Xi Jinping's Important Article "Upholding and Implementing the 'Two Unswervings'" Published in Qiushi Journal
The 6th issue of Qiushi Journal, published on March 16, features an important article by Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee, President of China, and Chairman of the Central Military Commission, titled "Upholding and Implementing the 'Two Unwaverings'". This is an excerpt of important discourses by General Secretary Xi Jinping from November 2013 to February 2025. The article emphasizes that our Party's stance on upholding the basic economic system is clear, consistent, and continuously deepening, and has never wavered. The Party and the state uphold and improve the socialist basic economic system, unswervingly consolidating and developing the public sector of the economy, and unswervingly encouraging, supporting, and guiding the development of the non-public sector of the economy. The Party and the state ensure that economic entities of all ownership types have equal access to factors of production in accordance with the law, participate in market competition fairly, and receive equal protection under the law, promoting the complementary strengths and common development of all ownership types, and fostering the healthy development of the non-public sector and the healthy growth of non-public economic actors. The article points out that China is a socialist country led by the Communist Party of China, and the public sector of the economy has been formed over a long period of national development and is the valuable wealth of all people. Building up state-owned enterprises well and bringing the role of the working class into full play are of great significance to consolidating the Party's governing position and China's socialist system. The article notes that for a long time, China's non-public sector of the economy has developed rapidly, playing an important role in stabilizing growth, promoting innovation, increasing employment, and improving people's livelihoods. The Party and the state's fundamental policies on the development of the private economy have been incorporated into the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and will be consistently upheld and implemented; they will not change. In the new era and on the new journey, the private economy has broad prospects and much to achieve, and it is high time for private enterprises and entrepreneurs to demonstrate their capabilities. The article concludes that both the public and non-public sectors of the economy are important components of the socialist market economy and important foundations for China's economic and social development. The public and non-public sectors of the economy should complement and reinforce each other.
CPC Central Committee General Office, State Council General Office Issue "Special Action Plan to Boost Consumption"
The General Office of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the General Office of the State Council recently issued the "Special Action Plan for Boosting Consumption" (hereinafter referred to as the "Plan"). The Plan proposes to vigorously boost consumption and expand domestic demand in an all-round way, enhance consumption capacity by increasing income and reducing burdens, create effective demand with high-quality supply, and strengthen consumption willingness by optimizing the consumption environment, specifically addressing prominent contradictions and problems restricting consumption. First, implement actions to increase urban and rural residents' income, promote reasonable growth of wage income, broaden channels for property income, take multiple measures to increase farmers' income, and effectively resolve outstanding payment arrears. Second, carry out actions to guarantee and support consumption capacity, strengthen maternity and childcare support, reinforce education support, and expand the supply of educational resources in urban areas with net inflow of school-age population. Improve medical and elderly care security capabilities and ensure the basic living needs of key groups. Third, implement actions to improve the quality and benefit the people in service consumption, optimize services for the elderly and children, promote consumption of living services, expand cultural, sports, and tourism consumption, boost ice and snow consumption, develop inbound consumption, and steadily advance the opening up of the service industry. Fourth, carry out actions to upgrade bulk consumption, increase support for trade-ins of consumer goods, better meet housing consumption needs, and extend the automotive consumption chain. Fifth, implement actions to enhance consumption quality, strengthen the leadership of consumer brands, support the accelerated development of new consumption, and improve the integration of domestic and foreign trade. Sixth, carry out actions to improve the consumption environment, safeguard the right to rest and vacation, encourage paid annual leave to be taken consecutively with short holidays, and achieve flexible staggered holidays. Illegal extension of working hours for laborers is prohibited. Create a safe consumption environment and improve urban and rural consumption facilities. Seventh, implement actions to clean up and optimize restrictive measures, and orderly reduce consumption restrictions. Promote the shift of consumption management for automobiles and other goods from purchase management to usage management, and guarantee the car purchase needs of "long-term unsuccessful lottery" car-free households by year. Continuously optimize the business environment. The Plan also puts forward specific requirements for improving supporting policies and other aspects.
