News » China » Safety the priority for exports to HK

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• Safety the priority for exports to HK
• Wen: China open to space cooperation
• 'Prudent' monetary policy to go on
• Ministry tightens rules on rare earth mining, smelting
• China opposes unilateral sanctions against Iran
• China responds to exemption from U.S. sanctions
• President Hu attends private dinner of Tsang
• Tokyo governor's panda naming proposal a "cheap farce": FM spokesman
• 8,000 youngsters to celebrate HK's 15th anniversary
• China unveils policies for pilot zone to cement mainland-HK ties
• Mismanagement blamed for NE China plane crash
• Hu reviews PLA garrison in HK
• China to spend 175b for rural drinking water safety
• Robot restaurant in Harbin
• Chinese pianist to build musical bridge to Japan
• China to spend 175 bln to ensure safe drinking water in rural areas
• China may continue to send women into space in future
• President Hu Jintao reviews PLA garrison in Hong Kong
• President Hu meets HK chief executive
• EU, US, Japan call on WTO to aid in rare earth dispute

Safety the priority for exports to HK Posted: 29 Jun 2012 01:40 PM PDT Agricultural products exported to Hong Kong are safe despite the fact that the mainland is facing increasing pressure to prevent and control animal diseases, a senior official said. In recent years, there has been a string of major outbreaks of animal diseases worldwide, including China, such as foot-and-mouth disease, bird flu, and blue-ear disease, a highly pathogenic disease that can be fatal for pigs. "No severe safety incidents have been registered for agricultural products supplied by the mainland to Hong Kong since the 1997 handover, due to the mainland's strict quality monitoring system," said Huang Guansheng, director of the department of supervision of animals and plants quarantine under the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine. The monitoring system, set up by the top quality watchdog, covers the whole food chain, tracing agricultural products from the field in the mainland to the table in Hong Kong, Huang said. "The safety rate of the food supplied by the mainland to Hong Kong is now 99.999 percent, so high that few countries and regions in the world have it," York Chow, Hong Kong's food and health chief, was quoted by the Guangzhou Daily as saying on Sunday. Analysts believe that the shrinking local agriculture sector in Hong Kong is the main factor behind the gradual increase of food supplies from the mainland in recent years. Most meat and vegetables in Hong Kong come from the mainland, said Chow, without providing specific figures. Live pigs, cattle, sheep, birds, aquatic animals and fruit are some of the major agricultural products imported from the mainland, according to the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine. "To ensure food safety, trade between the mainland and Hong Kong is only open to qualified suppliers registered with the administration," Huang said. Since 2002, products exported to Hong Kong have been tested for about 44 varieties of banned and restricted drugs, as well as 47 kinds of toxic and harmful substances. Yuen Cheung, president of the Hong Kong Imported Vegetables Wholesale Merchants Association, told China Central Television in January that vegetables from the mainland are abundant in quantity and cheap in price. At the wet markets, retailers rarely state the origins of vegetables unless they were grown in Hong Kong. Local pork is so rare that consumers just assume that the pigs were imported from the mainland. A Hong Kong resident surnamed Wong said that she doesn't care about the origin of the products and simply picks those with the best appearance. "But it's true that mainland vegetables are cheaper than the local ones," she said. "Also, I'm cautious about pesticide residue. I know they have quarantine inspections, but there is always the possibility that some things fall through the cracks," she said. Authorities said that the future supply of agricultural products to Hong Kong might be endangered by the current shrinking profits for mainland suppliers. "With the price of animal feed rising steadily in recent years, the livestock market in the mainland has seen constant high prices. But there are almost no increases in Hong Kong, which made many suppliers lose their interest," Huang said. The administration has introduced a series of supportive measures to encourage suppliers trading with Hong Kong, he said. Contact the writers at jinzhu@chinadaily.com.cn and kahon@chinadailyhk.com

