Shanghai debuts as "City of Charm" at China-ASEAN Expo
Shanghai, as China's "City of Charm" made its debut today at the third China-ASEAN Expo in Nanning, the capital of South China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.
At the expo in front of participants from 11 major Chinese and ASEAN cities, the Shanghai delegation showcased the city using the themes of integration, innovation and vigor.
The exhibition was in three parts -- historic essence, style today and future prospects.
A total of 34 companies based in the city attended the expo, mainly from the electronic communications industry, construction materials, port mechanics and international economic cooperation sectors. They will seek economic cooperation and exchanges with ASEAN countries. --(10/31)
Swedish ship promises return
The Gotheborg, a replica of an old Swedish merchant vessel that used to sail the seas between Europe and the Orient, left Shanghai on Saturday morning after a two-month visit to the city.
During its stay, 83,000 visitors toured the tall ship.
The Gotheborg was sent off with a farewell ceremony attended by Shanghai Vice Mayor Tang Dengjie and Goran Johansson, mayor of Gothenburg, Sweden. --(10/30)
Metro hub lifts property prices
Real estate prices are rising near Shiji Road Metro Station.
Monthly rent for a one-bedroom apartment along Zhangyang Road and Fushan Road - is now above 2,000 yuan (US$250), according to a local newspaper. Last year, it was easy to find such apartments for 1,800 yuan per month.
Rent for a two-bedroom apartment has increased to about 2,500 yuan per month, a jump of 200 yuan compared to last year.
It is expected that by 2009 when Metro Line No. 6 and No. 9 open, rents in the area will increase further.
There are more than 10 restaurants around the station and a public gymnasium where people can play badminton, table tennis or lift weights. --(10/29)
Japan signs up for World Expo
Japan has confirmed its participation at the 2010 Shanghai World Expo, organizers said yesterday.
The news came after Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe wrote to Premier Wen Jiabao to accept Wen's invitation to the event, the Expo's coordination bureau said.
"The news that Japan will join us will promote the Expo in Asian countries," said Xu Bo, an official from the coordination bureau. "It will also help to attract more participants."
Eighty-nine countries and international organizations are now booked to take part, with the US this week also accepting Wen's invitation.
Since June, more than 10 Japanese delegations have visited the future site of the World Expo.
Yesterday, a government delegation from Osaka met with Expo organizers and detailed problems they faced at the 1970 Osaka World Expo, the first held in Asia.
Xu Weiguo, deputy director of the coordination bureau, said: "The Expo is a very grand concept and we hope to learn from Osaka's experience."
More than 64 million people visited the Osaka Expo, the highest number in World Expo history. --(10/27)
Big hospitals cover suburbs
A growing number of Shanghai's key hospitals have opened branches in rural areas to improve the local health condition and residents' lives.
Shanghai No. 1 People's Hospital has recently opened a Songjiang branch at the opposite side of Songjiang University Town, following the opening of Shanghai Public Health Center in Jinshan District and Shanghai Shuguang Hospital's branch in Zhangjiang of Pudong.
The city suffers from a hefty imbalance in medical services between its urban and rural areas, with nearly all of the quality hospitals gathered in the downtown area.
With advanced equipment such as a helipad for emergencies and plenty of veteran doctors and experts, the hospital's Songjiang branch has rescued more than 250 critical patients to date and received more than 1,000 emergency and outpatient services a day. Residents from Jinshan and Fengxian Districts also see doctors there.
More of the city's larger hospitals are considering the opening of suburban branches. --(10/26)
US books its place at World Expo party
The United States has confirmed its participation in the Shanghai World Expo, event organizers said yesterday.
The early confirmation is a coup for the 2010 event. The US revoked its membership of the World Expo's international governing body in 2001, saying the event, which was first held in 1851, had no place in today's technologically advanced age.
It did not attend the Hanover World Expo in 2000 and was last to register for World Expo 2005 in Aichi, Japan.
The World Expo 2010 hopes to attract 200 countries and international organizations and more than 70 million visitors. --(10/25)
One transport card for Yangtze River Delta area
Passengers traveling through the Yangtze River Delta region only need to carry one public transport card in the coming three or five years, according to a seminar in Shanghai.
The adoption of a distinct public transport card in the region is significant to the integration of regional economic, transportation and tourism development, according to the Shanghai Urban Transport Bureau.
First of all, this transport card should have a uniform technical criteria and standard. It should first be adopted in big cities like Shanghai, Nanjing and Hangzhou, and then be extended to the entire Yangtze River Delta region over the next three to five years. By that time, passengers can use the "one-transport card" on buses, metros and taxis in the region, said an expert at the seminar.
