Today's Shanghai | News(1998)

October

Mr. Wang Daohan, president of the Beijing-based Association for Relations across Taiwan Straits and the highest mainland negotiator for cross-straits ties, agreed on October 15 to visit Taibei "at an appropriate time."

Shanghai will initiate a pilot project to seek new scientific knowledge to promote its economic development. The so-called Knowledge Discovery Project, as part of the national program, is being launched by the Shanghai Branch of Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Queensland of Australia signed a memorandum of understanding with Shanghai on October 15 on further bilateral cooperation in various aspects in the 1999-2001 period.

A mass wedding consisting of 999 couples will be held on October 17. It is one of the activities for this year's Shanghai Tourism Festival. The annual event is a conglomerate of cultural activities, such as dragon boat competition, farmers' paintings exhibition, folklore tour, private collections fair, etc.

The Intra-regional Co-operation in Reproductive Health Research Asia and Pacific Symposium was held in Shanghai to discuss strategies in reproductive health research in the region.

Shanghai pledged to lead the nation in modernizing local agriculture, Party Secretary Huang Ju said. The city will spend more money on agriculture and work out policies to promote local farming production.

Thanks to the addition of 10 shuttle bus routes, touring Shanghai will become a "no-brainer". Shuttle uses on 10 sightseeing and shopping routes now reach 68 tourist attractions in downtown and the suburbs.

Shanghai Commodity Fair, one of China's largest domestic trade fairs, opened on October 13. It is expected to stimulate the domestic market.

The city pledges to develop scientific and technological enterprises with different ownerships as an important method to further reform its scientific system, Mayor Xu Kuangdi recently said.

The '98 International School Sports World Gymnasiade, the last major school sports event of this century, opened in Shanghai on October 13. 773 athletes from more than 30 countries and regions will compete for 78 gold medals.

Local residents will have the chance to see wild African animals. 156 rare animals have been shipped to Shanghai from Johannesburg on a cargo plane.

A luxury pleasure boat with a length of 45 meters will make its debut on the Huangpu River later this month. The four-decked boat is well-equipped with modern facilities that includes sauna, karaoke, dancing halls, restaurants, etc.

The country's first plant to produce vegetable and flower seedlings has been established in Shanghai. The plant, located in Minhang District, will deliver seedlings mainly to local greenhouses.

The city's bio-medicine industry is witnessing an upsurge thanks to massive investment in R & D. During the first half of this year, the industry reported an output value of US$1.07 billion, a 20% increase over the same period last year.

Shanghai will co-operate with the Genetics Institute Inc. of the United States to build the world's largest bank for secretory protein genes.

A brief one-day visit to Shanghai on October 8 led British Prime Minister Tony Blair to witness the successes of the British business community in China's largest city.

The Third Asia-Pacific Court Conference opened on October 6. More than 200 judges, lawyers and professors from 13 countries along the Pacific Rim attended the two-day meeting.

Dr. Yan Jinming, who pioneered in vitro fertilization (IVF), is calling for Shanghai to cooperate with foreign countries in promoting artificial means of insemination. Since the first test tube baby in China was born 10 years ago in Beijing, there are more than 400 test tubes in China.

In hopes to attract foreign investment for the nine city-level industrial zones in Shanghai's 'burbs, which include Baoshan, Jinshanzui, Xinzhuang, Jiading, Kangqiao, Qingpu, Songjiang, Fengpu and Chongming, an information-release conference will be held in Shanghai later this month.

The 52nd National Electronic Fair opens on October 7 at Shanghai in Hongqiao development zone. Initiated over 20 years ago by China Electronic Appliances Corporation, the fair is held twice a year in different cities throughout China.

The Heineken Open Shanghai '98, the highest level of tennis competition ever held in China, began on October 5 at Shanghai Xian Xia Tennis Center.

October 5 is this year's Mid-autumn Festival, a traditional annual celebration for family reunion. Mooncake, as round as the moon hanging over the sky at this time of the year, is a must for every family.

On the night of October 4, the city municipality invited representatives from all walks of life to attend a party for the celebration of the Mid-Autumn Festival.

More food is delivered to local markets to meet the demands of residents and restaurants preparing banquets during the National Day Holiday and the Mid-Autumn Festival.

New regulations will take effect starting on National Day to encourage the opening of more retirement and nursing homes for local senior citizens.

A drawing competition themed "A Better Environment, A Beautiful Shanghai" is scheduled for October 8 at the Shanghai Children's Palace.

In the biggest drug bust the city has witnessed since 1949, 19 people have been arrested and 83 kilograms of heroin have been confiscated.

Shanghai in confident of meeting its economic targets this year with the deepening reform of State-owned enterprises, the development of Pudong New Area and re-employment projects.

In order to avoid accidents caused by dangerous rides in amusement parks, inspectors examined all the 155 rides in 43 local parks, and found 67 failed to meet safety requirements.

Shanghai plans to set up a company to guarantee the payment of mortgages. The city will provide loans totaling US$600 million to home buyers this year.

Shanghai's bid to become an international trade center received a strong boost when the government recently simplified customs-declaration procedures for transit goods unloaded at the Waigaoqiao Port.

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