Economy

Chinas Sharing Economy Worth RMB 1.95 Trillion

Sharing economy platforms， such as the ride-hailing apps， created a market worth RMB 1.95 trillion （about US $298 billion） in 2015， according to the Report on 2016 China Sharing Economy Development released by the National Information Center at the end of February.

There are 50 million sharing business providers in China with more than 500 million consumers， according to the report.

The sharing economy satisfies a variety of daily life and business needs by using information technology to provide consumers with information that enables optimization of resources through redistribution， sharing， and reuse of idle goods and services. In addition to taxi-hailing apps such as DiDi， product， knowledge， and service-based providers have also mushroomed on the Internet， said Yang Yixin， deputy secretary-general of the China Internet Association.

Zhang Xinhong of the National Information Center said Chinas sharing economy is expected to grow at an annual rate of 40 percent in the next five years， and to take up more than 10 percent of Chinas GDP by 2020.

Chief Development Officer of DiDi Li Jianhua said the hailing service received 1.43 billion calls in 2015. Li predicted the figure will double in 2016. In fact， China is becoming the largest market globally in the field of sharing economy.

The report forecasts that five to 10 sharing economy companies of value and influence similar to DiDi will be established in the next decade.

Sound Consumption Growth Expected in 2016

Consumption in China will continue to grow at a rapid pace in 2016， Minister of Commerce Gao Hucheng said at a press conference at the end of February， 2016.

Consumption expanded 10.7 percent year-on-year and contributed 66.4 percent to Chinas economic growth in 2015， compared with 51 percent in 2014. Such growth is encouraged by rapid increases in peoples income， improved social security， and better supplies of goods， according to Gao.

To further encourage consumption， the ministry will continue to promote supply-side reforms to enhance the quality of goods and services， Gao said.

As China tries to wean the economy from its lopsided dependence on investment and foreign trade， consumption， services， and innovation are becoming new drivers of growth.

Chinas Wanda to Jointly Develop Leading Project in Europe

Immochan， a real estate company affiliated with the France-based Auchan Group， announced that it had reached an agreement with Chinas largest commercial property group Dalian Wanda over an investment contract to develop together the EuropaCity project， a leading private venture for leisure， culture， retail and entertainment in Europe.

EuropaCity， launched and implemented by Immochan， was fully based on a private investment of over 3 billion euros （about US$3.3 billion）， and aims to create a leisure destination， thus fostering economic， social， and urban development around Paris.

Dalian Wanda will contribute to the funding of the project and provide its expertise and know-how in terms of leisure， hotel service， and entertainment.

Wang Jianlin， president of Dalian Wanda Group， said that for Wanda， EuropaCity is the“most important project outside of China.”

President of Immochan Vianney Mulliez said that EuropaCity was a key project for the development of the northeastern part of Greater Paris， and that “Dalian Wandas know-how and Wangs ambition to develop his group on a global scale” have convinced the French partner that Wanda could make a substantial contribution to the development of EuropaCity.

EuropaCity， located between Paris Le Bourget Airport and Charles de Gaulle International Airport， will cover an area of about 80 hectares. It is planned to open in 2024 and generate 30 million visits annually.

Immochan was founded in 1976 and grew to be one of the leading European commercial real estate companies. Dalian Wanda Group， established in 1988， is a globally influential commercial property development company. It owns many five-star hotels， cinema chains， and sports companies. Wanda embarked on its international development in 2012. In the past four years， it has invested over US $15 billion in more than 10 countries around the world.

Chinas First Driverless Subway Train

An automated driverless subway train rolled off the production line in Qingdao City of Shandong Province last February.

The train is produced by state-owned high-speed train maker CRRC Qingdao Sifang Co.， Ltd. According to Jiang Xin， deputy director of the companys technology department， upon a signal from the subway control center， the train automatically starts， stops， and can even clean itself via a remote control.

“The core technology behind the train is home-grown， which is a huge breakthrough in the domestic subway industry，” Jiang said.

Jiang added that the self-driving train， made with leading safety technology， can run more safely and effectively than trains controlled by humans. These trains not only help reduce operational failures caused by human error but also help avoid accidents caused by factors such as driver fatigue or sudden illness.

“The train has detecting equipment， which applies the brake if the train derails or hits an obstacle，” Jiang said.

The train has four cars， has a maximum speed of 100 km per hour， and can switch to manual mode when necessary.

Following trials， the train will be introduced to Beijings subway system this year.