Foreign Trade Data - Employment Situation 'Better' but still 'Daunting' - 'Adhere to Dynamic Clearing' - Liu Jianchao's Nepal Visit - PBOC on Liquidity & Infrastructure Spending
Here are the stories and pieces that I found noteworthy in the Thursday, July 14, 2022, edition of the People’s Daily
Page 1: At the top of the page, there is a report (English report) on the foreign trade data that came out yesterday. It says:
In H1, China's foreign trade of goods rose 9.4 percent year on year to 19.8 trillion yuan (about $2.94 trillion).
Exports were 11.14 trillion yuan, an increase of 13.2%.
Imports were 8.66 trillion yuan, an increase of 4.8%.
China’s trade with ASEAN, the EU and the US expanded to 2.95 trillion yuan, 2.71 trillion yuan and 2.47 trillion yuan, respectively, an increase of 10.6%, 7.5% and 11.7% respectively.
Trade with BRI countries and RCEP members grew by 17.8% and 5.6% year on year.
Trade of mechanical and electrical products expanded by 4.2% to account for 49.1% of the total.
Trade of agricultural products was 1.04 trillion yuan, an increase of 9.3%, accounting for 5.2% of the total
Export of labour-intensive products was 1.99 trillion yuan, an increase of 13.5%, accounting for 17.8% of the total export value.
Import value of crude oil, natural gas, coal and other energy products was at 1.48 trillion yuan, an increase of 53.1%, accounting for 17.1% of the total imports.
Also, it’s useful to note this recovery: “foreign trade growth accelerated to 14.3 percent in June, compared with 9.5 percent in May and 0.1 percent in April.”
China’s imports from Russia surged for a fifth straight month since the invasion of Ukraine. Imports surged by 56.3% to $9.7 billion in June compared to a year earlier, but exports declined for a fourth straight month after dropping by %17 to US$5 billion.
China-India trade in H1 was at $67.08 billion. Exports to India were at 57.51 billion, up by 34.5%, year-on-year.
In the first half of this year, China’s trade with other BRICS countries accounted for 8.3 percent of China's total trade. Total trade between China and other BRICS countries stood at 1.64 trillion yuan ($244 billion), up 14.1 percent year-on-year. China's exports amounted to 817.18 billion yuan, up 20.6 percent, while imports totaled 825.82 billion yuan, up 8.3 percent.
Second, there’s a report on the State Council’s weekly meeting, which focussed on employment and consumption. Xinhua English has a detailed report too, which comprises a preamble on the employment situation before discussing specific measures. It says:
“The meeting noted employment as a top priority in ensuring people’s livelihood and an important underpinning for keeping overall economic performance stable. Jobs are vital for creating wealth and increasing income, which in turn will spur consumer demand and drive economic growth. Since the beginning of this year, sub-national governments and competent departments across the country have stepped up efforts to implement the various policies for job security. In June, the employment situation turned for the better compared to April and May. That said, keeping employment stable still remains a daunting task. It is important to continue to put employment first, boost employment through development, and underpin a faster recovery and steady growth of the economy through stable employment. ‘The current employment situation has turned for the better, yet pressure remains significant and must not be underestimated. The government must continue to put employment front and center, and do everything possible to stabilize and increase jobs. We must pay close attention to the employment of key groups, particularly college graduates and migrant workers,’ Li said.”
The measures listed below. This doesn’t sound like any new steps are being taken. Rather, it sounds like a call to continue to stay the course and effectively implement measures already announced:
First, ensure the implementation of policies that have been announced to stabilise employment by supporting market entities. Deferral of social insurance contributions by employers, refunding unemployment insurance premiums for enterprises that make no cuts or minimal cuts to staff number and job creation subsidies will be executed on a one-stop basis.
Second, expand efforts to ensure market-oriented job creation by the private sector. Continue to provide up to 200,000 yuan of guaranteed loans to eligible start-ups and self-employed households, with interest subsidy from fiscal funds. Local governments should earmark funds to help incubation bases lower rentals and other costs for business start-ups.
