XI VOWS CLOSER TIES WITH GHANA, MONGOLIA

China will deepen cooperation with Ghana in various fields under the joint construction of the Belt and Road and within the framework of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.

President Xi Jinping made the remark in an exchange of congratulatory messages on Sunday with his Ghanaian counterpart, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, on the 60th anniversary of the establishment of China-Ghana diplomatic relations.

In his message, Xi said he highly values developing bilateral ties and is willing to work with Akufo-Addo to take the 60th anniversary as an opportunity to carry forward traditional friendship in order to benefit the two countries and their peoples and contribute to the building of a closer China-Africa community with a shared future.

Over the past six decades, the traditional friendship between China and Ghana has grown stronger with practical cooperation yielding fruitful results, Xi said.

Bilateral relations have shown a good momentum for all-round development in recent years, bringing tangible benefits to both peoples, he added.

The president noted that China and African countries, including Ghana, have stood by each other in the joint fight against the COVID-19 pandemic since its outbreak, which has demonstrated their brotherly friendship.

As of Sunday, the pandemic had caused more than 11,800 deaths in Africa with over 463,300 people being infected, according to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.

In his message, Akufo-Addo said that Xi has shown extraordinary leadership in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and China has won worldwide acclaim for its anti-epidemic assistance and support to countries around the world, including Ghana.

Deepening cooperation

Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, has also exchanged messages with Ukhnaa Khurelsukh, chairman of the ruling Mongolian People's Party and prime minister of Mongolia, according to a news release published on Saturday.

In the message, Xi said that the CPC is willing to strengthen exchanges and cooperation with the MPP to lead the China-Mongolia comprehensive strategic partnership to greater development and contribute to regional peace and prosperity.

Recalling that Khurelsukh sent a message to him recently on the occasion of the 99th founding anniversary of the CPC, Xi said it fully demonstrated the great importance Khurelsukh and the MPP attach to relations between the two parties and countries.

China is ready to strengthen anti-epidemic exchanges and cooperation with Mongolia and other countries, and jointly build a community of health for all, he said.

In a previous letter to Xi, Khurelsukh said that China's fight against COVID-19 has not only safeguarded the health of the Chinese people, but also made great contributions to protecting the health of people around the world, which he deeply admires.

INPUT IN NEW INFRASTRUCTURE GAINS TRACTION

China's new infrastructure rollout is attracting a growing number of private investors from both home and abroad, which industry experts believe will further help local startups to resolve key technical problems.

"With the new infrastructure initiative, the country already saw a large number of venture capital and private equity firms invest in new infrastructure and its downstream areas," said Wu Yaping, a researcher at the Investment Research Institute of the National Development and Reform Commission.

In the first quarter of this year, $560 million of investment flowed into the country's big data industry, an important part of new infrastructure. The overall deals in the sector increased 11 percent year-on-year, according to CVSource, a database from investment consulting firm ChinaVenture.

"Different from traditional infrastructure investment, new infrastructure projects are more attractive for private capital, including venture capital and private equity firms, to engage in. New infrastructure projects focus on emerging and high-tech sectors and evolve quickly in technologies, which is similar to the investment logic of private capital," Wu said.

To gear up new growth engines, China has called for new infrastructure construction including 5G, artificial intelligence and the industrial internet. Such efforts are in line with the nation's drive to ensure stability in domestic and foreign investment.

"New infrastructure comes with huge opportunities," said Kaifu Lee, a prominent AI expert and chairman and CEO of venture capital firm Sinovation Ventures. "During the process, AI, together with other core areas of new infrastructure, such as big data and the industrial internet, will integrate much more closely with each other. This will take the digitalization of the nation's traditional industries to a new level."

Industry insiders pointed out that the active engagement of venture capital and private equity firms in new infrastructure also makes it easier for Chinese startups, especially technology-driven firms, to get funds and develop independent technologies.

NEW SWINE VIRUS UNLIKELY TO INFECT HUMANS: CHINESE CDC

Current evidence suggests it is extremely unlikely the public will be infected by the G4 swine influenza virus, a subtype of the H1N1 swine flu virus that caused the 2009 influenza pandemic, according to a statement by the Chinese Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday.