[Earnestly Working to Open Up New Horizons for Reform and Development] Liaoning: Multiple Measures Taken to Solidify the Foundation for New Quality Productive Forces Development; Hebei: Technology Empowers Transformation and Upgrading of Traditional Industries
Liaoning and Hebei provinces are earnestly implementing the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping's important speeches at the national "two sessions," vigorously promoting the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries, developing new quality productive forces adapted to local conditions, and accelerating the construction of a modern industrial system. Liaoning: Multiple Measures to Solidify the Foundation for the Development of New Quality Productive Forces Liaoning is an important industrial base in China. Since the beginning of this year, the province has accelerated the transformation and upgrading of its traditional industries. In Shenyang, the largest CNC machine tool production base in China has achieved full-process intelligent operation. The widespread application of technologies such as "5G+Internet" and digital twins has increased production efficiency by 50% and doubled the variety of products. In Fushun, new progress has been made in petrochemical production, and an "oil and wax co-production" industrial chain covering a full range of special oil and wax products is accelerating its formation, helping traditional oil refining achieve a leapfrog upgrade to high-end new materials manufacturing. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out at this year's national "two sessions" that industrial innovation must firmly grasp the foundation of the real economy, adhering to both promoting the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries and opening up new tracks for strategic emerging industries and future industries. To implement the General Secretary's requirements, Liaoning is accelerating the construction of 4 trillion-yuan industrial bases and 22 key industrial clusters. This year, it will build 100 new provincial-level digital workshops and intelligent factories, and accelerate the implementation of industrial foundation reengineering and major technical equipment tackling projects. At the same time, it will strengthen the construction of robot key laboratory clusters and vigorously develop high-end robot products such as vacuum manipulators. Hebei: Technology Empowerment to Promote the Transformation and Upgrading of Traditional Industries Hebei is promoting traditional industries to move towards new development and accelerating the high-quality development of key manufacturing industrial chains. Steel is a pillar industry in Hebei. This year, Hebei is launching a special action to empower the high-quality development of the steel industry with large models. In Tangshan, the research and application of a batch of new technologies are helping steel production improve quality and efficiency. This intelligent combustion system for heating furnaces collects data such as production plans and impurity specifications through a large data model, and uses automatic real-time temperature adjustment to reduce gas consumption and oxidation loss. This hot metal transportation model ensures automatic and efficient distribution and scheduling of hot metal, which can help enterprises reduce heat loss and save fuel costs during hot metal transportation. This year, Hebei has planned more than 140 digital and intelligent application scenarios for large models empowering steel production, and 45 have been successfully implemented. Focusing on the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries, Hebei will also focus on building ten major projects this year, including artificial intelligence empowerment projects and industrial Internet platform innovation and development projects, to comprehensively promote the transformation and upgrading of industries such as green chemicals, high-end equipment, advanced steel, and biomedicine, while further strengthening policy guidance and relevant service guarantees.
[In the Fields of Hope] Strengthening Spring Plowing and Management to Lay a Solid Foundation for a Bountiful Harvest
Spring is the season for a year's planning. Various regions are seizing the opportunity to diligently carry out spring plowing and field management, laying a solid foundation for a bumper grain harvest. In the south, rice seedling raising and transplanting are progressing in an orderly manner. Currently, early rice seedling raising for over 18 million mu in Jiangxi is in full swing, and more than 1,300 mechanized rice seedling raising centers have been established across the province. At a seedling raising center in Shipu Town, Nanchang, organic substrate seedling raising and factory assembly line operations are used. Through constant temperature and humidity darkroom germination, not only are the seedling raising costs low, but the quality of the seedlings is also guaranteed. Early rice seedling raising in Quzhou, Zhejiang, has also successively begun. The local area has introduced a fully automatic factory seedling raising production line, which can raise 1,200 trays of seedlings per hour, greatly improving seedling raising efficiency. This year, Guangxi plans to plant 12.23 million mu of early rice. The local area continues to strengthen agricultural technology and equipment support, and currently nearly 500,000 agricultural machines have been put into operation to assist spring plowing and production. In Luchuan County, Yulin, mechanized transplanting not only improves transplanting efficiency but also ensures more uniform and scientifically spaced planting. Wheat in various regions is entering a critical period of spring management. Currently, all 85 million mu of wheat in Henan has turned green, and some wheat fields are entering the jointing stage. Agricultural technicians are going deep into the fields to guide farmers in fertilizing, pest and disease control, etc., to promote seedling transformation and upgrading and increase wheat yield. This year, Anhui continues to increase the promotion and application of digital technology. In Bozhou, the local area uses the smart field management system to strengthen agricultural monitoring, focusing on monitoring and investigating seedling conditions, soil moisture, and pest and disease conditions. In Dangyang, Hubei, multispectral cameras carried by plant protection drones can transmit crop growth data back to the smart agricultural management platform in real time and provide differentiated control measures, reducing costs and increasing efficiency for farmers. Currently, Hubei has built 420 IoT pest and disease monitoring points and 623 intelligent monitoring devices, which can collect field data 24 hours a day, helping to achieve a bumper grain harvest.
