General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized the need to deeply implement the strategy of upgrading pilot free trade zones, explore broader fields and deeper levels, and strive to build higher-level pilot free trade zones. Since the beginning of this year, various pilot free trade zones have steadily expanded institutional opening-up, promoted the innovative development of the entire industrial chain, and enabled pilot free trade zones to better play a demonstrative and leading role. A negative list relaxes market access restrictions and continuously stimulates the vitality of business entities. A multi-functional account facilitates cross-border capital flows and accelerates the alignment of domestic regulations with international standards. A single window integrates full-chain and full-process services, effectively improving customs clearance efficiency at ports. As a "testing ground" for reform and opening-up, the 22 national pilot free trade zones have formed an innovative pattern of reform and opening-up covering the east, west, south, north, and central regions, contributing approximately one-fifth of the national total import and export volume with less than four-thousandths of the national land area. General Secretary Xi Jinping attaches great importance to the construction of pilot free trade zones, has repeatedly conducted on-site inspections and investigations, and made important instructions. He emphasized that China will effectively leverage the leading role of pilot free trade zones and free trade ports, deeply carry out reforms and innovations in trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, and promote the construction of a higher-level open economic new system. The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China deployed the improvement of the high-level opening-up system and mechanism, proposing to implement the strategy of upgrading pilot free trade zones and encouraging pioneering and integrated exploration. Following the direction guided by the General Secretary, various regions have steadily promoted institutional opening-up, focused on key areas, and accelerated exploration and innovation. At Shanghai Yangshan Port, the pilot program for coastal cabotage of international vessels was further expanded this year, allowing foreign ships to carry foreign trade goods between Yangshan Port and Dalian Port, Tianjin Port, Qingdao Port, and Lianyungang Port. Coastal cabotage is an important breakthrough in China's international shipping sector, marking Yangshan Port's progress towards becoming a global hub port. Currently, 95% of the overall plan for institutional opening-up in the Shanghai Pilot Free Trade Zone has been implemented, and the convenience of cross-border flow of goods, services, capital, personnel, and data has been continuously improved. This year, Shanghai will promote the promulgation of special policy measures for easing market access in Pudong, build a second batch of pilot free trade zone linkage innovation zones, deepen the pilot program for expanded opening-up of value-added telecommunications services, and accelerate the construction of an international data economy industrial park. Deep cultivation and meticulous work are carried out in line with high international standards. Since the beginning of this year, multiple pilot free trade zones have introduced a series of institutional and policy achievements. In Qingdao, Shandong, the first patent-intensive product insurance took effect, providing precise and in-depth protection for enterprises' core innovative achievements. In Xiamen, Fujian, a smart telecommunication quarantine model is being piloted, which is expected to save more than 1,000 hours of ship waiting time for quarantine each year. In the first quarter of this year, the total import and export volume of national pilot free trade zones reached 2 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 2.2%. On the new journey, various regions are focusing on enhancing the comprehensive competitiveness of foreign trade, building a high-level scientific and technological innovation ecosystem, and promoting the efficient, convenient, and secure flow of data, conducting greater institutional opening-up experiments, and further improving the quality of pilot free trade zone construction.
The remains of Comrade Raidi, an excellent member of the Communist Party of China, a loyal communist fighter, an outstanding leader in China's ethnic work and socialist legal system construction, an excellent son of the Tibetan people, and Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Tenth National People's Congress, were cremated at the Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery in Beijing on the 12th. Comrade Raidi passed away in Beijing due to illness at 2:15 AM on June 6, 2025, at the age of 87. During Comrade Raidi's serious illness and after his passing, Comrades Xi Jinping, Li Qiang, Zhao Leji, Wang Huning, Cai Qi, Ding Xuexiang, Li Xi, Han Zheng, Hu Jintao, and others visited him in the hospital or expressed their deep condolences in various forms for Comrade Raidi's passing and extended their sincere sympathy to his family. On the morning of the 12th, the auditorium of the Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery was solemn, and mournful music played softly. Above the main hall hung a black banner with white characters that read "Deeply mourn Comrade Raidi," and below the banner was a portrait of Comrade Raidi. Comrade Raidi's remains lay amidst flowers and cypress branches, covered with the bright red flag of the Communist Party of China. At around 9:30 AM, Xi Jinping, Li Qiang, Zhao Leji, Wang Huning, Cai Qi, Ding Xuexiang, Li Xi, and others slowly walked to Comrade Raidi's remains, stood in silent tribute amidst the mournful music, bowed three times to Comrade Raidi's remains, and shook hands with Comrade Raidi's family members one by one to express their condolences. Relevant leading comrades from the Party and the state went to bid farewell or expressed their condolences in various ways. Responsible comrades from relevant central and state organs, friends of Comrade Raidi during his lifetime, and representatives from his hometown also went to bid farewell.