Wen: China open to space cooperation Posted: 29 Jun 2012 01:40 PM PDT Woman may be on next year's manned mission, Xin Dingding and Wang Qian report. The grasslands of Inner Mongolia can by no means be called big when compared with outer space. But they surely are when compared with the tiny capsule holding China's three astronauts, including its first female one, which returned to Earth on Friday morning. The return capsule of the Shenzhou IX mission landed in North China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region at 10:03 am as planned. On the vast grasslands, as the astronauts were removed from the capsule to have their first earthly breath in nearly two weeks, China's first manned space docking mission was declared a success. "The result is satisfactory, the process is perfect, and the mission will bear fruit," Wang Zhaoyao, director of China Manned Space Agency, said at a news conference on Friday. Jing Haipeng, commander of the Shenzhou IX crew, was the first to come out of the capsule, followed by Liu Wang and woman astronaut Liu Yang. Sitting in chairs, they were carried into ambulance helicopters where they underwent physical examinations and had their first meal in eight hours. They arrived in Beijing in the afternoon. Over the past 13 days, they have conducted an automatic docking and a manual space docking between Shenzhou IX and the orbiting Tiangong-1 space lab module. They also conducted a string of scientific experiments that will help understand how to better protect astronauts' health in long-duration missions. Premier Wen Jiabao congratulated the astronauts, aerospace scientists and all working staff in a message on behalf of the central government at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center. "The rendezvous and docking ... marks a significant breakthrough in China's space docking technology. It also marks decisive progress in fulfilling the second strategic target of China's manned space program," he said. According to the plan, the program's second strategic target includes mastering three basic technologies of manned spaceflight and building a space lab that is manned for a short term. Realization of the target will lay the groundwork for building a space station around 2020. Wang said that through the past 10 missions, which have cost nearly 39 billion yuan ($6.13 billion), China has mastered the three basic technologies of manned spaceflight — the technology to transport human beings between space and Earth, extravehicular activity technology, and space rendezvous and docking technology. "In the following missions of building a space lab and a space station, we are willing to carry out technical cooperation with other countries and regions," he said. Opportunities for cooperation include jointly designing the space lab and the space station, and developing relevant equipment, he said. Cooperation in space is also welcomed, he said, adding that other countries are welcome to carry out joint experiments aboard the country's future space station. There are also possibilities of exchanges and cooperation in astronaut selection and training, joint flights and space medical research, he said. "China's manned space program is open and transparent," he said. "We will respond positively to the initiatives of the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs, and share with other countries our technological achievements and application results," he said. China started its manned space program in 1992. Since then, nine spacecraft and one space lab module have been launched. Including the Shenzhou IX mission, a total of four flights were manned, and eight astronauts have traveled to space. Next year, China will launch another spacecraft, Shenzhou X, to dock with Tiangong-1 to repeatedly test the space docking technology, Wu Ping, spokeswoman for the manned space program, said on Sunday. Chen Shanguang, director of the Astronaut Center of China, said on Friday that the crew of Shenzhou X is likely to include a female astronaut, too. "Though it still awaits a decision by the program commanders ... I believe that as the manned space program moves on, more and more women will join in the mission," he said. Contact the writers at xindingding@chinadaily.com.cn and wangqian@chinadaily.com.cn

'Prudent' monetary policy to go on Posted: 29 Jun 2012 01:40 PM PDT China's central bank governor says the country will continue with its "prudent" monetary policy and fine-tune it to cope with economic conditions, even as drops in industrial profit levels accelerated in May. Speaking on Friday to the annual Lujiazui Forum in Shanghai, a three-day gathering of the country's top financial officials and executives, Zhou Xiaochuan, governor of the People's Bank of China, also said China would step up efforts to reform its financial markets as well as its interest rates and the yuan's exchange rate. "The country will continue adopting prudent monetary policies, though timely and measurable fine-tuning will be made," he told delegates at the forum at which officials and executives are meeting to discuss financial reforms. Zhou's comments came as many economists now expect growth to slow further in the second quarter after hitting a three-year low of 8.1 percent in the first quarter, and are waiting for the central bank to further loosen monetary policies, as China's economic conditions fail to kick-start a recovery. But growth estimates vary. On Thursday, Bank of China Ltd's Institute of International Finance forecast China's economic growth will fall to 7.6 percent in the second quarter, before rebounding to 8.2 percent three months later. Officials from China International Capital Corporation, the nation's biggest investment bank, have suggested that April-June growth could drop to as low as 7.3 percent, 0.2 percentage points lower than the 7.5 percent growth target that Premier Wen Jiabao set in March. Corporate profits also point to continued economic slowdown. The Lujiazui Forum started as the National Bureau of Statistics said on Friday that combined profits at the country's major industrial enterprises were 390.9 billion yuan ($61.5 billion) in May, down by 5.3 percent year-on-year, and accelerating from a decline of 2.2 percent in April. In the first five months of the year, industrial profit also dropped 2.4 percent year-on-year to 1.843 trillion yuan. This week, the People's Bank of China is expected to inject a total of 197 billion yuan into the banking system through reserve repurchases. The move comes after money market rates soared in June, when the overnight and seven-day Shanghai Interbank Offered Rate, or Shibor, which indicates banking liquidity, increased by about 1.5 percent. Reserve repurchase by a central bank is widely seen as a precursor for reserve requirement cuts at lenders. Qu Hongbin, a China-focused economist at HSBC Holdings Plc, said in a research note that the amount of money lenders are required to hold against their lowers will be dropped by 200 basis points, or 2 percent, in the second half of the year. The reserve requirement ratio has been cut three times since November. Last month, the central bank cut benchmark interest rates for loans and deposits, the first time since 2008. Also at the forum, Hu Xiaolian, the central bank's vice-governor, cautioned delegates of systemic risks involved with the yuan's use in international trade and investment. She said that the central bank will set up a system to identify and monitor such risks and use market-based tools to manage them. Moves on the yuan's internationalization continued after an official said on Thursday in Hong Kong that China will allow free yuan conversion in a trial in a special financial zone to be jointly developed by Hong Kong and neighboring Shenzhen. New measures will be adopted to promote Hong Kong as an offshore yuan center during President Hu Jintao's visit to the special administrative region over the weekend. Contact with gaochangxin@chinadaily.com.cn

