city,
Kiev, has remained a vibrant,
engaging place to visit. For
travelers, its food and cul-
ture rival the best of Europe
at a fraction of the price.
Here’s more on why this
often overlooked destination
should top your getaway list.
Landmarks
Maidan: This square was
the site of deadly protests in
2014 that ushered in the
country’s pro-European rev-
olution. It’s now a bustling
tourist hotspot surrounded
by shops, restaurants, an
evening fountain show, the
towering Independence
Monument and the Insta-
gram-ready I Love Kyiv sign.
The 18th-century Baroque
structure, Saint Andrew’s
Church in Kiev, Ukraine, is by
Italian architect Bartolomeo
Rastrelli. NICOLE EVATT / AP
Saint Andrew’s
Church: This 18th-century
Baroque stunner by Italian
architect Bartolomeo Ras-
trelli is worth a visit. After-
ward, head to the nearby
Landscape Alley, a whimsi-
cal sculpture park and kids
play area. I dare you not to
snap a selfie with one of the
massive mosaic creatures.
St Sophia’s Cathedral:
The gold- and green-domed
UNESCO World Heritage
Site offers an impressive col-
lection of original 11th-cen-
tury mosaics and frescoes.
The Motherland Monu-
ment: This tremendous 500-
ton, 102-meter stainless-steel
structure on the bank of the
Dnieper River keeps a watch-
ful eye over Kiev. The grand
statue, a woman raising a
shield in one hand a sword in
the other, commemorates
the Soviet Union’s defeat of
the Nazis during World War
II. A Ukrainian war museum
is located at its base.
Kiev cooking: borscht
or bust
Puzata Hata: Get your fill
of borscht, a hearty soup often
made with beets or cabbage,
and other Ukrainian dishes at
this popular and cheap fast
food chain. Don’t skip the des-
sert line at this cafeteria-style
gem. Sugar-sprinkled cherry
pierogies, anyone?
Yaroslava: If looking to
refuel between sites, stop by
this historic Ukrainian restau-
rant and bakery for tradition-
al treats including their famed
cinnamon rolls. The cranber-
ry cake is also worth a men-
tion. Three yummy pastries
and two fresh juices cost $3.
Chicken Kyiv: Where
better to sample the famous
dish than its namesake res-
Platforms such as Tujia,
Airbnb and Xiaozhu enable
people to use these resources.
Sweetome, previously
Tujia’s offline business, is
diversifying its apartment
offerings.
taurant located near Mai-
dan? You’ll be transported to
Soviet high society of the
1970s in the retro eatery,
serving dozens of chicken
dishes, inducing the famous
Kiev with its breaded outside
and herbed butter center.
Dive into a lavish three cours-
es for two for under $30.
Fashion forward finds
Corner Concept Store:
Try on some wearable art by
Ukrainian designers in this
sparse, ultra-chic boutique.
Nadezhdina: Local
designer Natella Nadezhdi-
na’s shop is lined with funky
prints and feminine styles for
a range of shapes and sizes.
Lesnaya market: If
thrifting is your thing, head to
Lesnaya flea market and jour-
ney between mountains of
secondhand clothes and stalls
of flowers, produce and knock-
offs. The market is located out-
side Lisova metro station.
Atelier 1: If you can find
the back-alley entrance of
this industrial, underground
concept store you’ll be treat-
ed to an artsy mix of local
and high-end brands like
Comme des Garcons.
Chernobyl
Yes, you can visit the site of
the world’s worst nuclear
accident, the Chernobyl dis-
aster, which led to the evacua-
tion of about 115,000 people.
Armed with dosimeters,
you’ll traipse through aban-
doned towns, schools and an
amusement park and check
out the site of 1986 explosion
that sent a radioactive cloud
over Europe. Pripyat, a hasti-
ly evacuated city, was ravaged
by looters and left as a mod-
ern-day ghost town.
Rest assured, though: The
amount of radiation you’ll
receive on a Chernobyl tour —
a day trip from Kiev — is less
than your last dental X-ray.
Mezhyhirya
Marvel at the sprawling,
opulent estate of ousted presi-
dent Viktor Yanukovych locat-
ed on Dnieper river, 24
kilometers north of Kiev. Many
consider the impressive 142-
hectare, once-secret, walled
complex a sobering symbol of
excess and corruption by the
Ukrainian leader driven out
during the 2014 protests.
You could lose an entire
day wandering Mezhyhirya’s
manicured gardens, golf
course and impressive classic
car collection. Better to navi-
gate the grounds with a hired
golf cart ($5 per person.)
Getting around
You can hail a taxi, but be
prepared to negotiate the
rate. Ordering a cab by
phone or online from an
established company will
ensure a better price.
Your best bet is the subway,
which roars through Kiev’s
metro system with impress-
ive efficiency. You can pick up
single-ride tokens for around
15 US cents or buy multi-day
passes.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
It offers properties in cities
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 CHINA DAILY Monday, April 16, 2018 SPORTS 23
BASKETBALL
No fear of de-feet

Warriors show
they still have
what it takes
With Curry out,
KD picks up slack
against Spurs
OAKLAND, California —
The Golden State Warriors
had something to prove all
right, and they plan to stay on
top in these playoffs despite a
disappointing finish to the
regular season.
Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo guzzles champagne from his shoe as he celebrates winning the Formula One Chinese Grand Prix in dra- Kevin Durant helped the
matic fashion at Shanghai International Circuit on Sunday. The Australian, who only made it into qualifying with seconds to spare after defending champions get
his blown engine had to be rebuilt, took the lead with just 10 laps remaining when he charged past Valtteri Bottas, who finished second defensive in a hurry, finishing
for Team Mercedes. Kimi Raikkonen was third for Ferrari. ALY SONG / REUTERS with 24 points, eight rebounds
and seven assists and the War- Golden State Warriors' Kevin Durant drives the ball around San
riors returned to their old Antonio Spurs' Patty Mills during Game 1 of their NBA quarterfinal
BASKETBALL dominant selves at playoff playoff series on Saturday in Oakland, California. BEN MARGOT / AP
time to beat the cold-shooting

Raptors purge Game 1 jitters

TORONTO — For the first
time in almost 17 years, the
Toronto Raptors are off to a
winning start in a playoff
series.
Not that they’re overly
excited about it.
Serge Ibaka had 23 points
and 12 rebounds and Delon
Wright scored 11 of his 18
points in the fourth quarter
as the Raptors snapped a
10-game losing streak in play-
off openers by beating the
Washington Wizards 114-106
on Saturday.
“It’s out of the way now,”
DeMar DeRozan said of the
streak. “Worry about Game
2.”
DeRozan scored 17 points,
CJ Miles and OG Anunoby
each had 12 and Kyle Lowry
had 11 points and nine assists
for the Raptors, whose only
previous victory in the open-
ing game of a playoff series
came in the second round at
Philadelphia on May 6, 2001.
Toronto entered having lost
an NBA-worst 10 consecutive
series openers since, includ-
ing six at home.
“I think the fans are more
relieved than we are,” Wright
said.
Raptors coach Dwane Cas-
ey said his team, the top seed
in the Eastern Conference,
won’t lose focus.
“We’re not satisfied,” Casey
said. “We’re in this for the
long run.”
Toronto put its streak in the
past by hitting 16 of 30
Serge Ibaka reacts during the
Raptors’ 114-106 victory over
the Washington Wizards in
Toronto on Saturday in Game 1
of their quarterfinal playoff
series. FRANK GUNN / THE
CANADIAN PRESS VIA AP
3-point attempts, a team
record for a postseason game.
“We let a few of their guys
that just can flat-out shoot
put up a lot of 3s,” Wizards
coach Scott Brooks said.
Miles made four from long
range, while Ibaka and
Wright each hit three.
“I always thought Serge
was going to be the X-factor
with his shooting when they
double-team Kyle and
DeMar,” Casey said. “His
3-point shooting is huge.”
Brooks called Ibaka “one of
the best, if not the best, big
man shooter in the league.”
The Raptors host Game 2
on Tuesday.
John Wall had 23 points
and 15 assists for the Wizards,
while Markieff Morris had 22
points and 11 rebounds.
Bradley Beal scored 19
points for Washington, while
Mike Scott had 14 and Marcin
Gortat 12.
The Wizards swept Toronto
in the first round in 2015 but
find themselves in a quick
hole this time around.
“We’ve been here before,”
Beal said. “We didn’t come
here with the mindset that we
were going to sweep them.
We had opportunities, several
opportunities, to win tonight
and close it out but we didn’t.
Brush it off and move for-
ward.”
Washington led 91-88
when Scott was called for a
flagrant foul after using his
elbow to knock Lowry down
early in the fourth.
Lowry made both free
throws and, on the ensuing
possession, Wright gave
Toronto the lead with a layup.
After a missed shot by Morris,
Miles hit a 3 to cap a 7-0 run
that gave the Raptors a 95-91
lead with 9:26 left.
“That sequence was big for
us just to get the lead back
and kind of start to get a little
bit of momentum, a little bit
more push,” Lowry said.
Kelly Oubre hit a 3 and Gor-
tat made a dunk to put Wash-
ington back in front, but
Wright and Miles each hit
3-pointers as Toronto used an
8-0 run to take a 103-96 lead
with 6:27 left, and never
trailed again.
Anunoby made his first two
3-pointers and led Toronto
with eight points in the first
as the Raptors led 28-23 after
one.
“He was great,” Casey said
of Anunoby. “He was cool as a
cucumber. When he made his
first 3, I thought that relaxed
him a little bit.”
Wall scored nine points in
the first, but Gortat and
replacement Ian Mahinmi
each had two fouls before the
first quarter was half over.
Gortat picked up his first
when he fouled Jonas Valan-
ciunas on the opening tip.
“It was definitely a chal-
lenge,” Brooks said of the ear-
ly foul trouble.
“You don’t think your big
will get a foul on the jump
ball. I don’t think I’ve ever
seen that to start the game,
especially in the playoffs.”
The Wizards led 59-55 at
halftime. Toronto reclaimed
the lead with an 11-2 spurt to
start the third.
“They jumped on us,”
Brooks said.
“For some reason we didn’t
lock in those first few min-
utes.”
DeRozan scored 12 points
in the quarter as the Raptors
took a slim 86-85 lead into the
fourth.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
San Antonio Spurs 113-92 on
Saturday.
“We did not end the season
on a high note, we kind of hob-
bled into the playoffs,” said
Klay Thompson.
“We know how talented we
are. We know how good we
are. We have been here before
in the postseason and know
what it takes to win.”