Premier Li Qiang met with European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde in Beijing on the 12th. Li Qiang stated that this year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Europe. Last month, President Xi Jinping exchanged congratulatory messages with President Costa and President von der Leyen, providing strategic guidance for further deepening their partnership. Closer cooperation between China and Europe is an objective need and an irreversible trend. China is willing to consolidate political mutual trust, expand practical cooperation, and jointly promote development and prosperity with Europe. Against the backdrop of current headwinds in economic globalization, China and Europe should strengthen multilateral coordination and promote open cooperation to make greater contributions to promoting world economic recovery and improving global governance. China is willing to strengthen cooperation with the European Central Bank on issues such as international monetary system reform. Lagarde stated that in the current uncertain international situation, it is very important for Europe and China to maintain high-level exchanges and dialogue and cooperation. The European Central Bank is committed to strengthening communication and expanding cooperation with Chinese financial institutions to jointly address challenges.
Qingdao, Shandong, and Dazhou, Sichuan, have earnestly carried out in-depth education on implementing the spirit of the central eight-point regulations, integrating learning, investigation, and rectification, seeking truth from facts, and taking concrete actions to ensure the effectiveness of the education. Targeting the prevalent issues reported by grassroots units, such as excessive reports and ledgers, and repeated filling and reporting of the same data, Qingdao, Shandong, has built a "mobile community" platform to break down data barriers, enabling 43 types of data from 15 departments to be interconnected, shared, and utilized, facilitating community workers in handling civil affairs, subsidy certifications, and other tasks. By the end of this year, the "mobile community" platform will initially realize cross-departmental, cross-system, and cross-level sharing of grassroots governance data. Dazhou, Sichuan, integrates learning, investigation, and rectification. In Dazhou, as the process of new urbanization accelerates, the phenomenon of separation of household registration and residence is evident, and the problem of people having to "run around and make multiple trips" to handle affairs is prominent. The local government has taken urban communities as pilot reform areas, innovatively promoting a "community one-stop service" model, realizing barrier-free acceptance of services for people with non-local household registrations in "one-stop service" communities. Since the start of the education campaign, Dazhou has identified 1,127 issues related to people's livelihoods and is accelerating rectification.
Various regions are intensifying efforts to implement the "Two Renewals" policy, effectively unleashing domestic demand vitality and becoming an important engine for expanding consumption, stabilizing investment, and benefiting people's livelihoods. During the "Three Summers" season, the agricultural machinery market ushered in a sales boom. At an agricultural machinery sales point in Wucheng, Shandong, various modern agricultural machines are neatly arranged. It is reported that by scrapping old agricultural machinery and purchasing new ones, eligible agricultural machinery can enjoy both national agricultural machinery scrap subsidies and purchase subsidies, and manufacturers also offer certain concessions. Affordable prices have attracted many people to inquire and place orders. Since the beginning of this year, 38,331 farmers and agricultural production and operation organizations in Shandong have purchased 48,233 sets of various agricultural machines, stimulating social investment of 1.365 billion yuan in machinery purchases. Guizhou plans to update 30,000 sets of agricultural machinery this year, and will also include 12 types of products such as modified tractors and rotary tillers in the subsidy support. Gansu, Fujian, and other regions are focusing on promoting equipment renewal in the transportation sector this year. In Xiamen, after the implementation of the 2025 subsidy policy for scrapping and updating old operating trucks, 50 freight companies have submitted applications, and over 6.5 million yuan in scrap and update subsidies have been issued. Gansu has included new energy operating trucks and new energy pure electric buses in the subsidy scope, with higher subsidy amounts than fuel vehicles. As of June, Gansu Province's subsidies for new energy urban buses and power batteries, and for scrapping and updating old operating trucks, have exceeded 120 million yuan, updating over 2,100 operating vehicles. Since the beginning of this year, Ningxia has introduced detailed implementation rules for trade-in programs for automobiles, home appliances, electric bicycles, and new 3C digital purchases. Multiple brands have simultaneously launched "national subsidies + factory subsidies" to offer multiple stacked discounts to consumers, currently driving cumulative consumption of automobiles, home appliances, and other products totaling 7.198 billion yuan.
