With the joint efforts of all parties, the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway is likely to commence construction in the upcoming months, according to media reports. This project, once completed, will further promote economic and trade development in Central Asia, transform the region's economic landscape and inject more certainties to the global trade, domestic and international experts said.

The just-concluded third plenary session of the 20th Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee has planned forward an economic development blueprint that lays the foundation for increased productivity and technological breakthroughs, thus ensuring a continued success of China's economic miracle in the years to come, even as the international environment will likely become increasingly complex and volatile, foreign scholars told the Global Times.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with a delegation of the board of directors of the US-China Business Council (USCBC) on Monday, where he discussed China's policy stance toward the US, which is based on the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation, while also stressing that the country's “bottom line” must be safeguarded in developing bilateral relations. He also called for USCBC members to play a more active role in promoting the healthy and sound development of bilateral relations.

China has demonstrated its determination to comprehensively deepen reforms, with policy stability and continuity a highlight, Chinese and foreign experts said on Monday, commenting on a resolution on further deepening reform comprehensively to advance Chinese modernization that was adopted at the just-concluded third plenary session of the 20th Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee.

China will take a multi-pronged approach to improve the new system for mobilizing resources nationwide to boost the overall performance of our country's innovation system while also building a self-supporting and risk-controllable industrial chain, especially in key industrial chains such as integrated circuits, industrial machine tools, industrial software, and advanced materials, according to a resolution on further deepening reform comprehensively to advance Chinese modernization that was adopted at the just-concluded third plenary session of the 20th Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee.

Foreign investors increased their holdings of Chinese bonds in June for a 10th consecutive month, and the amount hit a new high, data showed. Observers said on Sunday these figures underscore foreign capital's strong confidence in the stable growth prospects of the world's second-largest economy, and their positive feedback on steady progress in financial market opening-up.

China's outstanding contributions to promoting global economic growth, maintaining multilateral trading mechanisms and supporting the reform agenda of the WTO have received wide endorsements during the ongoing ninth review of the trade policies and practices of China by the WTO being held in Geneva, Switzerland, the Xinhua News Agency reported.

The third plenary session of the 20th Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, which will map out a blueprint for China's reform and opening-up as well as achieving Chinese modernization, is consequential for the world as it will showcase an independent development path for the Global South and bring more development opportunities for the world, a Thai scholar said on Wednesday.

China's GDP expanded 5 percent to reach 61.68 trillion yuan ($8.49 trillion) in the first half of 2024, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed on Monday, demonstrating the resilience and innate strength of the world's second-largest economy.

China's GDP expanded 5 percent to reach 61.68 trillion yuan ($8.49 trillion) in the first half of 2024, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed on Monday, indicating the world's second-largest economy has sustained the momentum of post-pandemic recovery, thanks to a continuous improvement in overseas demand, a pick-up in home consumption, and stepped-up government policy support, despite facing internal and external uncertainties.

As the third plenary session of the 20th Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee will be convened on Monday, the world is watching how the pivotal gathering, also known as the third plenum, will identify priorities for comprehensively deepening reform, map out a blueprint for its long-term economic development and open up a new chapter in the country's march toward Chinese modernization.

Chinese President Xi Jinping's first Central Asia visit as head of state dates back to 2013 when he proposed the concept of the Silk Road Economic Belt in Astana. In the following years, he visited the region frequently for bilateral and multilateral discussions. On July 2 to July 6, the Chinese president again set foot on this land for attending the 24th Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in Astana, and paid state visits to Kazakhstan and Tajikistan.

A 20-something Tajik student Bakhtiyor Bozorzoda was on a flight from Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan to China on July 5. He, along with other 11 Tajik teachers and students from the Luban Workshop in Tajikistan, will participate in a near one-month training and study program at the Tianjin Urban Construction Management & Vocation Technology College (TUCMVTC). The workshop has been jointly established by TUCMVTC, Tianjin Chengjian University and the Tajikistan Technical University (TTU).

China and Tajikistan on Friday announced the elevation of ties to comprehensive strategic partnership in the new era during Chinese President Xi Jinping's ongoing state visit to Tajikistan, injecting new momentum and opening up a new chapter in bilateral ties and common development of the two countries.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has just wrapped up his state visit to Tajikistan. Tajikistan is one of the earliest countries joining the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), and last year, China and Tajikistan jointly announced the building of a China-Tajikistan Community with a Shared Future featuring everlasting friendship, solidarity and mutual benefit. Last week, Global Times reporters Li Xuanmin and Xing Xiaojing (GT) interviewed Guzel Maitdinova (Maitdinova), a professor at the Department of Foreign Regional Studies and Foreign Policy at Russian-Tajik (Slavonic) University. According to Maitdinova, Tajikistan aims to become a “connecting bridge” between China and Central Asia to facilitate BRI development. She also suggested ramped-up cooperation between the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO).

Walking in downtown Dushanbe, capital of Tajikistan, one can easily see a steady stream of Chinese new-energy vehicles (NEV) including models from BYD, Geely and BAIC Group motoring smoothly along the city's bustling streets. It is no surprise then, that if one randomly hails a taxi, you find you are stepping into a China-made NEV, their drivers more than happy to share how comfortable the ride is, and how easy and cost-effective they are to drive.

Amid the 24th Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in Astana, Kazakhstan, the Global Times reporters Li Xuanmin and Xing Xiaojing (GT)interviewed Aliya Mussabekova (Mussabekova), chief expert at the Asian Studies Department at Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and Maryam Agharabi (Agharabi), research coordinator at China & Central Asia Studies Center (CCASC) in Kazakhstan.

Amid the 24th Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in Astana, Kazakhstan, the Global Times reporters Li Xuanmin and Xing Xiaojing (GT) interviewed Aliya Mussabekova (Mussabekova), chief expert at the Asian Studies Department at Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and Maryam Agharabi (Agharabi), research coordinator at China & Central Asia Studies Center (CCASC) in Kazakhstan.

Crude oil and natural gas projects between China and Kazakhstan in the past decade have played a significant role in safeguarding China's energy security and elevating the economic development of Kazakhstan as well as the Central Asian region, high-level executives and business representatives from China and Kazakhstan told the Global Times.

Regional development has been a priority under the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) framework and the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Central Asia has been transforming from a "landlocked" region to a transportation hub in Eurasia, witnessing great improvement in internal connectivity while also integrating itself more seamlessly into the global economic and logistics chain, Chinese company representatives and scholars from Central Asia said.

China's agricultural cooperation with Central Asia, which is considered to be a core region of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), has been moving forward steadily with greater breadth and depth in recent years, according to Chinese agricultural experts and representatives from the SCO agriculture cooperation base.

Ahead of the highly anticipated visits, Global Times reporters (GT) interviewed Zhang Xiao (Zhang), Chinese Ambassador to Kazakhstan. Zhang said that since its founding 23 years ago, the SCO has significantly contributed to regional security, stability, and prosperity. At the upcoming Astana Summit, member state leaders will reinforce the "Shanghai Spirit," featured by mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality, consultation, respect for diverse civilizations and pursuit of common development, to establish a shared future community within the SCO.

From Tuesday to Saturday, Chinese President Xi Jinping will attend the 24th Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in Astana and, at the invitation of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of the Republic of Kazakhstan and President Emomali Rahmon of the Republic of Tajikistan, pay state visits to Kazakhstan and Tajikistan, China's Foreign Ministry announced on Sunday.