Multiple Leading Indicators Show Continued Rebound in Chinese Economy
A series of leading indicators released by the National Information Center show that with expanding investment and consumption in domestic demand and stable growth in foreign trade and exports, China's economy is showing a positive trend of continuous recovery. In the first two months of this year, the national excavator index, which reflects the activity in the infrastructure sector, increased by 2.91% year-on-year, indicating an acceleration in infrastructure construction in areas such as farmland irrigation, forestry, transportation, and municipal engineering. Data from the National Information Center shows that the contract中标金额 (amount of winning bids), which reflects the activity of project investment, increased by 9.2% year-on-year, indicating a positive trend in infrastructure investment with sufficient financial guarantees and accelerated project implementation. Not only is investment continuing to grow, but consumption activity has also continued to rise since the beginning of this year. Data from the National Information Center shows that from January to February, the online service consumption activity index increased by 20.1% year-on-year, and the offline consumption activity index increased by 13.6% year-on-year, an increase of 7.2 percentage points from December last year. In terms of foreign trade, in the first two months of this year, the average daily container throughput of major ports increased by 12% year-on-year.
New Consumption Scenarios Ignite New Vitality in Spring Tourism
As the weather warms up, tourism consumption scenarios such as flower viewing, outings, and rural tourism are becoming increasingly rich. People's leisure and vacation are no longer limited to long holidays, and travel is within reach anytime, anywhere. Data from online travel platforms show that the spring tourism market has entered its peak season ahead of schedule. Search volume for flower viewing has increased by 2.2 times compared to 2024, and the proportion of people traveling for flower viewing has approached 55%. Short-distance travel and micro-vacation products are hot sellers, with orders for accommodation lasting two days or less accounting for 60.6%. This spring, plum blossoms, rape flowers, cherry blossoms, and other flowers have successively entered their full bloom period, presenting a pattern of sequential blooming from south to north across the country, with a hundred flowers blossoming. Beijing, Nanjing, Hangzhou, and other places are popular flower viewing destinations, with spring travel orders in Beijing increasing by 114% year-on-year. In March, rural tourism also became a hot trend. At the Mugui Festival in Guizhou, Miao compatriots in festive costumes welcomed visitors from all directions, and a variety of activities further promoted local tourism development. At the same time, with the comprehensive relaxation and optimization of China's transit visa-free policy, in the first two months of this year, inbound and outbound passengers at Shanghai's cruise ports exceeded 350,000, a year-on-year increase of 2.6 times. The number of cross-border tourist groups entering China from the Hekou port in Yunnan, mainly from Southeast Asia, reached 3,034, an increase of 42.68% compared to the same period last year.