Ministry tightens rules on rare earth mining, smelting Posted: 29 Jun 2012 01:40 PM PDT A major rare earth industry regulator in China has issued a document prohibiting rare earth mining and smelting without its permission. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said further activity in the industry would depend on the issuing of a permit from the ministry. Violators will be severely punished, but the ministry did not specify what forms the penalties would take. In addition, companies granted permits will also have to comply with production quotas. Those who exceed their quota will be punished with a reduced quota the next year, according to the ministry. The document took effect on June 13 but was not published until Thursday. Shanghai Securities Daily said this latest measure could drive the majority of companies out of the industry, and the subsequent drop in supply could lead to a rally in rare earth prices. But industry experts told China Daily that weak global demand means a recovery in prices is unlikely, and whether the supply will drop depends on the enforcement of the policy. "I see little hope of a price rebound in the third and fourth quarters," said Wei Yishan, an analyst from Shanghai Metal Market, an industry information provider. "A drop in supply would only take place if the policy is strictly implemented." In fact, the market did not respond to the news on Friday. Rare earth prices dipped and few transactions were recorded, according to Shanghai Metal Market. Previous surge in players in this field led to excess capacity. Combined with lackluster demand from the West, rare earth prices plunged in the first quarter of this year and have remained flat ever since. "Lured by the prospect of high profits, many small companies swarmed into this industry. Previous regulations and quotas were in practice virtually ignored by enterprises," said Chen Zhanheng, director of the research department of China Rare Earth Institute. As a result of the industry's severe environmental impact, since 2007, China has toughened its rare earth production regulations, replacing guidelines with directives. Last May, the State Council substantially increased environment protection standards in the rare earth mining and smelting sector, and set a limit on exports. The State Council also ordered local governments to accelerate the pace of industry concentration by closing or merging small rare earth mining, smelting and separation enterprises. In Baotou, Inner Mongolia autonomous region, a major rare earth production center, 13 companies have been closed, and more closures and mergers are planned, according to Chen. But He Guoxin, a director of Hunan Nonferrous Metals Holding Group, said there are still large number of small companies, mostly private, in the industry, and this will make the enforcement of the regulation very difficult. WTO dispute China on Friday reiterated that the country's rare earth policies are aimed at protecting environmental resources and achieving sustainable development in the industry. "We have no intention of protecting our domestic industry through means that will distort foreign trade," said Ministry of Commerce spokesman Shen Danyang. On Wednesday, the European Union, the United States and Japan formally sent a request to the World Trade Organization's dispute settlement body asking for a resolution regarding China's export restrictions on three types of raw materials — rare earth metals, tungsten and molybdenum. Rare earth metals are vital for manufacturing an array of high-tech products, including cell phones, wind turbines, electric car batteries and missiles. China accounts for more than 90 percent of global rare earth supplies, but has only 23 percent of global reserves. China will study the request from the EU, the US and Japan for the WTO to form a panel to resolve the dispute, Shen said. Contact with zhengyangpeng@chinadaily.com.cn