The State Council Information Office held a press conference today (June 12), where relevant officials from the National Development and Reform Commission, Guangdong Province, and other departments introduced the progress of the in-depth promotion of the Shenzhen Comprehensive Reform Pilot. According to the briefing, in the nearly five years since the implementation of the Shenzhen Comprehensive Reform Pilot, various reform tasks have been steadily and orderly advanced, forming a number of reproducible and replicable institutional achievements and typical experiences. In the next step, China will intensify efforts to further promote the Shenzhen Comprehensive Reform Pilot. In terms of integrated reform of education, science and technology, and talent systems and mechanisms, efforts will be made to promote the deep integration of emerging industrial development with engineering education, support colleges and universities and enterprises in jointly cultivating high-quality, interdisciplinary engineering talents, and promote the deep integration of vocational skills training with the cultivation and upgrading of advanced manufacturing clusters. In terms of empowering the real economy through financial and data elements, support will be given to eligible Hong Kong Stock Exchange listed companies to issue and list depository receipts on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, and eligible Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area enterprises listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and registered in the mainland will be allowed to list on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange. In terms of a new open economic system, major open platforms will be built to a high standard, innovation in digital RMB pilot application scenarios will be strengthened, and service levels for import and export credit and cross-border settlement for foreign trade enterprises will be improved; systems for facilitating the living of foreign personnel, such as entry and residence, medical care, and payment, will be improved. Through these measures, Shenzhen will be promoted to deepen reform and expand opening up at a higher starting point, higher level, and higher goal, creating more reproducible and replicable experiences for the whole country.
Reporters learned from the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development today (June 12) that the construction of complete communities will further expand its pilot coverage this year. Building complete communities means making residents' lives more convenient by addressing shortcomings in community facilities such as shopping, repairs, childcare, elderly care, medical care, leisure, and property management. According to requirements, various localities will next carry out special community health checks, and cities with conditions should formulate special plans for complete community construction, establish a project library and implementation plan for complete community construction, strengthen the guiding role of design, and implement complete community construction according to local conditions based on the principle of building where appropriate and renovating where appropriate. As of now, the national complete community pilot has built or renovated over 2,000 service facilities, including elderly care, childcare, and convenience stores, added 24,700 motor vehicle parking spaces, over 5,900 public charging spaces, and over 700,000 square meters of public activity areas and green spaces. In addition, 18 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the central government, including Zhejiang, Chongqing, Hubei, and Hunan, have expanded the pilot scope and have built 3,000 complete community construction models.
The Fourth China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo opened in Changsha today (June 12), with over 30,000 participants and exhibitors, including 53 African countries, 11 international organizations, 27 domestic provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities, and more than 4,700 Chinese and African enterprises, business associations, and financial institutions. The four-day expo will host 30 economic and trade events covering themes and cooperation areas such as China-Africa industrial chain cooperation, green minerals, traditional medicine, and youth innovation and entrepreneurship. This expo has for the first time set up special exhibition areas such as the "African Goodies" Exhibition, China-Africa Culture and Tourism Exhibition, and China-Africa Traditional Chinese Medicine Cooperation Exhibition. During the expo, 175 cooperation projects are expected to be signed, involving an amount exceeding 11 billion US dollars.
At the Second Belt and Road Science and Technology Exchange Conference, which concluded today (June 12), the International Meridian Circle Big Science Program, led by the National Science Center of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, was officially launched. Currently, it has signed cooperation agreements or confirmed cooperation intentions with 36 international organizations and foreign scientific research institutions. The program aims to build the most complete terrestrial monitoring chain and complete solar-terrestrial space environment detection and research for more than one solar activity cycle, thereby enhancing the ability to defend against global space weather disasters. This conference also initiated the construction of the fourth batch of "Belt and Road" joint laboratories, special cooperation plans for artificial intelligence and traditional Chinese medicine science and technology innovation, and five "Belt and Road" science and technology innovation cooperation alliances. In addition to the government-to-government science and technology cooperation agreements signed with more than 80 co-building countries, 28 more government-to-government science and technology cooperation documents were signed at this conference, contributing to deepening "Belt and Road" exchanges and cooperation and addressing global challenges.