On June 29, Chinese scientists published a study in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, stating that they had found a group of viruses in Chinese pigs, referred to as the "Eurasian avian-like H1N1 swine influenza viruses". They found the viruses could infect humans and therefore were of potential pandemic concern.

This group of viruses includes six strains labeled from G1 to G6, with the G4 variant being the most worrisome as it exhibits "all the essential hallmarks of being highly adapted to infect humans, and should be paid close attention to," the Chinese CDC said.

The CDC said there have been no reports of this group of viruses spreading from person-to-person, a prerequisite for a pandemic. The World Health Organization and the United States are reported to be closely monitoring the virus's development.

"The current G4 virus does not increase the risk of an influenza pandemic, and the research results also do not suggest the virus can pose an immediate threat to public health," the Chinese CDC said.

Since 2010, China's influenza monitoring network has reported 13 human cases of EA-H1N1 viral infection, three of which were G4 infections, the CDC said. China tests over 400,000 samples on average each year.

Given the low number of cases, the Chinese CDC said, "The probability of the public being infected by the virus is extremely low." Maintaining good personal hygiene, getting annual flu shots, and reducing direct contact with livestock and wild animals are suggested courses of protection.

Pork products are also safe to consume as long as they are purchased from creditable and qualified vendors and are cooked properly, it said.

The G4 swine flu virus can infect cells of the human upper respiratory system in vitro, and animal testing on ferrets shows that the G4 virus can be spread via respiratory droplets and direct contact, it said.

However, both the in vitro and animal tests are not enough to prove that the virus can spread in the same way in the human population, it added.

DRAFT SEEKS TO CLOSE TRANSPLANT LOOPHOLES

Transplant surgeries using organs from unknown sources will be banned, and distribution of organs should be fair and transparent, according to a draft regulation recently released by the National Health Commission.

Detailed measures, including establishing a national system for tracking the distribution of organs donated by people after death, will be made so all transplant surgeries using such organs can be tracked, it said.

The draft, a revision of the existing regulation on organ transplants, was released by the commission on Wednesday. It is soliciting public opinion until Aug 1.

The revision is aimed at closing legislative loopholes found in organ donations and transplants in China in recent years, the commission said in a statement.

Since the existing regulation was implemented in 2007, an organ donation and transplant system that suits China's conditions has been primarily put in place, and China has ranked second in the world in the number of organ donations and transplant surgeries, it said.

The government encourages organ donations after death from the public, although strict procedures must be followed, the draft said.

Recipients of organs donated by people who are alive will be limited to their spouses or close relatives. No organization or individual will be allowed to acquire organs from living minors for transplant surgeries, the draft said.

Violators of the draft regulation will be held legally accountable, with punishments including fines, revocation of certifications and removal from posts. They may face criminal penalties in serious cases, such as acquiring organs against the will of their owners before death and performing transplant surgeries using organs from unknown sources.

Organ donation and transplantation has developed rapidly in China since 2015, when the country banned the use of organs from executed prisoners, making voluntary donation the only legitimate source of organs for transplantation.

COUNTRY'S INVESTMENT IN RAILWAY PROJECTS ON TRACK TO MEET TARGET

China is on track to meet its annual railway investment target, with fixed-asset investment in the sector up 1.2 percent year-on-year to 325.8 billion yuan ($46.1 billion) in the first half of this year, the country's railway operator said.

Reeling from the impact of the novel coronavirus outbreak, national railway investment tumbled 21 percent year-on-year in the first quarter to 79.9 billion yuan, the China State Railway Group said on Sunday.

But it increased investment in the second quarter and sped up the construction of new railway projects, with quarterly investment rising to 245.9 billion yuan, up 11.4 percent year-on-year.

The extra investment in the second quarter made up for the first-quarter deficit, the company said.

In December, the Ministry of Transport said China would spend at least 2.7 trillion yuan on transport infrastructure projects this year, with 800 billion yuan going to the railway sector.

China State Railway Group said it had faced labor shortages, an insufficient supply of raw materials and logistics problems due to the pandemic, but had overcome the difficulties and resumed construction of all railway projects.

