Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning [Ministry of Foreign Affairs]
Geopolitics
After 30 years, the US will once again have a major military presence in the Philippines, with a new agreement that will allow the installation of four military bases
Washington could go as far as sending troops and military equipment 800 km off the coast of Taiwan; a Chinese spokesperson said that the decision increases tension, endangers peace and stability in the region, and that Indo-Pacific countries need to avoid being coerced or used by the US
China informed the US that the balloon entered its airspace completely accidentally and expressed strong dissatisfaction over its downing
The Pentagon confirmed that the weather research balloon posed no military or physical threat; Chinese Foreign Ministry said diplomatic teams should prudently manage unexpected situations and asked the US to handle the matter in a calm, professional, and restrained manner
National Politics
Chinese outbound group travel is back, while Hong Kong and Macau will launch major tourism campaigns starting in March
As of 2019, China was the world’s largest outbound tourism market, with 155 million tourists and US$245 billion overseas; Hong Kong plans to give away 500,000 free airline tickets and Macau 120,000, and China will no longer require a negative COVID-19 result for travelers from those regions
Coastal industrial centers take measures to resume production after Chinese New Year holiday amid labor shortage
Guangdong will organize 14 trains and 380 buses to bring back 25,000 migrant workers; the pandemic has caused many people to prefer to work in their hometowns rather than in large cities due to lower costs and proximity to their families
Economy
Shanghai residents had the highest purchasing power in China in 2022, averaging 79,610 yuan (US$11,809) per person
The figure for Beijing residents was 77,415 yuan (US$11,483), while the Tibet Autonomous Region recorded a growth of 6.9% – the fastest in the country – reaching 26,675 yuan (US$3,955); China’s per capita disposable income grew 5% in 2022, reaching 36,883 yuan (US$5,468)
Foreign capital inflow in stocks on the Shenzhen and Shanghai exchanges in January reaches 131 billion yuan (US$19.4 billion) surpassing the entire year of 2022
Only in the first half of January, the net investment abroad in bonds and shares in China reached US$12.6 billion; the strengthening of the yuan, which has consolidated around 3% since the beginning of this year, is among the causes of greater investments
Agriculture and Environment
Chinese scientists have successfully cloned three “super cows” and plan to build a herd of more than 1,000 in the next three years
Considered “highly productive”, Holstein breed’s clones are capable of producing 18 tons of milk per year and more than 100 tons in their lifetime; China imports 70% of its dairy cows, with an increasing demand as the middle class grows
Ocean power facilities capacity can reach 350 GW by 2050 but construction costs remain the main obstacle
In 2022, the country’s first megawatt-scale tidal stream station was connected to Zhejiang’s network and is expected to generate at least 1 GWh per year; for experts, ocean energy is a triple win for China’s strategic goals of carbon neutrality, renewable energy, and high-end manufacturing
Science and Technology
China becomes the third country – after Canada and the US – able to provide a complete computer system with quantum technology
Origin Quantum Computing’s Wuyuan features superconducting chip technology and uses elementary particles called quantum bits that replace the 0’s and 1’s used in traditional computing; founder of the company says the technology will produce visible benefits in everyday life in the next three to five years
People’s Life and Culture
The hospital ship of the People’s Liberation Army Navy “Ark of Peace” is back in operation after the pandemic
It is China’s first hospital ship and has 16 departments, eight operating rooms and more than 300 beds; it entered service in 2008, has treated more than 230,000 people from 43 countries and last November treated more than 13,000 patients from Indonesia on a seven-day mission
Peace Ark setting off for home after offering diagnosis and treatment to more than 13,000 patients in Indonesia, 18.11.2022 [Photo/Xinhua]
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