Third, efforts relating to the employment of such key groups as college graduates and migrant workers will be intensified. Policies to expand employment channels for graduates will be effectively implemented. Resumption of in-person recruitment will be expedited. Policies will be rolled out to support service outsourcing industries to hire graduates. Tailored employment services will be provided on an ongoing basis to graduates who are yet to land jobs. Public works programs will be carried out effectively. Efforts will be made to ensure at least one member of zero-employment families can get a job as quickly as possible.
Fourth, workers’ equal employment rights need to be safeguarded. Employment discrimination against people who used to test positive for COVID-19 and have now recovered will be strictly prohibited.
Fifth, local governments must fulfil their primary responsibility and see that employment targets are met. The work of localities in this regard will be put under supervision and related information circulated in a timely manner.
The next paragraph talks about flexible employment.
Over 200 million people in China are now flexibly employed. Steps announced at the meeting are:
First, the flexibly employed will be allowed to enroll in basic pension and medical insurance schemes in places where they work. They may register for these schemes on the unified national platform, and the payment of social insurance premiums, portability of schemes and settling medical bills inter-provincially will be made easier. Social insurance subsidies will be extended to college graduates and those having difficulty finding jobs when they engage in flexible employment.
Second, lawful rights and interests of the flexibly employed will be protected in accordance with the law. Irregularities such as avoiding the primary responsibilities of protecting labor rights and wage arrears will be resolutely dealt with. Trials of occupational injury insurance will be carried out. Casual labor markets will be developed at a faster pace.
Third, public employment services agencies will be encouraged to provide free services to match supply with demand for casual labor. Qualified flexibly employed people who take part in training programs will receive training subsidies and living allowances during the course.
The final paragraph talks about supporting the consumption of green and intelligent home appliances, asking local governments to provide financial and policy support for sales of appliances, improving market standards for home appliances, supporting the recycling and reusing of worn-out home appliances, fully implementing the gigabit optical fibre optic network project, speeding up the transformation of old urban communities, and consolidating and upgrading rural power grids.
Third, there’s a report on Wang Yang’s comments at the 14th Straits Forum. Xi Jinping had sent a letter to the forum, which was covered in yesterday’s PD. Xinhua reports:
“Wang called on young people on both sides of the Strait to unite more Taiwan youth to pursue and fulfill their dreams on the mainland, and make their life blossom in the great process of realizing the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation. ‘The people on both sides of the Strait are members of the same family whose blood runs thicker than water,’ Wang said, noting that efforts have been made to implement the Party's overall policy for resolving the Taiwan question in the new era, as well as uphold the one-China principle and the 1992 Consensus. Efforts were also made to foster peaceful development across the Strait and to continuously improve the systems and policies designed to ensure the wellbeing of Taiwan compatriots and extend equal treatment to them on the mainland, Wang said. ‘It is the strong backing of the motherland that has enabled Taiwan compatriots to enjoy a better life and have more opportunities for development,’ Wang said. He called on Taiwan compatriots to firmly oppose any separatist activities seeking "Taiwan independence" and seize happiness and dreams into their own hands.”
The report adds: “During his stay in Fujian, Wang also visited an exhibition in Xiamen, as well as a business startup base for young entrepreneurs and a company funded by Taiwan investors in the city of Zhangzhou. Wang pointed out that deepening the integrated cross-Strait development is a necessary path to achieving peaceful reunification of the country.” In this context, he called on local governments and departments to facilitate and support Taiwanese enterprises and youth who live in the PRC. He also talked about cooperation in science and technology, education, culture, health and other fields.
There’s a commentary on Xi’s letter and the forum on Page 2. I didn’t think there was anything particularly new in the commentary.
Finally, a short report on the launch of the new Tianlian II-03 data relay satellite. This is China’s second-generation geosynchronous orbit data relay satellite. It will provide data relay and telemetry, tracking and command services for manned spacecraft and low-and middle-orbit resource satellites.
Page 2: A report on comments made by the PBoC officials at a press conference yesterday. The key points made in the briefing:
Liquidity is reasonably sufficient, and financial support for the real economy has increased: At the end of June, the broad money supply (M2) increased by 11.4% year-on-year, 2.8 percentage points higher than the same period of the previous year; In the first half of the year, the scale of social financing increased by 21 trillion yuan, an increase of 3.2 trillion yuan over the same period of last year, and RMB loans increased by 13.68 trillion yuan, an increase of 919.2 billion yuan over the same period of last year.