Six new projects have begun scheduled operations, including the high-speed line linking Hefei, Anhui province, with Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, and the rail route connecting Nantong, Jiangsu province, with Shanghai, it said.

The Qinghai section of the line between Golmud, Qinghai province, and Korla, Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, also started operation, it said, adding that the new lines will further improve the country's railway network and be of great significance in boosting regional economies and eradicating poverty.

In the first six months of the year, 1,178 kilometers of new railway lines had been put into operation, including 605 km of high-speed lines, the company said.

More lines will become operational in the second half of the year, including a high-speed line between Yinchuan, Ningxia Hui autonomous region, and Xi'an, Shaanxi province, and a line linking Beijing and Xiongan New Area in Hebei province, it said.

The company said China plans to build at least 4,400 km of new railway lines this year, including 2,300 km of high-speed lines. Those targets exceed the 4,000 km of new lines and 2,000 km of high-speed lines it announced at its annual work conference in early January.

POLICE INVESTIGATE P2P LENDER

A peer-to-peer lending platform based in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, is under investigation as China steps up efforts to reduce financial risks and crack down on P2P lending and illegal fundraising.

The police are investigating Weidai, an automobile-secured loan platform for small Chinese businesses that is suspected of illegally collecting public savings, the Shangcheng district branch of the Hangzhou public security bureau said on its Sina Weibo social media account on Saturday.

Since it began operations in 2011, Weidai has focused on transforming used automobiles, a type of nonstandard collateral, into investable assets to provide accessible credit for China's small and micro-sized enterprises, and connecting borrowers with institutional funding partners through its platform, the company said on its website.

It raised $45 million in an initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange on Nov 15, 2018.

The company announced on May 31 that it would withdraw from peer-to-peer lending, the practice of lending money to individuals or businesses through online services that match lenders with borrowers, by June 30 due to relevant national policies and the latest trends in the peer-to-peer lending industry.

China will continue to remedy risks in peer-to-peer lending and other types of internet financial activity, and resolutely ban online institutions that are illegally engaged in financial activities, a China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission spokesperson said on June 4.

Financial industry experts said China's financial risks are generally under control.

As of March 31, there were 139 peer-to-peer lending platforms still running, down 86 percent from the beginning of last year. During the same period, the outstanding loan balance of P2P firms declined 75 percent, the number of lenders dropped 80 percent and the number of borrowers fell 62 percent.

Nearly 5,000 firms have exited P2P lending since China started rectifying internet financial risks, which have decreased continuously since the beginning of last year, the country's internet financial risk and peer-to-peer lending risk rectification work leadership groups said at a teleconference in April.

CHINESE SHARES HIGHER AT MIDDAY MONDAY

China's major stock indices ended higher in the morning session Monday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index up 4.24 percent at 3,286.6 points.

The Shenzhen Component Index went up 3.29 percent to end at 12,842.3 points at midday.

The ChiNext Index, China's NASDAQ-style board of growth enterprises, rose 2.2 percent to close at 2,516.87 points at midday.

CHINA RAILWAY INVESTS $46.1 BILLION IN FIXED ASSETS IN H1

China Railway invested 325.8 billion yuan ($46.1 billion) in fixed assets in the first half of the year, overfulfilling its investment goals, People's Daily reported on Saturday.

The investment increased 1.2 percent of 3.8 billion yuan over the same period last year. Among these, 245.1 billion yuan was invested in railway infrastructure, up 3.7 percent year-on-year. As of last Wednesday, a 1,178-kilometer-long rail track had been newly opened, including 605 km of high-speed railway.

The people in charge of the construction department of China State Railway Group said due to the COVID-19 epidemic, investment in the first quarter registered a 21 percent drop from a year earlier, recording merely 79.9 billion yuan. In the second quarter, the group increased its investment plan and achieved 245.9-billion-yuan investment, up 11.4 percent year-on-year. A total of 179.7 billion yuan was thrown into infrastructure construction, up 16.4 percent on a yearly basis. Investment growth in the second quarter not only compensated the contraction in the first quarter, but also achieved total increase in railway investment.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

The swiftest path to destruction is through vengeance. - Jedi Proverb