The 24th meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) will take place in Astana, Kazakhstan in early July. Ahead of the SCO summit, Global Times reporters Li Xuanmin and Xing Xiaojing (GT) conducted an exclusive interview with Gulnar Shaimergenova (Shaimergenova), director of the China Studies Center in Kazakhstan, who during the interview highlighted the extensive role China plays in facilitating regional cooperation and economic integration. Shaimergenova was present when the concept of BRI was first put forward in Kazakhstan in 2013. During the interview, Shaimergenova shared her insights on how the initiative has opened up new opportunities of economic interaction and partnership, rising trade and prosperity in the region.

Global Times reporter Li Xuanmin (GT) and Xing Xiaojing recently conducted an exclusive interview with Bolat Nurgaliyev (Nurgaliyev), who served as SCO secretary-general from 2007 to 2009 and now works as the chairman of the Board of the Foreign Policy Research Institute under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan. Nurgaliyev highlighted the SCO's role in demonstrating that countries with different political systems and models of economic development can cooperate in harmony.

“The Luban Workshop helped me realize my dream, and there is nothing more joyful than seeing dreams come true. This is the most precious gift that China has given to the youth of Djibouti!” said Aisha, 23, in Djibouti.

The US has reportedly issued draft rules that would restrict and monitor US investments in China for artificial intelligence (AI), computer chips and quantum computing, a move that observers said on Sunday shows that Washington has been tightening its restrictions to stymie the development of China's cutting-edge technologies, with the scope of curbs expanding from export bans to more irrational areas that could result in dire global consequences.

China's economy has continued expanding in May, with the industrial outputof the enterprises above the designated size jumping by 5.6 percent year-on-year, while gross retail sales risingby 3.7 percent, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed on Monday.

China-New Zealand economic and trade ties are expected to be further strengthened amid Chinese Premier Li Qiang's ongoing visit to New Zealand, which began on Thursday. This visit will inject new impetus into bilateral relations, with representatives from business groups expressing high expectations and readiness to tap into the greater potential of bilateral economic and trade ties.

China and Brazil have built a close relationship in the past five decades that is "complementary and integrated" in multiple economic fronts, Dilma Rousseff, the chair of the New Development Bank and former president of Brazil, told the Global Times in an exclusive interview.

This week, the 2024 Tsinghua PBCSF Global Finance Forum took place in Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang Province. It invited globally renowned scholars to discuss how to reform and reconstruct an international monetary and financial system for all.

Global Times reporter Li Xuanmin (GT) interviewed Zhu Min (Zhu), founder of the Global Economic Governance 50 Forum, former deputy governor of China's central bank and former deputy managing director of the IMF, and Marc Uzan (Uzan), executive director of the Reinventing Bretton Woods Committee, on the sidelines of the forum. The two economists shared their insights on the global de-dollarization trend and China's role in the construction of a new global financial system.

Cooperation between China and France, which has proven to lead to win-win results, offers the best example debunking the decoupling and "de-risking" calls in the EU, said Christian de Boissieu, a French economist and professor of economics at the Pantheon-Sorbonne University, while slamming those calls as "crazy and naïve."

It is not in the interests of Europe to follow the US policy of imposing tariffs on Chinese products, considering each other's comparative advantages and the benefits of globalization and free trade, Giovanni Tria, former Italian minister of economy and finance and current professor of economics at the University of Rome Tor Vergata, told the Global Times on Tuesday, while urging Beijing and Brussels to rebuild a certain level of trust on the issue.

China will be a pioneer leading the world into a new and innovative financial and monetary system, as global calls for an overhaul of the Bretton Woods system – which has been in place for 80 years – gain traction due to the US abuse of the dollar's hegemony and its irresponsible policy, as well as a fragmenting global economy, Chinese and foreign scholars said.

The 2024 Tsinghua PBCSF Global Finance Forum kicked off on Monday in Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang Province. Themed with "80 Years after Bretton Woods: Building an International Monetary and Financial System for all," the forum gathers more than 70 Chinese and foreign officials and scholars to discuss a variety of related topics. The Global Times (GT) interviewed György Matolcsy (Matolcsy), governor of the Central Bank of Hungary on the sidelines of the forum on Monday, Matolcsy shared his insights on the build-up of a new financial system, international currency diversification push and the cooperation between China and Hungary.

The nation's goal of building itself into a financial powerhouse has achieved progress in six key elements that have Chinese characteristics: the internationalization of the yuan, the construction of a modern central bank system, the expansion of financial institutions, the improvement of the modern financial supervision system, the strengthening of a global financial center and the improvement of financial professionals, according to the China Financial Policy Report 2024 released on Monday.

China's economy maintained stable growth in April, with key indexes on industry, exports and employment showing improvement from March, data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed on Friday. The set of data underscored that the world's second-largest economy has been sustaining its solid recovery momentum since the beginning of the year despite facing multiple headwinds - ranging from a prolonged property sector downturn to rising geopolitical uncertainties.

China's economy maintained stable growth in April, with key indexes on industry, exports, employment and price improving moderately from March, data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed on Friday, underscoring that the world's second-largest economy has been sustaining the solid recovery momentum since the beginning of the year despite facing multiple global and domestic headwinds.

Since the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) was first proposed in 2013, there have been waves of disparaging campaigns by Western politicians and media outlets targeting the initiative – which have all lost traction during the past 11 years in the face of the BRI's extensive development worldwide.

China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) on Tuesday urged the US to immediately cancel the additional tariffs on Chinese products and vowed to take resolute measures to defend its rights over US' announcement to increase tariffs on Chinese products including electric vehicles (EVs)

Total China-US tradeexpanded 1.1 percent year-on-year to 1.47 trillion yuan ($203.42 billion) in yuan-denominated terms in the first four months, reversing a 0.7percent contraction in the first three months, customs data showed on Thursday.

The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), China's top economic planner, held a symposium in recent days with representatives of private companies on trade-ins of large-scale equipment and consumer products, according to a post seen on Monday on the NDRC's WeChat account.

From enthusiastic visitors sitting in malatang (spicy soup) restaurants in Tianshui, Northwest China's Gansu Province, to crowds flocking in droves to Shanghai's dazzling Bund area at night, and to the bustling camping sites on the outskirts of Beijing, China experienced a tourism frenzy during the five-day May Day holidays from Wednesday to Sunday.

The Chinese economy has started off in an upbeat note, with most provinces across the country showing a stepped-up recovery trajectory in the first quarter of the year — fueled by robust industrial growth, a warm-up in external demand and new drives from the creation of new quality productive forces, relevant data showed.

China's National Immigration Administration (NIA) has unveiled an array of new measures on Sunday that bring more conveniences to the entry and exit management of the public and businesses, including streamlining document processing and application, extending the duration of business stay, and meeting diverse tourism needs, which observers said represents the country's stepped-up effort in promoting high-level opening-up and facilitating international exchange.

The Yingxian Wooden Pagoda, the world's tallest wooden pagoda also known as the Sakyamuni Pagoda of the Fogong Temple, in Yingxian County, North China's Shanxi Province, embraced its artificial intelligence (AI)-powered “digital twin” on Friday, enabling visitors to immerse themselves inside the tower – including places which the public were previously unable to access - through virtual reality (VR) glasses.

A batch of Chinese top-name internet entrepreneurs gathered over the weekend in a rare case in Beijing, celebrating the 30th anniversary of China's connection to the internet.

US President Joe Biden is reportedly pushing for tariffs to triple on Chinese steel and aluminum, a new sign that Washington - disregarding WTO multilateral rules, domestic inflation pressure and global supply chain stability - is targeting Chinese industries under the guise of "overcapacity" fallacy.

