Bridge in the Clouds

The Beipanjiang Bridge， which took three years to build， opens to traffic on December 29， 2016， connecting southwest Chinas Yunnan and Guizhou provinces. It stretches for 1，341 meters over and hangs 565 meters above the Nizhu River Gorge， equivalent to the height of 200 floors， and is the worlds highest bridge. The bridge helps save motorists more than four hours in journey time.

Sansha Rescue Center

The search and rescue center in Chinas southernmost island city， Sansha， rescued 113 people in 2016， helping save both lives and assets.

It mobilized 13 vessel and six aircraft trips in 21 emergencies， with a 99.1 percent success rate.

Over the past year， the center helped resist four tropical storms， or typhoons， that swept across the city， it said in a statement.

It also organized maritime emergency response drills for nearly 300 people from 19 organizations in the city.

Sansha was established in July 2012 to administer more than 200 islets， sandbanks and reefs in the Xisha， Zhongsha and Nansha island groups as well as 2 million square km of surrounding waters in the South China Sea. The search and rescue center was inaugurated the following year.

Air Quality in Beijing

Beijing saw more blue sky days in 2016 as its average PM 2.5 density fell 9.9 percent， the Beijing Municipal Environmental Protection Bureau said on January 3.

The capital had 198 days with good air quality， an increase of 12 days from 2015， and 39 serious pol- lution days， down by 7 days. Though the average density of PM 2.5， particulate matter measuring less than 2.5 microns， fell to 73 micrograms per cubic meter in 2016， it was still 109 percent higher than the national standard.

Since 2013， PM 2.5 density in the city has dropped 19 percent.

Average levels of sulfur dioxide， nitrogen dioxide and PM 10 decreased by 28.6 percent， 4 percent and 9.8 percent respectively vis-à-vis 2015.

The citys efforts to deal with pollution include shutting down polluting plants and encouraging the use of natural gas to replace coal.

Coal consumption in Beijing fell by as much as 57 percent in the past three years. The city burned less than 10 million tons of coal in 2016.

Currently， Beijings per-capita coal consumption is less than one sixth of the national average， while its per-capita natural gas use is six to seven times the national level.

The key to completely eliminating serious air pollution lies in adjusting the industrial structure and optimizing the energy structure， said Zhang Dawei， head of the Beijing Municipal Environmental Monitoring Center.

Aircraft Carrier Drill

A naval formation consisting of aircraft carrier Liaoning conducted take-off and landing drills in the South China Sea on January 2， 2017， a military source said on January 3. The formation， part of a “cross-sea area” training exercise， involved J-15 fighter jets， as well as ship-borne helicopters， the source added.

Complex hydrological and meteorological conditions in the South China Sea as well as a cold front in the area posed some challenges， but the source said the drill provided important experience in building up combat capability of the aircraft carrier formation.

Rural Nutrition Program

More than 34 million rural students have benefited from the governments rural nutrition program since 2011， according to the Ministry of Education.

The program was launched on a pilot basis to address malnutrition in rural areas. The government allocated 3 yuan （$0.43） a day per student to supplement their diets. This was increased to 4 yuan （$0.57） from 2015.

The program has been expanded to 1，502 counties in 29 out of the Chinese mainlands 31 provincial regions.

The prevalence of anemia among students dropped by 8.9 percentage points from 2012 to 2015， according to data from the National Institute of Nutrition and Health under the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Their physical fitness and academic performance improved along with their nutrition.

Education Minister Chen Baosheng said the government aims to expand the program to all poverty-stricken counties.

Social Credit System

The first demonstration zone of the social credit system， aimed to promote good credit， will be established in the Yangtze River Delta region， which encompasses the Shanghai Municipality and the provinces of Jiangsu， Anhui and Zhejiang.

The national pilot plan approved by the National Development and Reform Commission is expected to nurture a sound business and social environment in the region and regulate individual behavior based on credit records.

Under the system， trustworthy entrepreneurs and individuals will be rewarded， while infringers will be discredited.

The Yangtze River Delta region has benefited from growth in enterprise credit and intellectual property rights （IPR） protection.

Since 2015， provincial-level governments have launched joint campaigns against cross-region and cross-industry IPR infringements and counterfeits.

By using big data， public security departments in the region have been able to crack down together on Internet business fraud.

