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China completed its fourth Antarctic research station called Taishan on February 8.
Construction of the traditional Chinese lantern-shaped station began in December 2013. A 28-strong team braved snowstorms， temperatures as low as minus 40 degrees Celsius， and high-altitude conditions to build the station.
It can house as many as 20 people and will be used as a scientific research station during the Antarctic summers， lasting from December to March.
Yutu’s Return
China’s moon rover Yutu has awoken up from its concerningly abnormal dormant period， while experts are still trying to figure out the cause of the abnormality， a spokesman with the country’s lunar probe program revealed on February 13.
The abnormality was discovered just before Yutu entered its second period of inactivity as the lunar night closed in on January 25. Due to extreme temperatures， Yutu must lie dormant during lunar nights or otherwise risk damage to its systems.
Pei Zhaoyu， the spokesperson， said that the moon rover’s normal signal-receiving function had been restored to normal， but the causes of the mechanical control fault are still being verified.
“Yutu went into sleep while reporting an abnormal status，” Pei said， adding that experts were initially concerned that it might not be able to survive the extremely low temperatures during the lunar night as a result.
“The rover stands a chance of being saved now that it is still alive，”he said.
Nutrition Guarantee
On February 10， China’s Central Government issued a guideline for the development of the nation’s food industry， vowing to establish systems to improve people’s nutritional intake.
The guideline said that， although China’s food production capacity has been expanded and people’s diets and health has improved， current supplies cannot meet the nutritional demand for everyone.
The government vowed to establish mechanisms to monitor people’s diets， strengthen supervision and information analysis， and intervene in areas or among groups where people are suffering from bad nutrition.
Rural Schooling
The Chinese Government has spent nearly 40 billion yuan （$6.6 billion） on renovating rural schoolhouses in less-developed regions over the past three years， according to figures released on February 10.
Students’ living conditions have improved since 2010， when ministries of education and finance launched a program of renovating primary and junior schools in rural areas， according to the ministries. Nearly 69，000 schoolhouse renovation projects started from 2010 to 2013， of which more than 51，000 have been completed.
The dormitory area for each primary and junior school pupil reached 3.1 and 4.2 square meters respectively， which made for increases of 24 percent and 40 percent compared to 2009.
Nearly 700 counties in impoverished areas built school canteens， facilitating the government’s efforts to improve students’ nutrition， according to the ministries.
Water Management
The Ministry of Water Resources said on February 6 that it has established a new performance appraisal system to evaluate local governments on their management of water resources.
Chen Mingzhong， Director of the Department of Water Resources under the ministry， said that China is committed to more efforts to ensure effective implementation of its water resources management system， which was put into place in 2012 and is the strictest-ever standard on water conservation and waste water treatment in the country.
Major indicators on limiting the exploitation of water resources， improving efficiency of its use， and curbing pollution of water sources will be incorporated into the assessment system for local governments’work， Chen added.
According to Chen， local government heads will be held accountable for failing to perform their responsibilities.
China faces a national water shortage of over 50 billion cubic meters on average every year， the ministry’s figures showed. Two thirds of its cities reportedly don’t have enough water and nearly 300 million rural residents lack access to safe drinking water.
Family Aid
China will increase financial aid to elderly citizens whose only child has died or become disabled， an official with the National Health and Family Planning Commission （NHFPC） said on February 10.
Effective from the beginning of 2014， parents in urban areas who have lost their only son or daughter will be provided with 340 yuan （$56） each month while families living in rural regions will receive 170 yuan（$28）， said NHFPC spokesman Yao Hongwen at a news conference. Parents in urban and rural areas whose only children have become disabled will receive monthly allowances of 270 yuan （$44） and 150 yuan （$24）， respectively， Yao said.
Improving Xinjiang
The government of northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region will continue to allocate large sums of money in 2014 toward enhancing locals’ livelihoods， authorities announced. A total of 61.66 billion yuan（$10.17 billion） will be handed out this year to help fund 150 projects covering employment， housing， healthcare， agriculture， and other fields， said Huang Wei， vice chairman of the regional government， on February 11.
More than 484 billion yuan （$80 billion） has been mobilized in similar programs over the past four years， according to official figures.
Excavated Remains
Remains of a 4，200-square-meter building on a hilltop in northwest China’s Shaanxi Province are the largest ritual site from the Shang Dynasty （1600-1046 B.C.） yet discovered on the Loess Plateau. Located in Xinzhuang， Qingjian County on the west bank of the Yellow River， the late Shang site covers up to 100，000 square meters and is believed to reveal the relationship the ancient Chinese culture of the time had with nature.
