Dashing the China Dream

This photo shows the construction of new high-rise apartments that will house villagers near the city of Anshun, Guizhou province in February 2014. Agence France-Presse/Getty Images

Chinese – whether it is national strength, cultural renewal or more modest personal goals. For many of those living in the vast countryside, the dream is a life in a city and some of the benefits that go with it.

But a major plan for urbanization seems to be saying to those would-be urban residents dreaming of better retirement, health and education services, they can pretty much forget about it.

Vice Minister of Public Security Huang Ming told reporters this week that the tight controls on who lives where under the hukou, or household-registration, system, won’t be abandoned anytime soon, at least not in the biggest and most attractive cities.

“I wouldn’t say there’s no hope in getting a hukou,” Mr. Huang said at a news briefing Wednesday, referring to strict population controls in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. “I think there’s hope, just not as high as other big cities, especially not as high as smaller cities.”

China has raised hopes with its plans for urbanization, which it sees as a way to boost economic growth. It aims to have about 60% of its more than 1.3 billion people living in urban areas by 2020 and will let some 100 million people move into the nation’s cities by that time.

Still, the plan projects only about 45% of the population would have full rights as urban residents by then, meaning they are eligible for city pensions and medical coverage as well as education for their children.

The government has stressed it will keep a tight grip on cities with populations of more than 5 million.

Mr. Huang said this is necessary due to practical considerations. Cities like Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou  are already seeing huge strains on their resources and the environment. Their populations need to be slimmed down, he said.

The ministry is drafting detailed measures on hukou reforms, which will be submitted for government approval as soon as possible, Mr. Huang said. He didn’t give any specifics but he said political leaders will focus on easing hukou controls in smaller cities.

Some smaller cities have already eased their hukou controls to attract more rural laborers. But these efforts have been only partially successful because many people prefer to move to larger cities where the jobs and services are considerably better.

The hukou system was set up in 1958 as a social-management tool that tied all social benefits to one’s place of birth, dividing people into urban and rural categories and preventing people from pouring into big cities with better resources.

More than 21 million people lived in Beijing as of the end of last year and a little over 60% have a hukou , according to the municipality’s statistics bureau.

The public reaction to the plan and Mr. Huang’s remarks was one of disappointment.

“It sounds like there’s no hope” to get an urban hukou one day, one user said on his Sina Weibo microblog account.

“Time to wake up,” said another.

The advice from the vice minister?

“If you want to realize your city dream, then dream about small and mid-sized cities – that’s more realistic. If you want to choose especially large cities, [you’ll have to] … have patience.”


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New U.S. Ambassador Talks the Talk, Aims to Walk the Walk

The new U.S. ambassador in Beijing looks like he plans to walk the walk.

Not long after getting off a flight from Honolulu on Monday night, Max Baucus was greeting the local press corps, kicking off  his remarks with an energetic  quote from Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu and saying “a journey of a 1,000 miles begins with a single step.”

“Brave words,” added the 72-year-old former senator and long-time outdoorsman from Montana—a place where you can get in a lot of practice tramping around.

He quickly picked up the travel theme again, saying: “I hope to get out of this office and out of Beijing.” Mr. Baucus said his goal is to visit all of China’s provinces and regions, adding: “I’m eager to listen and learn.”

The six-term Democratic senator concedes he is hardly a China specialist, but he has made eight visits to the country—and his first official one was in 1993. More importantly in his current post, he is well versed in trade and financial issues, including his key support for China’s accession to the World Trade Organization.

Just to be safe, Mr. Baucus said he talked to two of his predecessors, Gary Locke and Jon Huntsman, for a little bit of guidance. The new ambassador said he has met President Xi Jinping and noted the Chinese leader referred to common interests between the U.S. and China outweighing the differences.

Mr. Baucus called U.S.-China ties “one of America’s most important bilateral relationships.”

“I want to be part of managing this relationship,” he said. “We simply must get it right.”

The man tapped by President Barack Obama to replace Mr. Locke outlined some of his goals in the job. At the top of the list is managing the already-strong economic relationship between the world’s two biggest economies, and Mr. Baucus added that he would look to ensure a level playing field for American businesses in China.

He also spoke of aiming to “partner with China” in dealing with global challenges and working with Beijing to support the laws, norms, values and rights that underpin global society.

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The ambassador noted that he got some of his taste for travel — and global affairs –as a young student when he took a year off from Stanford University to hitchhike around the globe.

Perhaps more importantly for his new job, Mr. Baucus has done a lot of walking in the Senate corridors. In a career that took him to the head of the Senate Finance Committee, he made plenty of  allies on Capitol Hill. His Senate confirmation for the Beijing post sailed through in a 96-0 vote.

The new ambassador also seemed to have taken on a little bit of quiet diplomacy. Nowhere in his remarks did he mention how Beijing’s gritty pollution might cut into his walking plans.