And the Warriors still know
how to win in impressive fash-
ion on the NBA’s big stage.
Durant, Thompson and
Draymond Green took charge
in Game 1 of the first-round
series to elevate Golden State’s
intensity playing without fel-
low All-Star and injured two-
time MVP Stephen Curry,
sidelined since March 23 with
a sprained left knee.
Thompson found his shoot-
ing touch and scored 27
points, making 11 of 13 shots,
while 7-footer JaVale McGee
started in Steve Kerr’s center-
by-committee approach and
contributed 15 points, four
rebounds and two blocked
shots in 16 minutes.
Green contributed 12
points, 11 assists and eight
rebounds.
Rudy Gay led the Spurs with
15 points off the bench as lead-
ing scorer LaMarcus Aldridge
was limited to 14 points on
5-for-12 shooting.
“The first quarter we looked
like deer in the headlights,”
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich
said.
The Warriors looked
unbeatable again. And that
was without the do-everything
Curry.
Golden State said all week
it’s a new season, then went
out and showed it. The Warri-
ors have plans for nothing
short of a repeat title.
“We’re a championship ball-
club. We know what it takes this
time a year to win,” Green said.
“We’re primed for this. A lot
of people tend to forget what
we’re capable of. We know.”
Golden State came with the
kind of swarming defense it is
so used to playing but hadn’t
exhibited much lately as rota-
tions were mixed and matched
because of injuries and illness.
San Antonio couldn’t keep
up from the opening tip.
“We were just very overly
excited, overzealous,” San
Antonio’s Danny Green said.
“Overreacting to a lot of things
because we are so excited that
we’re in the playoffs and play-
ing, obviously, the best team in
the world.”
Beat up and missing its four
All-Stars at times, Golden
State endured a stretch losing
seven of 10 last month.
The Warriors swept San
Antonio in the Western Con-
ference final a year ago on the
way to a second championship
in three seasons and an aston-
ishing, record-setting 16-1
postseason run.
Kerr always said his team
would be ready when these
playoffs came around.
The Warriors were deter-
mined to pick up their
defense, and they did just that.
Green, Durant and the oth-
ers quickly closed on shooters
and got hands up to alter
shots.
2015 Finals MVP Andre Igu-
odala moved into the starting
lineup for the 2018 edition of
that “Strength In Numbers”
mantra — and all those bright
yellow T-shirts throughout the
arena are there to back it.
Iguodala, who started just
seven games all season before
Saturday, had missed four of
the final five regular-season
games with a sore left knee.
Curry update
Curry, who Kerr ruled out for
the entire first round, was
re-examined on Friday and
continues to make solid
progress.
He will ramp up the intensity
of his on-court rehab work this
week with running and lateral
movement as he did in recent
days and is scheduled to be
re-evaluated again in one week.
Curry worked through one-
legged jumps on his injured
knee during pregame war-
mups and did some shooting.
“When he’s ready, he’s ready
... but he’s making progress,
which is a good sign,” Kerr said.
Family affair
Kerr’s son, Nick, is on the
Spurs staff and the team jok-
ingly voted him out of the film
room on Friday for fear of him
sharing Spurs secrets with the
enemy.
“I let the team vote on
whether they wanted him to
stay in the room or not,” Popov-
ich said. “Truly, we did, we took
a vote. It was a mock vote, but
they all voted that he had to
leave the room. I overruled
them and so I let him stay,
because he’s wonderful and of
course we trust him. But he did
have dinner with his family
last night, so we’ll see.”
ASSOCIATED PRESS

Scoreboard
BASKETBALL LPGA Lotte Championship (SWE) 67 68 66 F1 world championship standings Barnsley 2 Bolton 2 Leganes 1 (Guerrero Martin 63) Celta Vigo 0