A team led by the Shaanxi Provincial Institute of Archeology began their excavation work at the site in April 2013. Over 100 artifacts made of clay， bones， copper， wood and stone have been unearthed， and the earliest wooden floors seen on the plateau were also found.
The team’s leader， Sun Zhanwei said that the thickness of each piece of floorboard was different， which would have created a flat surface on the rugged terrain.
Experts said two winding corridors surrounding the main building clearly demonstrate that the architecture had ritual significance.
City of Style
Shanghai surpassed Tokyo and Hong Kong to become Asia’s most stylish city， a new survey has found.
According to research by Global Language Monitor， a U.S.-based data research firm that catalogs trends by tracking word usage， Shanghai is the reigning fashion capital of Asia， ranking 10th worldwide.
Asia is well-represented in the top 20， with Tokyo at No.11， Singapore at No.19 and Hong Kong at No.20. Beijing didn’t make the top 55.
First Patrol of 2014
A live fire drill is held in the West Pacific Ocean on February 7 by a flotilla with China’s Nanhai Fleet during its annual patrol and training mission.
The three-ship flotilla， consisting of the amphibious landing craft Changbaishan and the destroyers Wuhan and Haikou， patrolled waters off the Xisha Islands， Nanshan Islands and the Zengmu Reef， the southernmost part of the country’s territory， in the 23-day mission.
After the mission in the South China Sea and the East China Sea， the flotilla passed along crucial straits， including the Sunda Strait， Lombok Strait， and Makassar Strait， to enter the Indian Ocean and the West Pacific Ocean for the drill. They returned to a military port in south China’s Guangdong Province on February 11 after sailing nearly 8，000 sea miles.
A Blossoming Hub
A florist wraps up fresh flowers in Shilin， Yunnan Province， on February 11.
Over the last few years， Yunnan has actively promoted development of its flower industry. The annual output value of the sector has surpassed 30 billion yuan （$4.95 billion） to date.
Flowers from the province have a market share of over 70 percent in China and have been shipped to over 50 countries. The province aims at becoming Asia’s flower hub in coming years.
Robust Trade
Stronger-than-expected growth in China’s foreign trade in January has surprised the market.
China’s foreign trade volume climbed 10.3 percent year on year in January to $382.4 billion， marking a strong beginning for 2014， according to data released by the General Administration of Customs on February 12.
Exports rose 10.6 percent from a year earlier to $207.13 billion， while imports increased 10 percent to $175.27 billion. The trade surplus stood at $31.86 billion in January， up 14 percent from a year ago and 24.25 percent from December 2013. Chang Jian， Chief China Economist at Barclays Capital， called the January figures “surprisingly strong，” as the institution expected weak January trade performance based on weak PMI export orders， a high base from last year， and holiday distortions.
“Today’s strong export report could have been boosted by a rush of shipments ahead of the Chinese New Year holiday，” Chang said.
Overall， the data suggest that the underlying strength of Chinese exports is probably better than we expected， he added.
Electric Car Subsidies
On February 8， the Chinese Government announced measures to further promote the use of newenergy vehicles in an effort to save energy and cut emissions.
Subsidies for new-energy car buyers in 2014 and 2015 will be raised from previous levels regulated by a standard introduced in September 2013， according to a statement jointly issued by the Ministry of Finance and three other government departments.
New-energy passenger car buyers received subsidies from 35，000 yuan （$5，730） to 60，000 yuan（$9.894） per vehicle in 2013， while new-energy coach buyers received subsidies of up to 500，000 yuan（$82，450） in 2013. In 2013， it was stipulated that China would lower the subsidies by 10 percent this year from the 2013 level and by 20 percent in 2015.
The new statement， however， made an adjustment that will lower subsidies by only 5 percent in 2014 and 10 percent in 2015 from the 2013 level. The change came into effect on January 1， 2014.
To enhance government support for new-energy vehicles， the subsidy policy， which was scheduled to be phased out at the end of 2015， will be extended， the statement said.
Aviation Biofuel
China’s top oil refiner has been given a license allowing the commercial use of its self-developed aviation biofuel， the country’s aviation authority said on February 12.
The Civil Aviation Administration of China （CAAC） granted the license， the first of its kind， to Sinopec， allowing the company’s No.1 Aviation Biofuel to be used by airlines.
Xu Chaoqun， Deputy Director of CAAC’s Flight Criteria Department， hailed the development as a significant breakthrough for the country’s research， production and application of aviation biofuel.
CAAC received Sinopec’s application for commercial use of the biofuel in early 2012. The No.1 Aviation Biofuel had gone through several rounds of strict tests before it was given the green light， according to Xu.