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Asia will become the industrial printing market has growth potential area

According to the latest study on the global market for industrial printing report released by SmithersPira shows, Asia is fast becoming the growth potential of industrial printing market in the area, the strong momentum of development. By 2018, Asia will account for the global printing industry market share of 43%, while in 2013 this figure was only 38.8%. In addition, in Western Europe and North America, industrial printing market prospect is a good.

China’s Luxury Boom Moves to the Web

China’s luxury boom is going online.

As the overall sector struggles amid a government crackdown on ostentatious spending and gift-giving, the urge to splurge online is growing strong, according to a study by consulting firm KPMG.

KPMG found in a survey of 10,200 online consumers in China that the respondents spent an average of 1,397 yuan (US$229) on their most recent purchase of a “luxury or premium” item, with one in six saying they spent more than 2,000 yuan on that purchase. The researchers didn’t define “luxury or premium,” letting survey respondents interpret the label themselves.

Almost three-quarters of survey respondents said they preferred to shop online because they could land a better deal, while 55% said they preferred it because it’s less time-consuming. Another 47% said it guarantees authentic American or European origin of goods.

Chinese consumers outspent American shoppers online last year for the first time, and by 2015, the country’s online shopping market is projected to reach $540 billion, or 7.5% of all retail transactions in the country, the consulting firm said in its report.

Cosmetics were the most popular items bought online, with 53% of respondents saying they bought products in that category. Women’s shoes and women’s clothes ranked second and third.


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In Beijing, Gray Is the New Orange

Take a look at the above photo. In Beijing, this is what orange looks like.

China’s capital on Friday raised its color-coded warning system for air pollution to orange from yellow for the first time since establishing it in October. The system’s  four color-coded alerts, in order of increasing yuckiness, include blue, yellow, orange and red.

Beijing worked up to its orange alert. The city’s Ministry of Environmental Protection on Thursday issued a yellow alert for only the second time since October, according to the official Xinhua news agency. A yellow alert is issued when city authorities either forecast an air-quality index of above 300 for the next 24 hours or an AQI of between 201 and 300 for the next three days or more.

What is 300 like? Well, take a look at that photo again, taken Friday morning from a flight into Beijing. China Real Time kept the kids out of school and noted how days like this always make our hands feel dirty.

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By comparison, the AQI in hardly sylvan New York as of this writing was 70 , which is considered “moderate.” The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says an index of above 300 is “extremely rare” in the U.S. and typically occurs during events such as forest fires.

Issuing an orange alert is a complicated affair. It is used only when authorities forecast an AQI of above 200 for at least three consecutive days, with at least one day above 300.

Chinese government air-monitoring stations recorded an average AQI reading of 302 on Friday night, while a similar station at the U.S. embassy showed a reading of 378. Beijing’s AQI rose above 300 on Thursday and remained near or above that level on Friday.

The China Meteorological Administration and the Ministry of Environmental Protection issued a joint weather and pollution forecast for the first time on Thursday. The agencies said the northern Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, along with midwestern region of Shandong province, will experience AQI readings of above 300 from Friday to Sunday.

When an orange alert is issued, authorities require workers to halt construction and order factories to temporarily reduce emissions by 30%. Fireworks and outdoor barbecuing is also banned. Children and the elderly are advised to stay indoors, and residents are encouraged to use public transportation instead of cars.

Beijing’s municipal government has been taking measures to fight air pollution amid growing public pressure. The city ratified a long-term plan in January that sets limits on air pollutants for the first time and imposes higher fines on polluters, although it scrapped some of the plan’s harsher penalties at the last minute.

The city in October adopted an emergency-response plan for air pollution that includes implementing alternate driving days for cars with even- and odd-numbered license plates during a red alert. That alert, however, will be issued only when authorities forecast an AQI of above 300 for at least three consecutive days.

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Xiaomi President: Supply Chain an Obstacle to Reaching Sales Goal

The startup that has rocked China’s smartphone market is aiming to sell 40 million phones this year. The only limitation, according to Xiaomi President Lin Bin, is how fast the company can make the phones.

In an interview, Lin said Xiaomi’s biggest obstacle to more than doubling phone sales in 2014 from 2013 will be how quickly the company ramp ups  production of its phones.

“When we began producing phones two and a half years ago we were making only tens of thousands a month, but now we’re at three million a month. This speed shows the limits of the supply chain,” he said.

“It’s not Xiaomi,” he said. “Hardware and software are different. Hardware needs a ramp-up period.”

He added, “I believe what we achieved last year means we can get to 40 million phones this year. This is something that we are working hard with suppliers to make happen.”

Last year Xiaomi sold about 18.7 million handsets, compared with 7.2 million in 2012.

The closely held company is well-known in China for releasing its phones for sale online in limited batches. Analysts say that element of scarcity adds to demand for its Android-powered gadgets, but Xiaomi has said that tactic is partially the result of an inability to make as many phones as people want.

