NPC SESSION OPENS

Deputies to the 13th National Peoples Congress （NPC） walk toward the Great Hall of the People for the opening of the national legislatures annual session in Beijing on March 5.

At the inaugural meeting attended by President Xi Jinping and other leaders that day， Premier Li Keqiang delivered the government work report， confirming the annual growth target for the economy in 2021 is over 6 percent.

A Sample From Moon

Visitors view lunar sample No.001， brought back by Chinas Change-5 probe， at the National Museum of China in Beijing on February 27.

Vaccination Progress

According to Beijings municipal government， more than 5 million people in the capital had received COVID-19 vaccinations as of 2 p.m. on March 2， with 2.64 million of those having received two doses of the vaccine. With efforts beginning on January 1， Beijing has now completed COVID-19 inoculation of all key groups， including frontline customs inspectors of imported cold chain goods and personnel working in the overseas and domestic transportation sectors.

The Beijing Government will continue to promote the vaccination of other groups at high risk， such as the elderly， those responsible for maintaining social operations and ensuring the supply of necessities， personnel in service and labor-intensive industries， and those who need to be vaccinated for other special reasons. The government will then complete the vaccination of other groups， such as healthy individuals in good physical condition.

Water Diversion

The middle route of Chinas South-to-North Water Diversion Project has transferred over 22 billion cubic meters of water to Beijing， Tianjin Municipality and Hebei Province since the routes completion in December 2014.

As of March 2， more than 6 billion cubic meters of water had been transferred respectively to Beijing and Tianjin， while about 10 billion cubic meters of water had been sent to Hebei， official data showed.

The mega water diversion project has directly benefited over 13 million people in Beijing， transforming water supply to the capital and enhancing water resource security.

The project has also facilitated ecological replenishment in Hebei， supplying 3 billion cubic meters of water to more than 20 of Hebeis rivers.

Beginning at the Danjiangkou Reservoir in central Chinas Hubei Province， the middle route of the water diversion project crosses Henan and Hebei provinces before reaching Beijing and Tianjin. It is one of the three routes that make up the South-to-North Water Diversion project， with the eastern and western routes supplying water to other parts of China.

Expert Recruitment

The Hainan Free Trade Port will recruit top experts from China and abroad to promote port construction in Hainan， an island province in south China.

As stated in a press conference held on March 1， recruitment has begun for three key leadership positions.

Zhang Yingduan， deputy head of the organization department of the Hainan Provincial Party Committee， said the positions are open to both domestic and overseas candidates. Hainan is in urgent need of international experts with global vision and advanced management experience， Zhang said， adding that recruiting talent from overseas is conducive to promoting the construction of the Hainan Free Trade Port.

China last year released a master plan for the free trade port， aiming to build the whole of Hainan Island into a globally influential， high-level free trade port by the middle of the century.

School Enrollment

The gross enrollment rate in Chinas preschool education system reached 85.2 percent last year， according to statistics from the Ministry of Education （MOE）.

There were 291，700 kindergartens in China last year， enrolling a total of more than 48 million children. According to information released by the ministry on March 1， nearly 85 percent of those children were enrolled in kindergartens that provide quality preschool education at affordable prices.

The ministrys data on Chinas nine-year compulsory education showed 210，800 primary and middle schools were educating 156 million students in 2020， with the retention rate of students in compulsory education reaching 95.2 percent.

In addition， more than 41 million students were studying at 24，400 senior high schools across the country in 2020， with a gross enrollment rate of 91.2 percent.

Chinese Jet

China Eastern Airlines and the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China （COMAC） have signed a contract for the purchase of five new passenger jets， marking the official market entry of Chinas indigenously developed C919 large passenger aircraft.

The new planes will be used on routes from Shanghai to Beijing， Guangzhou， Shenzhen and Chengdu， according to a spokesperson for the airline.

China Eastern Airlines has been participating in the development of the C919 since the early stages of the project. In 2016， it signed a cooperation framework agreement with COMAC， to become the worlds first user of the C919.

The C919， Chinas first selfdeveloped trunk jetliner， has 158-174 seats and a flying range of 4，075-5，555 km. The plane conducted its successful maiden flight in 2017.

Air Quality Targets

New targets have been set to tackle air pollution in China over the next five years. According to Liu Bingjiang， an official with the Ministry of Ecology and Environment， China is committed to reducing the average concentration of fine particulate matter（PM2.5） in 337 major cities by 10 percent between 2021 and 2025， from the average level over the previous five years.

Liu spelt out the goal for each of the 337 cities to enjoy good-quality air for 87.5 percent of the days during the 2021-25 period at the press conference. He noted that China has achieved the goals of the threeyear action plan it put in place in 2018， with days with good air quality accounting for 87 percent of 2020 in the 337 major cities.

The ministry will prioritize cutting vehicle emissions over the next five years， Liu said， stressing the importance of measures to lower carbon emissions and control air pollution simultaneously.

Flowering Season

Residents in Shanghai appreciate cherry blossoms in a park on March 2.

Disciplinary Methods

Chinas new rules governing school disciplinary methods came into force on March 1， banning physical punishment and verbal abuse in primary and secondary schools.

Educators are prohibited from carrying out disciplinary procedures that would inflict direct physical pain on students， according to the trial regulations， released by the MOE last December.

In addition to verbal abuse， other forbidden disciplinary methods include forcing students to stand still or assume physically uncomfortable positions for excessive amounts of time， and covert forms of punishment such as intentional isolation.

The new regulations also clarify the conditions under which educators should intervene and introduce a new disciplinary regime for students and teachers. According to the new rules， students who commit minor offenses should receive proportionately minor punishments， such as being required to make oral or written apologies or undertaking classroom chores.