China opposes unilateral sanctions against Iran Posted: 29 Jun 2012 01:40 PM PDT China reiterated its opposition to unilateral sanctions against Iran, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said on Friday, after Washington exempted China and Singapore from sanctions over purchases of oil from Iran. US President Barack Obama is keen to persuade all countries around the world to join the US in sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program because Obama is under pressure in his re-election campaign, analysts said. China is always opposed to one country's unilateral sanctions against another country on the basis of its domestic law. It is even less acceptable for such unilateral sanctions to be imposed on a third country. Hong made the remarks at a daily news briefing in response to the decision by the US State Department. China's import of crude oil from Iran through normal channels is to meet the needs of its economic development, Hong said, adding that the import "is completely legitimate and justified". "This does not violate any UN Security Council resolutions or undermine the interests of a third party or the international community," said Hong. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Thursday announced Washington's decision to exempt China and Singapore from sanctions over imports of Iranian oil because the two countries reduced oil purchases from Iran significantly, according to Xinhua. With the decision, banks from the two countries can avoid financial sanctions from the US for a renewable period of 180 days, if they handle transactions for Iranian oil in the period. Saying that major economies were united in pressuring Teheran, Washington did not grant exemptions to smaller-scale importers, said Xinhua. The US will block foreign financial institutions from accessing its financial market, if their governments purchase Iranian crude oil from Thursday, according to the National Defense Authorization Act signed by Obama in late 2011 to pressure Iran to stop its nuclear project. But Washington exempted 10 members of the European Union and Japan in March and another seven economies — India, Malaysia, South Africa, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Turkey and Taiwan — in early June. Clinton warned that Iran's continued violation of its international nuclear obligations will carry an enormous economic cost, saying the sharp decrease in Iran's oil exports from some 2.5 million barrels per day in 2011 to about 1.5 million barrels per day at present, means lost revenues of $8 billion every quarter in real terms, according to Xinhua. The US essentially forces all countries around the world to choose between Washington and Teheran over its proposed financial sanctions, said Hua Liming, former Chinese ambassador to Iran. According to Zhu Feng, a professor of international affairs at Peking University, the economic interests of Chinese enterprises would be strongly harmed if they were subject to financial sanctions from the US. "Washington attempted to 'kidnap' the international community to stand by it regarding the Iranian issue," Hua said, adding that the US has no right to force other countries to implement its domestic law. Hua said Obama was under a great deal of pressure over the issue from his Republican rival Mitt Romney, so he had to increase sanctions against Iran. The UN Security Council imposed four rounds of sanctions on Iran between 2006 and 2010 because it refused to halt its nuclear enrichment program, which, the US and its allies suspect, is being used to develop nuclear weapons. Iran insists that its nuclear program is for civilian use only, but the US and EU have imposed further sanctions. The EU's full oil embargo of Iran will start on Sunday. Contact with zhouwa@chinadaily.com.cn

China responds to exemption from U.S. sanctions Posted: 29 Jun 2012 06:32 AM PDT A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman on Friday responded to a U.S. State Department decision to exempt China from sanctions over imports of Iranian oil, stressing the Asian country's opposition to sanctions imposed unilaterally.

President Hu attends private dinner of Tsang Posted: 29 Jun 2012 06:27 AM PDT Chinese President Hu Jintao attended a private dinner hosted by Donald Tsang, chief executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), at the Government House on Friday evening.

Tokyo governor's panda naming proposal a "cheap farce": FM spokesman Posted: 29 Jun 2012 06:25 AM PDT China on Friday called Governor of Tokyo Shintaro Ishihara's proposal to name a panda cub a "cheap farce."

8,000 youngsters to celebrate HK's 15th anniversary Posted: 29 Jun 2012 06:19 AM PDT The Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups Friday announced that 8,000 youngsters will participate in a musical performance on July 2 to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the establishment of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR).

China unveils policies for pilot zone to cement mainland-HK ties Posted: 29 Jun 2012 06:14 AM PDT China's top economic planner announced here Friday new policies to foster a special zone in the southern boomtown of Shenzhen in a bold move to speed cooperation between Hong Kong and the mainland.

Mismanagement blamed for NE China plane crash Posted: 29 Jun 2012 03:45 AM PDT Mismanagement and poor supervision have been found to be the causes of a deadly jet crash that killed 44 people and injured 52 others in northeast China in 2010, a state panel set up to investigate the crash said Friday.

Hu reviews PLA garrison in HK Posted: 29 Jun 2012 03:30 AM PDT Updated: 2012-06-29 17:11 ( Xinhua) Chinese President Hu Jintao inspects the Chinese People's Liberation Army Garrison in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region at Shek Kong barracks on June 29, 2012. [Photo/Xinhua] HONG KONG - Chinese President Hu Jintao Friday afternoon inspected the Chinese People's Liberation Army Garrison in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region at Shek Kong barracks. Hu, also general secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and chairman of the Central Military Commission, arrived here Friday morning to attend celebrations marking the 15th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to China and the swearing-in ceremony of the fourth-term government of the HKSAR. More than 3,000 troops were present on the occasion. In the company of Zhang Shibo, commander of the PLA Garrison in the HKSAR, Hu consecutively inspected troops in 15 formations including guard of honor, army, navy, air force, women soldiers, infantry, armored force and helicopters.