Construction of New Energy Bases in China's Western Desert, Gobi, and Arid Regions Accelerates
This year's "Government Work Report" explicitly proposes to accelerate the construction of large-scale wind and solar power bases in desert, Gobi, and barren areas. Currently, China is fully promoting new energy development in desert, Gobi, and barren areas to help achieve China's "dual carbon" goals. These days, on the southern edge of the Taklamakan Desert, nearly a hundred construction machines are working intensively at the first ten-million-kilowatt-class "desert, Gobi, and barren area" wind-solar-thermal-storage integrated base in southern Xinjiang. After completion and operation, it can provide 5 million kilowatts of reliable power support to the Sichuan-Chongqing region during peak hours. Currently, large-scale wind and photovoltaic bases, with a focus on "desert, Gobi, and barren areas," are the main battlegrounds for China's new energy development. As of the end of 2024, the first batch of 50 base projects has been basically completed and put into operation, with an installed capacity exceeding 90 million kilowatts. At the same time, the rapid growth of installed capacity has driven technological innovation and industrial upgrading in the upstream and downstream of the new energy industry chain. At a large wind power equipment manufacturing enterprise in Sichuan, 10-megawatt large-capacity wind turbines customized for "desert, Gobi, and barren area" large bases are being urgently produced. This model with strong anti-pollution and anti-sand design has been installed in Xinjiang and Inner Mongolia regions for over 400 units. In Gansu, the world's first artificial cavern compressed air energy storage project has entered the equipment installation stage. This pilot technology promoted in the new energy field can efficiently store surplus new energy electricity and will provide support for large-scale green power transmission from China's "desert, Gobi, and barren areas." This year, the state will continue to increase support for the construction of "desert, Gobi, and barren area" wind and solar bases. On the one hand, it will strengthen key technological breakthroughs in wind, solar, and storage to improve power generation efficiency and grid adaptability; on the other hand, it will increase investment in grid supporting facilities to ensure that clean electricity from "desert, Gobi, and barren areas" is successfully connected to the grid and transmitted to more places.
[Cultural China Tour] Xuan Paper: Light as Cicada Wings, White as Snow, Rustles Like Silk Without a Sound
Among the vast system of traditional Chinese handmade paper, Xuan paper is one of the most outstanding representatives, with a history of over 1,500 years and the reputation of "paper lasting a thousand years, ink changing ten thousand ways." In 2009, the Xuan paper making technique was inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Today (March 16th), in "Culture China Tour," we will take you to appreciate China's papermaking techniques. In Jing County, nestled in the mountains of southern Anhui, within the China Xuan Paper Town, an 11-meter long and 3.3-meter wide "three-zhang-three" giant Xuan paper bamboo screen is precisely scooping pulp from the pulp vat. This large-sized Xuan paper is generally used for creating large-scale calligraphy and painting works. "Three-zhang-three" Xuan paper is made from natural raw materials such as bark of the Pteroceltis tatarinowii tree and Sandian rice straw, undergoing 108 processes including steaming, bleaching, and beating. When scooping the paper, more than 50 skilled workers are required to cooperate using traditional techniques. Scooping the paper is the first step in making Xuan paper and the most important one that determines its quality. The scooping masters can control the weight of the Xuan paper solely by hand movements, achieving a weight error of no more than 50 grams per stack of 100 sheets of Xuan paper. The scooped paper layers then need to be pressed to squeeze out excess water, and after more than 100 subsequent tedious and delicate procedures such as baking and sun-drying, the Xuan paper is finally completed. Xuan paper is generally divided into raw Xuan (shengxuan) and ripe Xuan (shuxuan). Shengxuan, which is unprocessed, has strong water absorption and permeability, easily producing rich ink bleeding effects, achieving artistic effects of water absorption, ink diffusion, and rich density. This effect enriches the expressiveness and layering of paintings and is commonly used by painters for freehand brushwork. Shuxuan, due to the addition of glue and alum during processing, is harder than shengxuan and has weak water absorption; ink will not spread on it, and it is commonly used for small script calligraphy and meticulous paintings. Xuan paper made using traditional techniques, with its excellent characteristics such as not becoming brittle over time, absorbing and retaining ink, and being resistant to insects and decay, cannot be entirely replaced by machine-made paper even today. As the carrier of ancient books, rare editions, famous calligraphy, and paintings, Xuan paper has passed through the hands of generations of literati and artists, carrying thousands of years of Chinese culture.
