U.S Commercial Service - American Embassy, Beijing
Vol. 2 No. 168
The China Commercial Brief is a biweekly publication featuring summaries about developments in China's various commercial sectors, tips on doing business in China, and U.S. Embassy news. This publication is free of charge; please forward it to your colleagues and friends who are interested in China.
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Editor: Matt Gettman,
Contributors: CS Chengdu, Hongying Cai, Shen Yan, Cao Shujuan, Qiu Jing, Wang Ling
News Briefs
In addition to the article summaries provided by CS Beijing, our four China branch offices - Chengdu, Guangzhou, Shanghai and Shenyang - submit summaries of commercial articles from their local press to the CCB on a rotating schedule. This week we are pleased to feature a contribution from our Chengdu post.
1. Four Sections of Highways to Be Built in Chongqing
2. Website Launched to Assist 2008 Olympics
3. Number of Consulting firms over 7,000 in Beijing
4. Approximately 58% of China’s Internet users Experience Security Problems
5. China to standardize operation of wine wholesale and retail
6. Development Potential of China’s Natural Gas Industry
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1. Four Sections of Highways to Be Built in Chongqing
Four sections of highways in Chongqing have passed the checkup of experts by the Ministry of Transportation and are scheduled for construction. They are: the Chongqing-to-Changsha Highway (the Hongan-to-Youyang section and the Youyang-to-Qianjiang section); and the east and north sections of the Around Urban Chongqing Highway. The reconnaissance, design and bidding work of four sections of those highway projects have started, and are expected to be executed next year.
Total distance of the highway projects are 230 kilometers with an estimated total investment of USD 1.98 billion (RMB 16.36 billion ), which included the loan interest in the implementation period. The construction of all four projects are expected to be completed in four years.
The Chongqing to Changsha highway is an important provincial way in Western China. The distance from Youyang to Qianjiang is 59 kilometers; the distance from Hongan to Youyang is 86 kilometers which includes 39 special larger bridges, 58 bridges and 5 tunnels. For the Around Urban Chongqing Highway, the distance of the east section is 35 kilometers and the north section is 50 kilometers respectively, with one bridge and two tunnels.
(Source: : Chongqing Daily, 10/09/2004, Edited by CS Chengdu)
2.Website Launched to Assist 2008 Olympics
A website aimed at boosting the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games' high-tech goals was launched yesterday in Beijing.
The website, www.hitech2008.org.cn, is sponsored by the Science and Technology Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad and the Olympic Science and Technology (2008) Action Plan Leading Group.
The website, in both Chinese and English, gives an overall introduction of one of the three themes of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games - high-tech Olympics - and the action plan to achieve the goal implied in the theme.
(Source: www.sinoporjects.com- Translated by Hongying Cai)
3. Number of Consulting firms over 7,000 in Beijing
Statistics from Beijing Enterprise Association (BEA) have indicated that the number of Beijing-based consulting firms has exceeded 7,000. Last year, 100 of those 7,000 saw their annul revenue surpass USD 12.1 million (RMB 100 million).
According to BEA, the city’s consulting industry has become a very specialized industry providing information and technological advice to many local and multinational companies. The industry accounts for 3% of the city’s total economic growth, playing a very important role in the city’s economic development. Almost all the major projects in Beijing receive consulting services from time to time.
(Source: Beijing Daily, 04/07/2004 - Translated by Shen Yan)
4. Approximately 58% of China’s Internet users Experience Security Problems
The Ministry of Public Security recently released its report summarizing the findings of an extensive survey to determine the extent of internet security problems amongst large government, educational, and commercial entities. The results found that about 58% of these large entities experienced internet security problems.
The Ministry of Public Security received 7072 responses to its survey that was distributed to key officials whose agencies or companies frequently use information networking and information systems. Survey recipients included Chinese government officials, as well as officials from various sectors including financial securities, education institutes, RD centers, telecommunications, broadcasting and television, energy and transportation, defense industries and some commercial and trade enterprises.
According to the multiple-choice survey, respondents cited two specific computer viruses: "Worms" and "Trojans" account for 79% of the Internet problems. Within the 79%, Internet attacks (refuse service, terminal scan and interpolate the web) accounted 43% of incidents while large Internet Spam problems accounted for 36% of the Internet accidents.