With an annual consumption of nearly 20 million tons， China has become a large consumer of aviation fuels， and the development of biofuel will help ease resource pressures and cut pollution.
Biofuel is gaining popularity worldwide. The International Air Transport Association forecasts that biofuel will account for 30 percent of aviation fuel used by 2020.
License Approved
Suning， one of China’s largest appliance retailers， announced on February 7 that it has obtained an international express delivery license from the State Post Bureau， becoming the country’s first e-commerce player to operate the service.
The move will enable the Nanjing-based company to expand the overseas market for its online retailing business while competing with FedEx， DHL， UPS and TNT in international express delivery service.
Before the announcement， Suning had already obtained a national license and more than 150 regional licenses for its express delivery services around the country.
It has become common practice for online shopping platforms to enter the logistics market. Jingdong Mall became China’s first e-commerce company to obtain an express delivery license in 2012， and other online retailing platforms such as Vancl， Vipshop and Yihaodian followed suit in applying. Anti-trust Probe
U.S. patent licensing company InterDigital Inc. promised to work with China’s anti-trust authorities in the hope that the latter will suspend its ongoing investigation into the firm.
The anti-monopoly bureau under the National Development and Reform Commission （NDRC） confirmed on February 10 that it has received a commitment request from InterDigital that could form the predicate for the suspension of the anti-monopoly investigation.
The NDRC said it will further study the case before making any decisions.
InterDigital has allegedly charged Chinese telecom firms like Huawei and ZTE higher patent royalty rates than it got from Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics. It is also suspected of using unfair trade practices to force Chinese companies to accept the offer.
In last October， a court in south China’s Guangdong Province ordered InterDigital to pay Huawei 20 million yuan （$3.28 million） in compensation for monopolistic practices.
InterDigital said it will continue to cooperate with the investigation and work with the NDRC to resolve any remaining concerns.
Under China’s anti-monopoly laws， fines for a company found violating the rules and refusing to cooperate range from 1 percent to 10 percent of its total revenue in the previous year.
Electrical Meltdown
A staff member from a local grid company de-ices a transmission line in Rongjiang， Guizhou Province， on February 11.
More and more power supply lines are covered with ice following continuous snowy and rainy days in the province. The Guizhou subsidiary of China Southern Power Grid sent out staff to inspect these lines and de-ice the lines to make sure of steady power supply.
Construction of the traditional Chinese lantern-shaped station began in December 2013. A 28-strong team braved snowstorms， temperatures as low as minus 40 degrees Celsius， and high-altitude conditions to build the station.
It can house as many as 20 people and will be used as a scientific research station during the Antarctic summers， lasting from December to March.
Yutu’s Return
China’s moon rover Yutu has awoken up from its concerningly abnormal dormant period， while experts are still trying to figure out the cause of the abnormality， a spokesman with the country’s lunar probe program revealed on February 13.
The abnormality was discovered just before Yutu entered its second period of inactivity as the lunar night closed in on January 25. Due to extreme temperatures， Yutu must lie dormant during lunar nights or otherwise risk damage to its systems.
Pei Zhaoyu， the spokesperson， said that the moon rover’s normal signal-receiving function had been restored to normal， but the causes of the mechanical control fault are still being verified.
“Yutu went into sleep while reporting an abnormal status，” Pei said， adding that experts were initially concerned that it might not be able to survive the extremely low temperatures during the lunar night as a result.
“The rover stands a chance of being saved now that it is still alive，”he said.
Nutrition Guarantee
On February 10， China’s Central Government issued a guideline for the development of the nation’s food industry， vowing to establish systems to improve people’s nutritional intake.
The guideline said that， although China’s food production capacity has been expanded and people’s diets and health has improved， current supplies cannot meet the nutritional demand for everyone.
The government vowed to establish mechanisms to monitor people’s diets， strengthen supervision and information analysis， and intervene in areas or among groups where people are suffering from bad nutrition.
Rural Schooling
The Chinese Government has spent nearly 40 billion yuan （$6.6 billion） on renovating rural schoolhouses in less-developed regions over the past three years， according to figures released on February 10.
Students’ living conditions have improved since 2010， when ministries of education and finance launched a program of renovating primary and junior schools in rural areas， according to the ministries. Nearly 69，000 schoolhouse renovation projects started from 2010 to 2013， of which more than 51，000 have been completed.
The dormitory area for each primary and junior school pupil reached 3.1 and 4.2 square meters respectively， which made for increases of 24 percent and 40 percent compared to 2009.
Nearly 700 counties in impoverished areas built school canteens， facilitating the government’s efforts to improve students’ nutrition， according to the ministries.
