Economy

　　Trade Decline

　　China’s exports went down 6.6 percent to $170.11 billion in March， customs data showed on April 10.

　　Imports went down 11.3 percent to $162.41 billion and total foreign trade volume declined 9 percent to $332.52 billion， the General Administration of Customs (GAC) said.

　　Trade balance returned to a surplus of $7.71 billion in March after a surprise deficit of $22.98 billion in the previous month， the GAC said.

　　Total trade volume of the first quarter stood at $965.88 billion， down 1 percent year on year. Of the total， exports declined 3.4 percent to $491.31 billion while imports grew 1.6 percent to reach $474.57 billion in the first quarter.

　　“Judging from data， China’s foreign trade has encountered some difficulties. But we should never overestimate those difficulties，” said Zheng Yuesheng， spokesman of the GAC.

　　“The decline in foreign trade data will be temporary and short-term. China’s foreign trade will regain growth from May this year and then enter a mild growth period.”

　　China’s foreign trade still has several advantages， including global economic recovery， China’s efforts in comprehensively deepening reforms and Chinese companies’ surging overseas investment， Zheng said.

　　“It’s likely that China will realize its 7.5-percent foreign trade growth target，” he predicted.

　　Economic Circle

　　China’s top economic planner， the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC)， announced on April 9 that it is drawing up a plan for the coordinated development of a Beijing-centered “economic circle.”

　　The Beijing-centered circle is one of three economic growth poles in east China， and its progress will push forward the economic transformation and upgrading of the area surrounding the Bohai Sea， the NDRC said.

　　The NDRC said the draft will make use of the region’s comparative advantages and bring about specific measures in infrastructure construction， industrial layout and innovation in the three areas.

　　It also vowed to strengthen ecological building practices and environmental protection， promote widely beneficial public services， and deepen reform and opening up. A mechanism for regional cooperation can also be expected in the plan.

　　The NDRC did not unveil when the plan will finally come out， saying it depends on the drafting progress.

　　The economic circle is home to over 100 million people and boasts a combined GDP of over 6 trillion yuan ($967.2 billion) with a total area of 216，000 square km.

　　Railway Investment

　　China will increase railway fixed asset investment to 720 billion yuan ($117.09 billion) in 2014， said Sheng Guangzu， General Manager of the China Railway Corp. (CRC).

　　Sheng said the corporation was increasing investment to meet demand. Forty-nine new projects and over 7，000 km of new railway lines will be put into operation this year.

　　The former plan set at the beginning of the year targeted 700 billion yuan ($113 billion) of fixed asset investment， 44 new projects and 6，600 km of new railway lines， according to the CRC.

　　Sheng said that 78 percent of all construction investment will go to the central and western regions， which will be the site of 86 percent of this year’s newly operated railways.

　　According to a five-year plan from 2011 to 2015， 230，000 km of new railway lines will be built in central and western regions， with an investment of 1.85 trillion yuan ($300 billion).

　　Sheng said from 2011 to 2013， 1.15 trillion yuan ($190 billion) had been invested in the regions.

　　Wider Acceptance

　　China UnionPay announced on April 9 that it had signed deals with two Australian banks to cooperate on UnionPay card business in Australia， New Zealand and some island countries in the south Pacific.

　　China UnionPay said it had signed the agreements with Westpac Banking Corporation and Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd.

　　Su Ning， Chairman of China UnionPay， said the deal would make the UnionPay card more acceptable in Australia and New Zealand. China UnionPay and the two banks will expand the card business together， especially in the field of “innovative payments.”

　　They will also speed up acceptance of UnionPay cards by all ATMs and POS terminals of the two banks in Australia， New Zealand and other countries.

　　Duty-Free Shop

　　South China’s tourist island province of Hainan is to build the world’s largest duty free shop (DFS).

　　Hainan plans to relocate an existing DFS downtown in the resort city of Sanya， in a 60，000-square-meter complex at Haitang Bay， said vice provincial governor Tan Li on April 9. Sanya’s current DFS is only about 10，000 square meters.

　　The Sanya Haitang Bay International Shopping Mall will attract international brands and fashion labels and combine duty-free shopping with hotels， restaurants and entertainment.

　　Hainan also plans to expand and transform another DFS in the provincial capital of Haikou from 3，650 to 4，880 square meters.

　　The State Council gave Hainan permission to run a duty-free program on a trial basis in April 2011 to promote the province as an international tourist destination.

　　Offshore duty-free shopping in Hainan’s two DFS stores in 2013， hit 3.29 billion yuan ($530.6 million)， up 40 percent year on year.

　　More Tax Breaks

　　More small businesses in China will enjoy tax breaks as part of the government’s efforts to address the pressure on economic growth.

　　Any company with annual taxable income under 100，000 yuan ($16，000) will have its business income tax halved starting from January 1 till the end of 2016， said a joint statement of the Ministry of Finance and the State Administration of Taxation (SAT) released on April 8.

　　This means the tax breaks apply to more small businesses. China’s State Council decided in 2011 that any company with annual taxable income under 60，000 yuan ($$9，670) will have its business income tax halved during the 2012-15 period.

　　The move aims to promote economic growth and create jobs， said the statement.

　　Small and micro-firms serve as the foundations for continuous and steady economic growth， said a latest report by SAT.

　　By the end of 2013， there were about 11.7 million small and micro companies in China， accounting for 76.6 percent of the total number of firms in the country， the SAT report showed.

　　Taking small family businesses into account， small companies accounted for 94.2 percent of the total number and created about 150 million jobs.

　　Big Buy Goes Ahead

　　Alibaba， China’s e-commerce leader， has continued acquisitions aiming to sharpen its cutting edge ahead of an expected initial public offering (IPO) in the United States.

　　Hangzhou Yunxi Investment Partnership Enterprise， owned by Alibaba founder Jack Ma， Shi Yuzhu， founder of Giant Interactive Group Inc. and Simon Xie， co-founder of Alibaba， has bought a 20-percent stake in Wasu Media Holdings Co. Ltd. for 6.5 billion yuan ($1 billion)， according to a statement from Wasu on April 8.

　　Alibaba and Wasu Digital TV Media Group， dominant shareholders in Wasu Media Holding Co. Ltd.， signed a strategic cooperation agreement on April 8.

　　Capital raised will be used to develop original content and expand Wasu’s Internet TV terminals.

　　Alibaba， keen to expand out of its core online retail business， has expanded its reach to include shopping malls， home appliances， mapping services and financial services through a series of acquisitions in the past year.

　　“Alibaba’s recent investments are still a multi-access strategy，” said Hu Yanping， founder of Data Center of China Internet.

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