Innholdsfortegnelse for Vol. 61/No. 10 i Beijing Review

CROATIA Scenes depict the frozen seafront of the town of Senj on February 27, as much of the country is gripped in a polar cold front during which temperatures are expected to drop to minus 20 degrees Celsius CAMBODIA Voters line up to cast their ballots at a polling station in Kandal Province on February 25. The election for the fourth mandate of the Cambodian Senate kicked off that day UNITED STATES U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell testifies in front of the House Financial Services Committee at the Capitol in Washington, D.C. on February 27, during which he declared that the central bank would continue to gradually raise interest rates UNITED NATIONS Russian Ambassador to the UN Vassily Nebenzia (front center) speaks at the UN headquarters in New York…

In the era since China’s accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001, the country’s boom in productivity has brought massive benefits in terms of delivering prosperity and material wealth to the Chinese people, and indeed through GDP growth contributions to the outside world, but it has also posed a problem: How does this economic prowess translate into other forms of influence and power? Up to 2012, China’s position was an unusual one. It had risen to become the world’s second largest economy, overtaking Japan in 2010, and yet it still didn’t figure much in the thinking of the Western public, or, for that matter, many of their politicians. The priority for them was often the U.S. or Europe. China had a position subsidiary to these places in their…

The Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee made public its proposal on amendments to China’s Constitution on February 25. The proposal, raised to the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC), was made in accordance with the new situation and practice of upholding and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era. New thought The CPC Central Committee has proposed writing Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era into the country’s fundamental law. The Scientific Outlook on Development is also proposed for inclusion. According to the proposal, under the leadership of the CPC and the guidance of Marxism-Leninism, Mao Zedong Thought, Deng Xiaoping Theory, the Theory of Three Represents, the Scientific Outlook on Development, and Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese…

Ningxia’s efforts to develop region-wide tourism were lauded by President Xi Jinping when he came on an inspection visit in July 2016. Xi spoke highly of the strategy and said it should be continued, boosting the region’s confidence. In September 2016, the China-U.S. Tourism Leadership Summit and the Second National Region-Wide Tourism Promotion Conference, were held in regional capital Yinchuan and Ningxia was approved by the National Tourism Administration to be the second region to build a demonstration zone for region-wide tourism, following the island province of Hainan in south China. In recent years, Ningxia has promoted region-wide tourism to grow its economy innovatively, alleviate poverty, and protect the environment. As of the end of 2017, 31.03 million tourist trips had been made to the region and the region’s tourism…

Temple Fair Fun People attend a temple fair at the Small Wild Goose Pagoda in Xi’an, capital of northwest China’s Shaanxi Province, on February 26, in celebration of the Lunar New Year. Aging Society According to the Office of the National Commission on Aging, the number of people aged 60 and above had reached 241 million in China by the end of 2017, accounting for 17.3 percent of the total population. A society with 10 percent of its population aged 60 or older is considered an “aging society,” said Wu Yushao, Deputy Director of the office. Since China first qualified as an aging society in 1999, the number of people aged 60 or above has seen an overall increase of 110 million. It is estimated that the number of seniors…

The Winter Olympic Games have clocked onto Beijing time following an 8-minute show unveiled at the PyeongChang closing ceremony on February 25. The 8-minute preview, combining modern technology with traditional Chinese elements, was directed by Zhang Yimou, the man behind the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing. Two ice dancers in special LED panda costumes led 22 other roller-skating performers in illuminating a grand picture of China’s past, present and future through a synchronized performance. Easily recognizable Chinese components including the Great Wall, dragons and phoenixes were all incorporated into the show’s visual language. At the end, Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a welcome message via a prerecorded video. “Together with all Chinese people, I welcome friends from all over the world. See you…

Two thousand years ago Chinese caravans, accompanied by the jingle of camel bells, carried goods such as tea and silk to ancient trading centers in Central Asia, such as the Kazakh city Almaty and other faraway places, where they were exchanged with foreign counterparts for spices, furs and other products. Over time their footprints forged the ancient Silk Road, which for centuries witnessed the earliest forms of economic, cultural and political communication between China and the Western world. The Belt and Road Initiative, proposed by China in 2013, looks to revive the ancient Silk Road and its spirit of economic cooperation with countries along the routes, placing common development through strengthening interconnectivity as its stated goal. The initiative offers an opportunity for some of history’s great but forgotten metropolises to…