China's social retail sales jumped 4.7 percent year-on-year to reach 12.03 trillion yuan in the first quarter this year, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed on Tuesday, underscoring a stable consumption expansion as the country braced a surge in consumer spending during the Spring Festival holidays at the beginning of the year.

The China Chamber of Commerce to the EU has expressed serious dissatisfaction regarding two investigations launched by the European Commission (EC) on Wednesday under the Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR) into China-linked companies, calling the FSR “a new tool of economic coercion.”

China's economy starts off 2024 on strong footing, with an array of key indicators in the first two months beating market expectation by a wide margin, fueled by a spending spree in the Spring Festival holidays, ramped-up efforts in building new quality productive forces and the effects of macro policies implementation. Observers said the upbeat data offer an encouraging sign that the world's second-largest economy is not only consolidating the recovery momentum but also picking up pace.

A number of Chinese localities have set out detailed plans to develop artificial intelligence (AI) technology and relevant ecosystems this year, a move that observers said shows that China is leveraging its “whole-nation” system advantage to fast track the technology's development amid a white-hot global race.

More pragmatic measures need to be taken to attract foreign students to China, such as simplifying their internship application procedures, allowing qualified foreign students to work at certain "non-sensitive" enterprises and public institutions, and lowering the work visa thresholds for foreign college graduate applicants, a political advisor told the Global Times, amid a deep decline in the number of foreign students in recent years, especially from developed countries.

This is the 17th consecutive year that Wu Weishan, a world-renowned Chinese artist and the director of the National Art Museum of China, participated in the two sessions - one of the most important annual political gatherings that set the tone for the country's policy priorities in a wide range of fields from the economy and society to cultural development.

The Hong Kong and Macao Special Administrative Regions (SARs) could consider organizing a joint “multi-stop” combination with “Chinese culture-themed” travel products from Chinese mainland cities, while taking advantages of the SARs' roles as global hubs and transit points to boost inbound tourism market, Pansy Ho Chiu-king, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and group executive chairwoman and managing director of Shun Tak Holdings, told the Global Times during the two sessions.

Southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region recorded a GDP growth rate of 9.5 percent last year, the highest growth pace in the country. And riding on the momentum, the region is expected to sustain the robust economic recovery in 2024, boosted by development potential in specialty industries such as highland barley and yaks, stepping up basic infrastructure construction as well as local tourism boom, a Chinese national political advisor told the Global Times during the two sessions.

The work report of the Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress (NPC), China's top legislature, on Friday pledged to accelerate the formation of a law aimed at promoting the development of the private sector, sending a strong, new signal on policymakers' commitment to making continuous improvements in the business environment and boosting the high-quality development of the private sector for Chinese modernization.

China could consider orderly relaxing the restrictions on egg freezing and egg donation, as the country takes more measures to strengthen the country's fertility preservation guarantee system amid an aging population and a delay in Chinese women's marriage and childbearing age, a political advisor told the Global Times during the two sessions.

China should make full-fledged breakthroughs in the Western-strangled chip manufacturing industry, with a focus on basic materials for chip-making such as photoresists and high-purity hydrogen fluoride for which China currently relies on imports, Xie Suyuan, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and an Academician of Chinese Academy of Sciences, told the Global Times on the sidelines of a group discussion during the two sessions on Thursday.

The assertion that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) has become a "ruin of an international financial center" is groundless, as the basic elements underpinning Hong Kong's status as a global financial center have not changed, and the region has been further leveraging its role as a super connector between the Chinese mainland and the rest of the world, Brian David Li Man-bun, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and co-chief executive of the Bank of East Asia (BEA), told the Global Times on Thursday.

Food security is one of the core issues being discussed during the annual two sessions in China, with political advisors in the agriculture sector emphasizing the need for technology innovation and seed revitalization to ensure stable food supplies.

China has set its 2024 GDP growth target at around 5 percent, which has been viewed as a signal of strong confidence that the world's second-largest economy could navigate through multifaceted pressure and boost a steady expansion this year.

The economy in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) is recovering and growing, and it's expected to continue expanding this year, as the region further taps its role as a "super connector" between the Chinese mainland and the world, and as the integration of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) further gears up, Kingsley Wong Kwok, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and a member of the Hong Kong Legislative Council, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

China on Tuesday set a growth target of around 5 percent for its economy in 2024, a "forward-looking and pragmatic" goal which deputies and economists said sends strong signals that the world's second-largest economy will sustain its firm recovery momentum this year despite rising headwinds, while putting more emphasis on ensuring economic stability and transforming growth models.

China plans to systematically address funding shortages facing some major projects in the course of advancing the national rejuvenation, and it will issue ultra-long special treasury bonds starting this year and over each of the next several years, Chinese Premier Li Qiang said in his Government Work Report delivered to the annual session of the National People's Congress (NPC) on Tuesday.

The US and its Western allies' relentless crackdown against Xinjiang's cotton industry since 2020 has failed, as the industry has been maintaining sound development momentum, and is seeing rising competitiveness not only in the Chinese market but also internationally, Liang Yong, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and a member of the China Association for Promoting Democracy, one of China's eight noncommunist political parties, told the Global Times. Liang is also the director of Xinjiang cotton industry development leadership office.

While the 14th Five-Year Plan has made clear China's support for Hong Kong region in enhancing its status as a center for various fields such as finance and trade, some political advisors from the city to the ongoing two sessions have proposed transforming it into a hub for the arts and cultural exchanges between China and the rest of the world.

China's top political advisory body started its annual session on Monday in Beijing, ushering in an important political season that will highlight new missions to steadily boost high-quality development in a bid to build the country into a great modern socialist country while injecting new impetus into global growth.

More than half of the world's manned deep diving missions have been completed by China's three deep-sea manned submersibles, Jiaolong, Shenhai Yongshi (Deep Sea Warrior) and Fendouzhe (Striver) during the past three years, Ye Cong, member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and chief designer of Fendouzhe, said on Monday.

China will officially kick off the annual two sessions on Monday, one of the most important political gatherings for the year that will set the tone for the country's policy priorities in a wide range of sectors from the economy, diplomacy, military to social development.

China is set to enter the two sessions period on Monday, focusing the world's attention on how one of the most important political events in the country will set priorities and plans involving the economy, diplomacy, military, and social development for 2024. This year marks the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China and is a key year for achieving the goals outlined in the national 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25). At this critical juncture, China's two sessions are set to send a refreshed strong signal to the world that China will remain firmly committed to promoting global common development and prosperity with its high-quality development.

China on Thursday released the statistical communique on national economic and social development in 2023, reaffirming that the Chinese economy maintained recovery momentum and made solid progress in pursuing high-quality development despite internal and external challenges.

The humanoid robot industry has been busy lately, with China's UBTECH Robotics and various overseas firms unveiling recent progress they have made. Experts said the strong development momentum of China's robot industry and continuous breakthroughs in basic core technologies have laid solid foundations for the industrial development of humanoid robots.

China's new home prices in first-tier cities declined 0.3 percent in January in month-on-month terms, narrowing 0.1 percentage point from that of December, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed on Friday. That in secondary markets edged down by 1 percent in January compared with December, also narrowing 0.1 percentage point from the previous month.

China's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MOA) on Monday issued an implementation guideline on promoting comprehensive rural revitalization. Observers said that it is a key step in the follow-up of the No 1 Central Document for 2024 – the first policy statement the central government releases at the beginning of each year, which focuses on agricultural and rural issues.