The idea was initially deliberated in 2002, and in October of that year, bus companies in Shanghai and Wuxi offered such cards. In 2003, Shanghai's public transport cards could be used in some of the taxis in Hangzhou, and in October, Shanghai and Wuxi's cards were adopted in all the buses and some taxis in Suzhou. --(10/24)
New breakthrough for 3G tech
RDA microelectronics Inc announced yesterday that the successful development of a Radio-Frequency (RF) chip in the domestically developed TD-SCDMA (time division-synchronous code division multiple access) technology, is now being manufactured in the country's handsets.
TD-SCDMA technology is a national standard for the third-generation (3G) telecommunications network, with two core technologies of RF and Baseband Chips. Currently, Baseband Chips have been developed domestically, but it's a first for the RF chips.
Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation has tested the newly developed RF chips, which adopt the globally advanced CMOS (Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor) technology. --(10/23)
3 Metro station names will be changed
Three Metro stations will be given new names. The switch is due to city officials deciding Metro stations should be named after famous places.
In about one month, Henan Road Station on Metro Line 2 will be renamed Nanjing Road E. Station. Shimen 1 Road Station will be renamed Nanjing Road W. Station; and Wenshui Road E. Station on Metro Line 3 will be switched to Dabaishu Station.
Most commuters and experts that Shanghai Daily spoke to yesterday didn't care about the name changes. Many said they were more interested in having less-crowded subway trains.
Previously, the city named subway stations by the name of a neighboring vertical street with the subway line - similar to how bus stations are named. --(10/22)
Charity group helps to design gorilla habitat
Shanghai Roots and Shoots, the local branch of an international non-governmental organization, is asking the public for helping to design a new habitat for gorillas at the Shanghai Zoo.
The organization's famed founder Jane Goodall will visit the zoo today during a three-day trip to the city to promote a new book. Goodall, who famously spent decades living with chimpanzees in Africa, said she set up R&S to raise public awareness about the problems facing animals and the environment.
The zoo, which already has one gorilla hall, will set up a new larger habitat for three gorillas, which will be sent to the city from the Rotterdam Zoo in the Netherlands.
Roots and Shoots hopes to offer the zoo help designing the habitat with the assistance of volunteer architects. It is currently collecting ideas from the public for the gorilla hall, and the best ones will be included in the final design.
"My job is to help people understand that every single one of us can make a difference in every single day to change the world," Goodall, 72, said during a speech at the opening of the 2006 Shanghai R&S summit yesterday.
Shanghai R&S teamed up with the Shanghai Yellow Pages to launch a charity program yesterday. They will sell discount cards for restaurants and shops in the city for 200 yuan (US$25), with the proceeds going to three non-profit organizations - R&S, Shanghai LifeLine and The Mercy Fund. --(10/20)
Service center open
The Pudong New Area Citizen's Center was officially set up yesterday.
With the opening of the center, Pudong residents and companies can enjoy government service for 20 administrative departments, such as legal aid center, marriage registration center and environmental protection bureau, in one building. In the past, those departments were scattered in 47 places in the district. --(10/19)
City to hold 2006 AIE conference
More than 200 academics and experts from 15 countries will attend the 2006 Alliance for International Education (AIE) conference in Shanghai from October 27 to 29, the first of its kind to be held outside Europe.
The conference, themed "cultivating global citizens," aims to boost the development of international and cross-cultural education.
The AIE was founded in 2002 by several famous international education organizations, including the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO); the Center for the Study of Education in an International Context (CEIC) at the University of Bath; the Council of International Schools (CIS); International School of Dusseldorf (ISD); the Dutch International Schools (DIS); the European Council of International Schools (ECIS); George Mason University (GMU); the International Schools Association (ISA); and the United World Colleges (UWC).
At the 2004 conference in Dusseldorf, Dr. Betty Chan, from the Hong Kong-based Yew Chung Education Foundation, delivered a speech on the ideologies and experiences of international education systems from a special Asian perspective. In response to her speech, the AIE decided to hold the 2006 conference in Shanghai, with joint sponsorship from the Yew Chung Education Foundation and the Shanghai Education Association for International Exchange. The AIE is also considering the opening of regional branches. --(10/18)
Food poisoning cases probed
Local food and drug administrative authorities have launched an investigation after more than 100 people reported food poisoning symptoms in two separate cases on Sunday and Monday.
