New Vision Guides New Journey: Promoting High-Quality and Full Employment, Improving Social Security System
General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized the need to further enhance the social security system and improve the accessibility and balance of basic public services, particularly focusing on employment as the most fundamental aspect of people's livelihoods. Currently, China is strengthening its employment-first policy to promote high-quality and full employment, while steadily improving public services and social security to genuinely enhance people's well-being. This spring, a series of special employment promotion services have been launched nationwide. The recently concluded 2025 "Chunfeng Action" (Spring Breeze Action) held 56,000 recruitment events over three months, offering 37 million job opportunities. These days, spring special recruitment events mainly targeting university graduates are underway in large and medium-sized cities. Monitoring by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security indicates that since the beginning of this year, enterprises have accelerated their resumption of work and production, leading to a good start in the job market. Employment is the foundation of people's livelihoods, and social security concerns everyone's vital interests, all of which are major matters that General Secretary Xi Jinping deeply cares about. During his inspections across the country, the General Secretary frequently visited factories and workshops, met with the public, and had in-depth conversations with university graduates, delivery riders, and migrant workers, carefully inquiring about their income sources, employment and entrepreneurship, and pension benefits. He emphasized adhering to a people-centered development philosophy and steadily improving people's livelihoods in the course of development. This year's "Government Work Report" for the first time proposed "investing in people," requiring the strengthening of the macro-policy orientation towards people's livelihoods, promoting more funds and resources to serve people's well-being, and deploying work around stabilizing and expanding employment with greater effort, and improving social security and service policies. This year, the national budget expenditure for social security and employment is arranged to be nearly 4.5 trillion yuan, an increase of 5.9%. The central government has allocated 66.74 billion yuan in employment subsidies to support local implementation of employment and entrepreneurship support policies. Currently, the outstanding balance of steady employment and job expansion special loans exceeds 300 billion yuan, and the outstanding balance of guaranteed entrepreneurship loans exceeds 270 billion yuan. Monetary, industrial, and employment policies are working in synergy to fully stabilize total employment, expand incremental employment, and improve employment quality. To address the structural contradiction of "people without work and work without people," central budget investment supports local construction of 414 public training bases. Multi-channel funds and resources are coordinated to build 1,176 high-skilled talent training bases and 1,475 master skill studios. While actively promoting high-quality and full employment, China is steadily advancing social security system reforms. This year, the state is steadily promoting the national pooling of basic old-age insurance, continuing to increase pension benefits for over 300 million retired workers and urban and rural residents, and expanding the individual pension system from 36 pilot cities and regions to the entire country, building a multi-level and multi-pillar old-age insurance system. This year, many regions have lifted household registration restrictions for flexible employment participants, allowing them to freely choose their participation location, contribution base, and payment method based on their actual situation. The pilot program for occupational injury protection for new employment forms will be expanded from 7 provinces and cities to 17, covering tens of millions of workers including delivery riders, food delivery drivers, and ride-hailing drivers. This year, the state is accelerating the construction of the "one card for resident services" social security card, launching over 100 national services and over 1,000 local services, and achieving inter-provincial processing of transportation, culture, tourism, and other matters in regions such as the Yangtze River Delta, Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei, and Sichuan-Chongqing. Centered on the people, tirelessly improving a more comprehensive, fairer, and more compassionate social security system, more and more people's expectations are being transformed into tangible happiness, and the achievements of Chinese modernization will benefit all people more.