Leading scores after Saturday’s final round of 202 - Brett Rumford (AUS) 68 66 68 Drivers Burton 3 Derby 1 Athletic Bilbao 2 (Garcia 47, Susaeta 72) Depor-
Results of the NBA playoff games on Saturday the LPGA Lotte Championship at Ko Olina, 203 - Andy Sullivan 75 63 65 1. Sebastian Vettel (GER) 54 pts, 2. Lewis Hamil- tivo La Coruna 3 (Adrian 6, 14, Valle 53)
Fulham 1 Brentford 1
(home team in CAPS): Hawaii (USA unless noted, par-72): 204 - Marc Warren 66 69 69, Jorge Campillo (ESP) ton (GBR) 45, 3. Valtteri Bottas (FIN) 40, 4. Daniel Hull 0 Sheffield Wednesday 1
TORONTO 114 Washington 106 276 - Brooke Henderson (CAN) 68-66-73-69 70 67 67, Aaron Rai 67 71 66 Ricciardo (AUS) 37, 5. Kimi Raikkonen (FIN) 30, 6. P W D L Gf Ga Pts
Middlesbrough 2 Bristol City 1
(Toronto leads best-of-seven series 1-0) 280 - Azahara Munoz (ESP) 74-70-69-67 205 - Andrew Johnston 68 68 69, Maximilian Kief- Fernando Alonso (ESP) 22, 7. Nico Hulkenberg Barcelona 32 25 7 0 81 17 82
Norwich 0 Cardiff 2
GOLDEN STATE 113 San Antonio 92 281 - Feng Shanshan (CHN) 67-69-74-71, Park fer (GER) 69 67 69, Bradley Neil 71 66 68, Jacques (GER) 22, 8. Max Verstappen (NED) 18, 9. Pierre Atletico Madrid 31 20 8 3 51 15 68
Nottingham Forest 2 Ipswich 1
(Golden State leads best-of-seven series 1-0) In-bee (KOR) 69-69-71-72, Ariya Jutanugarn (THA) Kruyswijk (RSA)69 70 66 Gasly (FRA) 12, 10. Kevin Magnussen (DEN) 11, 11. Valencia 32 20 5 7 60 33 65
QPR 1 Preston 2
PHILADELPHIA 130 Miami 103 73-69-70-69 206 - Robert Rock 70 65 71, Callum Shinkwin 67 67 Stoffel Vandoorne (BEL) 6, 12. Carlos Sainz Jr Real Madrid 31 19 7 5 77 34 64
(Philadelphia leads best-of-seven series 1-0) Reading 2 Sunderland 2
282 - Chien Pei-yun (TPE) 74-71-67-70, Lindy Dun- 72, Pedro Oriol (ESP) 68 71 67 (ESP) 3, 13. Marcus Ericsson (SWE) 2, 14. Esteban Real Betis 32 16 4 12 53 53 52
New Orleans 97 PORTLAND 95 207 - Charlie Ford 70 69 68, Alexander Bjork (SWE) Sheffield United 1 Millwall 1
can 70-68-74-70, Lizette Salas 69-71-70-72 Ocon (FRA) 1 Villarreal 32 14 6 12 43 39 48
(New Orleans leads best-of-seven series 1-0) 283 - Daniela Iacobelli 73-68-70-72 67 72 68, Wu Ashun (CHN) 70 70 67, Pep Angles Constructors
French Ligue 1 Sevilla 32 14 5 13 41 52 47
284 - Moriya Jutanugarn (THA) 72-68-72-72 (ESP) 72 66 69, Jonathan Thomson 67 71 69, Samu- 1. Mercedes 85 pts, 2. Ferrari 84, 3. Red Bull 55, 4.
Girona 32 12 8 12 44 49 44
BASEBALL 285 - Pannarat Thanapolboonyaras (THA) 75-72- el Del Val (ESP) 74 65 68, Matthias Schwab (AUT) McLaren 28, 5. Renault 25, 6. Toro Rosso 12, 7. Results on Saturday:
68-70, Michelle Wie 72-73-69-71, Ji Eun-hee (KOR) 67 71 69, Hideto Tanihara (JPN) 70 70 67, Seung-su Haas 11, 8. Sauber 2, 9. Force India 1 Lyon 3 (Mariano 30, Depay 83, Traore 85) Amiens Celta Vigo 32 12 7 13 50 44 43
Results of the Major League Baseball games on 69-72-73-71, Cydney Clanton 74-69-70-72, Kim Han (USA)70 69 68, Jeff Winther (DEN) 69 67 71 0 Real Sociedad 32 11 7 14 57 52 40
Saturday (home team in CAPS): Ji-hyun (KOR) 71-70-71-73 SOCCER Lille 2 (Pepe 55, Araujo 57) Guingamp 2 (Alonso Eibar 31 11 7 13 36 45 40
BOSTON 10 Baltimore 3 286 - Mariajo Uribe (COL) 72-68-74-72, Lee Jeong- ICE HOCKEY Getafe 31 10 9 12 35 30 39
90-og, Briand 90+3)
NY Yankees at DETROIT, ppd eun (KOR) 76-70-67-73, Mo Martin 69-67-72-78, English Premier League Athletic Bilbao 32 9 12 11 35 38 39
Nantes 1 (Nakoulma 33) Dijon 1 (Kwon 61)
Chicago White Sox at MINNESOTA, ppd 287 - Lydia Ko (NZL) 76-71-70-70, Kim Sei-young Results of the NHL playoff games on Saturday Results on Saturday: Leganes 32 11 6 15 27 39 39
Rennes 1 (Bourigeaud 26) Metz 2 (Roux 52, 57)
Texas 6 HOUSTON 5 (10 innings) (KOR) 74-69-74-70, Haeji Kang (KOR) 68-73-73-73, (home team in CAPS): Burnley 2 (Wood 6, Long 9) Leicester 1 (Vardy 72) Strasbourg 0 Saint-Etienne 1 (Debuchy 82) Espanyol 31 8 12 11 26 38 36