China's consumption at the Spring Festival holidays has shown signs of firing, with palpable uptick in movie ticket sales, unparallel travel surge, and festive purchase on Saturday, the first day of the eight-day Spring Festival holidays.

China's economic powerhouses, including Shanghai and South China's Guangdong Province, released their "report cards" for 2023 and their respective goals for GDP growth in 2024 on Tuesday, showcasing significant progress in industrial upgrading and an increase in foreign investment.

Chinese industry insiders and experts are hailing the fruitful achievements between China and Uzbekistan as bilateral ties experience a historic high against the backdrop of the state visit of Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to China, scheduled from Tuesday to Thursday.

China's gallium exports fell 66 percent year-on-year to $8.47 million last year, while those of germanium edged down 8.2 percent to $48.42 million, data from Chinese customs showed, a trend that industry observers said reflected multiple factors – including market demand adjustment, soaring material prices as well as certain time needed for application reviews after metal export controls took effect.

When Elon Musk's Tesla lost its crown as the largest electric vehicle (EV) maker to Chinese automaker BYD in the fourth quarter of 2023, the American billionaire said at that time that "Tesla is an AI/robotics company," trying to draw a difference between the technologies developed by the Chinese and US companies.

When Elon Musk's Tesla lost its crown as the largest electric vehicle (EV) maker to Chinese automaker BYD in the fourth quarter of 2023, the billionaire said that “Tesla is an AI/robotics company,” trying to draw a difference between the technologies of the Chinese and US companies.

Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Tuesday called for global cooperation in various areas to rebuild global trust, including strengthening macroeconomic policy coordination and international industrial specialization and cooperation, warning that lack of trust and fragmentation will risk global economic growth and peaceful development.

China and Switzerland have completed the joint feasibility study on upgrading the China-Switzerland Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and agreed to support the early launch of formal FTA upgrade negotiations, the two sides announced on Monday during talks between Chinese Premier Li Qiang and President of the Swiss Confederation Viola Amherd in Bern, Switzerland. China also announced it will waive visa requirements for Swiss nationals while Switzerland will offer convenient visa processes for Chinese citizens and companies.

China will highlight its vision of an open world economy and win-win cooperation at the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting and send a resounding signal that it will continue to open up its market for the world, which will stand in sharp contrast to the focus of some Western officials on geopolitical rivalry that has plagued the world economy, businesses and experts said on Sunday.

At the beginning of 2024, a wave of dance events have swept across China's social media platforms, with various short clips featuring Elon Musk dancing “kemusan” (a popular swag dance move originated from China) or shuffling Terracotta Warriors in shuffle dance going viral.

The Consumer Electronics Show (CES), the world's largest consumer tech conference, officially kicked off in Las Vegas on Tuesday. Over 4,000 exhibitors from around the world are showcasing a variety of cutting-edge tech gadgets during the expo – which is dubbed as the barometer that sets the stage for trending technologies each year. This year, “artificial intelligence (AI) in everything” is dominating the headlines, with AI-powered personal computers (PC), AI chips, AI-driven smart vehicle systems and AI home appliances taking center stage.

Chinese electric vehicle (EV) producer BYD Co overtook US-based Tesla Inc to become the world's biggest EV maker in the fourth quarter of 2023 for the first time, according to latest data from the companies. This had added another milestone to a historical year for China's auto industry as it's poised to propel China to become the world's biggest auto exporter.

In the 12th century, Ismail Al Jazari, an engineer from the Middle East, created automated devices including mechanized wine servant. It was a remarkable invention back in the medieval time, manifesting the Middle East people's early quest for a futuristic high-tech lifestyle.

China on Friday reported a number of economic indicators for November, with industrial output expanding at a better-than-expected 6.6 percent, also the fastest in almost two years, and retail sales also gaining a jumbo 10.1 percent year-on-year, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

Following the UK's former foreign secretary James Cleverly's visit to China in August, relations between China and the UK are in the process of normalizing, “a big factor” that will provide multinationals from both sides with assurance on their investments, a UK chamber representative said.

As the world continues to face a severe economic downturn and various economic indicators in China reflect both a steady recovery trajectory as well as ups and downs in the Chinese economy, global attention is turning to an all-important end-of-year meeting to see how top Chinese policymakers view China's economic prospects and top priorities for 2024.

A meeting attended by China's top leaders on Friday called for strengthening economic vitality, containing risks and improving social expectations so as to cement and strengthen the positive momentum of economic upturn, as part of the economic assessment and policymaking for 2024.

China's State Council, the country's cabinet, on Thursday unveiled a comprehensive plan to promote the high-level institutional opening-up of the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone (FTZ) by aligning it with high-standard international economic and trade rules. The plan comes at a milestone moment of China's reform and opening-up journey, after Chinese leader inspected Shanghai.

China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) said on Thursday it will review anti-dumping and countervailing duties on wine from Australia, starting immediately, and will decide whether the punitive tariffs are necessary.

At the ongoing first China International Supply Chain Expo (CISCE), which kicked off on Tuesday, a number of UK financial, mining and pharmaceutical companies including HSBC, EY, Rio Tinto, Standard Chartered and AstraZeneca are eyeing more business opportunities in China in sectors such as electric vehicles, solar power, industrial upgrading and green financing.

The China-proposed Global Artificial Intelligence (AI) Governance Initiative has received positive responses from the international community, as it stresses fairness and justice as core to the global AI governing system and manifests multiple guidelines that are of wide global recognition, Chinese officials said. They also noted that since the initiative being launched in mid-October, many countries have shown eagerness to strengthen policy communication and pragmatic cooperation with China in the field of AI.

China will roll out a one-year visa-free policy to citizens from six countries - France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia - starting on De-cember 1, 2023, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Friday, as part of fresh efforts to bring about cross-border people-to-people exchanges to serve the country's high-quality development and opening-up.

US payment company Mastercard's Chinese joint venture (JV) told the Global Times on Monday that it will offer yuan bank cards under the MasterCard brand as soon as possible, and support card holders to make payments involving more than 100 million vendors in China and abroad, after China's financial regulator greenlighted the JV for bank card clearing operations last week.

Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a written speech to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO Summit in San Francisco on Thursday (local time), during which he called for staying committed to the three-decade APEC "founding mission" that emphasizes openness, inclusiveness, development for all and seeking common ground while shelving differences. He stressed that the Asia-Pacific cannot and should not be an arena for geopolitical rivalry, and still less should it be plunged into a new Cold War or camp-based confrontation.

China on Wednesday reported better-than-expected retail sales and industrial data for October, underscoring that the world's second-largest economy has been "running on abundant steam" to maintain the strong recovery momentum through the year despite multiple impediments including subdued global demand, flared-up geopolitical tensions and a slowing property sector.

It drew a lot attention when Zhou Hongyi, the founder and chairman of 360 Security Technology, stood with a “digital Zhou Hongyi” on the sidelines of the 2023 World Internet Conference (WIC) Wuzhen Summit, which started on Wednesday and concluded on Friday in Wuzhen, East China's Zhejiang Province.

The 2023 World Internet Conference (WIC) on Thursday issued the "Developing Responsible Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) Research Paper and Consensus" in Wuzhen, East China's Zhejiang Province, summarizing the development of global generative AI to date as well as opportunities and risks brought by the emerging technology.

