Kodak hails its accomplishment
By Enid Chen
Photo by Liang Wei



Kodak has turned over a new page in its investment in Xiamen with 100 million one-time-use cameras produced since the factory in Haicang was put into production five years ago. A celebration ceremony was held on October 28th in Haicang, where the world's largest production base for one-time-use cameras is located.

Over 2,000 employees of Kodak surrounded the stage in circles with red silk in their hands, which were pulled out from the 50 model film rolls. This creative celebration signified that the total length of film produced over the past few years in Xiamen is 50 times the length of the earth equator.

"Five years ago, we came here to Xiamen with a goal to build a world-class plant. The achievements we have made today are attributed to the hard work of all Kodak employees here and the support of the government," Daniel A. Carp, CEO and Chairman of Eastman Kodak said at the celebration ceremony.

 

 

Economics

Xiamen-Liancheng airline proves a hot route
"厦门-连城"航线火爆
Since the opening of the Xiamen to Liancheng air route by the Eastern Airlines on October 15, most flights on this particular route have been able to enjoy an occupation rate of more than 85%, with all tickets sold out in many cases. As of October 27, 1480 passengers have flown this route, with an average occupation rate of 80%. Liancheng County Tourism Bureau has decided to give tourists who fly to Liancheng on a Eastern Airlines flight a 70% discount for admission tickets to scenic spots in the county upon the presentation of air tickets.

Xiamen to Longyan trip to take 1.5 hours in two months
厦门1.5小时直达龙岩
After the planned opening of the entire length of the Zhanglong Expressway on December 26, it will take merely 1.5 hours to drive from Xiamen to Longyan. The new expressway, starting from Zhangzhou and ending in Longyan, is connected to Xiazhang Expressway to the east and Longchang Expressway to the west, and runs 117.20 kilometers. The opening of the new expressway will open up vast opportunities for economic cooperation between Longyan and Xiamen.

Southern Airlines to open international service hotline
南航开通国际服务号码
On October 27, Southern Airlines announced its plan to open a multi-lingual service hotline 950333 in Xiamen by the year's end. The service hotline will provide the half million passengers in Xiamen with home city services, including bookings, flight inquiries, luggage consignment, and search for lost items.

 

 

Society

Schools reject teachers with history of mental problem
学校谢绝有精神病史老师
For the first time in the city's history, Xiamen has included the inspection of school teachers and staff members for possible mental problems as part of the security drive for kindergartens and elementary and secondary schools. Those with a history of mental problems will be removed from their teaching positions.

Woman resorts to breast enlargement to retain husband
留住丈夫求助隆胸
A poverty-stricken woman wanted to enhance her physical charms by breast enlargement as a means of restraining her husbands' drift away from the family. However, she could not afford the cosmetic surgery and therefore appealed through the media to the local community for financial assistance. This is the first ever case of seeking public donations for cosmetic surgery. After her appeal was published in the newspaper on October 28, many readers have offered to pay for the surgery, which will take place soon.

Housing and auto show held in Xiamen
好房靓车惊艳鹭岛
On October 29, the 2004 Xiamen Daily Housing & Auto Show, sponsored by Xiamen Daily, opened at Xiamen International Conference & Exhibition Center, showcasing nearly 40 property estates, including residences, shops, office buildings and villas, built by the city's 26 leading developers. It also included 100-plus latest models of automobiles from 20-plus strong auto dealers and the First Automobile Works Group.

Power grid tower removed from century-old street
电力铁塔退出百年老街
On October 28, about 20 10-kilovolt power transmission towers located on the both sides of the South Siming Road from Zhenhai Road intersection to Dashengli railway crossing were removed from this century-old street, replaced with more reliable underground power cables. The city's Power Bureau spent more than RMB 2 million on this renovation project.

 

 

City News

Beijing 北京
Beijing to build more star-grade hotels
更多星级酒店亮相
Beijing plans to increase the number of star-grade hotels to meet the needs of the 2008 Summer Olympic Games, mainly through upgrading existing economy-class hotels.
Beijing has 601 star-level hotels at the end of September. The city is aiming for 800, the amount required by the 2008 Summer Olympic Games. It's predicted Beijing would host 600,000 visitors during the forthcoming Olympic Games.

Traffic law shores up road safety
交规保障道路安全
Traffic safety in Beijing has improved since the Road Traffic Safety Law went into effect in May. During the first nine months this year, a total of 1,139 people were killed in 1,029 traffic accidents in Beijing , the two figures marked decreases of 8.8 per cent and 9.3 per cent compared with the same period last year.

Court begins case on detective's death
首例侦探被杀案开审
The Beijing No. 2 Intermediate People's Court recently heard a case involving a local private detective allegedly killed by the person he was investigating. It is believed to be the first ever case of its kind in Beijing. The defendants were accused of willful and malicious injury and the relatives of the victim asked for 400,000 yuan in compensation.

Guangzhou 广州
Guangzhou promotes "Waterless" car wash
"零耗水洗车"启动
Guangzhou is promoting a new method to wash an entire car with just 0.3 of a liter of water, in an attempt to balance car washing and water conservation. The new method, which uses about 1,000 times less water than the traditional bucket-and-broom procedure, requires the car to be only slightly wet and then sprayed with a cleaning solution.