Real Work, New Horizons for Reform and Development: Heilongjiang Drives Scientific and Technological Achievement Transformation for New High-Quality Development Momentum; Gansu Integrates Science, Education, and Industry to Build Western Innovative Hub
Heilongjiang and Gansu are earnestly implementing the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping's important speeches at the national "Two Sessions," transforming their advantages in scientific and educational resources into industrial advantages, fostering and developing new quality productive forces, and providing strong impetus for high-quality development. Heilongjiang: Promoting the transformation of scientific and technological achievements and enhancing new drivers for high-quality development. At an agricultural machinery manufacturing enterprise in Jiamusi, Heilongjiang, experts from Harbin Engineering University are testing the effectiveness of a seeder equipped with a radar speed measurement device. The new device can perceive terrain in multiple dimensions, improving the uniformity and precision of the seeder when operating in complex terrain farmland. With enterprises posing "problems," scientific research "solving" them, and the market "evaluating" them, Heilongjiang is actively promoting the deep integration of scientific and technological innovation and industrial innovation. Through measures such as building an innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem around universities, large academies, and research institutes, and establishing an intelligent matching platform for "enterprise-research team," Heilongjiang is deepening industry-university-research cooperation and sharing resources between schools (institutes) and enterprises. This year, Heilongjiang will focus on key areas such as artificial intelligence, modern agriculture, and energy equipment, planning more than 200 major research projects and transforming more than 650 major scientific and technological achievements. Gansu: Integration of science, education, and industry to build a western-style industrial innovation highland. In Lanzhou, Gansu, researchers are currently assembling and debugging a medical heavy ion accelerator treatment device, which will soon be put into medical clinical application. Relying on the advantages of universities and research institutes concentrated in the provincial capital, Lanzhou is accelerating the construction of a full-chain innovation ecosystem from "basic research to technological breakthroughs to industrial transformation." Taking key core technology breakthroughs and the transformation of scientific and technological achievements as a breakthrough, Gansu promotes the establishment of a docking and cooperation mechanism between enterprises and universities and research institutions, creating innovation consortia. This year, Gansu will continue to increase investment in applied research and basic research, cultivating national innovation platforms in advantageous and distinctive fields such as cold and dry agriculture and earth sciences, and building a number of national key laboratories, continuously improving the service capacity for the transformation of scientific and technological achievements.
Promoting High-Quality Development of Private Economy - Authoritative Interview: Hunan Actively Fosters Fair, Transparent, and Predictable Development Environment
Hunan is planning to introduce a series of reform measures, focusing on creating a fair, transparent, and predictable development environment for private enterprises, to boost confidence among private entrepreneurs in the market. Today (March 30), the "Promoting High-Quality Development of Private Economy: Authoritative Interview" broadcast a special interview by a Central Radio and Television Station reporter with Shen Xiaoming, Secretary of the Hunan Provincial Committee. Shen Xiaoming stated that Hunan will thoroughly implement the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping's important speech at the private enterprise symposium, focusing on improving the precision and effectiveness of policy measures, introducing practical and effective policies to enable private enterprises to operate with ease and develop freely. Further reduce the comprehensive operating costs of enterprises. This year, Hunan will vigorously carry out actions such as "delivering policies, solving problems, and optimizing services" and "chain chiefs going to the front line," explore a new "one-stop" mechanism for enterprise complaints and suggestions, and comprehensively utilize policies, finance, and services to help private enterprises reduce costs and increase efficiency. Create a fairer business environment. This year, Hunan will deepen the "one thing, one-time辦" (one matter, one-time handling) reform, promoting full-process digitalization and full-process transparency of administrative approvals, with traceable and supervisable quality and timeliness; using big data and other information technology means to effectively address implicit barriers to market access.
China's Logistics Market Continues to Expand
The China Federation of Logistics & Purchasing announced today (March 30) logistics operation data for the first two months of this year. Driven by a series of policies, logistics demand continued its stable growth momentum, and the scale of the logistics market continued to expand. From January to February this year, China's total social logistics value, the sum of the value of logistics physical quantities in economic operation, was 56.3 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 5.3%. In terms of structure, logistics demand related to industrial production achieved stable and upward growth. Among them, logistics demand related to high-tech manufacturing increased by 9.1% year-on-year, 0.2 percentage points faster than the whole of last year. Driven by policies such as equipment renewal, logistics demand in industries such as railway transportation equipment manufacturing and urban rail transit equipment manufacturing increased by more than 20% year-on-year. Driven by policies such as trade-in for home appliances, logistics demand for household appliance manufacturing increased by 10.1% year-on-year. In addition, driven by the rapid development of cross-border e-commerce, the international air cargo market achieved rapid growth, completing 575,000 tons of cargo and mail transport in the first two months of this year, a year-on-year increase of 17.9%. Furthermore, from January to February, the number of supply chain contract orders for key logistics enterprises maintained a high growth rate of over 20%, indicating that as the logistics demand structure continues to upgrade, the pace of synergistic transformation between production enterprises and logistics enterprises has accelerated.