The 2023 World Internet Conference (WIC) Wuzhen Summit kicked off on Wednesday in the ancient water town of Wuzhen, East China's Zhejiang Province, where global cyberspace luminaries are set to discuss internet industry-related topics and provide insights on addressing the most pressing global cyberspace challenges – ranging from artificial intelligence (AI) governance, cyberspace hegemony to the widened digital gap – at the three-day monumental gathering.

Many US companies have actively participated in the sixth China International Import Expo (CIIE) in what could be the largest scale in history, and they signed a number of orders on the first day, showcasing their expectations for closer cooperation with China.

At China-Kazakhstan International Cooperation Center in Horgos, Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, a group of tourists from neighboring Kazakhstan embarked on a shopping spree on Saturday, buying duty-free Chinese commodities including locally made Nang, a traditional flatbread, to clothes, shoes and home appliances.

The relations between China and Fiji are "solid and inclusive," and the two countries are "relating to each other as families," Fiji's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation Viliame R. Gavoka told the Global Times in a recent exclusive interview. He also expected the two countries to "build on" the fruitful cooperation results under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), especially in green development and tourism.

The curtain has come down on the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation (BRF) in Beijing, one of China's most important diplomatic events this year, but its profound significance is set to reverberate across the world for years to come.

The number of Chinese visitor arrivals in Thailand could reach 4 million this year, boosted by measures including a visa-free policy and closer cooperation with Chinese companies, Thapanee Kiatphaibool, governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), told the Global Times on Thursday.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a global cooperation platform that demonstrates China's vision for global development and offers solutions to the reform of the global governance system and multi-faceted challenges. Against this backdrop, the Global Times is publishing a series of interviews with renowned scholars, think tanks, and financial institutions, sharing their insights and understanding of how this initiative has earned global recognition and growing esteem. This is the 12th installment in the series.

The relations between China and Fiji are “solid and inclusive,” and the two countries are “relating to each other as families,” Fiji's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation Viliame R. Gavoka told the Global Times on Wednesday, on the sidelines of the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation (BRF).

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday announced eight major steps China will take to support high-quality Belt and Road cooperation in a keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the third Belt and Road Forum (BRF) for International Cooperation, with guests of the event and Chinese experts acknowledging what China and its partners worldwide have accomplished in the past decade. They're also confident that the encouraging message and promises will start a new journey for another “golden decade.”

China launched the Beijing Initiative for Deepening Cooperation on Connectivity on Wednesday at the High-level Forum on Connectivity held during the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation (BRF), aiming to enhance all-round infrastructure connectivity among Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) partner countries, to build a world economy that is open, inclusive, balanced and beneficial for all.

The China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has been instrumental in promoting connectivity between China and Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries, helping their economies to diversify, and fostering bilateral ties, business representatives from the bloc said on Tuesday. They also expressed high hopes that the cooperation will become “deeper” and “greener” as the high-quality BRI cooperation enters a new stage of development following its 10th anniversary.

On the first day of the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation (BRF), over 1,200 representatives from more than 80 countries and regions have taken on what some describe as a journey of “opportunity hunting,” eyeing establishing new business networks under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) – the world's largest platform for international cooperation– to inject certainty into their businesses in an uncertain world and make joint contributions to global economic recovery.

Editor's Note: China is holding the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation (BRF) from October 17 to 18 in Beijing, marking a milestone in the development of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) at its 10th anniversary. Ten years ago, Chinese President Xi Jinping unveiled his proposal to jointly build the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, known as the Belt and Road Initiative. It was a transformative vision at that time in response to a changing global situation, and with the future and overall interests of humanity in mind.

The third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation (BRF) will be held in Beijing from Tuesday to Wednesday, as the year marks the10th anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Leaders and representatives of countries from around the globe and international organizations have arrived in China, and Beijing is fully prepared for this major home diplomatic event.

Chinese President Xi Jinping will attend the third Belt and Road Forum (BRF) for International Cooperation to be held from October 17 to 18 in Beijing, the Chinese Foreign Ministry announced on Wednesday, officially ushering in what Chinese officials have described as one of the most important multilateral diplomatic events in China this year.

China has issued a white paper on the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) on Tuesday, highlighting the role that the iconic "project of the century" has played in global development during the past decade as well as its achievements in living up to its ultimate goal of building a global community of shared future.

On Sunday morning, workers were harvesting grapes on farmland in Yining county in Kazak Autonomous Prefecture of Ili, Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The freshly-picked fruit was then uploaded onto a truck, headed to Kazakhstan via highway, and within six hours, it would be delivered to the Kazakh market and sold to the local consumers.

The Chinese government released a white paper on Tuesday to introduce the theoretical base, practice and development of a global community of shared future, as by presenting China's vision of the course of human development, it counters the hegemonic thinking of certain countries that seek supremacy.

On a sunny Sunday afternoon, tourists from all over the world have been dressing in traditional Uygur costumes, dancing to folk music, gobbling down the kebab, and snapping up local specialties in the thousand-year-old Kashi Old Town in Kashi Prefecture, Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

In recent years, the cooperation mode between China and ASEAN in the field of EVs has been transitioning from exporting complete vehicles to capacity cooperation. Several Chinese car companies have achieved localized production in the ASEAN region through direct investment in factories or mergers.

Despite constant claims from Western media that the Chinese-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is unwelcomed by the people of recipient countries and has caused conflict over environmental and employment issues, a recent fieldtrip by the Global Times to three Southeast Asian countries revealed a very different reality on the ground.

Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Wednesday took a test ride on the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway (HSR), a landmark project under the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The test ride came as Li kicked off an official visit to Indonesia this week, where he is also attending the 26th China-ASEAN Summit, the 26th ASEAN Plus Three Summit and the 18th East Asia Summit.

Chinese Premier Li Qiang said at the 26th China-ASEAN Summit in Jakarta, Indonesia Wednesday that as long as China and ASEAN countries keep to the right path, whatever storms may come, their cooperation will be as firm as ever and they can press ahead against all odds, and analysts said that China-ASEAN ties remain close and will continue to develop to withstand the impacts of any external interference that attempts to instigate tensions and conflicts.

After enduring a bumpy 3.5-hour-long highway ride and a bout of traffic congestion, we finally arrived in Indonesian famous tourism city Bandung by car, which was only 130 kilometers from the capital Jakarta, during a fieldtrip to the Tegalluar Station, the last point on the Jakarta-Bandung HSR in July.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a global cooperation platform that demonstrates China's vision and provides solutions for the reformation of the global governance system and other challenges. Reflecting on the development of the BRI over the last decade, there has been no shortage of evidence demonstrating its success. Standing at this monumental juncture, the Global Times is publishing a series of articles to help readers understand the fruitful journey of the BRI in the past 10 years from multiple perspectives, and how the initiative will proceed in the future. This is the sixth installment in the series, examining how the Kuantan Port in Malaysia has risen to be an important trade hub because of BRI.

Editor's Note: Relations between China and the ASEAN have continued to improve since the establishment of ASEAN-China Dialogue Relations in 1991. Over the last 30 years, the China-ASEAN relationship has achieved remarkable development and brought about tangible benefits for more than 2 billion people in 11 countries. China and the ASEAN have pursued the right path of long-standing good-neighborliness and friendship, and common development and prosperity. Recently, Global Times reporters Hu Yuwei, Zhao Juecheng, and Li Xuanmin (GT) interviewed the Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr Kao Kim Hourn (Kao), and Chinese Ambassador to the ASEAN, Hou Yanqi (Hou), in Indonesia, to get more insights from them on the future pathway of China-ASEAN political and economic relations.

