News » China » China rejects Philippines' arbitral request: FM

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• China rejects Philippines' arbitral request: FM
• Chinese state councilor to attend Park's inauguration
• Police investigate illegal mining case in N China
• HK population up 61,500 in 2012
• China to introduce carbon tax
• BRICS turns inward for trade growth
• Shanghai roast seed producers under investigation
• Chinese state councilor to attend Park's inauguration
• China rejects Philippines' arbitral request
• China opposes hacking allegations
• Newly-revised rules on drug quality target circulation
• China rejects Philippines' arbitral request
• China opposes hacking allegations: FM spokesman
• 9 killed, 10 injured in central China road accident
• 7 dead, 5 injured in S China pile-up
• 7 dead, 11 injured in central China road accident
• Mainland welcomes Taiwan cultural head: minister
• China plans new medical payment system
• Hollande hopes for closer France-China ties
• Shanghai car plate prices to remain high

China rejects Philippines' arbitral request: FM Posted: 19 Feb 2013 04:28 AM PST The Chinese government has rejected a Philippine move to take their dispute regarding sovereignty issues in the South China Sea to the United Nations for arbitration, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said Tuesday.

Chinese state councilor to attend Park's inauguration Posted: 19 Feb 2013 04:26 AM PST Chinese State Councilor Liu Yandong will attend the inauguration ceremony of Republic of Korea President-elect Park Geun-hye.

Police investigate illegal mining case in N China Posted: 19 Feb 2013 03:31 AM PST Police in north China's Shanxi Province have launched an investigation into an illegal mining case that left a coal mine flooded and 6 people trapped early Tuesday morning, local authorities said.

HK population up 61,500 in 2012 Posted: 19 Feb 2013 03:31 AM PST The provisional estimate of Hong Kong's Population was 7,173,900 at the end of 2012, representing an increase of 61,500 or 0.9 percent from 2011, Hong Kong Census and Statistics Department announced Tuesday.

China to introduce carbon tax Posted: 19 Feb 2013 06:08 AM PST BEIJING - China will proactively introduce a set of new taxation policies designed to preserve the environment, including a tax on carbon dioxide emissions, according to a senior official with the Ministry of Finance (MOF). The government will collect the environmental protection tax instead of pollutant discharge fees, as well as levy a tax on carbon dioxide emissions, Jia Chen, head of the ministry's tax policy division, wrote in an article published on the MOF's website. It will be the local taxation authority, rather than the environmental protection department, that will collect the taxes. The government is also looking into the possibility of taxing energy-intensive products such as batteries, as well as luxury goods such as aircraft that are not used for public transportation, according to Jia. To conserve natural resources, the government will push forward resource tax reforms by taxing coal based on prices instead of sales volume, as well as raising coal taxes. A resource tax will also be levied on water. The article did not specify when the new measures will be implemented. In 2010, MOF experts suggested levying a carbon tax in 2012 at 10 yuan per ton of carbon dioxide, as well as recommended increasing the tax to 50 yuan per ton by 2020. China is among the world's largest emitters of greenhouse gas and has set goals for cutting emissions. The government has vowed to reduce carbon intensity, or the amount of carbon dioxide emitted per unit of economic output, by 40 to 45 percent by 2020 in comparison to 2005 levels.

BRICS turns inward for trade growth Posted: 19 Feb 2013 06:08 AM PST Sluggish global growth and weak demand among the world's advanced economies has turned BRICS members toward each other, as well as a broad range of emerging markets, for commercial nutrition, Standard Bank Group said in a report e-mailed to China Daily on Tuesday. The report, written by the group's research analysts Jeremy Stevens and Simon Freemantle, said that since 2001 intra-BRICS trade has grown faster than BRICS trade with any other group in the world. Despite sluggish global growth, the BRICS have been relatively successful in avoiding sharp moderations in export growth. In real terms, exports from the BRICS surged by 16 percent in 2010, and 4.4 percent in 2012. BRICS-world trade amounted to an estimated $5.6 trillion in 2012, making up nearly 16 percent of total global trade, up from 10 percent in 2008. The BRICS have turned to emerging markets to offset weak demand in advanced economies. In 2012, more than half of all exports from China, India and Brazil, and 48 percent from South Africa, were destined for emerging markets. In 2012, trade between the five member economies amounted to an estimated $310 billion, up more than 11-fold from $28 billion in 2002. Today, intra-BRICS trade accounts for almost one-fifth of BRICS total trade with emerging markets, up from just 13 percent in 2008. In contrast, the BRICS actually traded less with the EU last year than they did in 2008, the report said. Intra-BRICS convergence is being led by China, which acts as a counterparty in 85 percent of intra-BRICS trade flows. For each of the BRICS, China ranks as a top-three export destination. Context is critical in weighing these dynamics: last year, China passed the United States to become the world's largest trader, and China accounts for 55 percent of total BRICS GDP. China has prioritized selling to emerging markets—especially BRICS. Seven of China's 10 largest export destinations are emerging markets. China has become each BRICS' dominant source of goods, with the exception of Brazil, where China ranks second behind the US. China is managing to maintain its export competitiveness in the BRICS. Each of the BRICS has experienced relatively rapid wage growth in recent years, which has kept competitive advantages in check. Second, the productivity of labor in China has increased faster than its BRICS peers. Third, with the exception of South Africa's rand — each of the Five Rs (the rand, real, renminbi, ruble and rupee) have appreciated, and the renminbi has remained relatively competitive. Fourth, China's export competitiveness is supported by state-led investments in logistics and infrastructure. The BRICS trade more with Africa than they do among themselves. The BRICS total trade with Africa reached $340 billion in 2012, representing more than a 10-fold increase over the course of a decade. Since 2007, during a period of relatively slow trade growth (for Africa, the BRICS and globally), BRICS-Africa trade has more than doubled. It is projected that BRICS-Africa trade will eclipse $500 billion by 2015, roughly 60 percent of which will consist of China-Africa trade, the report said.