Water Management
The Ministry of Water Resources said on February 6 that it has established a new performance appraisal system to evaluate local governments on their management of water resources.
Chen Mingzhong， Director of the Department of Water Resources under the ministry， said that China is committed to more efforts to ensure effective implementation of its water resources management system， which was put into place in 2012 and is the strictest-ever standard on water conservation and waste water treatment in the country.
Major indicators on limiting the exploitation of water resources， improving efficiency of its use， and curbing pollution of water sources will be incorporated into the assessment system for local governments’work， Chen added.
According to Chen， local government heads will be held accountable for failing to perform their responsibilities.
China faces a national water shortage of over 50 billion cubic meters on average every year， the ministry’s figures showed. Two thirds of its cities reportedly don’t have enough water and nearly 300 million rural residents lack access to safe drinking water.
Family Aid
China will increase financial aid to elderly citizens whose only child has died or become disabled， an official with the National Health and Family Planning Commission （NHFPC） said on February 10.
Effective from the beginning of 2014， parents in urban areas who have lost their only son or daughter will be provided with 340 yuan （$56） each month while families living in rural regions will receive 170 yuan（$28）， said NHFPC spokesman Yao Hongwen at a news conference. Parents in urban and rural areas whose only children have become disabled will receive monthly allowances of 270 yuan （$44） and 150 yuan （$24）， respectively， Yao said.
Improving Xinjiang
The government of northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region will continue to allocate large sums of money in 2014 toward enhancing locals’ livelihoods， authorities announced. A total of 61.66 billion yuan（$10.17 billion） will be handed out this year to help fund 150 projects covering employment， housing， healthcare， agriculture， and other fields， said Huang Wei， vice chairman of the regional government， on February 11.
More than 484 billion yuan （$80 billion） has been mobilized in similar programs over the past four years， according to official figures.
Excavated Remains
Remains of a 4，200-square-meter building on a hilltop in northwest China’s Shaanxi Province are the largest ritual site from the Shang Dynasty （1600-1046 B.C.） yet discovered on the Loess Plateau. Located in Xinzhuang， Qingjian County on the west bank of the Yellow River， the late Shang site covers up to 100，000 square meters and is believed to reveal the relationship the ancient Chinese culture of the time had with nature.
A team led by the Shaanxi Provincial Institute of Archeology began their excavation work at the site in April 2013. Over 100 artifacts made of clay， bones， copper， wood and stone have been unearthed， and the earliest wooden floors seen on the plateau were also found.
The team’s leader， Sun Zhanwei said that the thickness of each piece of floorboard was different， which would have created a flat surface on the rugged terrain.
Experts said two winding corridors surrounding the main building clearly demonstrate that the architecture had ritual significance.
City of Style
Shanghai surpassed Tokyo and Hong Kong to become Asia’s most stylish city， a new survey has found.
According to research by Global Language Monitor， a U.S.-based data research firm that catalogs trends by tracking word usage， Shanghai is the reigning fashion capital of Asia， ranking 10th worldwide.
Asia is well-represented in the top 20， with Tokyo at No.11， Singapore at No.19 and Hong Kong at No.20. Beijing didn’t make the top 55.
First Patrol of 2014
A live fire drill is held in the West Pacific Ocean on February 7 by a flotilla with China’s Nanhai Fleet during its annual patrol and training mission.
The three-ship flotilla， consisting of the amphibious landing craft Changbaishan and the destroyers Wuhan and Haikou， patrolled waters off the Xisha Islands， Nanshan Islands and the Zengmu Reef， the southernmost part of the country’s territory， in the 23-day mission.
After the mission in the South China Sea and the East China Sea， the flotilla passed along crucial straits， including the Sunda Strait， Lombok Strait， and Makassar Strait， to enter the Indian Ocean and the West Pacific Ocean for the drill. They returned to a military port in south China’s Guangdong Province on February 11 after sailing nearly 8，000 sea miles.
A Blossoming Hub
A florist wraps up fresh flowers in Shilin， Yunnan Province， on February 11.
Over the last few years， Yunnan has actively promoted development of its flower industry. The annual output value of the sector has surpassed 30 billion yuan （$4.95 billion） to date.
Flowers from the province have a market share of over 70 percent in China and have been shipped to over 50 countries. The province aims at becoming Asia’s flower hub in coming years.
Robust Trade
Stronger-than-expected growth in China’s foreign trade in January has surprised the market.
China’s foreign trade volume climbed 10.3 percent year on year in January to $382.4 billion， marking a strong beginning for 2014， according to data released by the General Administration of Customs on February 12.