Toronto at CLEVELAND, ppd Nasa Hataoka (JPN) 72-69-68-78 TAMPA BAY 5 New Jersey 3 Crystal Palace 3 (Zaha 5, 24, Tomkins 14) Brigh- Caen v Toulouse - postponed due to bad weather Alaves 31 11 2 18 28 45 35
LA Angels 5 KANSAS CITY 3 (Tampa Bay leads best-of-seven series 2-0) ton 2 (Murray 18, Izquierdo 34) Levante 31 6 13 12 28 45 31
SEATTLE 10 Oakland 8 NASHVILLE 5 Colorado 4 Huddersfield 1 (Ince 90+1) Watford 0
PGA RBC Heritage German Bundesliga Deportivo 32 6 8 18 32 65 26
WASHINGTON 6 Colorado 2 Leading scores after Saturday’s third round of (Nashville leads best-of-seven series 2-0) Liverpool 3 (Mane 7, Salah 69, Firmino 90)
Results on Saturday: Las Palmas 32 5 6 21 22 64 21
St. Louis 6 CINCINNATI 1 the US PGA Tour RBC Heritage at Hilton Head, BOSTON 7 Toronto 3 Bournemouth 0
Hoffenheim 2 (Gnabry 18, Szalai 27) Hamburg 0 Malaga 31 4 5 22 19 48 17
CHICAGO CUBS 14 Atlanta 10 South Carolina (USA unless noted, par 71): (Boston leads best-of-seven series 2-0) Southampton 2 (Tadic 21, Bednarek 60) Chelsea 3
Philadelphia 9 TAMPA BAY 4 San Jose 3 ANAHEIM 2 (Giroud 70, 78, Hazard 75) Hertha Berlin 2 (Selke 49, 52) Cologne 1 (Bitten-
200 - Ian Poulter (ENG) 69-64-67
Milwaukee 5 NY METS 1 (San Jose leads best-of-seven series 2-0) Swansea 1 (J. Ayew 71) Everton 1 (Naughton court 29) TENNIS
201 - Luke List 70-64-67, Kim Si-woo (KOR) 68-65-
Pittsburgh 1 MIAMI 0 68 43-og) Bayer Leverkusen 4 (Brandt 20, Volland 71, 77, 88)
SAN DIEGO 5 San Francisco 4 202 - C.T. Pan (TPE) 70-65-67, Billy Horschel 66-69- MOTOR SPORTS Tottenham 1 (Eriksen 42) Manchester City 3 Eintracht Frankfurt 1 (Fabian 23) ATP Marrakech
Arizona 9 LA DODGERS 1 67 (Jesus 22, Gundogan 25-pen, Sterling 72) Stuttgart 1 (Thommy 53) Hanover 1 (Fuellkrug Results on Saturday (x denotes seeding):
203 - Kevin Kisner 69-68-66, Chesson Hadley Chinese Formula One Grand Prix 90+1) Semifinals
GOLF 66-68-69 Leading results from Chinese Formula One P W D L Gf Ga Pts Bayern Munich 5 (Wagner 37, 41, Thiago 51, Alaba Pablo Andujar (ESP) bt Joao Sousa (POR) 6-4, 6-4;
204 - Rory Sabbatini (RSA) 64-70-70 Grand Prix at the 5.451 kilometre Shanghai Inter- Man City 33 28 3 2 93 25 87 67, Lewandowski 82) Borussia Moenchenglad- Kyle Edmund (GBR x2) bt Richard Gasquet (FRA
Yunnan Open 205 - Ryan Moore 69-69-67, Matt Kuchar 66-70-69, national Circuit on Sunday: Man Utd 32 22 5 5 63 25 71 bach 1 (Drmic 9) x4) 6-3, 6-4.
Leading scores after Sunday’s final round of the Danny Lee (NZL) 69-66-70 1. Daniel Ricciardo (AUS/Red Bull) 305 kilome- Liverpool 34 20 10 4 78 35 70
China Tour Belt & Road Colorful Yunnan Open at 206 - An Byeong-hun (KOR) 73-67-66, Lucas Glov- tres/181.5 miles in 1hr 35min 35.980sec Tottenham 33 20 7 6 65 30 67 Italian Serie A ATP Houston
Lakeview Yulongwan Golf Club in Kunming, Yun- er 74-65-67, Webb Simpson 69-68-69, Andrew (average speed 191 kph/ 118.6 mph) Chelsea 33 18 6 9 57 33 60 Results on Saturday: Results on Saturday:
an province (Chinese mainlanders unless noted, Landry 69-68-69, Satoshi Kodaira (JPN) 73-63-70, 2. Valtteri Bottas (FIN/Mercedes) at 8.894 Arsenal 32 16 6 10 61 43 54 Cagliari 2 (Pavoletti 21, Ceppitelli 84) Udinese 1 Semifinals
par-71): Martin Laird (SCO) 67-69-70, Bill Haas 69-66-71, 3. Kimi Raikkonen (FIN/Ferrari) at 9.637 Burnley 33 14 10 9 33 29 52 (Lasagna 10) Tennys Sandgren (USA x8) bt Ivo Karlovic (CRO)
268 - Kim Koivu (FIN) 70-65-69-64 Brandt Snedeker 70-64-72 4. Lewis Hamilton (GBR/Mercedes) at 16.985 Chievo 0 Torino 0 7-6 (7/2), 7-6 (7/4); Steve Johnson (USA x6) bt
Leicester 33 11 10 12 49 47 43
272 - Joachim B. Hansen (DEN) 67-71-68-66, Mar- 207 - Charley Hoffman 72-69-66, Jonas Blixt (SWE) 5. Max Verstappen (NED/Red Bull) at 20.436 Genoa 1 (Bessa 28) Crotone 0 Taylor Fritz (USA) 7-5, 6-7 (4/7), 6-2.