Guangzhou gas prices to increase
油价近日攀升1.8元
From November 1st, gas prices in Guangzhou will be subject to increases, mainly due to the recent rise in international crude oil prices. According to the Guangzhou Gas Company, various kinds of gases being used by Guangzhou residents will be subject to different increases. The largest increase will be for liquefied petroleum gas, which will rise to 11.8 yuan per cubic meter from the current 10 yuan. The company said that even with the price increases, it will still suffer an overall loss because of the current high prices of crude oil on the international market.

Sex education goes to kindergarten
幼儿园启蒙性教育
Beginning next year, all kindergartens in Guangzhou will be required to have at least one teacher who can teach children proper sex knowledge, reports the New Express News.

Chongqing 重庆
Madame Chiang Kai Shek's Villa in Chongqing to be open
宋美龄别墅开放
Song Ting - the villa of Song Meiling, standing on Mount Huang in Chongqing, will be open to the public this week. The villa's renovation work is underway. Song Meiling, Madame Chiang Kai Shek, had lived in the villa for more than five years during the Anti-Japanese War, where she had spent most of her time in Chongqing.

China Food Festival concluded
第四届美食节闭幕
The eleven-day 4th China Food Festival recently closed in Chongqing.
The food festival had attracted almost 15,000 delegates and observers, including 744 enterprises from 36 cities of China, 49 delegates from 20 foreign countries and international trade organizations.
77 chain-running agreements have been reached between local food enterprises and the ones from 20 provinces with the total investment of 86.57 million yuan.

Workers are embanking the Yangtze
三峡水位要涨
The water reservation level of the Three Gorges Dam will reach 139 meters by the end of this month. Workers in Wushan County are busy constructing an embankment along the Yangtze River within the county area.

Shanghai 上海
Homosexuality lectures popular on campus
复旦同性恋讲座火爆
"Homosexuality and Sociology", a postgraduate course offerred by the Medical School at Fudan University, drew an unexpectedly large audience. It's hosted by Chinese renowned sociologist and sexologist Li Yinhe. While only five students are actually enrolled in the course, the real attendance figure ranges from 60 to more than 100.

World largest cross-river project to debut in Shanghai
世界最大跨江通道开工
The world's largest cross-river project is designed to start from the Pudong district of Shanghai, and extend across the Changxing Island to Chenjia in Chongming County.

Shanghai's bribes for sale
贿品小心曝光
Shanghai, China's booming financial centre, has held a public auction of "gifts" received by local government officials, which included Rolex watches, computers, cameras and clothes. The city authorities said the auction was being held partly to raise cash for district offices but mainly to "educate the public not to try to bribe officials".

Mr. Shanghai gives all credit to his fiancée
"上海先生"谢妻
"Thanks go to my fiancée, because she gave me the confidence to stand up here", "Mr. Shanghai" said after winning the title.
Shanghai men have long been criticized for "not being manly enough" because they are usually very submissive to what their wives say and often do household chores. But Jiang says it's a misinterpretation of what a good man should be. "It has nothing to do with being sissy. I find many of my friends, French men and German men, are all very good at taking care of women and their kids."

Taipei 台北
Ban on American beef lifted
美牛肉暂时"松口气"
Taiwan now became the third major importer to lift its ban on American beef. In doing so, it insisted on more food safety guarantees from American producers.
Taiwan was the sixth-largest importer of American beef in 2003, purchasing $73 million worth. Japan, the largest importer, announced Saturday that it would resume trade. Mexico, the second-largest importer, lifted its ban in March.

Rules on Chinese spouses eased
大陆配偶严苛限定有望放松
Under a legal revision drafted at the Ministry of the Interior on Thursday, Chinese spouses of foreign specialized professionals will be able to seek non-Taiwanese nationals to be their guarantors here. The move will ease strict requirements on spouses that have drawn criticism from foreign chambers of commerce in Taiwan.

NT dollar makes largest gain in 5 years
受惠人民币上调利率 新台币达五年来最高值
The New Taiwan dollar had its biggest weekly gain in almost five years on speculation that China's increase in interest rates marks a step toward a more flexible yuan exchange rate.

Hong Kong 香港
New agency to help SMEs in HK
新增商业信贷咨询署 力助中小企业发展
Hong Kong's Commercial Credit Reference Agency, which was launched on November 1, will provide an auditable source of information about the credit history of small and medium enterprises and make it easier for these SMEs to obtain financing.

HK Disneyland starts recruitment
迪斯尼"扩编"
Hong Kong Disneyland has launched a recruitment drive, with more than 1,000 people vying for 500 positions at the theme park. The park started auditions to fill about 200 slots for dancers while auditions for actors, singers and musicians were to be held in November and January. It will hire a total of 500 performers and has received more than 1,000 applications.
The theme park is a joint venture for the HKSAR and The Walt Disney Co. The government has said Disneyland will boost tourism and employment.

Hong Kong should abolish the estate tax
安永建议废除房产税
The accounting firm Ernst & Young has urged the government of Hong Kong to abolish the territory's estate tax, arguing that the levy is no longer seen as relevant in Hong Kong's modern economy. According to Owen Chan, a partner at E&Y, the government should take a progressive approach towards complete abolition of the death duty when fiscal conditions permit and this is likely to be in 2008/2009.