Most of the victims were released from hospital yesterday but three were still hospitalized for further observation, city officials said. Nearly 90 employees in a Jiading District company suffered from vomiting and diarrhea after they had dinner at the company's canteen on Monday while about 30 doctors who came to attend a medical seminar in Yangpu District were struck with similar symptoms following a feast in a restaurant on Sunday. --(10/17)
Bravery honored
The Shanghai Political and Legislative Committee honored 10 local residents for their brave behavior yesterday.
Ge Datong, a police assistant, spotted a man stealing a moped while he patrolled along Wujin Road, Hongkou District, on the morning of October 3. When he tried to stop the thief, he was hit violently in the face and died in hospital of brain injuries. --(10/16)
Salt tide intrudes Shanghai
Shanghai is being hit by a new wave of salt tide that affected normal water supply in some districts of the metropolis, the government said yesterday.
The tide, the second since summer began, started on Monday at the mouth of the Yangtze River and is predicted to last over a week, a spokesman with the municipal government information service said.
Although measures have been taken, the spokesman said citizens in some districts may still find insufficient tap water supply in certain hours and the water may not taste as good as usual.
The government asked for understanding from water-users and hopes everyone would avoid wasting water.
The spokesman said the government will not impose restrictions for water use as the impact of salt tide is not beyond control.
The salt tide takes place at the mouth of the Yangtze River every winter or early spring, when water flowing from the river decreases, causing chloride level to rise and even succeed the national standard.
Low water levels have been reported in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River due to rare drought this year. As a result, the salt tide happened at least two months earlier than previous years.
The first salt tide hit Shanghai on Sept. 11 and lasted five days. Water supply for Shanghai, a city of 17 million population, remained normal. --(10/15)
Health checks at registration
Every marriage registration center in the city must set up a special medical clinic to provide premarital check-ups, the Shanghai Health Bureau announced yesterday.
Centers that don't have enough space onsite for a medical clinic must set one up within 200 meters of the main office, the bureau said.
The new rule is meant to cut down on the number of newborns with deformities and make life more convenient for engaged couples, who currently must travel to a district maternity hospital for an examination, officials said.
Premarital health doctors from district maternity hospitals will serve in the clinics, providing consultations and examinations for hepatitis B, syphilis and other ailments that could influence a fetus' health.
Premarital medical exams were mandatory in the city prior to October 2003.
After the exams were made optional, the number of couples taking a physical before tying the knot dropped considerable. Only 3 percent of newlyweds underwent a physical in 2004, down from about 98 percent when the exam was mandatory.
The city began offering free check-ups in August last year to encourage more couples to have the exam, but 90 percent still avoid the procedure.
"Premarital health care is very important to guarantee the health of couples and infants. It helps reduce inborn defects and deformities and improves population quality," said Song Guofan of the Shanghai Health Bureau. "The authorities have taken many efforts to encourage the check-ups, which are still optional."
Medical experts say a large percentage of the about 3,000 known inherited diseases can be prevented through premarital checks. Since the exams were first introduced in 1988, about 1,000 local couples have been advised to hold off on having kids. --(10/11)
Shanghai to host int'l industrial fair in early Nov.
Shanghai, China's leading industrial center, will host the 2006 China International Industrial Fair from Nov. 1 to 5, Shanghai Vice Mayor Zhou Yupeng said in Beijing yesterday.
The fair is expected to be attended by representatives of nearly 4,700 foreign and domestic enterprises, said the vice mayor.
The fair's theme will be "scientific and technological innovation and machine-building".
The event has been held annually since 1999. --(10/10)
Special Olympics torch
An officer from the city police's special force yesterday holds a torch together with a mentally handicapped boy on the Bund. The event was held as a warmup to the Special Olympics 2007, which will take place in the city. --(10/9)
Shanghai Games teams with overseas Special Olympic delegation
With the preparations of the 2007 Special Olympic World Games underway, 155 streets and towns in nineteen districts and counties of Shanghai have coupled with 153 overseas Special Olympic delegations. In mid-October, heads of the delegations from 100 countries and districts will couple with the leaders of the communities in a conference for the 2007 SOWG.
The 2006 Special Olympics Shanghai Invitational Games will be held from October 12 to 19. According to the plans, 16 districts and counties in the city will welcome the SO delegations from 19 countries and districts to help them adjust to the city. Some of the SO athletes will be arranged to live with residents.
The 21 games will be held during the 2006 SOSIG. It will be the first time that SO competitions extend to all the districts and counties over Shanghai. SOI officials will join to offer instruction and judge the competitions.