Following last year’s easing of controls on foreign-owned shares in financial institutions, Chinese authorities have forged ahead with the opening up of the country’s finance industry with measures to expand the scope of business and market access for foreign banks. On February 24, the China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC) published policies allowing overseas lenders to invest in domestic banks, establish new branches and follow the same standards as domestic players. The move reflects China’s commitment to opening up, said Ding Jianping of the Shanghai University of Finance and Economics. “It means foreign-funded banks will gradually enjoy ‘national treatment,’ and both domestic and foreign banks will be able to compete on a level playing field,” Ding said. Since its accession to the World Trade Organization in 2001, China has gradually relaxed…

Auto Stake Acquisition Chinese auto company Geely has become the largest single shareholder of German automotive manufacturer Daimler, German news agency DPA reported on February 23, citing a notification of voting rights. Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, headquartered in Hangzhou, capital city of east China’s Zhejiang Province, has bought a 9.7-percent stake in Daimler. Already known for its ownership of Swedish automaker Volvo Cars, at the end of last year Geely also became the largest shareholder of commercial vehicle manufacturer Volvo Trucks. As a constituent of the Frankfurtbased blue-chip index DAX, Stuttgart-based Daimler’s market value recently reached over 75 billion euros ($92 billion) as the news of impending investment from China drove up the price of its shares. Lull in PMI Official data showed on February 28 that China’s manufacturing sector…

In his report at the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) last October, President Xi Jinping, also General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee, expounded the guidelines of major country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics in the new era, proposing a new form of international relations that could better promote a community with a shared future for mankind. The diplomatic theory, forged through careful deliberation on the future of human society and developing trends in China and the world, has opened a new chapter for China’s diplomacy. Since the 18th CPC National Congress in 2012, Xi has completed 29 overseas trips, setting foot in 57 countries and visiting almost every major international and regional organization, which has helped China establish a network of partnerships around the globe.…

Super hybrid rice, the Tianhe-1 supercomputer and super high-speed rail transport—these are the top three Hunan innovations that enjoy fame. The province’s other innovative achievements, from the first machine in the world to excavate a fullsection inclined tunnel in coal mines to the first commercial science satellite in China, are based on intelligent manufacturing. In May 2017, China’s first large jetliner, the C919, successfully completed its maiden flight. Two months later, the main structure of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, the world’s longest sea-crossing structure, was finished. Both include many “Hunan elements.” In November 2017, the State Council, China’s cabinet, issued a circular, announcing that to implement the Made in China 2025 strategy, national demonstration zones would be established across the country to come up with advanced manufacturing development models for…

After continuous appreciation in 2017, China’s currency, the yuan, has maintained this trend into the new year, boding well for its long-term target of internationalization. According to statistics from China’s State Administration of Foreign Exchange, in January 2018 the yuan witnessed its central parity rate gain 3.1 percent against the U.S. dollar—more than half the 5.81 percent increase seen across the whole of 2017, which itself marked the most drastic annual appreciation seen in the past nine years. “The weakening of the U.S. dollar and Chinese authorities’ reinforcement of supervision over capital outflow, such as overseas mergers and acquisitions, are two causes behind the strengthening of the yuan, but a robust Chinese economy is the major driving force,” Xu Hongcai, Deputy Chief Economist of the China Center for International Economic…

Chinese pinyin, the commonly used system for Romanizing standard Chinese, is a special form of the language. Compared with Chinese characters, pinyin boasts an advantage in the process of spreading Chinese culture around the world, and recent years have witnessed a growing number of Chinese words entering the English language in their pinyin form. However, until now there has been an absence of research into the Chinese language’s impact on English by any authoritative institution. In light of this, the Academy of Contemporary China and World Studies (ACCWS), under the China International Publishing Group (CIPG), has conducted a survey to find out just how well Chinese is recognized outside of China. The report was released on February 17, revealing the most recognized Chinese words overseas and that Chinese words are…