Tourism firms in Shanghai will make reforms this year by transferring from state assets monopoly to diversified ownership, with more than 85 percent of tourism companies expected to have mixed ownership, according to a local tourism work conference yesterday.
Shanghai aims to receive more than 3.5 million overseas tourists this year, with Forex tourism revenues to reach US$2.6 billion; nearly 95 million domestic travelers with domestic tourism revenues to reach more than 110 billion yuan.
Total tourism revenues are expected to top 130 billion yuan this year, with added values in tourism industry accounting for nearly 6.3 percent of local GDP.--3/31/2004
The Shanghai Labor and Social Security Bureau announced yesterday that local employees received an annual income of 22,160 yuan (US$2,669) on average last year, an increase of 13.8 percent from 2002. Employees in the information technology, financial and public utilities sectors were the best-paid groups.--3/30/2004
After more than 4,000 workers' hard work for some six months, Shanghai will complete in the first half-year the construction of Public Health Center, the municipal government's No. 1 project this year.Workers have completed the structure construction and begun interior decoration.
The center, located in south city's Jinshan District, occupies 82,000 square meters. It will be the city's health center for disease prevention, clinic treatment and academic research.With 500 beds for patients and 600 temporary beds, the center's complex comprises sections for emergency treatment, in-hospital service, research, nutrition, training, supply and accommodation.--3/29/2004
Fifty Shanghai companies will showcase their electronic products and other information-related goods at an international trade fair in Poland in June.This will be the city's first effort to tap the eastern European country.
The companies, mostly in the information technology sector, will exhibit made-in-Shanghai products, in Poznan, from June 14 to 17 as part of the Poznan International Fair, according to Shanghai Foreign Economic Relations and Trade Commission, one of the fair organizers.--3/28/2004
The 9th China International Boat Show kicked off in Shanghai yesterday, attracting nearly 10,000 domestic and overseas visitors.Exhibitors at the four-day event, said they have found great interest from the potential Chinese mainland boat buyers. They are planning to set up marinas as well as to sell boats here.
An increasing number of expatriates have worked or lived in Shanghai over the past several years, and they are in great need of luxurious consumer products, Huang pointed out.
Local government is considering building ten high-end marinas in such places as Shiliupu Dock, Fuxing Island and Luchao Port.--3/25/2004
China expects about 1,000 people from home and abroad to throng in Shanghai to solve ways for poverty reduction at a World Bank conference here from May 25-27, Vice Financial Minister Li Yong said on March 23 in Beijing at a joint press conference with World Bank.The participates include financial ministers and directors of international organizations as well as presidents of South Africa, Brazil and Tanzania, who will deliver keynote speeches at the meeting, he added.
A series of case studies, multicountry interactive videoconferences, online dialogues, and field visits will be provided at the meeting. The bank chooses Shanghai to hold the meeting because of China's outstanding achievement in the past two decades in its own huge economic development as well as its contributions to the world's poverty alleviation, according to the vice president.
The city's low costs, good security and convenient traffic also attract the bank, she added.--3/24/2004
The 23-day Shanghai Peach Blossom Festival will begin on Friday in Nanhui District. --3/23/2004
One thousand migrant children received tuition grants on Saturday, becoming the first batch of beneficiaries of a nationwide campaign to subsidize the education of migrant students.Launched by the Shanghai Office of Project Hope, the campaign has budgeted 50 million yuan (US$6 million) to subsidize more than 50,000 migrant children in the country over the next five years.
To date, Shanghai is home to about 240,000 migrant children aged between 6 and 19, most of whose parents work in the city's construction or public service sectors.Meanwhile, Project Hope, a charity that supports the education of needy children in the country's rural areas, says it has raised more than 3.3 million yuan from 5.5 million local donors since the project was first launched in the city in 1994.
--3/22/2004
The 10th Shanghai Television Festival will be staged from June 5-9 at the Shanghai New International Expo Center, while the 7th Shanghai International Film Festival will be held at the Shanghai Film Art Center and 13 other sites from, June 5-13, organizers said.
The schedules of the two festivals include large exhibitions of advanced television equipment and world films, international forums on television and movies, and the awarding of Magnolia Award and Golden Urn Prize for outstanding TV programs and movies.