The credit structure has been continuously optimised: At the end of June, the balance of medium-and long-term loans to manufacturing increased by 29.7% year-on-year, 18.5 percentage points higher than the growth rate of various loans.
Financial institutions' credit support to the real economy increased. RMB loans issued by financial institutions to the real economy increased by 13.58 trillion yuan, an increase of 632.9 billion yuan year-on-year.
In the first half of the year, the net financing of corporate bonds was 1.95 trillion yuan, an increase of 391.3 billion yuan year-on-year; Stock financing was 502.8 billion yuan, an increase of 7.3 billion yuan year-on-year.
In the first half of the year, the net financing of government bonds was 4.65 trillion yuan, an increase of 2.2 trillion yuan year-on-year; of this, the net financing of local government special bonds was 3.39 trillion yuan, an increase of 2.23 trillion yuan year-on-year.
流动性合理充裕，金融对实体经济支持力度加大。上半年，人民银行降低准备金率0.25个百分点，上缴结存利润9000亿元，合理增加流动性供给，金融机构加大对实体经济的信贷支持力度。6月末，广义货币供应量（M2）同比增长11.4%，比上年同期高2.8个百分点；上半年，社会融资规模增量为21万亿元，同比多增3.2万亿元，人民币各项贷款增加13.68万亿元，比上年同期多增9192亿元。信贷结构持续优化。人民银行充分发挥结构性货币政策的精准导向作用，不断强化对国民经济重点领域和薄弱环节的支持力度。6月末，投向制造业的中长期贷款余额同比增长29.7%，比各项贷款的增速高18.5个百分点。从社会融资规模结构看，上半年金融机构对实体经济的信贷支持力度在加大，金融机构对实体经济发放的人民币贷款增加13.58万亿元，比上年同期多增6329亿元。与此同时，企业直接融资规模平稳增长，上半年企业债券净融资为1.95万亿元，比上年同期多增3913亿元；股票融资为5028亿元，比上年同期多增73亿元。此外，金融体系积极配合财政政策，地方政府专项债券融资大幅增加，上半年政府债券净融资4.65万亿元，比上年同期多增2.2万亿元，其中地方政府专项债券净融资为3.39万亿元，比上年同期多增2.23万亿元。
Zou Lan, head of the bank’s monetary policy department, added that in the remainder of the year, the bank will “keep the liquidity reasonable and sufficient, increase the credit support to the real economy, and maintain the growth rate of money supply and social financing basically matched with the nominal economic growth rate…” 在总量上，保持流动性合理充裕，加大对实体经济的信贷支持力度，保持货币供应量和社会融资规模增速与名义经济增速基本匹配，提早完成全年向中央财政上缴结存利润.
He also talked about it being a priority to guide policy-oriented development banks to implement the new 800 billion yuan credit quote and establish the 300 billion yuan of financial bonds to support infrastructure construction. 引导政策性开发性银行落实好新增8000亿元信贷规模和设立3000亿元金融工具，支持基础设施建设.
While on infrastructure spending, do check out this Bloomberg report. It argues that “China is making 7.2 trillion yuan ($1.1 trillion) in funds available for infrastructure spending, a decisive shift away from a focus on controlling debt toward supporting a lockdown-ravaged economy. The figure refers to government-backed funds and is based on Bloomberg News’ analysis of official announcements.”
Reuters’ report on the briefing also informs:
“A recent move to allow policy banks to issue 300 billion yuan ($44.62 billion) in bonds will help some key infrastructure projects meet the minimum capital requirement of 20 per cent, which will help speed up bank lending for such projects, Zou said. Authorities have also given policy banks 800 billion yuan in new credit quotas to fund infrastructure projects.”
The report also covers comments by Ruan Jianhong, head of the statistics department, saying that:
“In the first quarter of 2022, China's macro leverage ratio, which measures the economy's overall indebtedness, was at 277.1 per cent, 4.6 percentage points higher than the end of the previous year, Ruan said. The leverage ratio will rise periodically because of slowing growth and counter-cyclical policies, but a recovery in the economy will create conditions for maintaining a reasonable debt level in the future, she added.”
