China Daily's editor-in-chief Zhu Ling (left) poses with Mao Linsheng, chief of the publicity department of the CPC Zhejiang Provincial Committee, at the launching ceremony of the Zhejiang Weekly on Sept 28. [Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]

HANGZHOU: China Daily and Zhejiang Daily Press Group (ZDPG), the leading newspaper group in East China's Zhejiang province, on Tuesday co-launched Zhejiang Weekly, an English-language weekly in the province's capital, Hangzhou.

The move is the first of its kind in which a national newspaper group such as China Daily cooperates with provincial-level press group such as ZDPG to put out a local English-language newspaper.

"Zhejiang, as one of the fastest-growing provinces in China in terms of economic strength, has long attracted close attention from the international community. We hope the launch of the Zhejiang Weekly will help better present Zhejiang's image on the world stage," said China Daily's editor-in-chief Zhu Ling, adding that China Daily will seek to enhance all levels of communication and cooperation with ZDPG.

China Daily signed a comprehensive strategic cooperative deal with ZDPG on April 15 this year, with the publication of the Zhejiang Weekly being an important part of the deal.

The eight-page tabloid weekly, which will initially circulate with the Qianjiang Evening News, is expected to go global together with China Daily later. It will offer updated coverage on Zhejiang's social, economic and cultural developments, enabling the world to better understand Zhejiang.

"Today's launch is our first step in co-operating with China Daily, with sharing resources becoming an important channel for media to improve their competence and influence globally. We are quite honored and inspired by the move," said Gao Haihao, president and chairman of the board of ZDPG.

The trial issue of Zhejiang Weekly, published a week ago, received a warm welcome by readers in hotels, office buildings and English-language training centers in Hangzhou. Meanwhile, 1,000 readers in Hangzhou have so far taken out a three-month free subscription of the weekly by calling the subscription hotline during the past week.

Qianjiang Evening News, which is published by ZDPG, is the largest circulated Chinese-language newspaper in Hangzhou and Zhejiang.

By Ma Zhenhuan (chinadaily.com.cn)