China Report - Issue 112 - September 2022

70 Pages·2022·14 MB·English

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CULTURE p
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Character Flaws: 2
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Hit drama fumbles o.
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feminist message e
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INTERNATIONAL l
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Taiwan Tensions:
How has Pelosi 's visit
affected Sino-US ties?
ECONOMY
Delayed Take-offs:
Aviation uncertainies as
Covid restrictions linger
THE GREAT ESCAPE
China’s city slickers are discovering nature and
outdoor activities in their own backyard. How
long will the adventure last?
£ 3.50

EDITORIAL
Further high-level opening-up key to China’s
Published by China News Service economic growth amid uncertainty
Publisher: Chen Lujun
Executive Director:
Chen Lujun
Editor-in-Chief: Tan Hongwei T he complicated and severe external and domestic resources distribution, but also helps create
Deputy Editor-in-Chief: Li Jia
internal environment is posing a big chal- a good systematic environment for cooperation with
Editorial Office lenge to China’s economic growth. Inter- other countries and will help lead global governance
Copy Editors: Kathleen Naday, James Tiscione
nationally, the world is witnessing drastic volatility, reform.
Lead Writers: Yu Xiaodong
Senior Editors: Wang Yan, Yi Ziyi due to rising anti-globalisation, First, the negative list for for-
Editors: Xie Ying, Xu Ming, Wu Jin global supply chain restructur- eign investment, which specifies
Consultant Editor: Chen Shirong It is time for China to
ing, the Russia-Ukraine war, and sectors that restrict or prohibit
First Reader: Andrew McEwan
further align its trade
Address: 5th Floor, 12 Baiwanzhuang South rising inflation and interest rates foreign investment, should be
Street, Xicheng District, Beijing, China in the US and Europe. Domesti- and investment rules further shortened to ensure a lev-
Post Code: 100037
cally, the three major pressures of with international el playing field for competition.
Tel: [phone]
Fax: [phone] shrinking demand, supply chain common practice Wider financial market access
Email: [email protected] disruption and weakening mar- should be offered to foreign com-
Website: www.ChinaReport.co.uk to build a better
ket expectations have not eased panies in the banking, securities,
developed, more
Art Department much. This is compounded by insurance, fund and futures sec-
Art Director: Wu Shangwen transparent
the pandemic resurgence, slug- tors. Capital market cross-border
Art Editor/Designer: Zhang Dawei, Zhang Xu
gish consumption and real estate regulatory connections should be deepened.
Marketing/Advertising/Subscription
developers’ debt risk in China. framework. China Services of customs, foreign ex-
EMEA Office
Foremost 4 Media All this adds up to uncertainty should focus on change and taxation should be
Duty Editor: Sophie Lang for China’s economic growth. improved.
Email: [email protected] this “systematic
Further high-level opening- Second, opening-up in the ser-
Tel: [phone] opening”
Fax: [phone] up is crucial to mitigate the vice sector needs to be expanded.
Website: foremost4.media downside pressure on China’s With per capita GDP exceeding
Marketing Office in China economy. This has been proved US$10,000, Chinese consumers
Director: Wang Chenbo in China’s experience over the past decades. The are spending more on services. In April 2021, four
Account Manager: Ren Jie
launch of the reform and opening-up policy in cities and one province, Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai,
Tel: [phone]
Circulation Manager: Yu Lina 1978, accession to the WTO membership in 2001 Chongqing and Hainan were designated as trial
Tel: [phone] and the Belt and Road Initiative in 2013 have un- areas for development of a modern service sector
London Office: Zhang Ping derwritten China’s take-off and rise to become the and more openness of the service market. Utilisa-
New York Office: Ma Delin, Liao Pan world’s second-largest economy and a champion in tion of foreign funds in the service sector in the five
Washington Office: Chen Mengtong, Sha Handing
Los Angeles Office: Zhang Shuo manufacturing and trade. The faster than expected areas accounted for 33.7 percent of the national to-
San Francisco Office: Liu Guanguan growth of China’s foreign trade since the second tal that year. That reform should be deepened, and
Houston Office: Zeng Jingning
Tokyo Office: Lu Shaowei half of 2020 has been the major driving force to successful experience should be rolled out across the
Paris Office: Li Yang
stabilise the country’s economy. And it is the re- country.
Bangkok Office: Wang Guoan
Kuala Lumpur Office: Chen Yue sponsibility of China as a major country to expand Third, more steps should be taken on reforms
Moscow Office: Tian Bing
its opening to the rest of the world. implemented in the 21 free trade zones and the
Manila Office: Guan Xiangdong
Berlin Office: Peng Dawei After opening its market by standards even higher Hainan Free Trade Port, covering all parts of China.