--3/20/2004
The 60th session of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) of the United Nations (UN) is to be held in Shanghai of China from April 22 to 28 this year, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan said at a press conference in Beijing Thursday.
In the past decades, ESCAP has served as an important channel for its members to exchange experience and expand cooperation, and has played an important role in promoting the economic and social development in the region.
--3/19/2004
Shanghai will hold its first Science and Art Exhibition from May 18 to 21 to mark this year's science and technology week, government officials said yesterday.
The exhibition will consist of several shows, lectures and seminars held at the Oriental Pearl Tower and the Shanghai International News Center in Pudong.In addition to universities, professional associations and experts, the Shanghai Science and Technology Commission also called for local residents' involvement in the exhibition by providing their individual creations.Participants can hand in their works to the organizing committee before April 20.
Officials said the exhibition will fall into several sections, namely, a showcase of digital versions of the works of Leonardo da Vinci, French research on life science and genetics, multimedia and digital art works, package design, art works showing scientific truth, some scientists' paintings and handwriting and commercial products with both science and art characters.
--3/17/2004
The 2004 Shanghai International Fashion Culture Festival will be held through March 18 to 27, its organizing committee announced yesterday.
Events scheduled for the festival include: the Shanghai International Clothing & Textile Expo, the multi-media catwalk performance "Searching the Lost Elegant Demeanor" to be staged on Shanghai Grand Theatre, the Shanghai International Fashion Model Contest, and a wedding gown fashion show.
--3/16/2004
More than 100 local enterprises donated about 6.5 million yuan (US$783,132) to the Shanghai Red Cross recently. The association said it will focus on orphans, sick children, elderly people and families living under poverty line due to serious illness this year. In addition, it will broaden the Shanghai Stem Cell Bank to save more patients suffering from leukemia.
--3/16/2004
Shanghai has seen a fast growth in foreign investment this year with the actually absorbed investment volume jumped 51.4 percent in the first two months, according to data from Shanghai Foreign Investment Commission.In January and February, the city has approved 713 foreign investment projects, up 11 percent over the same period of the previous year.Growths have been mainly reported in the industrial, big and property projects, government data indicated.Nearly 75 percent, or 319, of the total projects were in the industrial sector, up 10 percentage points year-on-year. They absorbed US$1.5 billion in investment.
Big projects, or those entailing more than US$10 million, totaled 95. They attracted nearly US$2 billion, accounting for 96 percent of the two months' total. Property projects reached 19 in the two-month period, absorbing US$271 million in contractual foreign investment, up 47 percent year-on-year.
--3/15/2004
The Zhangjiang Hi-tech Park will be promoted as a sample of Pudong's development, which demonstrates the policy of reviving the city with science and technology, Shanghai Mayor Han Zheng said while mapping out the development route of Pudong recently.
Han restated the strategy of 'focus on Zhangjiang', first put forward by municipal government in 1999, and vowed to build Zhangjiang into a hi-tech park of 'international competence'. The strategy calls to focalize the development of Pudong in Zhangjiang Hi-tech Park, an industry cluster of IT companies and biotech and pharmaceutical enterprises. --3/15/2004
When Pudong's Oriental Art Center opens to the public this autumn after 2 1/2 years of construction, it is expected to end the dominance of the Grand Theater as the city's premier concert venue.
Apart from its unique overhead appearance patterned after a white magnolia in full blossom, the 780-million-yuan (US$94 million) center hopes to establish itself as the city's best venue where people can enjoy a variety of performances.--3/13/2004
In the first two months of the year, Shanghai has already imported 26 batches of made-in-Hong Kong goods with zero tariff under the Mainland/Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) which came into effect on Jan 1, according to the Shanghai Customs yesterday.The 26 batches of commodities, US$3.63 million in values, are mainly drugs, fashionable dresses and chemical products.
