China's key land port sees rise in imports and exports in Q1 -- Horgos Port in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region saw a rise in imports and exports in the first quarter of 2018. From January to March, imports and exports at this land port bordering Kazakhstan hit 23.9 billion yuan (3.8 billion U.S. dollars), up 9 percent year-on-year. Throughput reached 7.5 million tons, an increase of 12 percent compared with the same period last year, mainly driven by exports. Customs said that increased exports of mechanical, electrical and agricultural products had contributed most to the growth. Located about 670 km from Urumqi and 370 km from Almaty, Horgos was once a busy pass on the ancient Silk Road. The Belt and Road Initiative has injected new vitality into the port.
Chinese micro-credit firms shrink in number, outstanding loans in Q1 -- China's micro-credit firms shrank in number and in outstanding loans in the first quarter of this year, central bank data showed on April 25. There were 8,471 micro-credit firms in China by the end of March, down by 80 firms compared with the end of last year, according to the People's Bank of China.Outstanding loans stood at 963 billion yuan (152.4 billion U.S. dollars), down 11.1 billion yuan compared with last December.
China gross oceanic product sees steady growth in Q1 -- China's gross oceanic product rose 7 percent year on year to 1.8 trillion yuan (about 285 billion U.S. dollars) in the first quarter, according to the Ministry of Natural Resources. The growth was slightly faster than the 6.9-percent increase for the full year of 2017, the ministry said in a statement. Marine enterprises saw strong growth in profitability, with the combined profits of 767 companies monitored by the ministry surging 35.1 percent in the first two months. A total of 2,126 new marine companies in monitored sectors were registered in January and February, up 23.2 percent year on year.
China QFII quota hits 99.5 bln USD -- A total of 287 overseas institutions have received quotas amounting to 99.5 billion U.S. dollars under China's Qualified Foreign Institutional Investors (QFII) program to move money into the country's capital account, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange said on April 25. As of April 24, the quota in the RMB Qualified Foreign Institutional Investors (RQFII) program came in at 614.9 billion yuan (97.6 billion U.S. dollars). China's currency, the yuan, is convertible for trade purposes under the current account, while the capital account, which covers portfolio investment and borrowing, is largely run by the state in an effort to control capital flows in and out of the country.
China's Zhejiang reports 7.4 pct growth in Q1-- Zhejiang Province in east China reported economic growth of 7.4 percent year on year in the first quarter of 2018, 0.6 percentage point higher than the national average, authorities said. GDP reached 1.17 trillion yuan (185 billion U.S. dollars) from January to March, according to the provincial statistics bureau. The province saw export and import volumes of 621.1 billion yuan during the quarter, up 10.9 percent from the same period last year, said chief statistician Wang Meifu. Zhejiang's exports in the first quarter accounted for 12.8 percent of national total, Wang said, noting that more than 77 percent of exports came from private businesses.
More than 70pct of China's overseas exhibitions held in B&R countries in 2015-17 -- More than 70 percent of China's independent overseas exhibitions were held in the countries along the Belt and Road routes during the period of 2015-2017, according to a recent report released by China Convention, Exhibition, Event Society (CCEES). The report shows that the countries along the Belt and Road routes have increasingly become the popular destinations for China's independent overseas exhibitions. In 2017, the number of China's independent overseas exhibitions was 123, of which 71 were held in the countries along the routes with the exhibition areas of 510,000 square meters, accounting for 61 percent of total areas of China's independent overseas exhibitions, said the report.
China's online retail sales grow over 34 pct in Q1 -- China's online retail sales maintained high-speed growth in the first quarter, official data has showed. Online retail sales totaled 1.5 trillion yuan (238.5 billion U.S. dollars) in the first three months, up 34.4 percent year on year, according to Gao Feng, spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce. The online sales value accounted for 16.1 percent of total retail sales in the first quarter, 3.7 percentage points higher than the same period last year.
Chinese banks see net forex sales drop in Q1 -- Chinese commercial banks reported a significant drop in net foreign exchange sales in the first quarter as cross-border capital flows remained balanced and stable, the country's forex regulator said on April 19. Chinese lenders bought 434.2 billion U.S. dollars of foreign currency and sold 452.5 billion dollars from January to March, resulting in net sales of 18.3 billion dollars, according to Wang Chunying, spokesperson for the State Administration of Foreign Exchange. This represented a 55-percent drop compared with net forex sales volume in the same period last year. In March alone, commercial banks saw net forex sales of 9.2 billion dollars.
More than 1,700 companies to attend the CIIE -- More than 1,700 companies from all over the world have applied to attend the China International Import Expo (CIIE) which will be held in Shanghai in November. Over 900 applicants have signed contracts for the expo, which will cover more than 157,000 square meters. Among them, 34 percent of enterprises are from the Belt and Road countries and regions.
Industrial sector gets a boost in first quarter -- China's industrial sector made a strong start in the first quarter, with the industrial value-added output rising 6.8 percent year-on-year, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said on April 25. The expansion came as the nation stepped up a gear in promoting supply-side structural reform and building itself into a manufacturing powerhouse, Chen Yin, chief engineer of the MIIT, said at a news conference. Industrial production expanded at a steady pace, while the sector's profitability and entrepreneurial confidence improved, Chen said, citing official data. Industrial value-added output in the first quarter grew 0.2 percentage point faster than in the whole of 2017, according to the ministry's data. During the period, the manufacturing sector's value-added output registered growth of 7 percent year-on-year. (Source: China Daily)
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