Innocent Childhood
童真童趣
Photo by Liang Wei



Starting from May 26, a photo exhibition titled "Innocent Childhood" is being on at the Hualian Department Store, with 130 photos on display depicting the colorful life of children in Xiamen. The exhibition will end on June 5.

 

 

Economics

10 local enterprises appear on Top 500 List
10家厦企入围外贸500强
The Ministry of Commerce has recently unveiled the List of China's Top 500 Enterprises with the Largest Imports & Exports and Top 200 Enterprises with the Largest Exports in 2004. Ten Xiamen-based enterprises are among the Top 500 Enterprises with the Largest Imports & Exports, seven less than the previous year, while four have made it to the List of Top 200 Enterprises with the Largest Exports.

Xiamen Airlines intends to be logistics provider for Taiwanese fruits
厦航想当台湾水果物流供应商
Xiamen Airlines has recently announced that it has made adequate preparations for its ambition of becoming a leading logistics provider for the air transport of Taiwanese fruits. So far, the supply chain scheme for the "one-stop" logistics of the air transport of Taiwanese fruits from Xiamen to various cities in China, especially Beijing and Shanghai, has been formulated.

Power supply capacity to double in five years
五年后供电能力翻一番
The local power authority has recently unveiled the 2006-2010 Xiamen Power Grid Plan, under which 44 new 110kv and 220kv substations, with an estimated total investment of RMB 2.591 billion, will be added to the local power grid in the upcoming five years, and the local power supply capacity will be doubled by the end of 2010.

Average price of commodity housing rose RMB 497 in April
4月商品房均价再涨
According to the April real estate information released by the local land and housing authority, the average price of local commodity housing rose RMB 497 over March, reaching an all time high of RMB 5,165/m2, and the average price of second-hand housing also reached a record high of RMB 3,101/m2. Industry insiders say that the effect of the government's measures to cool down the property market is expected within the next two to three months.

Sales of foreign wines hampered in Xiamen
洋酒难进寻常百姓家
In the first quarter of this year, local enterprises imported USD 121,000 worth of foreign wines, up 200% over the same period last year. Most of the imports are grape-made wines. Although the import of foreign wines has increased by a big margin after the vast reduction in import duties, fake wines, high prices and obstructed sales channels have prevented foreign wines from enjoying brisk sales with consumers in Xiamen.

Prizes offered by Dragonair
玩网上游戏赢港龙大奖
An array of fabulous prizes - ranging from iPod shuffle MP3 players to plane tickets and a flights and hotel package in Tokyo - are on offer in an interactive online game designed as part of the events to celebrate Dragonair's 20th anniversary. Participants can register to play at www.dragonair.com from now on till June 16, 2005.

 

 

Society

Local residents get opportunity to feast eyes on egrets
邀您赏白鹭
The Egret Protection Association of the School of Business Administration of Jimei University has recently extended an invitation to all local residents to enjoy the view of egrets from Room 506 of the Agricultural Science Building at the university. In the current peak season of egret nesting and breeding, a grove behind the school has attracted more than 5,000 egrets. This egret grove is currently Xiamen's largest breeding ground of egrets, featuring the fullest range of egret species. The association's only rule for residents interested in catching a glimpse of the egrets is not to disturb them.

Chen Hong wins silver medal
陈泓获广告创意大赛银奖
The 21st Century Cup Guangzhou 4A Youth Advertisement Originality Competition was ended recently, with Chen Hong, a Xiamen planar designer going away with the silver medal. Sponsored by Guangzhou 4A, this competition is recognized as a platform where Chinese powerful advertisement companies can communicate and learn from each other. It is also a place where young and talented designers compete in making a figure.

Penang, Xiamen join hands in building choice tour route
槟城厦门打造精品旅游线
In a recent tourism promotion seminar held in Xiamen by Penang, Malaysia, the two cities reached a consensus to jointly build the choice Xiamen-Penang tour route.

Vegetables to be inspected before hitting market
蔬菜上市前都要检测
Xiamen Raw & Fresh Food Safety Supervision Management Measures will take effect on September 1, under which vegetables must have a conformance inspection and test report before entering agricultural produce markets in Xiamen. At the present time, vegetables in Xiamen are randomly inspected after entering the market.

Terra-cotta warriors to arrive in Xiamen
秦兵马俑将展出
Emperor Qin Shihuang's terra-cotta warriors will be displayed at Xiamen Overseas Chinese Museum for 40 days from June 16 to July 25, 2005. As many as 85 top-class artifacts excavated from the areas around Emperor Qin Shihuang's mausoleum will be exhibited, including 21 ones under Level 1 state protection.

 

 

City News
Edited by Lily

Beijing 北京

Satellite town
打造卫星城
Beijing started the construction of its satellite town, Shunyi, in the eastern part of the metropolis. The city will have a population of 700,000 to 900,000 when completed, including room for future development. The new town will become an independent and complete small city, developing manufacturing, logistics, international exhibition and sports businesses for Beijing.

Construction of National Gymnasium
国家体育馆动工
The National Gymnasium is the sixth new competition venue, after the National Stadium, the National Swimming Center, the Beijing Shooting Range, the Laoshan Velo Drome and the Wukesong Gymnasium, to be built in the Chinese capital for the 2008 Olympics. It resembles a traditional Chinese folding fan, and it will be turned into a fitness and recreational center for Beijing's citizens.

AIDS prevention and control network
建立艾滋病防控中心
Beijing will build an AIDS prevention and control network, covering the entire municipality.
The three grade network includes the municipal and district disease prevention and control mechanisms, the community health service centers and the sanitation stations in townships and villages.
The government will also continue to increase auto condom vending machines in public places, methadone treatments and needle-exchange services

Hospitals sign up with insurer
承保人与医院签约
China's first specialized health insurer, the PICC Health Insurance Co Ltd, has forged partnerships with five hospitals in Beijing. The co-operation is a first. It is expected that partnerships between PICC Health and the selected hospitals will provide all concerned with valuable knowledge and experience in China's burgeoning commercial health insurance market.