Domestic News Briefs
Shanghai Launches 10 Measures to Support "First-Store Economy" Today (March 16), Shanghai launched 10 measures to support the "first-store economy," including piloting convenient inspection measures for first-time imported consumer goods, piloting a fast customs clearance model for first-time imported cosmetics, and optimizing customs clearance convenience "enterprise service packages" for first-time imported new products, striving to create a world-class cluster for the "first-store economy." New Recruit Transportation Work for First Half of 2025 Begins Today Today (March 16), the transportation work for new recruits enlisting in the first half of 2025 officially commenced. This transportation effort primarily promotes a one-stop direct delivery model, with over half of the railway transport and direct flights having no transfers, and over 90% of railway transport arriving with only one transfer, minimizing the travel time for new recruits. The transportation work will be fully completed by March 28. Ha-Zheng DC Transmission Line Transmits Over 10 Billion kWh This Year As of today (March 16), the ±800 kV Hami South-Zhengzhou UHV DC transmission project has cumulatively transmitted over 10 billion kWh of electricity this year, setting a new historical high, with a year-on-year increase of 11.2%. The Ha-Zheng DC is the first UHV DC transmission project for "Xinjiang power transmission to other regions," passing through six provinces/regions including Xinjiang, Gansu, Ningxia, Shaanxi, Shanxi, and Henan, providing power support and guarantee for the Central China region. Airport's Three Major Indicators Set New Records in 2024 Reporters learned from the Civil Aviation Administration that in 2024, there were 263 transport airports in mainland China (excluding Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan regions), and the three main production indicators – passenger throughput, cargo and mail throughput, and aircraft movements – all reached new historical highs. Among them, the number of airports with annual passenger throughput exceeding 10 million increased to 40. Lanzhou Zhongchuan International Airport Phase III Completed and Put into Operation Today (March 16), Lanzhou Zhongchuan International Airport Phase III was completed and put into operation, and the newly built T3 terminal will officially open at 0:00 on March 20. The new terminal features the Yellow River and flying Apsaras as core design elements, with 94 parking stands, and is expected to handle 300,000 aircraft movements and 38 million passengers annually. Yongding River Achieves Full Flow for Five Consecutive Years Reporters learned from the Ministry of Water Resources that recently, with the opening of gates at multiple upstream reservoirs, the Yongding River has achieved full flow for five consecutive years. To further consolidate the effectiveness of ecological water replenishment, various projects plan to discharge 771 million cubic meters of ecological water into the Yongding River this year to ensure water flow throughout the river. 2025 National Urban Joint Recruitment for College Graduates Spring Session Kicks Off Today (March 16), the 2025 National Urban Joint Recruitment for College Graduates Spring Session kicked off in Guangzhou. Over 1,200 employers offered more than 50,000 positions, covering industries such as semiconductors and integrated circuits, artificial intelligence, robotics, and high-end equipment manufacturing, attracting nearly 2,000 universities and nearly 120,000 students. "China in Spring" Global Dialogue Held in Multiple Countries In recent days, "China in Spring: Chinese Opportunities, World Shared Prosperity" global dialogues, hosted by China Media Group, have been successively held in Ethiopia, Turkey, Senegal, Kazakhstan, and Colombia. Participants engaged in in-depth exchanges on the opportunities brought by China's high-quality development to the world, promoting shared prosperity and a better future for humanity.
US Air Strikes Kill 31 in Multiple Yemeni Locations
The Houthi armed group in Yemen stated today (March 16) that from the evening of March 15 to the early morning of March 16 local time, the United States launched large-scale airstrikes on several areas in Yemen, including the capital Sana'a, resulting in at least 31 deaths and hundreds injured. The Houthi armed group stated that the capital Sana'a, as well as Saada, Dhamar, Bayda, Hajjah, and Marib provinces, were hit by US airstrikes. The targeted locations included schools, residential areas, and Houthi military bases. US Claims to Use "Overwhelming Lethal Force" Against Houthis, Houthis Vow Retaliation US President Trump posted on March 15 that US forces had struck Houthi leaders, military bases, and air defense systems. He stated that for over a year, the Houthis have frequently attacked US and other countries' ships, aircraft, and drones in the Red Sea region, and the US would use "overwhelming lethal force" to strike the Houthis. Trump also demanded that Iran immediately stop supporting the Houthis. This was the first US strike against the Houthis since Trump re-entered the White House on January 20. US media quoted a US official as saying that military strikes against the Houthi armed group in Yemen could continue for days or even weeks. The Houthi political bureau today accused the US attacks of being war crimes, stating that the attacks showed that the US has been fighting for Israel from the past to the present, and that the attacks would not prevent Yemen from continuing to support the Palestinian people. The Houthis are prepared to counter the escalation with escalated actions. Iran's Foreign Ministry Strongly Condemns US Airstrikes on Yemen Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Nasser Kanaani today issued a statement strongly condemning the brutal US airstrikes on various parts of Yemen, and pointed out that the US actions severely violate the UN Charter and international law. Commander-in-Chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of Iran, Hossein Salami, said today that if any threats are put into action, Iran's response will be decisive and devastating.