Sydney Office: Tao Shelan
Brussels Office: De Yongjian than its WTO commitment in terms of tariffs and Those free trade zones should have more autonomy
Astana Office: Zhang Shuo market access, it is time for China to further align to explore creative, comprehensive and different
Rio de Janeiro Office: Wang Xi
Johannesburg Office: Song Fangcan its trade and investment rules with international reforms. Their achievements on systematic innova-
Jakarta Office: Lin Yongchuan common practice to build a better developed, more tion should be promoted throughout the country.
Kathmandu Office: Zhang Chenyi
Legal Advisor: Allen Wu transparent regulatory framework. China should Hainan’s reform should focus on zero tariffs for
focus on this “systematic opening.” imports of goods and facilitation of trade and in-
ISSN 2053-0463
Moreover, issues like intellectual property pro- vestment in the service sector by further relaxing
tection, labour and environmental protection top restrictions on flows of people and transportation.
the agenda of the international trade system to- In this way, China will not only realise its
day. Promoting systematic opening not only fol- own high-quality growth, but also create a more
lows the trend of globalisation and can optimise dynamic world economy.
CHINAREPORT I September 2022 1
CONTENTS
CAMP CULTURE
ChinaReport looks at Chinese people’s
newfound appreciation of outdoor activities
amid continuing pandemic controls
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EDITORIAL
01 Further high-level opening-up key to China’s economic growth amid uncertainty
INTERNATIONAL
14 Cross the Taiwan Strait:
Provocative Politics
16 China-Japan Relationship:
End of the Abe Era
P16
COVER STORY
20 Out and About:
Day Trippers/Tent-pole Industries
POLITICS
30 Local Corruption:
Halting the Vanity Affair
ENVIRONMENT P54
32 Ecological Compensation:
Betting On Green
2 CHINAREPORT I September 2022
CONTENTS
P60
P57 P51
SOCIETY OUTSIDE IN
36 Assisted Reproduction: 60 Tongliao:
Build Your Own Baby Getting in Steppe
40 Fraud:
Grandparent Trap 04 SNAPSHOTS
08 MEDIA FOCUS
ECONOMY 09 WHAT THEY SAY
43 Youth Unemployment: 10 NEWS BRIEF
Job Pains and Gains 12 NETIZEN WATCH
46 Civil Aviation: 52 CHINA BY NUMBERS
Turbulence Ahead 62 ESSAY
64 FLAVOUR OF THE MONTH/REAL CHINESE
CULTURE
51 TV :
Morality Played Out
INTERVIEW P46
54 Interview:
Identity Issues
HISTORY
57 History:
Steep Competition
CHINAREPORT I September 2022 3
SNAPSHOTS
1. China’s Long March-5B Y3 carrier rocket lifts
off from Wenchang Space Launch Site, Hainan
Province, July 24, 2022. The upgraded rocket
carried the Tianwen lab module, which was
delivered to the astronauts at the Tiangong space
station [Photo by VCG]
2. Young people visit an immersive art exhibition
featuring a projected version of a painting titled
“The Vast Land” by Chinese painter Wang Ximeng
(1096-1119), Chongqing, August 7, 2022. [Photo
by IC]
3. Pictured is China’s first domestically constructed
cruise ship, August 3, 2022. The colossal liner,
built by Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding Co
Ltd, a subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Co
Ltd, is scheduled for completion in the second half
of 2023 [Photo by IC]
4. The world’s first maglev-suspension monorail,
dubbed the Xingguo, undergoes trials on an
800-metre test track in Ganzhou, Jiangxi Province,
August 9, 2022. The project was proposed by
Jiangxi University of Science and Technology and
implemented by the China Railway Sixth Institute
Group and China Railway High-Tech Industry Co
Ltd [Photo by IC]
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CHINAREPORT I September 2022 5
SNAPSHOTS
3
1. Tourists visit the restored Locana Buddha Statue,
Longmen Grottoes, Luoyang, Henan Province,
August 3, 2022. Built in 672, the statue is
celebrated for its fine craftsmanship and expressive
carving [Photo by VCG]
2. A beluga whale eyes a lamp as it swims in a
tank at Harbin Polarland, August 6, 2022, Harbin.
