Plan to ease flows of news

The State Council Information Office (SCIO) will establish a three-tier government news-release system, said Minister Zhao Qizheng.

The three-tier system will feature spokespeople for the State Council, all central government ministries and provincial-level governments, he said.

SCIO has mapped out a development plan and detailed measures, based on comprehensive research, to help install information dissemination mechanisms.

Gigantic port under way

Construction of a gigantic international passenger terminal ?to compete with existing terminals in Hong Kong ?began recently in Shanghai.

The terminal, capable of docking international passenger liners, especially luxury cruise ships, is to be built alongside the Huangpu River.

The 160,000-square-metre Shanghai Port International Cruise Terminal, at the downtown Gaoyang pier, will include an 850-metre international port that has three 80,000-ton berths for international passenger liners, say officials with Shanghai International Port (Group) Co Ltd, the main developer.

Coal exports decrease

China National Coal Group, the nation's largest coal exporter, said its exports dipped slightly last year as the company shifted part of its supplies to markets at home in the fourth quarter to meet the domestic shortfall.

The company said it will work hard to keep export rates stable this year, although the government might try to curb coal exports and reduce tax rebates for those exports.

Focus on 'quality of growth?

Despite concerns the Chinese economy is showing some early signs of overheating, a senior official with the World Bank in Beijing said he is confident the government is capable of containing the threat while maintaining 7- to 8-per-cent growth this year.

Looking ahead, Yukon Huang, the bank's chief of mission in China, said the challenge is to ensure sustainable growth, perhaps at lower rates, that will generate jobs and elevate living standards.

China's economy, he said, has been quite strong, with a high growth rate, a robust foreign trade sector and sharply increasing foreign exchange reserves.

Futures to be launched

China's futures market is expected to welcome some new products this year, and an improved regulatory environment.

Fuel oil, cotton and corn are the three products that are likely to be launched by the futures exchanges in Shanghai, Zhengzhou and Dalian, respectively, this year, said Tian Yuan, chairman of the China Futures Association.

The exchanges had submitted proposals to the China Securities Regulatory Commission. They are expected to receive approval soon.

Import-export rights await

Individuals in China are about to receive import-export rights ?once the private domain of powerful State monopolies ?under proposed amendments to the nation's decade-old Foreign Trade Law, said a senior trade official.

Zhang Yuqing, director of the Department of Treaty and Law under the Ministry of Commerce, said the draft amendment to the law on foreign trade will, for the first time, define individuals as parties able to engage in foreign trade ?a move to facilitate private foreign trade business and fulfill China's pledges to the World Trade Organization.

Wen demands licensing reforms

Premier Wen Jiabao last week urged government officials to prepare to enforce the Law on Administrative Licensing.

Wen said the officials should take enforcement of this law as an opportunity to step up the transformation of government functions and push for management innovations.

The law was approved by the nation's top legislature, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, last August. It takes effect on July 1.

Oil-supply security to be enhanced

China is considering letting its domestic crude tanker fleet transport half of the nation's oil imports by 2005, in a US$10-billion programme to improve the security of China's vulnerable oil supply.

At present, more than 90 per cent of China's crude imports are carried by marine ships, while only 10 per cent of the import is taken by the domestic fleet.

The plan is just one of the steps taken by the government since last year to increase energy security ?including building up strategic oil reserves, launching a national geological survey on oil deposits and introducing long-term energy policies.

High-tech key to exports growth

China is gearing up to increase high-tech content in its exports.

Officials from eight administrations under the State Council met last week to discuss how best to increase competitiveness.

Vice-Premier Wu Yi said different government departments have done a lot work since a strategy for increasing high-tech exports was outlined five years ago.

Experts seek tax unification

The time is ripe for the government to introduce a unified income tax policy for domestic and foreign-funded companies, experts said.

"An equal tax treatment for all companies is in line with international practices, especially now that China is a member of the World Trade Organization,?said Ni Hongri, a senior researcher with the State Council's Development Research Centre.

China is now practising a twin-track income tax policy for domestic and foreign-funded companies.

New rules to check losses

New rules governing the transactions of State-owned assets and equities in non-listed domestic enterprises were jointly released last Thursday by the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission and the Ministry of Finance.

It was the first time standards and procedures were clarified to prevent irregularities and losses of State assets, and to ensure open market practices, a commission spokesman said.

(Business Weekly 01/13/2004 page2)