Multiple Regions Boost Scenario Openness to Drive Innovation and Development of SMEs
Since the beginning of this year, various localities have supported and encouraged state-owned enterprises to open up application scenarios to a number of sci-tech enterprises, thereby realizing integrated cooperation between large, medium, and small enterprises and accelerating the innovative development of industrial chains. These days, the international cargo station at Shenzhen Bao'an Airport is testing robot arms produced by a sci-tech enterprise to verify whether these robot arm products can be used in airport cargo sorting scenarios. Shenzhen has already released 30 such product application scenarios for sci-tech enterprises this year, helping 109 enterprises to connect; the second batch of 50 scenarios suitable for release to small and medium-sized enterprises will also be provided centrally in the near future. Not only Shenzhen, in Shanghai, 576 digital transformation application scenarios are promoting multi-level cooperative relationships between state-owned enterprises and various entities such as private enterprises and foreign enterprises, ranging from projects and industries to capital, reaching thousands of small and medium-sized enterprises. In Hefei, a state-owned enterprise scenario innovation alliance has been established, with 26 state-owned enterprises opening up multiple scenarios in areas such as transportation, energy, construction, and public services, attracting small and medium-sized enterprises to participate in对接. Currently, over 260 sci-tech enterprises have accurately matched with owner units. Statistical data shows that currently, China's central enterprises, in conjunction with industrial partners, have deployed artificial intelligence in over 500 scenarios in key industries such as industrial manufacturing, energy and electricity, and intelligent connected vehicles. Next, the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council will also continue to guide central enterprises to actively open up application scenarios to the society, strengthen cooperation with various enterprises by building cooperation platforms and increasing procurement efforts.
Spring Flower Viewing Ignites Rural Tourism
As spring warms up and the Qingming holiday approaches, the national rural tourism market continues to heat up. In Taizhou, Jiangsu, tourists can experience the artistic conception of "boats sailing amidst flowers, people strolling within paintings" during the "Water Rhyme Jiangsu, Enjoying Flowers at Ease" tour. In Guangyuan, Sichuan, tourists can admire centuries-old alpine azaleas and experience the history of Quaternary glacial changes during the "Spring Rendezvous on the Shu Road to Admire Flowers" tour. New scenarios and new formats in rural tourism such as flower viewing economy, sports and wellness, intangible cultural heritage markets, and village banquets are also emerging endlessly. According to comprehensive online platform data statistics, in March 2025, bookings for rural tourism products increased by 52% year-on-year compared to 2024, and the popularity of "flower viewing + intangible cultural heritage" routes increased by 120%. Hotel bookings in cities along the Grand Canal (Hangzhou, Yangzhou, etc.) increased by 48% year-on-year, and weekend average prices increased by 35%. According to calculations by the Data Center of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, in the first quarter of 2025, the total number of rural tourism visitors nationwide was 707 million, a year-on-year increase of 8.9%; the total income from rural tourism nationwide was 412 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 5.6%; and the total number of people employed in rural tourism nationwide was 7.12 million, a year-on-year increase of 2.2%.
Domestic News Briefs
Four Major State-Owned Banks Announce Non-Public Offering Plans, Aiming to Raise a Total of 520 Billion Yuan. Today (March 30), Bank of China, China Construction Bank, Bank of Communications, and Postal Savings Bank of China separately announced plans to raise funds from specific targets, including the Ministry of Finance, for a total amount not exceeding 520 billion yuan, to replenish their core tier-one capital. This capital replenishment will help large state-owned commercial banks further strengthen their capital base, enhance their stable operation and risk prevention capabilities, and better serve as the "main force" in supporting the real economy and the "ballast stone" in maintaining financial stability. China Issues Implementation Plan for Digital Transformation of Light Industry. Recently, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and two other departments jointly issued the "Implementation Plan for Digital Transformation of Light Industry," aiming to achieve a popularization rate of around 90% for digital R&D and design tools in key light industrial enterprises and a numerical control rate of around 75% for key processes by 2027, creating about 100 typical scenarios to accelerate the comprehensive empowerment of light industry development with digital technology. National Civil Aviation Begins Summer-Autumn Flight Schedule Today. The reporter learned from the Civil Aviation Administration that national civil aviation will begin implementing its 2025 summer-autumn flight schedule today (March 30). In the new season, a total of 209 domestic and international airlines plan to arrange 123,000 regular passenger and cargo flights per week, with a focus on optimizing connecting routes and feeder routes between domestic tourist destination feeder airports and hub airports. Over 2,200 Leading Enterprises Integrating Domestic and Foreign Trade Cultivated Nationwide. The reporter learned from the Ministry of Commerce that in 2024, among China's industrial enterprises above designated size, 87,000 enterprises achieved integrated domestic and foreign trade operations, a year-on-year increase of 6.3%, and the proportion of integrated domestic and foreign trade operations reached 