Harsh measures for severe violations apply to children who have reached their senior years of primary school and students in middle and senior schools. Disciplinary options include suspension from school， school counseling and professional correction sessions.

A New Start

Students from a school in Hohhot， Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region in north China， fly kites to welcome the new school semester on February 28.

Financing Support

The banking and insurance sector has implemented a great deal of measures to buoy up economic recovery amid COVID-19 disruptions， Guo Shuqing， Chairman of the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission， said at a press conference on March 2.

By the end of 2020， the sum of outstanding RMB loans increased 19.6 trillion yuan（$3.03 trillion） over the beginning of the year， and 6.6-trillionyuan （$1.02-trillion） loans were extended.

Last year， the amount of new loans to the manufacturing sector stood at 2.2 trillion yuan（$340 billion）， exceeding the total volume of the previous five years. New loans to private enterprises totaled around 5.7 trillion yuan （$882 billion）， 1.5 trillion yuan （$232 billion） more than in 2019， Guo said.

A total of 292.1 billion yuan（$45.2 billion） was paid to cover health insurance claims last year， up 24.2 percent year on year. Another 1.57 trillion yuan （$243 billion） in long-term health insurance risk reserve was collected.

This year， the sector will offer more targeted financial assistance to key areas， including technology innovation， advanced manufacturing， rural vitalization， green development， and the growth of private， micro， and small businesses， Guo said.

Manufacturing Hub

China has remained as the worlds largest manufacturing hub for 11 straight years， accounting for nearly 30 percent of the global manufacturing output， according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology （MIIT）.

During the 13th Five-Year Plan （2016-20） timeframe， the average growth rate of the valueadded output of the hi-tech manufacturing sector reached 10.4 percent， up 4.9 percentage points from that of the overall industrial output， Xiao Yaqing， Minister of Industry and Information Technology， said on March 1.

In the past five years， the value-added industrial output increased from 23.5 trillion yuan（$3.63 trillion） to 31.3 trillion yuan（$4.8 trillion）.

The information transmission and software and information technology service industries made some remarkable progress. Their value-added industrial output surged from 1.8 trillion yuan（$278 billion） to 3.8 trillion yuan（$587 billion）， with the proportion in GDP rising from 2.5 percent to 3.7 percent， Xiao added.

By the end of 2020， household penetration of fixed broadband reached 96 percent， while mobile broadband penetration came to 108 percent.

In terms of 5G development， the country had built 718，000 5G base stations by the end of 2020， with the number of mobile terminals connected to the network surpassing 200 million， according to the MIIT.

Capital Inflow

Since the Foreign Investment Law came into effect on January 1， 2020， international capital inflow into China has risen 4.5 percent year on year in U.S. dollar terms， hitting a record high， Zang Tiewei， a spokesperson for the Legislative Affairs Commission of the Standing Committee of the National Peoples Congress， Chinas top legislature， said on February 28.

The country has become the largest foreign capital recipient in the world， with 51，000 new foreign-funded firms established in 2020， Zang said.

The law provides foreign capital with easier market access and reduces the restrictions on investors. Last year， nearly 9，000 new joint ventures were set up between foreign investors and Chinese natural persons.

It also guarantees equal treatment of foreign firms in government procurement activities and standard setting， with about 100 foreign-funded firms participating in the formulation and revision of national standards last year.

Procedures related to the establishment and alteration of foreign-funded firms are simplified and the rights and interests of foreign investors are better protected with complaint mechanisms optimized， Zang said.

General Aviation

As of the end of 2020， China had 523 conventional general aviation companies with a fleet of 2，844 general aircraft， according to the Civil Aviation Administration of China （CAAC）.

The sector has also witnessed a boom in brand new business models， the administration said.

The number of registered unmanned aerial vehicles in the country reached 523，600 by the end of 2020， with annual flight hours exceeding 1.59 million.

There has also been rapid expansion in aerial tours and parachuting. By the end of last year， more than 100 air routes for low-altitude tourism had been opened， providing aerial tour services to some 50 tourist attractions nationwide， CAAC data showed.

The CAAC said it will promote supervision of the sector and give full play to its nationwide route network. Tailored regulations on certification and operation will be made.

Commercial Rocket

Smart Dragon-3 （SD-3）， the third member of Chinas Dragon commercial carrier rocket family， will perform its maiden flight in 2022， the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology， developer of the rocket， said on March 3.

The four-stage solid-propellant SD-3 will be the largest with the greatest carrying capacity among all Dragon rockets so far.

The rockets multi-satellite launch capability enables it to carry more than 20 satellites on one single mission， at a cost of merely $10，000 per kg， significantly increasing its market competitiveness. Its design covers both land and sea launches.

The Dragon rockets were inaugurated in 2019 for commercial space launch services. The first-generation rocket SD-1 performed its maiden flight in August that year， and is slated for two to three launches in 2021.

Robust Growth

The value of products registered by insurance asset management companies （AMCs） and private equity （PE） fund managers totaled 975.84 billion yuan（$150.8 billion） in 2020， up 71.6 percent year on year， official data showed on February 28.

The number of products registered by AMCs and PE fund managers rose 77.31 percent year on year to 461 last year， according to the Insurance Asset Management Association of China.

Out of the total， 434 were registered for debt investment plans and 12 for equity investment plans， with the fund size reaching 819.32 billion yuan（$126.66 billion） and 22.61 billion yuan （$3.49 billion）， respectively， the association said.

Fifteen insurance PE funds were established last year， with the fund size reaching 133.92 billion yuan （$20.7 billion）.

By the end of last year， insurance AMCs and PE fund managers registered 1，794 products， with the fund size totaling nearly 4.16 trillion yuan（$643.13 billion）， according to the association.

NUMBERS

（Source： National Bureau of Statistics）