Shanghai roast seed producers under investigation Posted: 19 Feb 2013 06:08 AM PST Authorities in Shanghai are inspecting the city's roast seed producers after an investigative report found that harmful industrial additives were being added to roast seed dyes, local media reported Tuesday. Seed samples from the companies are being tested, and those who fail the tests will be punished, an official from the Shanghai Municipal Bureau of Quality and Technical Supervision told the Shanghai Morning Post. The results of the tests will be released to the public as soon as they are available, the official said. A consumer complained to the Shanghai TV that a package of green tea flavored snack seeds he bought during the Spring Festival holiday turned out to be dyed. The water turned green after the seeds were dipped in it. Investigative reporters of the channel found that roast seed makers in Anhui and Jiangsu provinces, which are major suppliers of the popular snack to Shanghai, dyed the seeds with colored substances, instead of using real green tea powder. Harmful industrial talc was also added to the seeds to make them look smooth and bright, the reporters found. The Shanghai Administration for Industry and Commerce yesterday ordered retailers to stop selling some 125 kilograms of roast seed snacks from Xuancheng, Anhui province, the newspaper said. wuni@chinadaily.com.cn

Chinese state councilor to attend Park's inauguration Posted: 19 Feb 2013 06:08 AM PST BEIJING - Chinese State Councilor Liu Yandong will attend the inauguration ceremony of the Republic of Korea President-elect Park Geun-hye. Liu will attend the event as the special envoy of President Hu Jintao and General Secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee Xi Jinping from Feb 23-26, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei told a regular press briefing on Tuesday.

China rejects Philippines' arbitral request Posted: 19 Feb 2013 06:08 AM PST BEIJING - The Chinese government has rejected a Philippine move to take their dispute regarding sovereignty issues in the South China Sea to the United Nations for arbitration, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said Tuesday. "Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Ma Keqing had an appointment with officials from the Philippines' Foreign Ministry on Tuesday and returned a note and related notice after expressing China's rejection," spokesman Hong Lei said at a daily press briefing. "The note and related notice not only violate the consensus enshrined in the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC), but are also factually flawed and contain false accusations," Hong said. China is committed to addressing the dispute through bilateral talks, Hong said, noting that the consensus in the DOC states that disputes should be solved through talks between the nations directly involved. Hong reiterated that China has sufficient historical and jurisprudential evidence to support its claim to the Nansha islands, which are located in the South China Sea, and their adjacent waters. "China hopes the Philippines will honor its commitment by not taking any action that could complicate the issue, positively respond to China's proposal to establish a bilateral dialogue mechanism on maritime issues and work to solve the issue through bilateral negotiations," Hong said.