Exports rose 10.6 percent from a year earlier to $207.13 billion， while imports increased 10 percent to $175.27 billion. The trade surplus stood at $31.86 billion in January， up 14 percent from a year ago and 24.25 percent from December 2013. Chang Jian， Chief China Economist at Barclays Capital， called the January figures “surprisingly strong，” as the institution expected weak January trade performance based on weak PMI export orders， a high base from last year， and holiday distortions.
“Today’s strong export report could have been boosted by a rush of shipments ahead of the Chinese New Year holiday，” Chang said.
Overall， the data suggest that the underlying strength of Chinese exports is probably better than we expected， he added.
Electric Car Subsidies
On February 8， the Chinese Government announced measures to further promote the use of newenergy vehicles in an effort to save energy and cut emissions.
Subsidies for new-energy car buyers in 2014 and 2015 will be raised from previous levels regulated by a standard introduced in September 2013， according to a statement jointly issued by the Ministry of Finance and three other government departments.
New-energy passenger car buyers received subsidies from 35，000 yuan （$5，730） to 60，000 yuan（$9.894） per vehicle in 2013， while new-energy coach buyers received subsidies of up to 500，000 yuan（$82，450） in 2013. In 2013， it was stipulated that China would lower the subsidies by 10 percent this year from the 2013 level and by 20 percent in 2015.
The new statement， however， made an adjustment that will lower subsidies by only 5 percent in 2014 and 10 percent in 2015 from the 2013 level. The change came into effect on January 1， 2014.
To enhance government support for new-energy vehicles， the subsidy policy， which was scheduled to be phased out at the end of 2015， will be extended， the statement said.
Aviation Biofuel
China’s top oil refiner has been given a license allowing the commercial use of its self-developed aviation biofuel， the country’s aviation authority said on February 12.
The Civil Aviation Administration of China （CAAC） granted the license， the first of its kind， to Sinopec， allowing the company’s No.1 Aviation Biofuel to be used by airlines.
Xu Chaoqun， Deputy Director of CAAC’s Flight Criteria Department， hailed the development as a significant breakthrough for the country’s research， production and application of aviation biofuel.
CAAC received Sinopec’s application for commercial use of the biofuel in early 2012. The No.1 Aviation Biofuel had gone through several rounds of strict tests before it was given the green light， according to Xu.
With an annual consumption of nearly 20 million tons， China has become a large consumer of aviation fuels， and the development of biofuel will help ease resource pressures and cut pollution.
Biofuel is gaining popularity worldwide. The International Air Transport Association forecasts that biofuel will account for 30 percent of aviation fuel used by 2020.
License Approved
Suning， one of China’s largest appliance retailers， announced on February 7 that it has obtained an international express delivery license from the State Post Bureau， becoming the country’s first e-commerce player to operate the service.
The move will enable the Nanjing-based company to expand the overseas market for its online retailing business while competing with FedEx， DHL， UPS and TNT in international express delivery service.
Before the announcement， Suning had already obtained a national license and more than 150 regional licenses for its express delivery services around the country.
It has become common practice for online shopping platforms to enter the logistics market. Jingdong Mall became China’s first e-commerce company to obtain an express delivery license in 2012， and other online retailing platforms such as Vancl， Vipshop and Yihaodian followed suit in applying. Anti-trust Probe
U.S. patent licensing company InterDigital Inc. promised to work with China’s anti-trust authorities in the hope that the latter will suspend its ongoing investigation into the firm.
The anti-monopoly bureau under the National Development and Reform Commission （NDRC） confirmed on February 10 that it has received a commitment request from InterDigital that could form the predicate for the suspension of the anti-monopoly investigation.
The NDRC said it will further study the case before making any decisions.
InterDigital has allegedly charged Chinese telecom firms like Huawei and ZTE higher patent royalty rates than it got from Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics. It is also suspected of using unfair trade practices to force Chinese companies to accept the offer.
In last October， a court in south China’s Guangdong Province ordered InterDigital to pay Huawei 20 million yuan （$3.28 million） in compensation for monopolistic practices.
InterDigital said it will continue to cooperate with the investigation and work with the NDRC to resolve any remaining concerns.
Under China’s anti-monopoly laws， fines for a company found violating the rules and refusing to cooperate range from 1 percent to 10 percent of its total revenue in the previous year.
Electrical Meltdown
A staff member from a local grid company de-ices a transmission line in Rongjiang， Guizhou Province， on February 11.
More and more power supply lines are covered with ice following continuous snowy and rainy days in the province. The Guizhou subsidiary of China Southern Power Grid sent out staff to inspect these lines and de-ice the lines to make sure of steady power supply.