Chinese vice premier calls for more efforts to build Belt and Road -- Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli called for more efforts in building the Belt and Road on January 16. Addressing a conference on the initiative, Zhang said China should continue to push pilot projects under the initiative to connect infrastructure and policy. Trade and investment cooperation should be improved and new growth drivers found for the common development along the Belt and Road, he said. China needs better financial products and services for the initiative, he said.
China to allow non-property enterprises, villages to build houses -- China will allow non-real-estate enterprises and villages to build houses on the land they own to boost housing supply. A total of 13 cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing, Hangzhou and Xiamen are pilot regions where villages can build rental houses on land under collective ownership, either by themselves or by partnering with others, according to the national land and resources work conference held on January 15. Rural housing land still belongs to the collective village entity and farmers will be allowed to use it for housing and other purposes, said land and resources minister Jiang Daming. The decision is considered a major step in nurturing a sustainable property market as the government used to be the only legitimate supplier of land for housing purposes.
China promotes online education -- The first batch of 490 national quality courses are available online for the public, according to an educational official on January 15. The courses focus on common curriculum for undergraduate education and higher vocational education, professional basic courses, and professional core courses, said Wu Yan, head of the Department of Higher Education with the Ministry of Education, at a press conference. About 70 percent of the 490 courses are provided by China's first-class universities, including Peking University, Tsinghua University, and Wuhan University.
China to diversify sources of residential land supply -- China will seek new sources of residential land supply to improve housing, and gradually the government will no longer be the sole provider of residential land. Authorities will work on plans to let non-real estate companies build residential housing on land of which they have obtained use rights, said Minister of Land and Resources Jiang Daming at a national conference. The government will also allow rental housing on rural land to increase rental options, the minister said.
China to step up regulation on banking sector -- China's banking regulator said it will toughen regulation on the banking sector this year in a move to defuse financial risks. Priorities of the work were listed in a statement of the China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC) on January 13, including shadow banking supervision and consumer protection. Risk control will be strengthened in interbank activities, financial products and off-balance sheet business, according to the statement. Violations in corporate governance, property loans, disposal of non-performing assets and other key areas will also face stricter punishment. The CBRC expects to rein in increasing violations, redirect capital to the real economy, and prompt banks to focus on their main business.
New system to regulate shared bikes in E China city -- The traffic authority of Nanchang, capital of east China's Jiangxi Province, has partnered with three shared bike companies to set up a credit scoring system to tackle bad cycling. The Nanchang Traffic Management Bureau, Mobike, ofo and Hellobike agreed to share data and build a scoring system from January. Riders will receive penalty points if they break traffic rules. They may be blacklisted and banned from riding if their score becomes zero. Shared bikes have disturbed traffic order in many places, despite their popularity among commuters.
China supports development of new energy intelligent cars -- China's top economic planner has cleared the way for development of domestic new energy cars and intelligent vehicles. The country will promote the innovative development of the intelligent vehicles and develop the auto industry in the "strategic direction" of intelligent vehicles, according to the draft version of the Intelligent Automobile Innovation and Development Strategy, which was released by China's National Development and Reform Commission to solicit opinions. China will develop the artificial intelligence and big data to make the new energy auto industry competitive in the global market.
Shenzhen to remove outdated boundary around economic zone -- Southern Chinese metropolis Shenzhen will remove the barrier that was set up more than three decades ago to mark the boundary of the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone. The State Council has approved the removal of the barbed wire fence that runs more than 80 kilometers around the core of Shenzhen, in a move to foster the city's integration. In a guideline, the State Council urged the city government of Shenzhen and the provincial government of Guangdong to take the opportunity to optimize the city's layout and land use, improve its public transport and better protect the environment.
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