Everton 34 11 9 14 39 54 42
cus Armitage (ENG) 70-68-69-65 67-73-67, Kevin Streelman 70-70-67, Dylan Fritelli 6. Nico Hkenberg (GER/Renault) at 21.052 Atalanta 0 Inter Milan 0
Newcastle 32 10 8 14 33 41 38
273 - Reinier Saxton (NED) 71-69-67-66 (RSA) 72-68-67, Patrick Cantlay 67-72-68, Brian 7. Fernando Alonso (ESP/McLaren) at 30.639
274 - Kevin Lee (KOR) 70-70-69-65 Harman 70-68-69, Ted Potter Jr 72-66-69, Emiliano 8. Sebastian Vettel (GER/Ferrari) at 35.286
Bournemouth 34 9 11 14 41 56 38 WTA Lugano
275 - Charlie Saxon (USA) 66-72-67-70 Grillo (ARG) 72-66-69, Kim Whee (KOR) 68-68-71, 9. Carlos Sainz Jr (ESP/Renault) at 35.763
Watford 34 10 7 17 42 60 37 Scottish Premiership Results on Saturday:
276 - Zhang Jin 69-72-65-70, Matt Ford (GBR) Scott Piercy 71-65-71, Xander Schauffele 68-68- Brighton 33 8 11 14 31 46 35 Result on Saturday: Semifinals
10. Kevin Magnussen (DEN/Haas) at 39.594
66-75-68-67, Robert MaCintyre (SCO) 70-69-68-69 71, Bryson DeChambeau 68-64-75 Huddersfield 34 9 8 17 27 54 35 Hamilton 1 (Templeton 73) Kilmarnock 2 (Broad- Aryna Sabalenka (BLR) bt Stefanie Voegele (SUI)
11. Estan Ocon (FRA/Force India) at 44.050
277 - Zhang Huilin 69-69-69-70, Hugo Leon(CHI) West Ham 32 8 10 14 40 58 34 foot 63, Boyd 79) 6-4, 6-2; Elise Mertens (BEL x2) bt Vera Lapko
12. Sergio Perez (MEX/Force India) at 44.725
71-68-70-68 13. Stoffel Vandoorne (BEL/McLaren) at 49.373 Crystal Palace 36 8 10 16 36 54 34 (BLR) 6-1, 4-6, 6-4.
EPGA Spanish Open
278 - Mathew Perry (NZL) 75-70-64-64, Sunil Jung 14. Lance Stroll (CAN/Williams) at 55.490 Swansea 33 8 9 16 27 46 33 Spanish La Liga
Leading third-round scores from the European
(CAN) 66-78-67-67, Simon Forsstrom (SWE) Tour’s Spanish Open at the Centro Nacional de 15. Sergey Sirotkin (RUS/Williams) at 58.241 Southampton 33 5 13 15 33 53 28 Results on Saturday: WTA Bogota
73-70-71-64, Daan Huizing (NED) 69-73-68-68 Golf in Madrid on Saturday (GBR/IRL unless stat- 16. Marcus Ericsson (SWE/Sauber) at 1:02.604 Stoke 33 6 9 18 30 63 27 Sevilla 2 (Nolito 78, Nzonzi 82) Villarreal 2 (Raba Results on Saturday:
279 - Nicolai Vondellingshausen (GER) 70-73-68- ed; par 72): 17. Romain Grosjean (FRA/Haas) at 1:05.296 West Brom 33 3 12 18 26 52 21 36, Bacca 68) Semifinals
68, Kalle Samooja(FIN) 71-71-70-67 199 - Paul Dunne 66 65 68 18. Pierre Gasly (FRA/Toro Rosso) at 1:06.330 Barcelona 2 (Suarez 15, Umtiti 51) Valencia 1 Anna Karolina Schmiedlova (SVK) bt Ana Bogdan
280 - Xiao Bowen 75-66-71-68, Shun Yat-hak 200 - Nacho Elvira (ESP)68 66 66 19. Charles Leclerc (MON/Sauber) at 1:22.575 English Championship (Parejo 87-pen) (ROU x7) 6-3, 6-2; Lara Arruabarrena (ESP x5) bt
(HKG) 73-68-70-69 201 - Jon Rahm (ESP) 67 68 66, Henric Sturehed 20. Brendon Hartley (NZL/Toro Rosso) at 5 laps Results on Saturday: Las Palmas 0 Real Sociedad 1 (Oiarzabal 21) Dalila Jakupovic (SLO) 6-1, 6-2.
24

SPORTS
Monday, April 16, 2018

CHINA DAILY » CHINADAILY.COM.CN/SPORTS

GOLF
Running away with joy

Yunnan charting
China’s course
Tournaments
help spotlight
‘paradise’ locale
By SHI FUTIAN
in Kunming, Yunnan
shifutian@chinadaily.com.cn

The Belt & Road Colorful

Yunnan Open, the China
Tour’s third stop of the year,
wrapped up on Sunday at Yun-
nan Lakeview Yulongwan Golf
Club in Kunming, Yunnan
province, as the latest example
of the nation’s growing golf
ambition.
With total prize money of
More than 20,000 athletes from 32 countries and regions took part in the annual Beijing International Running Festival on Sunday, $350,000, the fifth edition of
starting from Tian’anmen Square and ending at the Olympic Green. Li Chunhui and Ma Yugui won the men’s and women’s half mara- the Yunnan Open was contest-
thons in 1:06.02 and 1:16.44 respectively. Six hundred families also took part in the family fun run. The festival, also known as the Bei- ed by 126 golfers from 28
jing Run, is one of the oldest in China, having debuted in 1956. WEI XIAOHAO / CHINA DAILY countries and regions and pro-
vided winner Kim Koivu of
Finland with a ticket to the
European Challenge Tour.