Contributing to the West, serving the motherland. Many young people have gone to the western regions and served at the grassroots level, contributing their wisdom and strength to the high-quality development of the western regions. In the Gobi Desert of northern Xinjiang, oil pumping units rhythmically move up and down. The young woman inspecting the equipment is Ruan Siya, from Shangluo, Shaanxi, a 2020 graduate of the Karamay Campus of China University of Petroleum (Beijing). That year, she and over 100 classmates stayed in Xinjiang, taking root in the vast desert. Since then, Ruan Siya has overcome loneliness and solitude, traveling through the Gobi Desert to inspect and repair oil wells. After a few years, she grew into a business backbone and began to promote information-based transformation. Now, the factory's more than 7,000 oil wells are fully automated, and the "centralized monitoring, fault inspection" management model effectively ensures stable and increased oil production. In the fields of Wuwei, Gansu, a group of students from China Agricultural University have been stationed there for many years. PhD student Huang Hangxing has been coming here every year since his first year of undergraduate studies, sometimes staying for a whole year. Over the years, Huang Hangxing and his classmates have turned the fields into classrooms, learning through practice. They have basically figured out the water consumption patterns of 13 major local crops and 4 types of windbreak and sand-fixing plants, and drip irrigation technology has been widely promoted in the surrounding areas, raising the water utilization rate of farmland irrigation across the entire basin from 49.7% to 57.2%.
The State Council Information Office held a press conference today (June 12) themed "Strugglers on the New Journey" with Chinese and foreign journalists. Five representatives from the emergency management sector met and communicated with Chinese and foreign journalists on the theme of "Bravely Undertaking Emergency Missions and Safeguarding People's Safety," sharing their practical explorations in carrying out emergency disaster relief and transnational rescue, independently innovating and developing emergency equipment, conducting seismic intensity assessments, and utilizing remote sensing and other technical means for disaster monitoring and early warning.
China expands 240-hour transit visa-free policy to 55 countries. The National Immigration Administration announced today (June 12) that, effective June 12, Indonesian citizens can enjoy the 240-hour transit visa-free policy for convenient entry into China, increasing the number of applicable countries to 55. The policy stipulates that eligible foreign nationals can stay in China for up to 10 days without a visa, during which they can engage in activities such as tourism, business, and visiting relatives. Domestic Trade Credit Insurance Co-insurance Pool established today. Today (June 12), the Domestic Trade Credit Insurance Co-insurance Pool was officially established. The co-insurance pool is composed of multiple domestic insurance companies and aims to enhance the underwriting capacity of domestic trade insurance through a direct insurance and reinsurance linkage model. It will initially provide 10 billion yuan in insurance coverage to support enterprises in expanding the domestic demand market and serving the national strategy of promoting consumption. Grand Canal cultural exchange event held in Brussels. On June 11, local time, a Grand Canal cultural exchange event was held in Brussels. Intangible cultural heritage inheritors from along the Grand Canal showcased the spiritual connotations and contemporary value of the Grand Canal culture through cultural performances and intangible cultural heritage exhibitions, promoting mutual learning between civilizations and enhancing people-to-people understanding.
An Air India passenger plane crashed near Ahmedabad Airport in Gujarat, western India, today (June 12). According to Indian media reports, the crash has killed 133 people, but Indian officials have not yet released specific casualties, and rescue operations are ongoing. Air India stated that there were 242 people on board the aircraft. Air India issued a statement saying that the flight took off at 13:38 local time (16:08 Beijing time) and was originally scheduled to fly to London, UK. The aircraft model was a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner. The statement said that the passengers on board included 169 Indian citizens, 53 British citizens, 7 Portuguese citizens, and 1 Canadian citizen, as well as 12 crew members. The control tower at Ahmedabad Airport stated that the flight sent a distress signal shortly after takeoff and then lost contact. According to Indian media reports, the flight crashed in a residential area near the airport a few minutes after takeoff. Currently, Ahmedabad Airport and the roads near the residential area where the accident occurred have been closed.
