China's R&D spending reaches 2.1 pct of GDP in 2016 -- China's spending on research and development (R&D) accounted for 2.1 percent of GDP in 2016, the Ministry of Science and Technology announced on October 19. The spending reached 1.54 trillion yuan (around 233 billion U.S. dollars) last year, with over 78 percent coming from enterprises.
China cuts fees on businesses by more than 60 billion U.S. dollars -- China cut administrative fees on businesses by more than 420 billion yuan (63.38 billion U.S. dollars) during the past years to relieve their burden and stimulate the market. More than 60 percent of the reduction was made during 2013 to 2016 through drops in operation service fees and power use costs, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said on October 24. All businesses and individuals were exempted from 18 items of charges last year, a policy previously only for small firms.
Chinese environmental protection equipment output to hit 1 trillion yuan by 2020 -- China aims to boost its output of environmental protection equipment manufacturing industry to 1 trillion yuan (about 151 billion U.S. dollars) by 2020, according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT). It expects the industry to complete an innovation-driven development system by 2020, by enhancing its supply efficiency and market share.
Shanghai Customs sees rising auto imports in Jan.-Sept. -- Shanghai Customs has released figures showing a rise in auto imports for nine consecutive months since January this year. In the first nine months of this year, a total of 302,000 vehicles worth 84.87 billion yuan (12.79 billion U.S. dollars) were imported through Shanghai, up 17 percent year on year. About 169,000 cars were imported from the Europe Union during the period, up 21.2 percent year on year, accounting for 55.7 percent of the total imports. Cars imported from the United States increased 30.1 percent year on year to 72,000.
China's home prices continue to stabilize -- China's property market continued to cool as home prices faltered or posted slower growth in major cities amid tough policies to curb speculation, official data showed on October 23. On a yearly basis, new residential housing price saw slower growth in 15 major cities in September compared with the same month last year, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said. On a month-on-month basis, new residential housing prices fell or remained flat in those cities. Of 70 cities surveyed, home prices in 44 cities rose month on month, compared with 46 in August.
Beijing's commercial property sales down 49 pct -- Commercial property sales in Beijing totaled 5.65 million square meters in the first nine months of this year, down 49.2 percent year on year, according to the latest data released by the local statistics authority on October 23. Residential housing sales also slowed during the period. Sales, totaling 3.7 million square meters, fell 42.9 percent year on year, said the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Statistics. The data show that the construction area of commercial property in Beijing was about 115 million square meters during the period, down 8 percent year on year.
China's property loan growth slows as purchase curbs remain -- Loans to China's real estate sector continued to grow at a slower pace in September as government purchase restrictions remain in place in major cities, data from the central bank showed on October 20. By the end of last month, financial institutions in China had lent 31.1 trillion yuan (4.7 trillion U.S. dollars) to the property sector, up 22.8 percent year on year, according to a report from the People's Bank of China (PBOC). The growth was 1.4 percentage points lower than the rate seen by the end of June.
Chinese Q1-Q3 M&A transactions along B&R routes soar -- Enterprises in the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong have completed 68 mergers and acquisitions (M&A) transactions along the Belt and Road with a total value of 37.8 billion U.S. dollars since the beginning of the year, representing a 73 percent growth year on year, according to the 21st Century Business Herald. However, the number of their M&A transactions in the U.S. was only 61, with the value of 9.2 billion U.S. dollars, down 76.6 percent year on year.
China's power generation grows faster in September -- China's power generation saw faster growth in September than August, with electricity from clean energy sources expanding at rapid pace, official data showed on October 19. Last month, power production rose 5.3 percent, 0.5 percentage point faster than August, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said. Electricity from hydropower plants rose 18.6 percent, higher than the 5 percent increase in August, due to sufficient water supply in southern regions. Nuclear, wind and solar power production surged by 21.9 percent, 36.8 percent and 25.2 percent respectively, all much faster than August. In the first three quarters, power generation rose 6.4 percent to 4.69 trillion kWh.
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