Editor's Note: Relations between China and the ASEAN have continued to improve since the establishment of ASEAN-China Dialogue Relations in 1991. Over the last 30 years, the China-ASEAN relationship has achieved remarkable development and brought about tangible benefits for more than 2 billion people in 11 countries. China and the ASEAN have pursued the right path of long-standing good-neighborliness and friendship, and common development and prosperity. Recently, Global Times reporters Hu Yuwei, Zhao Juecheng, and Li Xuanmin (GT) interviewed the Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr Kao Kim Hourn (Kao), and Chinese Ambassador to the ASEAN, Hou Yanqi (Hou), in Indonesia, to get more insights from them on the future pathway of China-ASEAN political and economic relations. The two diplomats highlighted China's important role as one of the key partners of the ASEAN that supports its community-building efforts. They expressed their belief that the bilateral cooperation enjoys a profound foundation, covers broad areas, and will continue to yield fruitful results.

"In Malaysia, For Malaysia" is a phrase printed on the business card of Hu Jiulin, the chief technology officer of Alliance Steel, the largest steel plant in the country, also one of the first Chinese companies to establish a plant within the Malaysia-China Kuantan Industrial Park (MCKIP), located on the east coast of Malaysia.

China and South Africa, two member states of the BRICS bloc, have witnessed their economic ties get closer and bilateral trade follow a steady growth track in recent years despite the COVID-19 pandemic. With their strategic partnership deepening, bilateral cooperation in diverse areas has displayed vitality and resilience, setting a template for cooperation among the nations of the Global South and injecting impetus into the world's economic recovery.

More than 2,000 years ago, fleets of cargo-laden merchant ships set sail from China through the ancient Maritime Silk Road, which opened the path for centuries of trade and cultural exchanges between China and Indonesia.

When Chinese President Xi Jinping first proposed the initiative of the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road in 2013, it was framed as a broad vision to expand regional cooperation between China and Southeast Asian countries. By visiting the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) projects in Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia in July, Global Times reporters followed Xi's footsteps and visions to find out how BRI projects have enhanced regional connectivity, deepened trade and economic relations, promoted political trust and expanded people-to-people exchanges among member countries.

Praphaphan Thaingamsin, a 20-something Thai college graduate, has been immersed in a hit Chinese fantasy costume drama Till the End of The Moon recently, breathlessly waiting for new episodes to be released online every night.

Editor's Note: Over 2,000 years ago, when the world was separated by high mountains and vast oceans, Chinese ancestors opened a transcontinental passage connecting Asia, Europe and Africa, known as the Silk Road, and created sea routes linking the East with the West, namely, the maritime Silk Road. The ancient silk routes embody the spirit of peace and cooperation, openness and inclusiveness, mutual learning and mutual benefit. In the autumn of 2013, when mankind faced daunting challenges posed by deficits of peace, development and governance, Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed the building of the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road – the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), carrying on the Silk Road spirit and offering the world Chinese wisdom. Ten years on, from every angle, the BRI has achieved remarkable success. To illustrate how the BRI vision has become a reality over the past decade, Global Times reporters visited a variety of countries and regions in Southeast Asia, Central Asia, Africa, Central and Eastern Europe, as well as the South Pacific, where they witnessed first-hand the success of the BRI and how it has improved life in those countries and regions. Their stories will be published in a special series, which aims to provide a clear picture of the BRI in the past decade. This is the first installment, which focuses on how the BRI has been helping to usher in a new era of development in Southeast Asia over the past decade.

China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) on Friday issued a report on the US' fulfillment of its WTO obligations for the first time, slamming Washington for “destroying the multilateral trade mechanism, exercising unilateralist bullying, manipulating double standards in industrial policy and disrupting global industrial and supply chain.”

Senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi met with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Friday, the second day of his Southeast Asian trip with stops also in Malaysia and Cambodia. The trip eyes deepening China-Southeast Asia cooperation amid external disturbances that are attempting to shake ASEAN's balancing strategy, according to analysts.

Editor's Note: This year marks the 10th anniversary of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a global cooperation platform that demonstrates China's vision for global development and offers solutions to the reform of the global governance system and multi-faceted challenges. Against this backdrop, the Global Times is publishing a series of interviews with renowned scholars, think tanks and financial institutions, sharing their insights and understanding of how this initiative has earned global recognition and growing esteem. This is the 11th installment in the series.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a global cooperation platform that demonstrates China's vision for development and offers solutions for the reform of the global governance system and multi-faceted challenges. Against this backdrop, the Global Times is publishing a series of interviews with renowned scholars, think tank experts and analysts at financial institutions, sharing their insights and understanding of how this initiative has earned global recognition and growing esteem. This is the 10th installment in the series.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a global cooperation platform that demonstrates China's vision for global development and offers solutions to the reform of the global governance system and multi-faceted challenges. Against this backdrop, the Global Times is publishing a series of interviews with renowned scholars, think tanks, and financial institutions, sharing their insights and understanding of how this initiative has earned global recognition and growing esteem. This is the ninth installment in the series.

The Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway (HSR) is now undergoing intensive joint commissioning and testing, involving the operation of the electric multiple unit (EMU) trains and the comprehensive inspection train (CIT).

A Chinese space company has successfully launched the country's first flat-panel communication satellite with a flexible solar array into orbit on Sunday. The satellite Lingxi-03, developed by Galaxy Space, was launched using a Long March-2D carrier rocket at the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in North China's Shanxi Province.

China will mull providing more supportive measures for the private economy in recent days, including policy documents on facilitating the development of the private economy and driving private investment, as well as a new version of a negative list for private investors, the country's top economic planner said on Thursday, as part of a concrete, multi-pronged package built upon a top-design policy guideline issued on Wednesday night.

China's 5.5-percent first-half GDP growth is the fastest among major economies, with relatively high valuation and quality. The country has the confidence, the conditions, and the ability to achieve full-year economic and social development target, Fu Linghui, a spokesperson for the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), said on Monday.

Recently, Global Times reporter Li Xuanmin (GT) conducted an interview with Wirun Phichaiwongphakdee (Wirun), director of the Thailand-China Research Center of the Belt and Road Initiative and Researcher at the Thailand-China Strategic Research Center at the National Research Institute of Thailand. The interview focuses on the BRI and how the initiative has been facilitating trade and infrastructure connectivity in ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations). According to him, the China-proposed BRI has not only become a genuine driver of regional growth, but also provides a unique path of prosperity for ASEAN economies based on win-win cooperation.

China's cyberspace authority listed a total of 41 deep synthesis service algorithms developed by Chinese internet companies on Tuesday. Observers said the move will help draw up the legal framework for generative artificial intelligence (AI), a highly competitive high-tech sector which is experiencing fast-lane development in China.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a global cooperation platform that demonstrates China's vision of global development and offers solutions to the reform of the global governance system and multi-faceted challenges. Against this backdrop, the Global Times is publishing a series of interviews with renowned scholars, think tanks and financial institutions, sharing their insights and understanding of how this initiative has earned global recognition and growing esteem. This is the eighth installment in the series. Recently, Global Times reporter Li Xuanmin (GT) conducted an interview with Helga Zepp-LaRouche (HZL), founder of Germany-based Schiller Institute, a political and economic think tank. The interview focuses on the BRI and Europe's policies toward China, including the two D-words (decoupling and de-risking), which, she said, are basically the same and illustrate implicitly the intention of the US and its allies to contain China's economic rise.