A group of children stayed overnight in the park
to observe animals’ nocturnal behaviour [Photo
by VCG]
3. Tourists dressed in rented astronaut costumes
pose for a photo at Wulanhada Volcano Geopark
in Ulanqab, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region,
July 16, 2022. The park has become a tourist
hotspot for its Martian and moon-like terrain
[Photo by VCG]
4. Priests (Bimo) perform rites as part of the
Torch Festival, the most significant event of the
Yi minority, Chuxiong Yi Autonomous Prefecture,
Yunnan Province, July 22, 2022 [Photo by VCG]
6 CHINAREPORT I September 2022
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CHINAREPORT I September 2022 7
ChinaReport, Chinese Edition Xinmin Weekly
July 25, 2022 July 25, 2022
Sound Growth to be Secured Genetic Medical Revolution in Sight
Over the past few years, metagenomics, a genetic testing
technology which takes samples directly from the en-
vironment, has developed quickly in China, due to its
fast and more accurate identification of microorganisms.
Teaming up with forefront sciences, genetic testing in China is almost on par
with technologies developed in the West, and even leads in some specified
fields. However, weak links, such as insufficient national genetic databases and
high charges are still to be addressed. To build a stronger database, Huaxi Hos-
pital in Sichuan Province is working on the genetic sequencing of 100,000
rare diseases. Meanwhile, the cost of metagenetic testing has reduced by 100
times from 10 years ago. With a growing number of third-party institutes
China secured hard-won economic growth of 2.5 percent in the involved in genetic testing, a medical revolution is approaching.
first half of 2022. During the second half, the government will con-
tinue to ensure effective investment in expanding and upgrading
infrastructure. The credit limit of policy banks will be loosened and
more bonds will be issued to leverage investment estimated at 1.5
Hua Sheng Guan Cha
trillion yuan (US$220b). Investment in job-creation infrastructure
June 30, 2022
projects is particularly encouraged. However, it is not easy to find
projects that balance immediate demand for economic growth Strategic Development in Counties
and long-term returns. Value-added tax refunds will be scaled up
to direct more funds to ease tight cash flow for businesses, espe- China is projected to roll out a slew of policies to upgrade
cially struggling small- and medium-sized enterprises. It is crucial its 1,866 counties and county-level cities into moderately
to stabilise market expectations for long-term growth. Tertiary well-off areas by 2025, according to a circular issued by
industry should also be boosted to increase job opportunities. Ex- the central government. About 30 percent of permanent urban residents, to-
perts also propose handing out discount coupons to consumers and
talling 250 million by 2021, live in counties in the urban-rural fringe. These
increasing financial liquidity for housing developers in difficulties.
counties are supposed to reverse the trend of rural to urban migration of the
past four decades. This year, fresh graduates unable to find jobs in big cities
have sought career opportunities in counties, though still somewhat reluctant-
Southern Metropolis
ly. To sustain the fledgling talent pools, and more importantly share growth
Weekly
benefits for farmers, resources will be distributed to diversify and develop in-
June 12, 2022
dustries in counties.
Ready Meals on the Menu
Pre-prepared food, which only
needs to be heated up, is expected
to hit a market scale of 3 trillion Oriental Outlook
yuan (US$440b) within six to seven years in China, July 21, 2022
if year-on-year growth can be maintained above 20 Beijing’s Mother River Restored
percent from 2023. Popular with young people, ready
meals liberate commuters from tedious cooking and On May 12, 2022, Yongding River, the mother river of
provide them with diverse cuisines. The booming Beijing, flowed for the first time for decades through its
business is shaping a holistic industrial chain from raw full watercourse, passing the provincial regions of Shanxi,
materials to catering while standardisation is under- Inner Mongolia, Hebei, Beijing and Tianjin before entering the Bohai Sea.
way. In 2021, the output of crayfish, a popular sum- The banks are covered in green trees and echo to the sound of birds. Some
mer cuisine, usually sold semi-cooked, surged by 22.4 2.15 billion cubic metres of water was diverted from the Yellow and Yangtze
percent to almost 422.2 billion yuan (US$62.44b), Rivers to end the watercourse’s drought. The water is expected to keep flowing
among which 303 billion yuan (US$44.81b) was for at least 100 days in 2022 and constant flow should be restored by 2035.
from catering. Meanwhile, with capital expansion, Improvements in water quality allow Guanting Reservoir on the Yongding
listed companies are monopolising supplies and nar- River to resume its long-lost role in Beijing’s drinkable water system. Joint
rowing margins for retailers. Yet China’s ready-to-eat efforts such as Shanxi’s eco-friendly agricultural development, Beijing’s inter-
food industry is still in its nascent stage, and few enter- disciplinary research as well as the preservation of riverside cultural heritage
prises are capable of taking a lead in the market. have paid off.
8 CHINAREPORT I September 2022