17%. Currently, over 2,200 leading enterprises integrating domestic and foreign trade have been cultivated nationwide. China to Conduct Regular Rectification of Construction Waste. The reporter learned from the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development that China will conduct regular rectification of construction waste. Localities are required to accelerate the establishment of a long-term mechanism for construction waste management, focusing on rectifying problems such as illegal dumping and backward construction of disposal sites for about three months each year. At the same time, the construction of an information management platform for construction waste will be promoted, and a full-process management system covering generation, transportation, and disposal will be established. China Successfully Launches Communication Technology Test Satellite XVI. At 0:05 AM today (March 30), China successfully launched Communication Technology Test Satellite XVI using a Long March 7A carrier rocket at the Wenchang Space Launch Site. The satellite is mainly used to conduct verification of multi-band, high-rate satellite communication technologies. Domestic Large Aircraft C919 Continues to Add New Routes. Today (March 30), the Shanghai-Shenyang and Xi'an-Guangzhou routes welcomed the maiden flights of the domestic large aircraft C919. As of now, China's civil aviation has 16 C919 aircraft operating on 23 routes, with over 434 flights per week. 2025 China Network Media Forum Opens. The 2025 China Network Media Forum, jointly organized by the Cyberspace Administration of China, China Media Group, and the Cyberspace Affairs Commission of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Party Committee, opened today (March 30) in Nanning, Guangxi. Participants engaged in in-depth discussions around the theme of "Systemic Change and Intelligent Communication: Opportunities and Challenges for Network Media," and held a series of activities including the 2025 AI-Powered Positive Energy Creation Conference. 2025 International Forum on Poverty Governance and Global Development (Nujiang) Held. The 2025 International Forum on Poverty Governance and Global Development (Nujiang) recently opened in Lushui City, Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan. Around 300 resident envoys, government officials, and experts from 34 countries and international organizations such as the United Nations attended the forum to exchange experiences in poverty reduction, promote comprehensive rural revitalization, and seek ways for modernization and sustainable development. Heilongjiang Xingkai Lake Welcomes Peak Migratory Bird Season. As the weather warms up, Heilongjiang Xingkai Lake National Nature Reserve is experiencing a peak in migratory bird activity. A large number of precious bird species stop here to rest and forage. In addition to common birds like wild geese, egrets, and grey herons, national first-class protected animals are also frequently seen, presenting a spectacular scene.
Central Myanmar Quake Kills About 1,700, Injures 3,400
According to data released by Myanmar's State Administration Council, as of noon today (March 30) local time, the strong earthquake in central Myanmar has resulted in approximately 1,700 deaths, with around 3,400 injured and about 300 missing. The Chinese Embassy in Myanmar confirmed today that 14 Chinese citizens were injured in the Myanmar earthquake and are currently receiving treatment. According to a notice issued today by Myanmar's Department of Meteorology and Hydrology, a total of 25 aftershocks have been reported since the strong earthquake occurred in the country's center on March 28. Mandalay, located near the epicenter of the earthquake, is one of the severely affected areas, currently facing insufficient medical resources and a shortage of drinking water supply. A CMG reporter arrived in Mandalay on March 29 and observed extensive damage to buildings in the area, while damaged roads hindered material transportation. The CMG reporter arrived this afternoon at Sagaing City in Sagaing Region, another severely affected area, and found that most buildings in the city were severely damaged, and the Inwa Bridge, a crucial transportation hub, was impassable. In Naypyitaw, the capital of Myanmar, electricity, communication, and internet services remain interrupted in most areas. A CMG reporter at Naypyitaw International Airport saw that some buildings, including the air traffic control tower, were damaged in the earthquake, and the radar system ceased operation. As of now, the entire airport remains closed, posing significant challenges to rescue efforts.
Chinese Rescue Teams Save Survivor Buried for Nearly 40 Hours in Myanmar
Following the strong earthquake in central Myanmar, multiple Chinese rescue teams rushed to the affected area day and night. Among them, the Chinese rescue forces who arrived earlier today (March 30) rescued one survivor. The Chinese Yunnan Medical Rescue Team is responsible for rescue operations in the capital, Naypyitaw. Early this morning, at a local hospital, rescuers detected signs of life beneath the rubble of a collapsed three-story building, and rescue efforts immediately began. The survivor was trapped in a gap in a fallen wall. Due to the thick debris, rescuers broke through the floor slab from a room on the other side of the wall, creating a downward passage. They worked together to clear obstacles, gradually clearing a space wide enough for one person, allowing them to transfer the survivor onto a stretcher and carry him out of the rubble. It was around 5:00 AM local time on March 30 when the elderly person, who had been trapped for nearly 40 hours, was successfully rescued. This is the first survivor rescued by Chinese rescue forces since their arrival in the earthquake-stricken area of Myanmar. In addition, the Chinese rescue team has entered the severely affected Mandalay region and is currently advancing towards the epicenter, where they will immediately launch rescue operations upon arrival.