The export volume of Brazilian cotton to China is expected to overtake that of the US in the next few years, and the trading of the bulk commodity could be settled in yuan as “a way to the future,” Marcelo Duarte Monteiro, director of International Relations at the Brazilian Cotton Growers Association, told the Global Times on Friday.

China's three major economic indexes saw stable growth in May, with industrial output rising 3.5 percent year-on-year and social retail sales expanding 12.7 percent year-on-year, which observers said showed that a moderate recovery was underway despite multiple downward pressures ranging from a complex global geopolitical situation, weakening demand to the spillover effect of US monetary policy shockwaves.

New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins announced on Monday he would visit China in late June with a trade delegation, the first prime ministerial visit to China since the pandemic, at a post-Cabinet press conference.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a global cooperation platform that demonstrates China's vision and provides solutions to the reform of the global governance system and multifaceted challenges. Against this backdrop, the Global Times is publishing a series of interviews with renowned scholars, think tanks, and financial institutions, sharing their insights and understanding of how the initiative has earned global recognition and reshaped global development. This is the sixth installment in the series. In 2019, China and Italy signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on BRI, and Italy is also the first and only G7 country to join the initiative. In recent days, discussions on Italy's participation on BRI have been afoot, with the Italian government reportedly signaling that it is reconsidering whether to renew the MoU. Against the backdrop, the Global Times reporter Li Xuanmin (GT) conducted an interview with Prodi Giorgio (G), associate professor of Applied Economics at Ferrara University and visiting senior fellow of the Institute for Global Cooperation and Understanding at the Peking University, who shared his views on the development of BRI, while giving practial suggestions on how the initiatve could be better carried out in Italy as well as Europe. According to Giorgio, BRI has been the most important international initiative in the last decade both in terms of political and economic investments.

Six years after China announced the construction of the Xiong'an New Area, the site that "started from scratch" from a blueprint has become a reality, as a high-level modern metropolis has been building up, which is "nothing short of a miracle," Chinese President Xi Jinping said during an inspection to the area on Wednesday, at a time when the "dream city" has just celebrated its sixth anniversary of its establishment.

The world's first interventional brain-computer interface (BCI) experiment in non-human primates was successfully completed in Beijing on Thursday. It carries important significance in promoting brain science field research and signaled that China's BCI technology - a sector at the forefront of a white-hot technology war between China and the US - has jumped to internationally leading levels, industry insiders said.

China's consumption has been firing on all cylinders during the just-ended May Day holidays, ranging fromtourism, box office, transportation, entertainment to catering sectors. This year's five-day holidaysare believed to have beaten the 2019 pre-epidemic level in terms of both trips made and revenue generated to become what industry insiders celebratedas the "most prosperous," giving a huge boost to GDP.

Hong Kong enterprises in the food, watch and jewelry, fashion as well as healthcare and personal care products sectors have been actively participating in the third China International Consumer Products Expo (CICPE) in Haikou, capital of South China's Hainan Province, which kicked off on Monday and lasts until Saturday.

With flashing lights and dynamic music, the yacht club of the third China International Consumer Products Expo (CICPE) was unveiled Tuesday night in Haikou, South China's Hainan Province, with a total of 25 yacht-makers including Ferretti, Princess Yachts, and Azimut showcasing luxurious vessels that priced between 1 million yuan to over 100 million yuan.

With the presentation of a variety of premium consumer products ranging from cosmetics, fashion and food to luxury bags and wine, the French pavilion has arguably become one of the busiest spots during the ongoing third China International Consumer Products Expo (CICPE).

The visit of Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to China will boost bilateral agricultural trade, according to representatives of companies from countries that are attending the ongoing consumption exhibition in South China's Hainan Province.

Hainan, a tropical island in South China, has come under the limelight once again, especially in terms of consumption upgrade momentum.

On the heels of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will visit China from April 5 to 7, and they are likely to be followed by German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock in mid-April, as China's busy diplomatic agenda continues.

The global oil price spiked on Monday as investors jotted over a surprising production cut announced by Saudi Arabia and other members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its non-OPEC allies, including Russia, that translates to over 1 million barrels per day (bdp).

China and Singapore have completed"substantive negotiations" on the upgrade of bilateral free trade agreement (FTA), which will improve market access for each other's businessesand provide for more transparent and higher-level economic rules. The announcement comes a day after both sides agreed to upgrade bilateral relations to an "All-Round High-Quality Future-Oriented Partnership" during Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's visit to China.

Last week, a special rail express train loaded with a consignment of 50 new energy vehicle (NEVs) departed from Southwest China's Chongqing Municipality and arrived at a train station in Qinzhou, South China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region after a 31-hour journey.

China will resume outbound group tours for Chinese citizens to another 40 countries including Nepal, Vietnam, Iran, France, Spain, Italy, Greece and Brazil starting from March 15, China's Ministry of Culture and Tourism announced on Friday. It is the second batch of destinations in China's pilot program for out-bound group tours, after the country resumed cross-border group tours to the first batch of 20 countries and regions on February 6.

China's national legislature on Friday approved a plan on reforming the institutions of the State Council, China's cabinet. With the institution reform, China would gradually establish a more unified, open market system with orderly competition, laying the institutional foundation for the country's ongoing push to build a unified national market, which is deemed key in accelerating the dual circulation development pattern, deputies and members said at the ongoing two sessions.

Zhang Huichen, a cherry farmer in her 30s in Zhanggezhuang Township, East China's Shandong Province, is adjusting the temperature and humidity of a cherry greenhouse through her smartphone on Monday. With a press in the button, the aster cloth slowly scrolls down, shielding her cherry plants from the scorching midday sun.

Global mining firm BHP has signed contracts with Shandong ports, which account for roughly one fourth of China's annual iron ore throughput, on settling the spot trade of iron ore yuan this year, the Global Times learned. As such, all the global four major iron ore producers are now cooperating with the Chinese ports to settle spot trade in yuan.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a global cooperation platform that demonstrates China's vision and provides solutions for the reformation of the global governance system and other multifaceted challenges. Reflecting on the development of the BRI over the last decade, there has been no shortage of evidence demonstrating its success, a momentum that relentless Western crackdowns and smears were unable to curtail.

On a chilly Wednesday morning, hundreds of trucks loaded with multi-colored containers queue in front of a 363-meter-long ship docked at a terminal at the Qingdao port, East China's Shandong Province, forming a line that stretches for more than 200 meters.

Trade connectivity between China and Southeast Asian economies has been maintaining steady growth momentum in 2023, about a year after the implementation of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) trade agreement, with fresh port data mirroring a deeply integrated industrial chain among Asian countries and an increasing pivotal role China plays in facilitating an orderly global supply chain.

Australian cotton exports to China have resumed in recent days, following the arrival of Australian coking coal in a southern Chinese port in early February, the Global Times learned, amid multiple improving signs in bilateral economic relations. Industry insiders and observers urged the Australian side to seize the momentum, take more substantive moves to repair Chinese traders' confidence and inject more positivity into bilateral cooperation.

On Friday, the Russia-Ukraine military conflict dragged on to its one year mark with no positive sign of a truce in sight. With the conflict not only profoundly changing geopolitics in the European continent and the world, but also redefining countries' notions on security, the majority of the international community is calling on all parties to press the stop button and urging some countries to stop adding fuel to the fire before a heavier impact is brought to the global economy and development.

A 30-something Hong Kong resident surnamed Zhang has been caught in a crypto heat in recent months.