Respondents listed 3 main reasons for China’s high rate of Internet problems: 1) Survey respondents felt their entities' leadership should better manage the enforcement of internet security, 2) end-users lack the knowledge regarding internet security, and 3) the need for better trained network administrators/IT managers/CIOs.
(Sources: Beijing Daily Messenger 10/08/2004 - Translated by Shujuan Cao)
5.China to standardize operation of wine wholesale and retail
China is drafting operating standards for wholesale and retail of wines and spirits. The standards are expected to be announced by the end of this year, after soliciting public opinions.
The Ministry of Commerce in cooperation with the State Bureau of Quality and Technical Supervision and the State Standards Committee drafts the document in order to establish a long-term effective mechanism for circulation of wines and spirits.
At the same time, the Ministry of Commerce will draft administration regulations on circulation of wines and spirits by learning from management methods generally used in the world.
It will also promote market access system for the sector by adopting strict examining and approving system for runners and operators of wine and spirit market. Wine and spirit shop runners and operators are required to have good credit status and big financing capacity, and obtain license and business license from related departments. It will implement a market inspection and bulletining system to ensure safety of wine and spirit on the market. Those unqualified products must be withdrawn from shelves, recalled or destroyed.
The ministry will establish a bank on circulation of wines and spirits on the basis of its e-government system, which will become an honorary title for good enterprises and blacklist for bad-reputation firms.
(Source: CEI News, 10/11/2004 -Translated by Qiu Jing)
6. Development Potential of China’s Natural Gas Industry
By the year 2020, the proven Original Oil In Place (OOIP) of natural gas is estimated to reach 5 trillion cubic meters. In 2010, however, the yield of natural gas will be 80 billion cubic meters and in 2020, 120 billion cubic meters. It is estimated that in China, before 2020, the annual proven rate will be kept above 1%, the newly increased recoverable reserves will be more than 100 billion cubic meters.
Forecasts based on the demand in national natural gas market, in the year 2010 and 2020, estimate the demand for natural gas will hit 120 billion cubic meters and 200 billion cubic meters respectively. By then, the shortage in natural gas will be 40 billion cubic meters and 80 billion cubic meters respectively. Therefore, the gap between the demand and supply will be filled up by gas imports. From the gas consumption structure, we can see a rapid growth in the demand for natural gas used in electric power generation and urban heating, and with regards to industrial fuels and chemical gas, the total quantity will be stably increased, however, its proportion to the total gas consumption will decline.
(Source: China Energy News Vol. 9, 2004 -Translated by Wang Ling)
Consulate News: Chengdu
In keeping with our goal of making the CCB a more integrated publication, our four China branch offices - Chengdu, Guangzhou, Shanghai and Shenyang - submit consulate news to the CCB on a rotating schedule. This week, we are pleased to feature a contribution from CS Chengdu.
American Food Festival Held in Chengdu:
Sponsored by the U.S. Agricultural Trade Office (ATO) in Shanghai, an American Food Festival was held in the Japanese Ito Yokado Department Store in Chengdu from September 29 to October 12. Accompanied by CA Lin Liping, CG Jeffrey Moon was invited to attend the opening ceremony on September 29 and gave a speech on the extolling bilateral relations, trade and U.S. food products. Other invited VIP guests to the ceremony included representatives and distributors of U.S. Meat Federation, USA Poultry & Egg Export Council, Alaska Seafood Institute, etc. Also attending were Mr. Zhang Jiquan, Deputy Director of Chengdu Foreign Trade and Economic Bureau, Mr. Qin Rong, Deputy Director of Chengdu Trade and Foodstuff Bureau, and Mr. Liu ZhanGuo, Vice Chairman of Chengdu Federation of Industry and Commerce. This was the first American Food Festival and it displayed a wide variety of American agricultural products including fresh fruit, meat, package goods, healthy & functional food, California & Washington State table wines altogether about 150 items, of which 100 were new to the market.
For more information on CS Chengdu and the Chengdu consular region, visit our website at http://www.buyusa.gov/china/en/chengdu.html
DISCLAIMER: CS China does not guarantee the veracity of the original sources of our news summaries. While we do our best to report accurate and timely articles and news sources, you should always check the source for further information.
The China Commercial Brief is a free newsletter published by the U.S. Embassy - Beijing.
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INTERNATIONAL COPYRIGHT, U.S. COMMERCIAL SERVICE AND U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE, 2004. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED OUTSIDE OF THE UNITED STATES.