As another move under CEPA, from March 11 to April 4, a series of activities are held in Shanghai, such as seminars on Hong Kong and Shanghai cooperation, Hong Kong service sector exhibition, fashion brand promotion and classic film screening, according to the officials with the Hong Kong Trade Development Council yesterday. --3/12/2004
Shanghai plans to build several special zones for people wanting to start a business online, officials with the Shanghai Labor and Social Security Department said.Online store owners, regardless of whether they own a bricks and mortar shop, could apply for a business license by registering in the special zone.Incentives offered in the zone would include logistics support, storage and delivery services. Bureau officials also hinted at possible tax breaks.
Officials are still deciding the zone's exact location and when it would open. The first pilot zone is planned to be launched in downtown Jing'an District.--3/11/2004
Construction of the West-East Gas Pipeline Project is in full swing, with the 2,400-kilometer pipeline in the West section to be tested by October this year, and by December 31 this year, the natural gas from Xinjiang Talimu will be commercially transmitted to Shanghai and Zhejiang Province, one year ahead of schedule, said Zhang Guobao, vice director with the National Development and Reform Commission.
The pipeline project have been completed in the East section by December 31 last year, with the 1,500-kilometer pipeline supplying 1.1 million cubic meters of natural gas from Jingbian in Northwest China's Shaanxi Province to Shanghai every day.
Besides Shanghai, the pipeline in the East section also began to supply natural gas to Suzhou, Hefei, Zhengzhou, Changzhou and Huzhou.The whole West-East line runs 3,900 kilometers from Xinjiang Talimu to Shanghai. The natural gas reserves in the upper reaches of the pipeline are on the rise, reaching at least 650 billion cubic meters, Zhang said.--3/9/2004
On March 6, the local organizing committee of the Formula One China Grand Prix recruited young volunteers, with nearly 4,000 young people signing up at that day. In the morning of March 6, young people from all the industries of Shanghai were crowded in the sign-up places, with nearly 1,000 people filling out forms within just one hour.Not only young men, but also young women have signed up to become the volunteers for the event.
The local organizing committee of the F1 China Grand Prix, together with the Shanghai Young Volunteer Association will select highly-qualified volunteers from the candidates, with the qualified ones receiving training around May 4 (Youth Day), in order to make preparations for the Formula One China Grand Prix which will be held on September 24-26 in Shanghai.--3/8/2004
A citywide promotion move on building Shanghai into a "Healthy City" starts today in each district. Residents can receive education on household greening, healthcare, mental health, environmental protection, marriage and the service of public utilities. In addition, there will also be games to take part in. Government departments will give various consultation.--3/7/2004
Local film fans will soon be able to appreciate the award-winning "Lord of the Rings" trilogy in its entirety next week during all-night marathon screenings.Some people want to see the movies again while others have not seen them at all. And tickets for the screenings are reasonably priced at between 80 (US$9.6) and 120 yuan. The average price for the third episode alone is about 80 yuan.As of last month, the "Rings" trilogy had taken in US$2.8 billion at the box office worldwide.
--3/4/2004
Shanghai will host the 2007 World Special Olympic Games. The International Special Olympic (SOI) signed an official agreement in Beijing yesterday with the Chinese government, while indicating that preparations for the event have already kicked off.
Shanghai Mayor Han Zheng, also executive director with the 2007 World Special Olympic Games, signed the agreement with SOI president, Timothy P. Shriver.
The Shanghai government and people are sure to host an excellent, successful and unforgettable event in 2007, with the support of the Chinese government and friends and guidance of the Special Olympic International. China has nearly 12 million mentally disabled people, and the Special Olympic Games can help them and their relatives change their lives. Supporting and joining the event will make more people feel the love and understanding in their lives.
"I believe the 2007 Special Olympic Games will be a great success," he said with confidence.
Chinese President Hu Jintao met with the SOI representatives yesterday morning.--3/3/2004
Shanghai is encouraging its enterprises to polish their global profiles by investing directly into overseas markets to try to build more locally-based multinational giants.The municipal government said yesterday that it has rolled out a new set of guidelines giving preference to local companies with plans to invest in foreign countries or regions.
"The new regulation encourages companies with different shareholding structures, including state-owned enterprises, private firms and joint ventures, to set up companies in the overseas marketplace," said Jiang Yingshi, director of Shanghai Development and Reform Commission. "The local government will relax the rules for such moves.--3/2/2004
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