Also this: “The PBOC has worked with local authorities to maintain financial stability and monitor liquidity risks after uncovering problems at some banks in the central province of Henan, said Sun Tianqi, head of the central bank's financial stability bureau. China will replenish capital for smaller banks and rein in the number of high-risk financial institutions, Sun said.”
Page 3: First, a report (English report) on comments by Yang Xiaodu, deputy secretary of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and chairman of the National Commission of Supervision, at the BRICS anti-corruption ministerial meeting. He talked about China’s anti-corruption campaign and the “new concepts, ideas and strategies” that Xi Jinping has put forward in dealing with corruption. He also called on BRICS countries to build political consensus and jointly implement the BRICS Initiative on Denial of Safe Haven to Corruption. Yang said BRICS countries should deepen mutual learning to jointly improve anti-corruption governance capabilities, and work together to create a clean business environment.
Second, the 14th meeting of the China-Vietnam Steering Committee for Bilateral Cooperation took place Wednesday in Nanning. The meeting was co-chaired by Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh. Wang said that “the two sides should strengthen cooperation on climate change, green development, photovoltaic and clean energy.” Minh said the two countries are socialist brothers and friendly neighbours, adding that they are also comprehensive strategic cooperative partners. Vietnam regards its relations with China as a top priority in its foreign policy.
In addition, “the two sides agreed to properly handle sensitive issues at sea and strive for more tangible outcomes in maritime cooperation. The two countries also agreed to strengthen solidarity and coordination in regional and international affairs and uphold true multilateralism. The two sides signed an agreement on economic and technological cooperation as well as documents on agricultural, marine environmental and maritime cooperation.”
Third, a report on China and Nicaragua signing early harvest arrangements for a bilateral free trade agreement.
Fourth, a report on the visit of new ILD chief Liu Jianchao to Nepal. This was his first foreign visit after taking charge of the department. During the three-day visit, Liu led a six-member delegation and called upon Nepali President Bidhya Devi Bhandari, Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, Foreign Minister Narayan Khadka, and leaders of major parties. If you are interested further in the visit, Santosh Sharma Poudel’s piece in The Diplomat is worth reading.
Two interesting chunks from the article:
“Liu’s visit to Nepal was aimed at improving China’s relations with the Nepali Congress, Nepal’s ruling party. China is not very fond of Deuba or his party, the NC. Beijing views Deuba as a pro-India and pro-U.S. leader. NC leaders in turn believe that Beijing has favored the Communist parties. NC General Secretary Gagan Thapa alluded to the same. The last point of the seven-point summary released by Thapa upon NC’s meeting with Liu states (in Nepali) that ‘NC expects China to have equal relations with Nepali parties and behave as such.’ Beijing’s outreach to the NC stems from its realization that NC remains, and will remain, a formidable political force in Nepal. To assuage NC and Deuba’s concerns over China’s bias toward the Nepali communists, Liu assured them that China’s foreign policy is not dictated by ideology.”
“Many analysts have pointed out that one of the goals of the Chinese delegation’s visit is to nudge the Communist forces toward a unified platform. The prospect of a “unified left” appeals to some Nepali communists. Some Communist senior leaders such as Bam Dev Gautama and Jhala Nath Khanal have been vocal about the idea. Yet no political party, whether the CPN-UML, the CPN-MC, or the CPN-US, wants to make the first move toward unification for fear of appearing desperate or inferior. It remains to be seen if Beijing will succeed in bringing them together this time around. Moreover, China has bilateral security concerns. The visit of U.S. Under Secretary Uzra Zeya, who is special coordinator for Tibetan issues, to two Tibetan refugee camps in May has heightened Chinese security suspicions over the U.S. using Nepali territory against Chinese security. To allay Chinese concerns, every Nepali leader, upon meeting with Liu, expressed commitment to the “One China policy” and extended assurances that “Nepali territories will not be used against the interests of neighboring countries.”
Finally, there’s a commentary talking up China’s recent aid - “selfless assistance” - to Afghanistan after the recent earthquake and Chinese assistance in general, while arguing that Chinese support for the country was how major countries should behave.