US State Department officials stated on the 11th that, based on the latest analysis of relevant circumstances, the US State Department has decided to reduce the size of its mission in Iraq, requiring non-essential personnel at the US Embassy in Iraq to evacuate. On the same day, US Defense Secretary Hagel approved the voluntary evacuation of US military families stationed in the Middle East. In addition, according to US media reports, the US Central Command is monitoring the increasingly tense situation in the Middle East. Furthermore, according to CBS today (June 12) citing sources, Israel is ready to launch military operations against Iran. Iran says it will attack US military bases in the Middle East if conflict with the US erupts. Iranian Defense Minister Nassirzadeh said at a regular press conference on the 11th that if negotiations between Iran and the United States ultimately fail and military conflict breaks out between the two sides, Iran will attack US military bases in the Middle East. The US and Iran have held five rounds of indirect negotiations on the Iranian nuclear deal since April this year, but the two sides have significant differences on issues such as uranium enrichment. Omani Foreign Minister Badr confirmed today that the sixth round of indirect talks between Iran and the United States will be held in Muscat, the capital of Oman, on the 15th. Several foreign media reported that international oil prices rose significantly on the 11th due to factors such as the tense situation in the Middle East. As of the close of trading that day, the price of light crude oil futures for July delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose by 4.88%, and the price of Brent crude oil futures for August delivery in London rose by 4.34%.
The Russian Ministry of Defense stated that Russian forces struck Ukrainian personnel and targets in several directions on the 11th, destroying Ukrainian armored vehicles, artillery, and other equipment, and Russian forces continued to advance in the Dnipropetrovsk direction. From the evening of the 11th to the early morning of today (June 12th), Russian air defense systems shot down more than 50 Ukrainian drones over Moscow Oblast and Belgorod Oblast. The Ukrainian side claimed today that Ukrainian drones struck a technology park in Moscow Oblast that provides electronic equipment to the Russian military. The Ukrainian side also claimed to have struck several Russian military targets, including artillery systems and drone control points. On the 11th, Russian presidential aide Medinsky said that the exchange of bodies of fallen Russian and Ukrainian soldiers had begun. Russia handed over 1,212 bodies of Ukrainian soldiers to Ukraine and received 27 bodies of Russian soldiers from Ukraine. The Ukrainian side confirmed on the same day that 1,212 bodies of fallen Ukrainian soldiers had been transported back to Ukraine. Putin demands focus on creating the most modern weapon systems. Russian President Putin chaired a meeting on the 11th to review the draft national armaments plan for 2027-2036. He emphasized that the new national armaments plan must focus on developing the most modern weapon systems. Putin pointed out that the "triad" nuclear force has been and remains a guarantee of Russia's sovereignty.
Protests and conflicts in the Los Angeles area of California, triggered by federal agency raids on undocumented immigrants, continue. Los Angeles police confirmed on the 11th that over 200 people were arrested during the previous night's curfew. Los Angeles Mayor Bass announced on the 11th that a curfew would remain in effect in parts of Los Angeles from 8 PM that night until 6 AM the next day. US media reported on the 11th that 700 US Marines deployed to the Los Angeles area have completed training and are expected to carry out missions with the National Guard within 48 hours. In recent days, protests have spread to multiple locations across the United States. US media reported on the 11th that Texas has dispatched its National Guard to San Antonio. Spokane, the second-largest city in Washington State, announced a curfew in its downtown area from the evening of the 11th to the early morning of the 12th. On the 11th, hundreds of protesters continued to rally in Lower Manhattan, New York.
Two aid distribution points in the Gaza Strip attacked by Israeli forces. According to Palestinian media reports today (June 12), Israeli forces opened fire on aid distribution points in the central Netzarim Corridor and Gaza City in the northern Gaza Strip today, killing 18 people and injuring approximately 200. The Gaza Strip Health Ministry stated on the 11th that Israeli forces continued military operations in various parts of the Gaza Strip that day, resulting in the deaths of at least 123 Palestinians. European Central Bank states gold becomes the world's second-largest reserve asset. According to a report released by the European Central Bank on the 11th, influenced by factors such as continuous gold purchases by central banks of various countries and rising gold prices, gold has replaced the Euro as the world's second-largest reserve asset for central banks in 2024, second only to the U.S. dollar. The report points out that central banks of various countries have accelerated gold purchases in recent years due to reasons including diversifying investments, hedging geopolitical risks, and anticipating changes in the international monetary system. Japanese government launches new batch of reserve rice release. To stabilize rice prices, the Japanese government launched a new batch of reserve rice release on the 11th, with a total of 120,000 tons released on that day. Since the summer of 2024, Japanese rice prices have continued to rise due to factors such as extreme high temperatures leading to poor rice harvests. According to the latest data released by the Japanese government, the average price of 5 kilograms of rice is approximately 210 RMB. The Japanese government has been releasing reserve rice to the market in batches since March this year, with four batches already released, triggering overnight queues and抢购 (panic buying) among the public in many areas.
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