Shanghai 上海

Shanghai attracts big guns
沪高新区吸引投资巨头
Eight multinational companies signed agreements with the city's High-tech Park to launch R&D projects. The establishment of the R&D centers is part of the strategic plans of these companies which include Philips, 3M, Cisco Systems, Honda Motor and Faurecia Group. It has become a trend for multinationals to concentrate their investment on one suitable place to reduce costs.

Civil servants to hit gym
公务员须多健身
Shanghai civil servants were being told to hit the gym to combat a rise in obesity and other health problems. About 15 percent of Xuhui district's bureaucrats were overweight, with most living sedentary lifestyles and making little time for exercise. Those who fail next year's physical exams will not be eligible for government's reimbursements.

Bank loan scheme for Chinese students
简化留学生申贷手续
A scheme allows PRC students to take out a bank loan in China when they apply for a New Zealand Student Visa. Students who take out the loan don't need to provide any other bank documentation to show they can support themselves while in New Zealand when they apply for their Visa. The application forms will be available at NZIS branches in Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong, and CITIC banks in agreed cities.

Guangzhou & Shenzhen 广州 & 深圳

Kung fu shoes travel far abroad
功夫鞋飘洋过海
Though he has never traveled out of Guangzhou in the 68 years of his life, Liang Guangze made tens of thousands of kung fu shoes that had traveled far abroad in his stead. A museum, planned to commemorate late kung fu star Bruce Lee, will take a pair of Liang's handmade kung fu shoes into its collection. Liang is the only traditional kung fu shoemaker in the city now with the market shrinking for the often-black boat-shaped shoes.



European peak tour season arrives
赴欧旅游高峰期将至
Guangzhou's major travel agencies are promoting various tour packages for the upcoming summer holidays, as the European peak tour season has arrived. Since May, several small and medium travel agencies have encountered difficulties in European visa issuing. Industry insiders suggest keeping a good overseas departure record, having proof of a stable income or fixed-asset certificate, proof of secure employment, and travel through a major travel agency.

Proposal classifies housing types
建议房屋分类缴税
The Guangzhou government recently planned to use land measure as a standard to classify "normal houses" and "non-normal houses". Different types of housing may be charged tax by different criteria. If a house is larger than 120 square meters, the owner may have to pay an extra 3% on the housing taxes.

Chongqing 重庆

Fabric machines stop running
纺织厂暂停生产
More than half of the fabric machines in the two largest textile mills, The Fourth Huacheng Textile Mill and Fuling Jindi Textile Mill in Chongqing have stopped running these days as the export of textile fabric is restricted by some foreign countries and domestic market is experiencing hard times.

Rongchang folding fans more popular
荣昌折扇畅销
A farmer is drying the frameworks of folding fans at his village in Rongchang County. The history of manufacturing folding fans in the county dates back to more than 300 years, Rongchang folding fan is among the three most famous fans in China. As the development of tourist industry, Rongchang folding fans are becoming more and more popular, which bring about an increase of yearly income of 4,000-5000 yuan.



Hong Kong 香港

Disneyland pushes Hong Kong tourism
迪斯尼带旺旅游业
Hong Kong Disneyland is surely not the only tourist attraction of Hong Kong, yet it will be the trump card of Hong Kong tourism after opening, bringing in a big flow of tourists and stimulating the economy. The only two hotels in the park have been fully booked several months after its opening on September 12. Over 1,000 couples showed interest in holding a fairy tale wedding in Disneyland style, though the expenses will be over 150,000 Hong Kong dollars.

Guidelines on elections set
设定选举新规定
The Hong Kong Electoral Affairs Commission (EAC) released a new set of Guidelines on Election-related Activities in respect of the Chief Executive Elections. Nominations for candidature in the election will be open from June 3 to 16. Voting will take place on July 10 if more than one candidate is validly nominated. The guidelines will apply to the forthcoming and future Chief Executive elections.

Taipei 台北

New fish species found off Taitung
台通发现新鱼种
Four new fish species were discovered in deep-sea waters near Green Island. The project marked the first time Taiwan and the US have cooperated in exploring fishery resources in coral reefs in the area. The species include chromis delta and plectranthias winniensis.

Three cities to dispatch delegations to conference in Chongqing
三城市将赴渝参加亚太高峰会
Taipei, Taoyuan, Taichung have promised to send delegations to a summit of Asia-Pacific mayors in mainland in October. It is now the hub of China's drive to develop its backward western hinterland and home to 31 million people, 60 percent of whom live in the countryside. 70 mayors from the Asia-Pacific region have already confirmed their presence at the October meeting.


Vocabulary
ministry 部
logistics 物流
unveil 揭开, 开始
obstruct 阻碍
terra-cotta 陶俑
burgeon 急速增长
drome 场地
chromis 珊瑚礁鱼类

 

 

R&D center to be built in Linde Forklift Truck
林德叉车将在厦设研发中心



Linde Xiamen Forklift Truck Co Ltd will soon build an R&D center in Xiamen and the factory here will be a global manufacturing base in the near future, according to Chen Jinping, Director of Sales of Linde Xiamen. "This is a corresponding reaction to the increasing importance of the Asian market, especially the Chinese market," said Antoine, the company's Marketing Director.

The forklift trucks designed and manufactured here will be sold throughout the Chinese market as well as the international market.

In the picture, a staff of Linde is presenting how to manage a forklift truck to a group of students from Jimei University, May 25.