China to spend 175b for rural drinking water safety Posted: 29 Jun 2012 03:30 AM PDT BEIJING - China will invest 175 billion yuan ($27.53 billion) before the end of 2015 to ensure safe drinking water in rural areas, a government official said Friday. Li Guoying, vice-minister of Water Resources, made the pledge at an ongoing bi-monthly session of the National People's Congress Standing Committee, citing a State Council report on a five-year plan for improving rural drinking water quality. The report was deliberated by legislators on Thursday. According to the report, the central government will subsidize 68 percent (about 118.8 billion yuan) of the total investment, while another 22 percent of the funds will be allocated by local governments and 10 percent will be assumed by rural residents, Li said. Local residents will be charged an average of 54.6 yuan annually, according to the report. Li said subsidies in eastern and central China are typically less than those for the country's less developed western areas. In Tibet, for example, the central government will bear all of the costs, Li said. The number of rural residents who lacked access to safe drinking water dropped by 221 million from 2004 to 2010, Du Ying, vice-minister of the National Development and Reform Commission, said at the Wednesday session. However, legislators have admitted that improving the quality of drinking water in China has been challenging, particularly in rural areas. As many as 298 million rural residents still lack safe water, according to the report. China amended its drinking water quality standards in 2006, increasing the number of water quality indices to 106. "By the end of 2015, the 106 quality indices will be implemented in all provincial capitals and municipalities," Minister of Health Chen Zhu cited the report as saying.

Robot restaurant in Harbin Posted: 29 Jun 2012 03:30 AM PDT Passers-by look at the robot outside a "robot restaurant" in Harbin, Heilongjiang province, June 28, 2012. There are 18 robot waiters and chefs in this restaurant. All of them are designed and built by engineer Liu Hasheng and his team. Liu said he is working two kinds of robots: one could clean outside windows of skyscrapers and the other could help elder people. [Photo/Xinhua]

Chinese pianist to build musical bridge to Japan Posted: 29 Jun 2012 03:30 AM PDT Updated: 2012-06-29 16:31 ( chinadaily.com.cn) Chinese classical pianist Li Yundi said he wants to bring more Chinese classical music pieces to Japanese audiences and be China's "musical ambassador" to Japan, china.com.cn reported on Friday. This year marks the 40th anniversary of China-Japan diplomatic relations. "Feel China" is slated for June 25 to July 13 in Japan. The series of events include a traditional Chinese dress show, China's contemporary art show, photo gallery reflecting China-Japan relations and a music recital by Li Yundi. Li said he performed with Japanese conductor Seiji Ozawa and Japan is a land of hopes for him. "I will play Chopin's Nocturne and Sonata at the recital. All music pieces are well-picked and enjoyed by Japanese audiences." "I turned 30 this year. There is a saying in China: At 30, a man should be able to think for himself. The concert means a lot to me, and I would like to dedicate it to the Japanese audience to celebrate Japan-China ties," Li said. Li was the ambassador of Sino-Japan Youth Exchange Year in 2008 and played for Chinese President Hu Jintao and then-Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda.  Chinese pianist Li Yundi

China to spend 175 bln to ensure safe drinking water in rural areas Posted: 29 Jun 2012 02:50 AM PDT China will invest 175 billion yuan (27.5 billion U.S. dollars) before the end of 2015 to ensure safe drinking water in rural areas, a government official said Friday.

China may continue to send women into space in future Posted: 29 Jun 2012 01:56 AM PDT China may continue to send female astronauts into space in future space missions, an official responsible for selecting and training Chinese astronauts said Friday.

President Hu Jintao reviews PLA garrison in Hong Kong Posted: 29 Jun 2012 01:50 AM PDT Chinese President Hu Jintao Friday afternoon inspected the Chinese People's Liberation Army ( PLA) Garrison in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ( HKSAR) at Shek Kong barracks.

President Hu meets HK chief executive Posted: 29 Jun 2012 01:45 AM PDT Chinese President Hu Jintao met with Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Donald Tsang here Friday afternoon.

EU, US, Japan call on WTO to aid in rare earth dispute Posted: 29 Jun 2012 02:53 AM PDT On June 27, the European Union, the United States, and Japan jointly requested the establishment of a dispute settlement panel at the World Trade Organization (WTO) over alleged Chinese export restrictions on rare earths, tungsten and molybdenum.

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