Opinion

 

1. Targeted medium- and long-term loans to manufacturing industry 

 

During the Monetary Policy Committee meeting held recently, the People's Bank of China emphasized the importance of guiding financial institutions to increase medium- and long-term loans to the manufacturing industry with market demand. In contrast to last year's fourth quarter meeting statement, which focused on guiding financial institutions to increase medium- and long-term loans in the manufacturing industry, this one emphasized the need for a more accurate approach to loan distribution process.

 

2. Bolster basic research system arrangement

 

The Government Work Report for this year suggested strengthening the planning preparation of basic research systems and offering steady, long-term support for certain innovation bases, teams with competitive strength, and important research topics to improve original innovation capabilities. This is a strategy plan that outlines the path for advancing high-quality development of basic research in the new age and new journey by thoroughly understanding the traits and development patterns of basic research.

 

Policy

 

1. China’s Ministry of Commerce has recently issued a three-year action plan aimed at advancing digital commerce. Over the next three years starting in 2024, China will work to cement the foundation of digital commerce development and invigorate digital consumption. A “4 plus N” digital consumption matrix will be fostered nationwide, including "National Online New Year Shopping Festival", "Brand and Quality Online Shopping Festival", "Digital Commerce Revitalizes Agriculture", and "Silk Road Online Product E-commerce Festival".

 

2. China’s Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Commerce have issued a notice to carry out construction of modern commercial logistic system starting from 2024. The pilot work in cities is planned to be implemented in three batches (2024-2026).

 

3. Free trade agreement (FTA) between China and Ecuador went into effect on May 1 as both countries have completed respective domestic approval processes, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce (MOC) announced on April 29. According to the deal signed in May 2023, approximately 90 percent of the products traded between China and Ecuador will be exempted from tariffs, while about 60 percent of them will enjoy zero tariffs immediately.  

Data

 

1. Data released by the China Gold Association on April 26, 2024 showed that in the first quarter, China produced 85.959 tons of gold, an increase of 1.16 percent year on year.

 

2. Air China recently announced that it has signed an agreement with COMAC to purchase 100 C919 airplanes, with a total base price of about USD 10.8 billion. The planes are scheduled to be delivered to Air China in batches from 2024 to 2031.

 

3. Data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on April 27 showed that in the first quarter, profits of China’s major industrial enterprises rose by 4.3 percent year on year, recovering from the previous year's decline of 2.3 percent. profits of major industrial enterprises have increased for three consecutive quarters, continuing recovery trend.

 

4. In 2023, technology transactions in Beijing have made double breakthroughs, with 106,552 registered technology contracts, an increase of 12.1 percent over the previous year, and the turnover of RMB 853.69 billion, an increase of 7.4 percent over the previous year.

 

5. In 2023, the revenue of China's science fiction industry reached RMB 113.29 billion, up 29.1 percent year on year, exceeding the 100-billion-yuan mark for the first time.

 

6. According to the survey conducted the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade in the first quarter on more than 600 foreign enterprises, more than 70 percent of the surveyed foreign enterprises were optimistic about the development of China's market in the next five years, an increase of about 3.8 percentage points from the previous year.

 

7. The 2023 Blue Paper for China’s Online Literature released by China Writers’ Association on April 28 showed that the number of China's online literature users has exceeded 500 million, with revenue of this sector in 2023 reaching about RMB 34 billion.

 

8. China State Shipbuilding Corporation will build 18 super-large LNG (liquefied natural gas) carriers of 271,000 cubic meters for Qatar Energy, the signing ceremony of which was held in Beijing on April 29, setting a record for the world's largest single shipbuilding order.

 

9. By the end of the first quarter of 2024, the cumulative installed capacity of new energy storage projects in China has reached 35.3 million kW, an increase of more than 210 percent compared with that at the end of the first quarter of 2023, the National Energy Administration said.

 

10. The number of unicorn companies in China amounts to 369, over a quarter of the total number of such companies globally, a report on China's unicorn enterprise development said. China's 369 unicorn companies span 16 sectors, with the fields of artificial intelligence and integrated circuits taking the lead.

 

(Source: Economic Daily)