Party Congress

The 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China （CPC） is expected to convene on October 18 in Beijing.

The Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee decided at a meeting on August 31 to submit the proposal on the schedule to the Seventh Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee， which will be held on October 11.

The Political Bureau meeting was presided over by Xi Jinping， General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee.

The 19th CPC National Congress will review the Partys work over the past fi ve years and summarize precious experiences that the Party has gained from the historical process of uniting and leading people of all ethnic groups to carry on and advance socialism with Chinese characteristics under the leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Xi at the core since the 18th CPC National Congress.

It will thoroughly examine the current international and domestic situation， and take into account the new requirements for the development of the Party and the country as well as new expectations from the people.

The congress will draw out guidelines and policies that respond to the call of the times， according to a statement after the meeting.

The congress is a very important meeting to be held when China is striving for its fi nal victory for achieving a moderately prosperous society in an all-round way， and at a critical time for the development of socialism with Chinese characteristics， the statement said.

It will hold high the ban- ner of socialism with Chinese characteristics， be guided with Marxism-Leninism， Mao Zedong Thought， Deng Xiaoping Theory， the important thought of “Three Represents” and the Scientifi c Outlook on Development， and thoroughly carry out the essence of Xis series of important remarks and the new governance concepts， thoughts and strategies of the CPC Central Committee， according to the statement.

The congress also aims to boost confi dence in the path， theory， system and culture of socialism with Chinese characteristics， continue to adopt an overall approach to promote economic， political， cultural， social and ecological progress， as well as to advance coordinated development of the “Four Comprehensives.”

The Four Comprehensives refers to a four-pronged strategy that aims to comprehensively accomplish a moderately prosperous society， deepen reform， advance rule of law， and strengthen strict Party governance.

Efforts will be made to continue to build a better CPC， to achieve the fi nal victory of building a moderately prosperous society in an all-round way and to create new prospects for socialism with Chinese characteristics， said the statement.endprint

A new CPC Central Committee and a new Central Commission for Discipline Inspection will be elected at the congress.

All preparatory work for the congress is going smoothly at present and preparations should be continued earnestly to ensure a successful congress， according to the statement.

Grape Expectations

Tourists are served grapes at the opening ceremony of the annual grape festival in Turpan， northwest Chinas Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region， on August 26. A total of 216 different kinds of grapes were displayed at the festival.

Safeguarding Territory

The Chinese military will remain vigilant and defend national territory and sovereignty following the military stand-off with India， a Chinese military spokesperson said on August 28.

“Peace and stability along the China-India border concerns regional peace and stability and accords with the common interests of the two countries peoples，” Wu Qian， spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense， said.

India has withdrawn its personnel and equipment from Donglang after the two-month friction.

“We remind India to draw lessons from the stand-off， abide by established treaties and the basic principles of international law， and work with China to safeguard peace and stability along the border and promote the healthy development of the two militaries，” Wu said.

He added that the Chinese military is conf dient and capable of safeguarding national sovereignty， safety and the interests of development. It is also capable of making a bigger contribution to world peace.

Rural Students

Chinese colleges and universities admitted 100，000 students from rural and underdeveloped areas in 2017， a 9.3 percent increase on 2016， according to the Ministry of Education （MOE）.

China has implemented favorable college entrance policies， including enrollment programs， at national， regional and university levels to enable more students from rural and poor areas to go to university.

In the national program， the requirements for being accepted by key colleges and universities affi liated to central ministries and provincial governments have been lowered for students from impoverished counties.

The regional program helps students receive higher quality education in their own provinces and regions， while outstanding high school graduates from rural areas can be admitted to top universities under the MOE through the university-level program.endprint

In 2017， nearly 64，000 students from poverty-stricken counties were enrolled in universities， thanks to assistance from the national program.

The regional program admitted 16.2 percent more rural students than in 2016 and an additional 9，500 exceptional rural students were accepted through the university-level program.

“We need to improve the enrollment rate for rural students，” Xie Huanzhong， an MOE official， said.

In 2016， Chinese higher educa- tion institutions admitted 7.48 million students for undergraduate study.

Copyright Deals

A total of 5，262 copyright deals were made between China and foreign countries at the 24th Beijing International Book Fair， which concluded on August 27. The number signifi ed a 4.9 percent increase year on year.

Of the deals， 3，244 cases were export and partnership contracts， up 5.5 percent year on year， and 2，018 were import agreements with an annual increase of 3.9 percent.

Books for children and on literature， culture， education， economy and philosophy were among the most popular. More books were translated into other languages， such as French， Japanese， Russian and Arabic.

The fi ve-day book fair displayed more than 10，000 books that had been published since the 18th Communist Party of China National Congress at a sub-exhibition hosted by the State Administration of Press， Publication， Radio， Film and Television.