“The manner in which one manages the relationship with Afghanistan is a test of the conscience and sense of responsibility of a major country. The arrival of a Chinese plane carrying relief supplies for the Afghan people at Kabul Airport has drawn widespread attention on the Internet. Many netizens compared the images of civilians’ death as the US troops hastily withdrew from Afghanistan last August. They pointed out: “There were two planes at Kabul Airport: one that took away lives; and one that delivered hope’. Such a comparison makes it clear to more people what it means to be a responsible major country. The United States is the initiator of the current humanitarian disaster in Afghanistan and has a greater obligation than any other country to provide economic, livelihood and humanitarian assistance to the Afghan people. However, instead of facing up to its own responsibility, the United States has forcibly frozen the $7 billion in life-saving money for the Afghan people. This banditry by the United States has made the suffering of the Afghan people worse and has been widely condemned by the international community.” 如何处理同阿富汗的关系，考验大国良知，检验大国担当。为阿富汗人民运送赈灾物资的中国飞机抵达喀布尔机场，在互联网上引发广泛关注。许多网友对比去年8月美军仓皇撤离阿富汗时出现的平民坠亡画面，犀利地指出：“同样是在喀布尔机场，两架飞机，一架带走生命，一架送去希望”。这样的对比，让更多人清楚地看到何谓真正的负责任大国的担当。美国是当前阿富汗人道主义灾难的始作俑者，比任何国家都更有义务向阿富汗人民提供经济、民生和人道主义援助。然而，美国非但不正视自身责任，还强行冻结阿富汗人民的70亿美元救命钱。美国的这一强盗行径令阿富汗人民的苦难雪上加霜，受到国际社会广泛谴责.
Page 4: There’s a 仲音 commentary - the first in a new series - discussing the anti-corruption campaign. The piece goes back to the recent 40th study session of the Politburo, at which Xi spoke about corruption. The article says that since the 18th Party Congress, the Central Committee with comrade Xi Jinping at its core has put forward a series of new concepts, new ideas and new strategies for advancing the fight against corruption. It adds that “the height of knowledge determines the strength of action; the strength of position determines the firmness of will.” 认识的高度，决定行动的力度；立场的坚定，决定意志的坚决. This is followed by sentences emphasising that there must be no hiding place for corrupt elements within the Party and that the Party has decided to take the “drastic medicine to cure the disease” and shown the courage of scraping the poison off the bones,” etc. “It can be said that the unswerving and indomitable anti-corruption struggle reflects the political position of the largest Marxist ruling party in the world, and clarifies the original mission of this century-old party that has weathered the wind and rain.” 可以说，义无反顾、一往无前的反腐败斗争，照见了这个世界规模最大的马克思主义执政党的政治立场，擦亮了这个百年大党穿越风雨而始终不渝的初心使命.
The author then says that despite the “overwhelming victory” that has today been achieved in terms of the anti-corruption campaign, the situation is still severe and complex, and one must not underestimate the “stubborn” and “damaging” nature of corruption. It is important to maintain “clarity and political determination, and maintain a strict tone.” This is because one’s attitude “towards corruption and the actions taken to eradicate corruption determine the success or failure of a political party and a political regime.” 现在，反腐败斗争取得压倒性胜利并全面巩固，但形势依然严峻复杂，我们对腐败的顽固性和危害性决不能低估。始终保持清醒头脑和政治定力，始终坚持严的主基调不动摇，坚决遏制增量、削减存量，才能用我们党的风清气正赢得人民群众的衷心拥护，厚植党的执政基础，以党的永不变质确保红色江山永不变色。以什么样的态度对待腐败、以什么样的行动铲除腐败，决定着一个政党、一个政权的成败兴衰。
Next, there’s a report with comments from Zhao Kezhi, director of the National Narcotics Control Commission.
Third, there’s a report with H1 crime data. In the first half of the year, procuratorial organs nationwide prosecuted 5,738 people for crimes involving gangs and the underworld, and 2,537 people were prosecuted for serious violent crimes, such as murder and robbery.上半年，全国检察机关起诉涉黑恶犯罪5738人，起诉杀人、抢劫等严重暴力犯罪2537人. In addition, 109,000 people were prosecuted in H1 for crimes committed by telecommunication networks, up by 25.1% year-on-year.据介绍，针对电信网络诈骗等网络犯罪多发，上半年检察机关起诉利用电信网络实施的犯罪10.9万人，同比上升25.1%. In addition, supervision was strengthened, with 3,571, 2,107 and 94 protests being filed against criminal, civil and administrative judgments that were found to be erroneous. 持续强化精准监督，对认为确有错误的刑事、民事、行政裁判，分别提出抗诉3571件、2107件、94件.