SOCCER For local golfers, the tourna-
ment is not only an opportuni-
ty to challenge international

Salah scaling new heights competition, but also a symbol

of Yunnan’s efforts to grow the
game.
One of the beneficiaries is
14-year-old Zhang Zhongyu,
Finland’s Kim Koivu poses with the trophy after winning the Yun-
nan Open in Kunming on Sunday. Koivu notched a 16-under 268 for
the victory. CHENG RUI / FOR CHINA DAILY

LIVERPOOL — Jurgen boys afterwards, we show who played in this year’s Open
Klopp believes Mohamed them and they listen. for the first time on a wild card tial policies have been sport,” he said. “Through these
Salah has not finished rewrit- “A lot of times we are in a and was the youngest player in unveiled. tournaments, we want more
ing the Liverpool scoring position shooting and they the field. “Yunnan Golf Association people to know golf, especially
record book after the Egyp- cannot always give the ball to “I started golf training when made a proposal suggesting Yunnan’s golf. As our slogan
tian international took his tal- him. So we can still improve I was 5 years old,” said Zhang, that all of the clubs in Yunnan says, ‘Colorful Yunnan is a golf
ly for the season to 40 goals in in this situation to use his a Yunnan native. “Now I’m in should give discounts to paradise’.”
Saturday’s 3-0 Premier threat and pass the ball some- Grade 8 at school, so I normal- underage golfers, and lots of Yunnan’s efforts have also
League victory over Bourne- where else.” ly have classes in the morning clubs have made it a reality,” paid dividends for veteran
mouth. With Anfield in the mood and play golf in the afternoon. said Gong Lei, deputy secre- golfers. He Shaocai, a 35-year-
But the German manager to celebrate the superb mid- “I know many young players tary-general of the association. old former professional wres-
also insists Salah will not be week Champions League vic- of my age who have started to “Now, young players from tler, is one of the most
distracted by his quest for the tory over Manchester City, train and to play in teenage-lev- all over the world can enjoy dramatic examples.
Golden Boot award, for the Mane gave the home crowd el tournaments. My teachers in discounts after registration if “I retired as a wrestler when
Premier League’s leading scor- something to cheer about school actually support my golf they come to play in Yunnan. I was 20 years old, and then
er, as Liverpool seeks to end a when he met a seventh min- training. I eventually want to “For domestic professional golf attracted me,” said He,
memorable season by winning Mohamed Salah celebrates scoring Liverpool's second goal dur- ute cross from Jordan Hen- turn pro if I can, but before that players, we also offer all kinds who is also a Yunnan local. “I
the Champions League. ing Saturday’s 3-0 English Premier League victory over Bourne- derson. I want to finish my education of discounts providing them started my golf training in
Salah, in his first season at mouth. AP Begovic did well to save the and go to university. I can study with a comfortable and conve- 2000 and turned pro in 2007.
Anfield, became the first Liv- initial header, but Mane while I keep training. nient atmosphere for training. “Years ago, people might
erpool player since Ian Rush reacted quickly to blast in the “Also, it’s quite easy for us to “Under the auspice of the have to spend about 1,000 yuan
in 1986-87 to reach the 40-goal he certainly didn’t look like he Either side of Salah’s goal loose rebound. play golf now. For young play- China Golf Association, we ($159) to play one round of golf
mark and only the third from doesn’t want to score in the were efforts from Sadio Mane After Salah took center ers like me, it’s very cheap to have launched programs to in China.
the club ever to reach that next few games. and Roberto Firmino, taking stage, Firmino rounded off a play. Sometimes, it’s even free.” promote golf development in “Now, we only have to pay
landmark after Rush and 1966 “It’s all about him, all about their respective Liverpool tal- fine afternoon for the host According to Yunnan Sports schools. We help teachers and about 200 yuan in Yunnan. For
England World Cup winner us and how we finish the sea- lies for the season to 25 and 17, when he converted clinically Bureau, co-organizer of the students learn more about the a year, we might only just need
Roger Hunt. son. Normally, in that situa- meaning the prolific front from 18 yards after being Yunnan Open, golf’s populari- sport so they can see that golf to spend 2,000 to 3,000 yuan.
But Salah has reached his tion, to be top of the goal list three have now combined for picked out by Alex Oxlade- ty has shown dramatic growth is an activity for everyone, not Everyone can play.
40 quicker than either of his at the end and win the Golden an astonishing 82 goals this Chamberlain. in the province over the past just the elite.” “To increase golf’s populari-
predecessors and, with poten- Boot means you have been season. Bournemouth took four decade, with more high-level Gong said the Yunnan Open ty, it must not be considered
tially seven games remaining successful as a team, but we Firmino’s 90th minute points from Liverpool last tournaments scheduled. provides a great opportunity an elite sport. It’s good for peo-
for his team, he might yet can’t force it. But it’s good, third goal made it 300 for Liv- season, but having been Also, Yunnan has made golf for people to gain an up-close- ple of all age groups, from kids
challenge the all-time club impressive. What a number. erpool in well under three swept aside in both meetings a part of the province’s Belt and-personal experience of to 70-year-olds.