Hong Kong has launched a consultation on the proposals for operators of virtual asset trading platforms (VATPs), and it is "seeking views particularly on whether to allow licensed platform operators to serve retail investors," the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) said in a statement sent to the Global Times on Tuesday.

China on Friday announced a detailed mechanism and regulations for a registration-based IPO system across the A-share market. The new rules are effective immediately, signaling the official implementation of the across-the-board registration-based IPOs system that observers hail as a milestone in the development of China's capital market reform.

China has concluded free trade agreement (FTA) negotiation with Ecuador on Thursday, and the two sides will continue following works involving legal document review, translation, and implement domestic procedures needed by each country to sign the FTA as soon as possible, according to a statement on the website of China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) on Friday.

Searches for trips to Maldives have doubled on major Chinese travel platforms on Friday, after the visa-waiver agreement between China and Maldives officially took effect the same day, the Global Times learned. It's a vivid display of the steady recovery of once the world's largest outbound travel market - fueled by Chinese tourists' pent-up enthusiasm and rising consumption power.

Editor's Note: This year marks the 10th anniversary of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a global cooperation platform that demonstrates China's vision and provides solutions to the reform of the global governance system and multifaceted challenges. Against this backdrop, the Global Times is publishing a series of interviews with renowned scholars, think tanks, and financial institutions, sharing their insights and understanding of how the initiative has earned global recognition and reshaped global development. This is the first installment in the series.

China will strive to shore up food security and mull more targeted moves to prevent a large-scale return to impoverishment in the countryside, Chinese officials said on Tuesday, as the world's second largest economy vowed an all-out effort to bolster farmers and make it a "strong agricultural nation."

China expressed strong opposition and dissatisfaction toward a bill passed by the US Congress concerning the airship incident, which is purely a political manipulation by the US, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on Friday.

Once known as the “golden fault zone” along the southeastern coast of China, Ningde, East China's Fujian Province, has grown from an economic laggard to become a modern and rich city leading the world in lithium-ion battery manufacturing by riding on the boom of China's electric vehicle (EV) industry amid the country's push for greener mobility.

China on Thursday released a white paper on its green development in the new era, elaborating on how the country has stayed firmly committed to green development, proactively participated in global climate governance and spearheaded international cooperation.

China's GDP expanded 3 percent year-on-year to 121 trillion yuan ($17.93 trillion) in 2022, maintaining a stable expansion as the world's second-largest economy navigated uncharted waters and surmounted headwinds - ranging from the coronavirus and geopolitical tensions to interest rate hikes and waning overseas demand - with an overwhelming fighting spirit..

Standing on this monumental juncture, the Global Times is publishing a series of articles to help readers understand the fruitful journey of the BRI over the last decade from multiple perspectives, and how the initiative will positively commence over the year. This is the first installment in the series, examining the impressive development of the China-Europe freight train.

The phase one of the Africa Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) headquarters, a China-aided project, was completed on Wednesday, with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang - who's on a seven-day visit to Africa - and Moussa Faki Mahamat, African Union Commission chairperson, attending the ceremony.

Foxconn's Zhengzhou plant in Central China's Henan Province, the largest manufacturing base for Apple's iPhone, has rapidly recovered and it achieved about 90 percent of its anticipated peak capacity in December, Foxconn confirmed to the Global Times on Tuesday.

The US added three dozen Chinese high-tech companies to a trade blacklist that bars them from accessing US technologies and components, in what experts called a "last-ditch" effort after many cards previously played by the Biden administration did not achieve the expected effects in hobbling China's semiconductor industry.

The EU is willing to be a reliable and predictable partner for cooperation with China, and strengthen top-level exchanges and foster cooperation through direct dialogue so the two sides could better face global challenges, President of the European Council Charles Michel said in his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

The relations between China and the UK are at a crossroads after UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced in his first foreign policy speech on Monday that the "golden era" of UK-China relations is over. Calls for a potential decoupling with China are on the rise among British politicians, which is particular evident in the high-tech sectors such as semiconductors and nuclear power. The Global Times (GT) recently conducted in an interview with Lord Neil Davidson (Lord Davidson), Shadow Treasury Minister for the Labour Party of the UK and member of the House of Lords, who shared his insights on the China-UK relations, UK's policy direction toward China and the development of China-propsed Belt and Road Initiative within the European bloc.

The Netherlands will defend its economic interests when it comes to the sales of chip equipment to China, a senior Dutch official said, sending a strong signal that the European country - home to world-leading chip company ASML - will not cave in to the US coercion despite the latter's stepped-up pressure.

Some requests of Blizzard Entertainment in renewing its license contract are "unacceptable," as it involves critical cooperation agreement concerning sustainable operation and the core interests of Chinese players and market, Netease CEO William Ding Lei said, in response to the ending of the two gaming giants' 14-year licensing agreement.

Chinese new-energy vehicles (NEV) companies have been spearheading into Southeast Asia (SEA) at an unprecedented speed since the beginning of the year, from exporting NEVs, setting up assembling factories to providing localized services. In a vehicle market historically dominated by Japanese automakers, things could be quite different now, as Chinese entrants are reshaping the competitive landscape with a variety of affordable, high-tech EV models.

Chinese new-energy vehicle (NEV) company BYD announced on Wednesday that it has produced and delivered 3 million NEVs, making it one of the first automakers in the world to hit this sales milestone, which speaks volume for China's auto manufacturing prowess and the country's accelerated push toward a greener economy.

With a highly-anticipated meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indonesian President Joko Widodo on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali on Wednesday, the two countries' vision to build a community with a shared future is set to embark on a speedy ride, heading toward a new era of Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) cooperation between China and Indonesia - also an important node where Xi in 2013 proposed the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road.

At Pailin province in western Cambodia, local farmers have come to their busiest time of the year as the harvest time of longan has just begun in October and can last until May next year. Different from any other time, Pailin, the country's major production base for longan, has secured big orders against the backdrop of a new deal inked between China and Cambodia on October 27, marking the official debut of Cambodian longan export to China, its largest market for agricultural products, after banana and mango.

Editor's Note: Over the past 10 years, China has implemented a more active opening-up strategy, and the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has offered a popular platform for international cooperation. The joint construction of BRI spans different regions, development stages, and civilizations. China has signed over 200 Belt and Road cooperation documents with more than 140 countries, and more than 30 international organizations. In contrast with the growing voices for decoupling and unilateralism created by the US, the BRI, which advocates global cooperation and prosperity under a shared future, has provided a platform to boost living standards and foster unity, and has gained unprecedented recognition and has been embraced by countries around the world. As the initiative is set to welcome its 10-year anniversary next year, by reaching out to several industry experts and representatives, Global Times reporters tried to find what has made the initiative stronger and more popular worldwide, despite challenges.

For a world that is navigating its way through the fogs of escalating geopolitical tensions, runaway inflation, a raging COVID-19 pandemic, and potentially ruinous recession, the monumental opening of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), a twice-in-a-decade political gathering that opened in Beijing on Sunday, is set to disperse these mists and light up the road ahead.

With a waiver allowing alloy of Chinese origins to continue to be used on F-35 fighter jets, the US military has exposed its dependence on Chinese rare-earth products, and China can opt to limit the export of such strategic resources to safeguard its national security, analysts said on Sunday.

Ahead of the US Federal Reserve's upcoming meeting this week, during which market observers generally believe that a fifth interest rate hike this year will be announced, discussions flared up again as to how the strengthening dollar is boomeranging on the US and throwing the world into fears of recession.