Page 5: With Shanghai, Lanzhou and other cities dealing with fresh COVID outbreaks, there’s a new series of commentaries, starting today, defending the dynamic clearing policy. The commentary begins by telling us that persistence is victory. It argues that China's epidemic prevention and control effort has shown a good cost-benefit ratio. Dynamic clearing is the anti-epidemic strategy with the lowest comprehensive social cost; it is sustainable and must be adhered to 我国疫情防控有良好的成本效益比，动态清零是综合社会成本最低的抗疫策略，可持续且必须坚持.
The commentary argues that despite the highly infections Omicron variant of COVID-19 being prevalent, “the epidemic situation in the whole country remains stable, the economy is showing more positive signs, and economic recovery is continuously being consolidated. This is not only a strong confirmation of the scientificity and effectiveness of the general policy of ‘dynamic clearing’, but also offers proof that we have the conditions and ability to achieve dynamic clearing.” 面对来势汹汹的奥密克戎变异株传播，在各地各部门共同努力下，尽管局部地区仍有小幅波动，但全国疫情形势整体保持平稳，国民经济出现更多积极变化，经济恢复态势持续巩固。这既是对“动态清零”总方针科学性、有效性的有力印证，也是对我们有条件、有能力实现动态清零的有力印证。
The piece then refers to Xi’s recent comments in Wuhan on the policy, and adds: “The practice of epidemic prevention and control in China over the past three years has fully proved that dynamic clearing is in line with national conditions and consistent with a scientific approach; it is the correct path, has a positive impact, and is the best choice for China to control the epidemic in time at the present stage.”我国近三年的疫情防控实践充分证明，动态清零符合国情、符合科学，路子是对的、效果是好的，是现阶段我国及时控制疫情的最佳选择.
“The most important criterion for evaluating epidemic prevention policies is their effectiveness in terms of protecting and saving people’s lives. China is a big country with a population of more than 1.4 billion. This includes a massive number of elderly people, a considerable number of children and people with contraindications who cannot be vaccinated. The vaccination rate has not yet formed a barrier enough to resist severe illness and death, and across China there are differences in medical and health conditions in different places. If the prevention and control policies such as ‘herd immunity’ and ‘lying flat’ are adopted, a large number of people will be infected in a short period of time. This will result in a large number of severe cases and deaths, resulting in a run on medical resources, which will eventually lead to unbearable losses in terms of people's lives and property, with unimaginable consequences. From a practical point of view, it is precisely because we insist on dynamic clearing that we have been able to ensure extremely low morbidity, mortality and hospitalisation rates, so that the masses can be protected to the greatest extent…On the other hand, some countries have relaxed their epidemic prevention policies one after another since the beginning of this year, but the consequence of these steps has been a surge in the number of cases and a high number of deaths. This just shows that ‘lying flat’ is not desirable and dynamic clearing is the best approach to practice the concept of putting people first and life first.” 评价防疫政策的最重要标准就是保护和挽救生命的成效。我国是一个有着14亿多人口的大国，老年人口数量巨大，还有相当数量的儿童和有禁忌症无法接种疫苗的人群，疫苗接种率尚未形成足以抵抗重症和死亡的屏障，且我国地域广阔，各地医疗卫生条件存在差异。如果搞“集体免疫”、“躺平”之类的防控政策，势必会在短期内造成大量人群被感染，进而出现大量重症和死亡病例，导致医疗资源挤兑，最终将造成人民生命、财产不可承受的损失，后果不堪设想。从实践来看，正是因为坚持动态清零，我们才保证了极低的发病率、死亡率和住院率，让群众得到最大程度的保护。国家卫生健康委发布的数据显示，2021年我国居民人均预期寿命提高到78.2岁，卫生健康事业各项指标持续优化。能取得这一成绩，科学有力的疫情防控功不可没。反观一些国家今年初陆续放松防疫政策，但随之而来的后果是病例数激增、死亡病例数高企。这恰恰说明，“躺平”不可取，“躺赢”不可能，动态清零才是对人民至上、生命至上理念最好的践行.