China opposes hacking allegations Posted: 19 Feb 2013 06:08 AM PST BEIJING - A Foreign Ministry spokesman on Tuesday said allegations of Chinese hacker attacks are groundless, reiterating the government's position on fighting cybercrime. Spokesman Hong Lei made the remark at a regular press briefing when asked to comment on a report by US security company Mandiant stating that the company had traced cyber attacks waged against US companies and government agencies to a unit of the People's Liberation Army (PLA). Hong said cybercrime is an international problem and should be solved through international cooperation on the basis of mutual trust and respect. "Groundless criticism is irresponsible and unprofessional, and it will not help to solve the problem," he said. China has been a major victim of cyber attacks and opposes all forms of such activity, Hong said, adding that China has made and enforced laws that ban such activity. He cited a report released by China's National Computer Network Emergency Response Technical Team Coordination Center stating that 73,000 foreign IP addresses had been linked to attacks on 14 million Chinese computers. He pointed out that the number of attacks originating from the United States ranked at the top. Hong said China, Russia and several other countries submitted an international code of conduct on information security to the United Nations in 2011. "China has called on the international community to make a code of conduct for cyberspace on the basis of the submission and make joint efforts to build a peaceful, secure, open and cooperative cyberspace," he said. Hong said the government also objects to media allegations claiming that hacker attacks have been traced to a building in Shanghai owned by the PLA. Hong said he does not know how such evidence could be discovered, as cyber attacks are often carried out internationally and are typically done so anonymously. Related Stories: Chinese experts slam US hacking accusations

Newly-revised rules on drug quality target circulation Posted: 19 Feb 2013 04:36 AM PST The State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA) on Tuesday released a newly-revised regulation on Good Supply Practices (GSP) for drugs, urging greater risk-control capabilities for drug distributors during the circulation stage.

China rejects Philippines' arbitral request Posted: 19 Feb 2013 03:48 AM PST The Chinese government has rejected a Philippine move to take their dispute regarding sovereignty issues in the South China Sea to the United Nations for arbitration, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said Tuesday.

China opposes hacking allegations: FM spokesman Posted: 19 Feb 2013 03:57 AM PST A Foreign Ministry spokesman on Tuesday said allegations of Chinese hacker attacks are groundless, reiterating the government's position on fighting cybercrime.

9 killed, 10 injured in central China road accident Posted: 19 Feb 2013 03:11 AM PST Nine people were killed and 10 others injured after a minibus plunged into a ravine in central China's Hubei Province Tuesday morning, the local government said.

7 dead, 5 injured in S China pile-up Posted: 19 Feb 2013 02:49 AM PST Seven people were killed and five others were injured in a pile-up that occurred on an expressway in south China's Guangdong province Monday night, local authorities said Tuesday.

7 dead, 11 injured in central China road accident Posted: 19 Feb 2013 01:19 AM PST Seven people died and 11 others were injured in a road accident that occurred in central China's Hubei province on Tuesday, local government said.

Mainland welcomes Taiwan cultural head: minister Posted: 19 Feb 2013 12:50 AM PST The chief of the Taiwan cultural affairs authority Mrs. Lung Ying-tai is welcome to visit the mainland in proper capacities, Chinese Minister of Culture Cai Wu told the press Tuesday.

China plans new medical payment system Posted: 19 Feb 2013 12:38 AM PST Patients will be able to "pay after" they receive medical treatment as part of a new payment method, China's Ministry of Health revealed Tuesday.

Hollande hopes for closer France-China ties Posted: 18 Feb 2013 11:09 PM PST France and China would launch a new round of cooperation and exchanges to further their historic relations, French President Francois Hollande said Monday.

Shanghai car plate prices to remain high Posted: 19 Feb 2013 02:13 AM PST The average bid for an automobile license plate in Shanghai is expected to remain high at the monthly auction to be held on Saturday. A total of 9,000 auto plates will be up for auction, the same number as last month, according to Shanghai Commodity International Auction Co. The average plate price in January was 75,332 yuan ($12,070), almost 6,000 yuan more than the previous month and a record high for a seventh consecutive month, according to the auction company. Feng Shiming, an auto analyst of Menutor Consulting, expects the average plate price this month will be a little higher than in January. "China's auto sales rose 46 percent in January to a monthly record and Shanghai has played a big role, which means more car buyers will join the auction," he said. But the rise will not be dramatic because many car owners will buy plates from other provinces, mainly from Zhejiang and Jiangsu, as the city has no strict policy to limit car plates from other provinces, Feng said. Yao Ming, general manager of a Shanghai Volkswagen 4S store, estimates that the plate price will be more than 70,000 yuan, but does not believe it will be as high as in January. "In January, a lot of car buyers rush to bid for a plate so they can drive during the Spring Festival, which pushed the price to a peak," Yao said. A salesman surnamed Zhang from Shanghai Hongchi Auto Sales said the number of clients hiring the company to bid for a plate is less than last month. Secondhand car plates in Shanghai have reached about 81,000 yuan, the Shanghai-based Dragon TV reported. The city began auctioning auto plates in 2000 to control the number of cars, but prices keep rising. Last July, the municipal government extended the holding period for a plate from one year to three years, trying to curb speculative bidding. New energy vehicle buyers are offered plates for free.

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