Three teams will be established with the heads of delegations, made up of liaison officers, leaders of communities, and leaders in charge of receiving the guests for next year.
The 2006 Special Olympics Shanghai Invitational Games is almost equal to the popular nation-wide Games. Up to now, 2,100 athletes and coaches from over 20 countries and districts, including SOI officials, have been invited to the Games. As well, more than 4,000 volunteers are serving the Games and nearly 200 reporters from home and abroad will cover the event. The organizers have also prepared 60,000 SO promotional booklets, 60,000 posters, 60,000 display screens and 1,800 promotion brands. SO promotion activities are also being launched in the city¡¯s schools. --(10/9)
Lanterns throw light on puzzles
Shanghai's Guilin Park last night try to figure out lantern riddles, a traditional Mid-Autumn Festival game. The fullest moon around this year's moon festival is expected at 11:13am today rather yesterday, which was the day of the Mid-Autumn Festival, a Chinese astronomer said. Zhao Zhiheng, of the Astronomy Society of Tianjin, said the fullness is decided by the speed at which the moon orbits Earth. China marked the moon festival by announcing 30 songs to be broadcast to Earth next year from its first lunar-probing satellite. --(10/7)
City welcomes crowds of tourists for holiday
Tourists throng the downtown Nanjing Road Pedestrian Mall in Shanghai yesterday. At least 3 million people visited tourist sites in the city from Sunday to yesterday. --(10/6)
Mooncake supplies fall
One-fifth of complaints registered with Shanghai's consumer watchdogs during the first three days of the National Day holiday were about mooncakes.
The Shanghai Industrial and Commercial Administrative Bureau said yesterday most of the mooncake complaints were from people unable to get hold of the Mid-Autumn Festival treat because shops had run out.
Mooncake supplies fall
One man, surnamed Jiang, said he got a coupon from a friend for mooncakes from well-known mooncake outlet Xinghualou. He visited the company's Miyun branch three times but was told by shop assistants stocks had been exhausted.
"We, about 30 people, were lining up there, waiting for our mooncakes, but the shop assistant just told us to come later," said Jiang.
The bureau said companies should have been better prepared for the mooncake peak that falls just before the Mid-Autumn Festival, which this year falls on Friday.
Xinghualou Food Co Ltd did not answer calls yesterday.
The bureau said consumers had also complained about mooncakes going bad before their best-before dates.
The bureau said it had received a total of 267 complaints over Sunday, Monday and yesterday, up 9 percent on the same period last year. Fifty of the complaints concerned mooncakes. --(10/4)
'Golden Week' offers big crowds, rainy sky
Patience and an umbrella may be the two most important tools for coping with the National Day Holiday in Shanghai.
Rain is forecast for Sunday's start of the week-long break, and the drizzle is expected to continue into Monday, with clouds on tap for the rest of the period.
Top temperatures during the "golden week" will range from 24 to 26 degrees Celsius with lows around 21 degrees, according to the Shanghai Meteorological Bureau.
An even temper may help in dealing with the estimated 7.5 million people who will travel by train to and from Shanghai during the National Day celebration.
The Shanghai Railway Administration, which runs train services in Shanghai and Zhejiang, Jiangsu and Anhui provinces, said about 480,000 passengers boarded coaches on Thursday, the first day of the holiday travel rush, up 7.8 percent from the same period last year.
The administration said travelers should peak today, when many residents begin their trips out of town.
Extra trains and ticket offices will help deal with the heavy flow, officials said.
For those who remain in town, health and banking services will be available but limited.
The Shanghai Health Bureau said hospitals will provide out-patient services only on Thursday and Friday during the holiday period. Emergency services will be available at all times.
Shanghai banks will keep outlets open in major shopping and residential areas.
The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the country's biggest lender, will operate 200-plus outlets and more than 200 24-hour self-service sites during the holiday.
The Bank of China, the second-biggest lender, will open more than 60 outlets from Sunday to Tuesday, mainly in shopping areas such as Nanjing Road and Huaihai Road. BOC will boost the figure to 100 from Wednesday to Saturday.
China Construction Bank will close some of its outlets in office areas while keeping open those catering to shopping and daily needs.
Post offices will remain open during the period.
An online survey by headhunter Zhaopin.com indicated that 37 percent of respondents will remain at home during the holiday. Nearly 25 percent planned to travel.
About three-quarters will set aside a holiday spending budget of 1,000 yuan (US$125) or less. --(10/1)
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