record held by Rush who Wow!” seasons since Klopp took this campaign, Eddie Howe and Road sports industry golf, which will further “With the government’s
scored 47 goals in a blistering There was certainly a over, but he insisted they can believes Liverpool’s improve- development strategy, along increase the sport’s popularity. support, there are more and
1983-84 campaign. “wow” factor about the man- still improve in attacking are- ment makes it serious con- with other sports like cycling “With all of these tourna- more golf tournaments in
“Really it’s 31 years? He ner in which Salah claimed as by not always looking for tender to win the Champions and soccer. ments, we can attract more Yunnan, which will make the
doesn’t look that old. He must his 40th, and his 30th in the Salah. League. As a result, many preferen- people to watch and know the sport more and more popular.”
have been 14 when he scored league this season, after 69 “What a number we’ve “Comparing Liverpool to
his 40 goals,” Klopp joked minutes. scored as team over the whole last season, they have really
about Rush, when told Salah
had become the first Liver-
pool player since the Welsh-
man to hit 40.
Trent Alexander-Arnold’s
hanging cross into the
Bournemouth area allowed
Salah to peel away from his
season,” added Klopp.
“That’s really good and we
have to carry it on for a few
games to come. I have seen
improved, grown as a team,
as they have shown through-
out the season,” said Howe.
“Of course they can win the
It’s a shortcut to Europe
“But Mo knows what this marker Nathan Ake and flick the boys looking for Mo but Champions League. They will
means and the way we play the most perceptive of finish- we have to mix it up a little bit. be tough for anyone.” By SHI FUTIAN “It benefits the Chinese
suits him. For him, for the es with his head over keeper “He’s the threat, but it’s players because the best way
boys, it’s fantastic and today Asmir Begovic. good to analyze it with the AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE The opportunity to punch a for them to grow and to
ticket to the European Chal- improve is to play at the inter-
lenge Tour was an added national level.”
incentive for golfers at the Belt De Soultrait pointed out
Pep content to count birdies & Road Colorful Yunnan Open, that many Chinese have
which wrapped up on Sunday. proved themselves on the
The ECT has had a working international stage in recent
Rather than seeing if Manchester City For now, City is 16 points in front of United Beating an English rival, though, proved agreement with Chinese golf years, including Li Haotong,
wins the English Premier League, Pep with five games to go after impressively beyond City in the Champions League — since the Qingdao Open in China’s first male golfer to
Guardiola will be on the golf course. inflicting fourth-place Tottenham’s second going out in the quarterfinals to Liverpool on 2008, but this year marks the crack the world’s top 50.
The manager plans to be playing a round home loss of the season. And City will Tuesday. first time the Yunnan Open “They have progressed
with son Marius on Sunday when City will be secure its third title since 2012 by beating Juergen Klopp’s third-place side looks set offered a reciprocal spot for Alain de Soultrait, director of extremely quickly and
crowned champion if West Bromwich Albion Swansea this Sunday. to seal a place in the continent’s top compe- Europe. the European Challenge Tour extremely well, and I think
wins at Manchester United. “People say it was a big failure, what hap- tition even if it doesn’t lift the European Cup Alain de Soultrait, director there is a new generation of
“Will I hear the scores? Bogey, double-bo- pened last week, but they don’t understand after beating Bournemouth 3-0 to stay 10 of the Challenge Tour, is increase its cooperation with golfers in China that under-
gey, birdie,” Guardiola said after a 3-1 victory the reality of football,” Guardiola said. points clear of fifth-place champion Chelsea. impressed by the dramatic China. The tour is co-sanction- stand how it works,” he said.
at Tottenham on Saturday. “You can win the Champions League in Tottenham still occupies the fourth development. ing three China Tour events “Playing in tournaments is
Even if United doesn’t lose to the league’s seven games, the league is 10 months. I’m Champions League spot, although Chelsea “China’s golf market is huge this year — the Yunnan Open, not just about enjoying the
bottom team, City can still seal the trophy sorry; it’s much more important what these closed the gap to seven points after coming and it’s developing extremely the Foshan Open and the game on the course. It’s hard
before playing again. That will be achieved guys have done this season. Hopefully we from behind to beat Southampton 3-2. fast,” said De Soultrait. “Tour- Hainan Open — and De Soul- work. It’s about working every
by United losing at Bournemouth on can celebrate with our fans against Swansea Wolverhampton Wanderers will be return- naments of high caliber, such as trait hailed the opportunity single day, then playing com-
Wednesday or if Jose Mourinho’s side draws and my guys can be champions because ing to the Premier League next season after the Yunnan Open, can benefit for Chinese golfers to face petition, and knowing how to
with both West Brom and Bournemouth. they deserve it.” a six-year absence. Promotion was secured the sport’s development here international competition. manage the pressure in order
City has its swagger back after a demor- Gabriel Jesus, Ilkay Gundogan and Rah- from the League Championship after Ful- by making it more popular.” “We believe that by cooper- to get better and better.
alizing week that saw the leader fail to seal eem Sterling scored in a commanding dis- ham drew with Brentford. De Soultrait said the emer- ating with China’s governing “I think we will soon see
top spot by losing the Manchester derby play that shows why City has 28 wins from gence of more outstanding body of golf, we can help the more and more Chinese golf-
and exiting the Champions League. 33 matches in the league. ASSOCIATED PRESS Chinese players provides an development of our sport,” ers joining Li Haotong among
impetus for the ECT to said De Soultrait. the top rankings.”