Hi-Tech Farming

Huayang Star Space Farm is open to visitors in early February in Tiantai County， Zhejiang Province.

Covering an area of 17.5 hectares， the phase-one project of the farm has nine star greenhouses， all equipped with advanced agricultural technologies.

Low Inflation

Chinas consumer price index （CPI）， the main gauge of inflation， grew 0.8 percent year on year in January， the lowest rise in more than five years， the National Bureau of Statistics （NBS） said on February 10.

Food prices， which account for nearly one third of weighting in Chinas CPI， increased 1.1 percent year on year. On a monthly basis， consumer prices in January edged up 0.3 percent.

The NBS attributed the tempering growth to retreating food prices due to warmer weather during the period， in addition to a bigger comparison base last year and an oil price plunge in the international market.

Meanwhile， Chinas producer price index （PPI）， which measures wholesale inflation， plunged 4.3 percent year on year in January， marking the 35th straight month of decline， pointing to continued weak market demand.

The Chinese economy grew 7.4 percent in 2014， the weakest annual expansion in 24 years， and a string of economic indicators in the first month of 2015， including manufacturing and trade data， all suggested continued weakness.

In the latest move to bolster growth， the Peoples Bank of China， the central bank， decided to lower reserve requirement ratio （RRR）， the minimum level of reserves commercial banks must hold， by 50 basis points from February 5， the first universal RRR cut since May 2012.

Poverty Reduction

Impoverished population in southwest Chinas Tibet Autonomous Region saw a 30-percent drop on an annual basis in 2014， according to official statistics.

Some 130，000 people in Tibet were lifted out of poverty last year， said Hu Xinsheng， head of the Tibet Poverty Alleviation Office， on February 12.

Chinas rural poverty threshold is 2，300 yuan （$368） in annual net income.

Those living in poverty decreased from 830，000 in 2010 to 320，000 in 2014 in Tibet. People living in poverty now account for 13 percent of the population of the regions farming and pastoral areas， compared with 34 percent in 2010.

Hu said that Tibet channeled 1.77 billion yuan （$284 million） into poverty reduction efforts in 2014， up 13 percent year on year.

This year， 1.88 billion yuan （$301 million） will be invested by the regional government to lift another 80，000 people out of poverty， he added.

Higher Standards

Foreign-invested enterprises will be given more chances to join China in setting up standards with the aim to make Chinese products more competitive and popular internationally， said the Chinese Government.

“To push the Chinese economy to a higher level， the key lies in improving products and services，” said a statement released after an executive meeting of the State Council， Chinas cabinet， on February 11.

China will improve laws and regulations related to standardization， striving for a guarantee for quality， according to the document. The government will revise current national， local and industrial standards. In areas such as health， safety and environmental protection， a unified mandatory national standard will be introduced.

Associations， commerce chambers and industrial technology alliances are encouraged to set standards that meet the needs of the market and innovation， it added.

EV Infrastructure

The number of electric-vehicle charging stations in Beijing will be doubled by the end of 2015 to encourage the use of new-energy vehicles， local authorities said.

After the expansion program is completed， a charging station can be found within a radius of 5 km from anywhere in the city， according to Xu Xinchao， head of the New Energy and Materials Department with the Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Commission.

Beijing currently has 1，425 public charging stations in operation at 188 sites， including shopping malls， office buildings， parking lots， airports， highway service areas， parks， technology parks and transportation hubs.

Xu called for more private investment in charging facilities to help increase their number in Beijing.

About 6，800 new-energy vehicles had been sold to private owners in Beijing by the end of 2014， according to official statistics.

The Chinese Government has been encouraging consumers to buy electric vehicles as one of the solutions to the countrys pollution problems. But the plan has been hindered by inadequate charging infrastructure.

Vanilla Research

Chinese scientists have completed the genome sequencing of Vanilla shenzhenica and produced the worlds first orchid genetic map， Xinhua News Agency reported.

The genome sequencing project was jointly launched in July 2014 by Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University in Fuzhou， Fujian Province， and the Shenzhen-based National Orchid Conservation Center of China in south Chinas Guangdong Province.

Liu Zhongjian， chief scientist with the National Orchid Conservation Center of China said that the genome sequencing would make it possible to alter orchid properties through transgenic technology， indicating a possibility that a synthetic version of vanilla may be produced in the future.

Vanilla is the worlds second expensive spice after saffron. It is widely used in food， cosmetics， tobacco and pharmaceutical products.

Astronomical Exploration

Chinas second Antarctic Survey Telescope will be put into use after its installation at the Kunlun Station in the South Pole during scientists ongoing Antarctic expedition mission.

The telescopes primary mirror is 68 cm in diameter.

China plans to install three Antarctic survey telescopes at the Kunlun Station.

Mass Production

Railway vehicles are assembled in a workshop of CNR Tangshan Railway Vehicle Co. Ltd.， Hebei Province， on February 11.

China CNR Corp. Ltd. registered export of $30 billion in 2014， up 68.6 percent year on year. The same year， it signed an export contract of 284 subway vehicles with Boston， the United States.

New Airport

China plans to build a civilian airport in the northeastern border city of Suifenhe in Heilongjiang Province in the countrys northeast， the countrys largest contributor to trade with Russia.

According to a feasibility plan， which has been approved， the project includes a 2，500-meter-long runway and a 4，500-square-meter terminal. The airport is designed to handle 450，000 passengers and 3，600 tons of cargo by 2025， said the government of Suifenhe. It is estimated to cost 944 million yuan（$151 million）.

Expansion of the Suifenhe land port is also under way， which will significantly increase its passenger and cargo handling capacities.

Suifenhe is in Heilongjiangs southeast and neighbors Russia. About 80 percent of Heilongjiangs cargo imports and exports are through Suifenhe.

In 2013， the Chinese Government authorized Suifenhe as the countrys first city where the Russian ruble can be used alongside the Chinese yuan on a trial basis.