Russia Claims Recapture of Two More Settlements in Kursk, Ukraine Says New Missiles Used in Combat
The Russian Ministry of Defense stated on March 15 that Russian forces had recaptured two more settlements in Russia's Kursk region. The Russian side has begun demining operations in the recaptured areas of Kursk to create conditions for post-war reconstruction and restoration of local production and living facilities. The Russian Ministry of Defense also stated that Russian forces continue to operate in Donetsk, Lugansk, and other areas, striking Ukrainian military airfields, drone production workshops, and energy facilities supporting the military-industrial complex. Ukrainian President Zelensky stated on March 15 that Ukrainian forces in the Kursk region were not encircled and that Ukrainian forces were still carrying out missions and tying down Russian forces in the area. The Ukrainian side also stated on the same day that it had tested a new "long-range Neptune" missile and successfully used it in combat. Ukraine claimed that the missile has a range of 1,000 kilometers and can conduct precision strikes. On March 15, the United Kingdom led a video conference on the issue of Ukraine, discussing providing military support to Ukraine and pressuring Russia, among other issues. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that European leaders are forcing Ukraine to continue the war in exchange for rapid accession to the EU, which Hungary opposes.
International News Briefs
Israeli Forces Attack Northern Gaza, Palestine Says Israel Seeks to Undermine Ceasefire According to the Palestinian news agency on March 15, an Israeli army drone attacked the northern Gaza Strip town of Beit Lahiya, killing at least nine Palestinians. The Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) stated that the Israeli attack showed Israel's attempt to overthrow the Gaza Strip ceasefire agreement. Hamas claimed that since the first phase of the ceasefire agreement was reached in January this year, Israeli actions have caused more than 150 deaths in the Gaza Strip. French Official Says US-EU Trade Dispute Will Escalate Regarding the US threat to impose a 200% tariff on EU wine products, French Minister of Economy and Finance Eric Lombard stated on March 14 that the trade dispute between the US and EU would enter an escalating phase, and that the US was harming itself by doing so. According to France Info, Bank of France Governor François Villeroy de Galhau stated on March 14 that if the US imposed additional tariffs on wine, the EU had means of retaliation, but hoped that the situation would stop escalating. Storms Sweep Across Multiple US States, Killing 34 From March 14 to 15, multiple areas in the central and southern United States were hit by tornadoes, thunderstorms, and dust storms, resulting in at least 34 deaths. The US National Weather Service stated on March 15 that over the past 24 hours, more than 40 tornadoes were reported across eight US states, with multiple tornadoes in Missouri alone causing at least 12 deaths. In Arkansas, storms caused three deaths and nearly 30 injuries. In Kansas and Texas, widespread dust storms led to multi-vehicle pile-ups, killing 11 people. Storms and lightning also triggered approximately 150 wildfires in several states. Mississippi, Georgia, and several other states have declared states of emergency. Canadian Prime Minister Requests Review of US Fighter Jet Purchase Plan A spokesperson for the Canadian Department of National Defence said on March 15 that Canadian Prime Minister Carney has requested the Department of National Defence to re-examine the plan to purchase US F-35 fighter jets. In January 2023, Canada signed a contract with a US defense contractor to purchase 88 F-35 fighter jets for 19 billion Canadian dollars, approximately 13.2 billion US dollars. Recently, US tariff increases and rhetoric about Canada becoming the "51st state" have met with widespread opposition from the Canadian side.