The next paragraph talks about the economy taking a temporary hit due to the dynamic clearing policy, arguing that this is acceptable in the short-run. “In the short term, taking strict measures to prevent and control the fierce epidemic will inevitably have a certain temporary impact on the economic and social development, but in the long term, the brief period of control will bring about healthier and lasting development.” 从短期来看，对凶猛疫情采取严格防控措施，难免会对经济社会发展造成一定的暂时影响，但放眼长远，短时的管控换来的将会是更健康持久的发展. The example cited is how China overcame the economic challenges after the lockdowns in 2020. “Practice has proved that dynamic clearing not only creates a healthier, safer and more stable environment for China’s development, but also results in greater certainty for the world economy.” 实践证明，动态清零不仅为我国发展创造了一个更健康、安全、稳定的环境，同时也为世界经济带来了更大确定性. — Of course, none of this answers how often we are going to see such lockdowns and for how long? Will we see it every few months? How does that bring certainty to anyone?
The next bit is important to understand the changing nature of the policy. “It should be noted that dynamic clearing is not the pursuit of zero infections; rather, it refers to identifying and eliminating infections, with the aim of preventing the spread of the novel coronavirus in the area of the outbreak and to other areas across the country. This enables us to better balance the relationship between epidemic prevention and control and economic and social development, so that we can achieve the greatest prevention and control effect at the lowest cost and minimise the impact of epidemic on economic and social development. 应该看到，动态清零并不是追求完全零感染，而是发现一起、扑灭一起，既不让新冠病毒在疫情发生地流行，也防止病毒传播扩散到其他区域。这也使得我们能较好地平衡疫情防控和经济社会发展之间的关系，让我们用最小的代价实现最大的防控效果，最大限度减少疫情对经济社会发展的影响.
The last paragraph calls for unswervingly adhering to dynamic clearing, and strengthening confidence, eliminating interference, overcoming paralysis, war-weariness and slackening mentality…” and “strive for a relatively good performance in this year's economic development.” 毫不动摇坚持“动态清零”总方针，坚定信心，排除干扰，克服麻痹思想、厌战情绪、松劲心态，抓实抓细疫情防控各项工作，我们就一定能推动经济平稳健康发展，争取今年我国经济发展达到较好水平.
Here’s one adjustment to China’s testing policy that was recently made. The NHC said that local governments no longer need to test some imported goods for the coronavirus. Reuters reported: “Local governments no longer need to test ambient foods or other goods for the virus, said the National Health Commission on its website, but it was not clear if the products would still be subject to checks at customs. Chilled and frozen foods will continue to be tested, however, but exporters will not face import suspensions when their goods test positive at customs checks, added the NHC.”
Page 17: On the international page, there’s a story criticising the US’ engagement in the Middle East. I guess this is the Chinese media’s version of a curtain raiser for President Biden visiting the region.
The article basically says that the US has engaged in armed invasions, ‘colour revolutions’ and unilateral sanctions in the region; in order to maintain its hegemony, the United States, the self-proclaimed ‘guardian of human rights’, has committed numerous crimes in the Middle East, resulting in one humanitarian disaster after another, and causing economic and social turmoil in countries across the region, with hundreds of thousands of people losing their lives and millions becoming refugees. What the United States has done has seriously violated the human rights of the people in the Middle East, and it has exposed the true face of ‘American-style human rights’. 武装入侵、“颜色革命”、单边制裁……多年来，为了维护霸权，自诩为“人权卫道士”的美国在中东犯下累累罪行，制造了一场又一场人道主义灾难，导致中东多国动荡不止，经济社会遭受重创，民生凋敝严重，数十万人丧生，数百万人沦为难民。美国的所作所为严重侵犯了中东民众人权，其“美式人权”真面目暴露无遗.
The other interesting article is a report (English report) with comments by Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi criticising Western countries for having played a major role in global environmental destruction over the past centuries.
Finally, comments by John Bolton, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and former White House national security adviser, on CNN that he had helped plan attempted coups in foreign countries are covered in PD.