Cases of infringement and counterfeiting in the region are listed on the government website Ipraction.gov.cn. In the tourist sector， an online tourist information center was launched on a test run in November， 2016 to give updates on tourist agencies bad records.

In Shanghai， citizens with good social credit can get a “credit card” in Shanghai Library and borrow books for free.

New Lakes on the Tibetan Plateau

Climate change researchers working across the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau said rapid warming has resulted in the formation of 99 new lakes and“extensive” lake expansion over the last four decades.

The findings were published in the latest edition of the U.S. journal Geophysical Research Letters.

Besides the north and south poles， the Qinghai-Tibet and Mongolian plateaus are the most sensitive regions to climate change， said the papers lead author， Zhang Guoqing with the Chinese Academy of Sciences Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research.

The two adjacent plateaus have been changing in response to climate change， according to the research.

The team attributed the new lake formation and expansion of existing lakes to events impacting the regions water balance， including increased precipitation.

In contrast， 208 lakes have disappeared from the Mongolian Plateau， and 75 percent of those remaining have shrunk， mainly due to human activity， Zhang said.

“We hope the findings can provide useful information for ecological and water resource planning in these fragile landscapes，” he said.

Repeated studies have shown the effects of climate change on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. According to a report released by the institute in 2015， the regions average annual temperature rose by 0.3-0.4 degrees Celsius every 10 years from 1960 to 2012， about twice the worldwide average increase rate， and temperatures rose more sharply year on year in winter and in the plateaus north. According to climate change models， the next 100 years may see the plateau warming by 4 degrees Celsius， the report pointed out.

A Warm Home

Migrant birds fly over the Dongtan National Birds Nature Reserve in Shanghai on December 29， 2016. About 30，000 migrant birds， including hooded cranes， little swans， herons and spot-billed ducks， have arrived at the nature reserve recently.

Martial Arts Take Root In Campus

Pupils practice the traditional Chinese martial art Meihuaquan， which means Plum Flower Boxing， in the No. 1 Elementary School in Pingxiang County， north Chinas Hebei Province， on December 29， 2016.

Pingxiang County has been dubbed the “cradle of Plum Flower Boxing.” In 2015， Plum Flower Boxing was introduced into local schools as one of the required PE courses. The practice helps not only diversify students school life， but also preserves intangible cultural heritage for the next generation.

Manufacturing Activity

The manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index （PMI） came in at 51.4 in the last month of 2016， lower than the 51.7 recorded in November but staying above the 50-point boom-bust line for the fifth straight month， the National Bureau of Statistics （NBS） said in a statement.

This is the second highest monthly reading in 2016.

Despite the slight decline in December， the latest data reaffirmed the idea that the Chinese economy is stabilizing， said Zhang Liqun， a researcher with the Development Research Center of the State Council.

The sub-index for production registered 53.3， lower than the 53.9 in November.

The sub-index for new orders stayed at the same level as the previous month， which was 53.2， the highest in 2016.

The sub-index for new export and import orders stayed above the boom-bust line of 50 for a second month， the NBS said.

On a quarterly basis， the manufacturing PMI rose steadily， from the first quarters lower-than-50 rating to the second and third quartersfigures slightly above 50， and to over 51 for the fourth quarter.

The PMI for the whole year averaged 50.3， compared to 49.9 for 2015.

Chen Zhongtao， an analyst at the China Logistics Information Center， said positive factors had added up in Chinas economic activity， including increasing demand， better performance in companies， restructuring and a good job market.

Chinas non-manufacturing activity also expanded at a fast pace in December， second only to that of November.

Securities Reform

Foreign firms will be allowed to get listed on Chinas stock markets to expand their financing channels， said Ning Jizhe， Vice Minister of the National Development and Reform Commission， on December 30， 2016.

The firms will be able to go public on the main board， the SME board or the ChiNext board， or debut on the National Equities Exchange and Quotation system， he told reporters.

The green light will also be given to their issuance of corporate bonds and convertible bonds and use of financing instruments of non-financial enterprises in China， he said.

The policy is part of Chinas efforts to level the playing field for foreign firms， he added， referring to a new central government document on further attracting foreign investment and promoting opening up.

The document was approved at a State Council executive meeting on December 28， 2016.

It emphasizes equal treatment for foreign investors， prohibits additional restrictions and cancels minimum registered capital requirements for foreign-funded firms.