Israeli Military Expands Ground Offensive in Southern Gaza Strip
The Palestinian Gaza Strip Health Ministry stated on March 29 that Israeli army attacks on Rafah, Khan Younis, Jabalia, and other areas in the Gaza Strip that day resulted in 24 deaths. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) stated on March 29 that the IDF expanded its ground offensive in the southern Gaza Strip, destroying Hamas infrastructure in the area. In addition, the IDF issued a statement on March 29 confirming that on March 23, during operations against Hamas militants in the southern Gaza Strip, the IDF had fired upon some suspicious vehicles, and initial investigations showed these vehicles were ambulances and fire trucks. On March 23, four Palestinian Red Crescent ambulances and 10 staff members were attacked by the Israeli army, with several individuals missing. Hamas Says It Agrees to Mediators' Latest Ceasefire Proposal; Israel Says It Offered Another Plan. Senior Hamas official Khalil al-Hayya stated on March 29 that Hamas has agreed to the ceasefire proposal put forward by mediators including Egypt, which involves the release of five detained Israeli personnel in exchange for a 50-day ceasefire starting March 30. The Israeli Prime Minister's Office stated that day that it had "presented its own proposal" to the mediators. According to multiple media reports, Israel insists on the return of 10 to 11 detained personnel to resume a ceasefire. UNIFIL Says It Came Under Israeli Fire on Israel-Lebanon Temporary Border. The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) issued a statement on March 29 saying that UNIFIL peacekeepers came under Israeli Defense Forces fire while carrying out duties near the "Blue Line" on the Israel-Lebanon temporary border that day. The statement said that the incident caused no casualties, but the Israeli military's action violated UN Security Council Resolution 1701.
Russia Claims Control of Multiple Ukrainian Settlements; Ukraine Claims Destruction of Russian Air Defense Facilities
The Russian Ministry of Defense stated on March 29 that Russian forces had taken control of several settlements in Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and other areas, carrying out precision strikes on 148 Ukrainian targets, including military airfield infrastructure, drone assembly workshops, and personnel and equipment concentration points. The Russian Ministry of Defense also stated that over the past day, Ukrainian drones repeatedly attacked energy infrastructure in Russia's Kursk and Belgorod regions, causing damage to power grids and transformers in Belgorod region, resulting in power outages for over 9,000 consumers. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine stated on March 29 that Ukrainian forces repelled Russian attacks in Pokrovsk, Kursk, and other areas, destroying three Russian air defense systems and 164 drones. In addition, the Ukrainian Air Force stated that Russian drone attacks caused damage to some buildings and facilities in Kharkiv and Dnipropetrovsk.
International News Briefs
Houthi Forces Claim US Airstrikes on Sana'a, Yemen, and Other Areas. According to reports from Yemen's Houthi forces, from the evening of March 29 to the early morning of March 30, US forces continued multiple rounds of airstrikes on Sana'a, the capital of Yemen, and Saada province in the north. According to US media reports, the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier strike group departed from a US military base in Guam on March 28, heading to the Middle East to rendezvous with the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier currently in the Red Sea. Danish Citizens Protest US Threats to Seize Control of Greenland. On March 29, hundreds of Danish citizens demonstrated in front of the US Embassy in Copenhagen, the capital, protesting the US government's repeated threats to seize control of Greenland. Protesters stated that Greenland is not a commodity for sale. Greenland is an autonomous territory of Denmark, with defense and foreign affairs managed by the Danish government. US Vice President Vance visited Greenland on March 28 with a delegation and accused Denmark of insufficient investment in Greenland's security and defense. He also stated that Greenland is crucial to the United States and that the US needs to ensure its leadership role in the Arctic. Sudanese Leader Says He Refuses to Negotiate with Rapid Support Forces. On March 29, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, Chairman of Sudan's Sovereign Council and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, stated in a speech that he refused to negotiate with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Burhan said that the path to ending the Sudanese armed conflict is very clear: either the RSF lays down its weapons and surrenders, or they receive their due punishment. RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo stated today (March 30) that his forces have withdrawn from the Sudanese capital, Khartoum. However, Dagalo emphasized that the RSF would return to the capital with "more resolute determination." US Small Plane Crashes, Causing House Fire. On March 29, a small plane crashed in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, causing a house on the ground to catch fire. Fire department officials said there were no survivors on the plane and no reports of casualties in the house that caught fire. The US Federal Aviation Administration is unclear how many people were on board the aircraft. According to US media reports, the aircraft type can carry up to six people, and the plane crashed six minutes before its scheduled arrival.