“This is one thing people complain about. People say that [our limited sales of phones] is intentional, but actually it’s not,” he said.

Xiaomi has jumped to a 6% market share in China in the fourth quarter of 2013 on the back of its low-priced but competitively equipped smartphones, according to research firm IDC, making it No. 6 in the market. It has contributed to intensifying competition in a market dominated by Samsung Electronics005930.SE -0.39% and where AppleAAPL +0.37% holds a significant share of the high-end part of the market.

Lin said another bottleneck for the company, which was valued at around $10 billion during its last round of fundraising last year, has been ensuring the company has hired enough people to deal with repairs and service. Though he said only about 2% of phones usually require maintenance, given ballooning sales, the company in 2014 will continue to expand its investment in building out maintenance and services.
Lin spoke as the company prepares to begin selling its phones in Singapore, its third market outside of mainland China after Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Addressing the new expansion, Mr. Lin, said the company was “just getting started,” but that successful sales in Taiwan and Hong Kong proved that the company’s model also works in developed markets where carrier subsidies make consumers less sensitive to the pricing of phones.

Still some have warned that sales in Singapore could get a slower start, due in part to the increasing prevalence of faster phones that run on Singapore’s newer fourth-generation network. Calling its pricing in Singapore “very aggressive,” IDC analyst Melissa Chau said it could still face obstacles.

“In Singapore, we’re pretty much getting into 4G and their phones are not 4G, so their expansion into other markets isn’t going to be that straightforward.”


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China Goes Big in Olympic Men’s Aerials

China has four men taking part in the freestyle skiing aerials competition at the Sochi Olympics on Monday night, more than any other country apart from Belarus, which also has four.

Jia Zongyang, Qi Guangpu, Wu Chao and Liu Zhongqing, the relative elder statesman of the team at 28 years old, carry Chinese hopes for aerials gold after the women’s team fell just short once again, picking up silver for the third Olympics in a row.

China has topped the podium in the men’s event before. Han Xiaopeng won gold in the men’s aerials at the 2006 Olympics in Turin to become the first man to win a gold for China in the Winter Olympics. Chinese women have fared much better than men at the Winter Olympics, winning 10 ½ of the 12 golds China has bagged since 2002 (Shen Xue and Zhao Hongbo won gold in the pairs figure skating in 2010, hence the half.)

Liu won bronze in aerials four years ago in Vancouver, but his form has been mixed ahead of Sochi. Since mid-December, he has won two World Cup events, finished second in another and dropped to 12th and 25th in two more.

In Qi, China has the reigning men’s aerials world champion. The 23-year-old is, along with Liu, among the favorites to win a medal in Sochi on Monday night. He was only 16 when he joined the World Cup circuit and has improved steadily since, all the way to a first-place finish in the latest World Cup event in Lake Placid last month.
However, like Liu (who finished second in Lake Placid), Qi has struggled for consistency. Prior to his victory in Lake Placid, he finished 19th in Val St. Come, Canada.

But even if Liu and Qi fail to live up to expectations, China still has Wu and Jia.

Wu, a 26-year-old from the northeastern province of Jilin, finished ninth and eighth at Lake Placid and Val St. Come. Jia, a 22-year-old from Liaoning province, has gone off the boil in 2014, finishing in 25th place in Lake Placid, 15th in Val St. Come and 23rd in Deer Valley on Jan. 10.

But Jia has an impressive overall record in World Cup competitions, with nine wins from 30 competitions. If he can replicate last year’s form, he’ll be a medal contender in Sochi.
With such strength in depth in this event, it would be disappointing if China doesn’t add to its medal tally tonight. The country has five medals so far in Sochi, including three golds.

Belarus has a rich history in men’s freestyle aerials, winning more medals in the event than any other nation. Alexei Grishin won gold in Vancouver and bronze in the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City, and even at the age of 34, he could upset China’s medal chances. This is his fifth Olympics. His compatriot, Anton Kushnir, is also a threat to China’s hopes.

Switzerland and Russia both have three skiers in the event, while Ukraine and Kazakhstan have two each. Australia, Canada and the U.S. all have one skier taking part. The competition will miss 2010 silver medalist and inventor of the “hurricane” maneuver, Jeret Peterson. The American skier committed suicide in 2011.

The first qualification round starts at 5:45 p.m. Sochi time, which is 9:45 p.m. in China. There will be three final rounds, the third of which starts at 10:12 p.m. Sochi time.

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China, mainly dealing with books, magazines , catalogues printing 

and packaging .
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box,cigarette box,wine box, daily goods box, retail packaging, 

cosmetic box), paper bags (gift bags, shopping bags, wine bags, 

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magazines, books (hard cover and soft cover), children’s books, 

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、 postcards/3D Postcards, greeting/gift cards , leaflets, 

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www.royalprintings.com.