Rural Reform

A shareholding cooperative system will be introduced to reform collectively owned rural assets， according to a guideline jointly released by the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the State Council on December 29， 2016.

Farmers can voluntarily turn their rights in collective operating assets into shares and acquire corresponding revenue， the document said.

It identifies the problems of unclear ownership and operational revenue in operating assets， calling the reform significant in safeguarding farmers benefits and increasing their property incomes.

The reform will be completed in five years， with a focus in suburban and economically developed villages that own operating assets.

Small-scale pilot schemes have begun since May 2015， allowing farmers to own， benefit from， collateralize and inherit shares.

Rural collective assets consist of resource， non-operating， and operating assets including for-profit houses， buildings， agriculture infrastructure and collectively funded enterprises.

China adopts a three-pronged approach in regulating these three kinds of asset， with operating assets at the forefront of this latest reform.

Full Charge for Cars

A driver charges his electric car at a charging station in Hangzhou， Zhejiang Province， on December 29， 2016. The city has established an electric vehicle power station network comprising 2，563 charging poles and 28 charging stations.

Market Regulation

Authorities will strengthen housing market regulation to ensure the healthy development of the sector，said an official statement on December 30， 2016.

The Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development reported violations by 21 real estate developers， which， in hopes of boosting sales， spread misleading rumors， published false information， operated without licenses， or hoarded unsold homes.

The companies will face administrative penalties ranging from business suspensions to fines， with serious cases being transferred to the police.

The ministry said it will continue to act tough on irregular activities to expel “black sheep” from the market.

It is the latest move by the Central Government to improve property market order after irregularities were highlighted when the sector was booming.

The housing markets of major cities have shown signs of cooling as a spate of measures were rolled out by local authorities.

Policymakers have called for differentiated approaches to regulate the property market in 2017， dampen speculation and build a long-term housing mechanism.

A Silver Harvest

Fishermen demonstrate their catch in Xuyi County， Jiangsu Province， on December 29， 2016.

The county produces 320，000 tons of fish per year. Winter fishing is a traditional custom for local people， representing their desire for a good harvest and a comfortable life in the coming year.

Urbanization Growth Potential

Chinas urbanization drive will boost domestic consumption and investment in the future， analysts have said.

The country aims to add 100 million urban residents from 2016 to 2020， while enabling 100 million rural residents to live in towns and cities in central and western regions.

Population concentration together with improvement in livelihoods will expand demand in consumer services， said Chi Fulin， President of the China Institute for Reform and Development.

It is estimated that if migrant workers spend as much as urban residents， the countrys consumption will swell by over 1 trillion yuan （$144 billion）.

Besides， each percent of urbanization is predicted to translate into 3.7 percent of investment growth. When 400 million people bid adieu to villages in the next 10 to 20 years， they will directly stimulate investment demands worth 40 trillion yuan （$5.76 trillion）.

In 2015， permanent urban residents accounted for 56.1 percent of the countrys population， a rate expected to hit 60 percent by 2020.

Such urbanization promises opportunities for Chinas development， said Li Yang， an academic with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Chinas vast rural areas are huge markets for improvements in the living environment， garbage disposal and infrastructure upgrading， Li said.

Green Building

On December 29， 2016， the Metallurgical Corp. of China （MCC）s real estate development branch signed a cooperation agreement with Tsinghua University and Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. in Nanjing， Jiangsu Province， aiming to work out systematic and integrated technical solutions for the construction of green intelligent buildings.

“Property enterprises need to transfer from solely focusing on developing products to the model of providing consumers with products and services as well as owning and operating housing resources，”said MCC Vice President Wang Shilei.

By teaming up with MCC Real Estate， challenges in the promotion of green building such as the high costs of development and operation and poor user experiences， will be tackled， said Zhu Yingxin， a professor at Tsinghua University.

The employment of advanced technologies and applications encompassing the Internet of Things， sensor networks， cloud computing and community resources can be efficiently coordinated， and community management and service systems can be improved， said Liu Jiangang， head of intelligent building promotion at Huawei China.

So far， MCC Real Estate has applied technologies like haze prevention， degerming and dynamic temperature control in some property development projects in large cities such as Beijing， Tianjin， Nanjing and Guangzhou.

Intelligent Servant

A staff member shows how to talk to an intelligent robot at the Jinan West Railway Station in Jinan， Shandong Province， on December 29， 2016.

Three such robots offer information services to passengers at the railway station.