The book fair attracted more than 2，500 exhibitors from 89 countries and regions， with overseas exhibitors accounting for 58 percent of the number.

Book on Germ War

A new book on Japanese Army Unit 731 was published in Shenyang， northeast Chinas Liaoning Province， on August 28.

Written in Chinese， Behind Bayonets and Barbed Wire： the Secrets of Japanese Army Unit 731， is by Japanese writer Nishisato Fuyuko， who published another book on Unit 731 in 2002.

Since her fi rst book， Fuyuko has visited Shenyang almost every year and talked to victims and Japanese soldiers that served in the unit.

The book contains many photographs and inside stories on how the unit conducted its experiments on live human beings and traded data with the U.S. so as to be exempted from prosecution after Japans surrender.

Fuyuko said humans must refl ect on their crimes. She wants the book to describe history， not spread hatred. “We should never make the same mistake as our predecessors，”she said.

Unit 731 was a secret biological and chemical warfare research base of Japan established in Harbin in 1935. It was the center of Japanese biological warfare in China and Southeast Asia during World War II.endprint

The unit conducted experiments on humans alive to test germ and chemical weapons， among other atrocities. Many civilians and prisoners of war from China， the then Soviet Union， the Korean Peninsula and Mongolia perished. Some of them were children.

After Japans surrender in 1945， the unit hastily pulled out of China， with 3，000 Japanese children and some experimental equipment left behind. Many of those children were raised by Chinese families.

Machine in Motion

Visitors watch a robot dance at the World Robot Conference 2017 in Beijing on August 25. Over 300 artifi cial intelligence specialists and representatives of over 150 enterprises attended the event.

Creating Waves

Performers present a traditional wedding ceremony in Xidi Village in east Chinas Anhui Province on August 26 to celebrate Qixi Festival， the seventh day of the seventh month according to the Lunar calendar， which fell on August 28 this year. The festival is also seen as Chinese Valentines Day by many people.

PMI Data

Chinas manufacturing sector expanded for the 13th straight month in August， the National Bureau of Statistics （NBS） said on August 31.

The countrys manufacturing purchasing managers index （PMI） came in at 51.7 in August， up from 51.4 in July， according to NBS data.

A reading above 50 indicates expansion， while a reading below refl ects contraction.

“The reading， the second highest so far this year， showed a steady upward trend of Chinas manufacturing sector，” said NBS senior statistician Zhao Qinghe.

Zhao attributed the quickened expansion to improving domestic demand and booming manufacturing in consumer goods and hi-tech sectors.

Sub-indices for production and new orders came in at 54.1 and 53.1， respectively， up from 53.5 and 52.8 in July suggesting an improved sup- ply and demand relationship， said Zhao.

The import sub-index rose from 51.1 in July to 51.4 in August， the highest so far this year， according to the NBS.

Equipment manufacturing reported a PMI fi gure of 52.8， higher than the headline manufacturing index of 51.7， indicating a better manufacturing structure.

On the other side of the equation， Chinas non-manufacturing sector expanded at a slightly slower pace in August， NBS data showed.

The non-manufacturing PMI came in at 53.4 in August， down from 54.5 in July， according to the NBS.

“Though at a slower pace， the performance of Chinas non-manufacturing sector continues to maintain robust momentum，” Zhao said.endprint

Zhao attributed the slower expansion to rainstorms and fl oods in certain regions that affected the construction industry.

The service sector， which ac- counted for more than half of the countrys GDP last year， saw slower expansion in August， with the index standing at 52.6， down from 53.1 in July.

New business orders came in at 50.3 in August， up from 50.2 in July， staying above 50 for the fourth straight month.

The index for the construction industry， which was affected by extreme weather， dropped from 62.5 in July to 58 in August， according to the NBS.

Going Green

Solar panels cover the roof of the China Yiwu International Trade Mart in Zhejiang Province. The project， with a total installed generating capacity of 20 megawatts， was completed on August 29.

Catering Market

On August 24， Ele.me， Chinas largest online catering company， announced that it will take over the food delivery business of Baidu， which operates under the Baidu Waimai brand.

Ele.me， backed by e-commerce giant Alibaba， has 260 million users in 2，000 cities in China. It delivers from 1.3 million restaurants and has 3 million scooter-riding delivery staff. Baidu Waimai has 100 million users and covers 300 cities.

Under the deal， Baidu Waimai will continue to operate under its own brand and management. It will also receive Ele.me shares. Ele. me will provide support for users， fi nance， delivery and logistics.

Zhang Xuhao， CEO of Ele.me， said the deal is fi nanced by Alibaba.“Ele.me and Baidu Waimai will complement each other with their own advantages，” said Zhang.

Samsung Investment

On August 30， Samsung Electronics Co. signed an agreement with the government of northwest Chinas Shaanxi Province to expand its chip production capacity in the province.

Samsung will inject an initial investment of $7 billion into the second phase of its chip plant in Xian， capital of Shaanxi， which will primarily produce advanced fl ash memory chips.

The fi rst phase of the plant at the Xian Hi-Tech Industries Development Zone went into operation in May 2014， with a total investment of $10 billion.

The opening of Samsungs semiconductor project has attracted more than 100 supporting companies to the zone， and the expansion in production capacity is expected to strengthen Xians role as a major semiconductor industry base.endprint

Power Couple

Chinas State Council， the cabinet， has approved a merger between major power generator China Guodian Corp. and coal producer Shenhua Group， an offi cial statement said on August 28.

The two companies will be restructured to form a new energy investment company， the Stateowned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission （SASAC） said on its website.

The move came with little surprise， as the listed arms of the f rims suspended trading of their stocks on the Shanghai Stock Exchange in early June， a move widely considered to signal a merger.

As the worlds largest coal supplier， Shenhua Group had total assets worth over 1 trillion yuan（$150.7 billion） by the end of April this year. It ranked 276th among the global Fortune 500 in 2017.

In the fi rst half of 2017， China Shenhua Energy Company， the listed arm of the group， reported revenue of 120.5 billion yuan （$18.27 billion）， an increase of 53.1 percent year on year.

With total assets of more than 800 billion yuan （$121.32 billion）， China Guodian Corp. is one of the countrys largest power generators， with installed capacity of over 143 gigawatts. It ranked 397th among the global Fortune 500 in 2017.

The merger between the two power giants is in line with the nations aim to cut overcapacity in the coal and power sectors through restructuring state-owned enterprises（SOEs）， analysts said.

SASAC has been actively restructuring SOEs this year in a bid to improve their effi ciency， with the number of centrally-administered SOEs falling to 98， down sharply from 196 in 2003.

Industrial Agglomeration

A worker carries out tasks in a factory at the Latin America Industrial Park in Leting County of north Chinas Hebei Province on August 29.

So far， more than 2 billion yuan （$303.2 million） has been invested in infrastructure construction in the zone， and 24 enterprises have been set up in the park or signed agreements to do so.

IPR Protection

Chinas Ministry of Commerce has worked with other departments to draft a document on protecting the intellectual property rights （IPRs） of foreign companies in China， an offi cial said on August 25.

The document will intensify the crackdown on malicious trademark registration， online IPR infringement and stealing business secrets， deputy minister of commerce Wang Shouwen said at a press conference.

“China has attached great importance to IPR protection and seen visible results，” Wang said.endprint

IPR spending by overseas owners rose to $24 billion in 2016 from$1.94 billion in 2001， an annualized increase of about 18 percent. In the fi rst half of this year， the amount rose 23 percent year on year to$14.3 billion.

“Chinas IPR protection has brought huge benefi ts to foreign IPR holders，” Wang said.

The nation will improve IPR protection for foreign companies by launching campaigns against violations and stepping up judicial and administrative protection， according to a guideline on ensuring foreign investment growth recently released by the State Council.

UnionPay Expansion

Australias foremost tourism body， Tourism Australia， will boost collaboration with Chinas UnionPay International to “stimulate Chinese visitor spending” in Australia， the nations Trade Minister， Steve Ciobo， announced on August 28.

UnionPay is a major payment service provider for travelers from China and other Asian countries. Its cards are accepted in 162 countries and regions around the world， including Australia.

Ciobo said the further collaboration， agreed upon in a Memorandum of Understanding （MoU）， would ensure a more enjoyable and smoother experience for Chinese tourists using the service in Australia.

“This MOU will enable Tourism Australia and UnionPay International to collaborate on business development and joint promotional activity，”Ciobo said in the statement.

“It will also improve the Australian traveling environment and experience by facilitating the highly recognized international payment. This will in turn stimulate Chinese visitor spending in Australia and boost tourism revenue.”

Ciobo said he “recognizes the importance of the China market to Australias tourism industry，”adding that collaboration would make choosing Australia as a travel destination easier for more Chinese tourists.

“The （Australian） government values the China market and is supporting its growth through the historic free trade agreement with China， trialing 10-year multiple entry visitor visas and settling a landmark open aviation market air services arrangement that removes all airline capacity restrictions between Australia and China，” the minister said.

Tea Wealth

Women of local minority ethnic groups pick tea leaves at a tea plantation in Dushan County， Guizhou Province， on August 26.

Since the beginning of 2016， focus has been put on improving the core competitiveness and sustainability of the regions tea industry.endprint