DOCKING AND STOCKING

Screen image captured at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center on May 11 shows Chinas cargo spacecraft Tianzhou-6 approaching the combination of the countrys Tiangong space station before docking. The docking was accomplished later that day， the China Manned Space Agency said.

The cargo spacecraft has improved features compared with the previous Tianzhou craft. Increased effective loading volume makes it the worlds largest of its kind in service.

In this mission， it carried more than 200 items， including daily supplies for taikonauts， or Chinese astronauts， as well as clothes， food and water.

All Going Swimmingly

Fishers harvest kelp in Rongcheng， Shandong Province， on May 8.

Expressway Construction

Guizhou Province will pour more investment into road construction during the 14th FiveYear Plan （2021-25） period to bring its expressway mileage to 9，500 km.

The mileage of expressways in Guizhou has so far reached 8，368 km， according to a press conference held by the information office of the provincial peoples government on May 9.

Mountainous and hilly areas account for 92.5 percent of the provinces total land space.

Qiu Zhenguo， director of the provincial transportation department， said that 210，000 km of highways have been built across nearly 1.26 million hills in Guizhou. The province， which has almost half the 100 tallest bridges in the world， is now home to 28，023 highway bridges stretching 4，400 km.

Qiu added that 17 million rural residents in nearly 200，000 villages have directly benefited from these highways and bridges.

Saving Trees

Chinas law enforcement officials have recovered and saved 530 time-honored and uncommon woody plants since a campaign targeting the trafficking of ancient and rare trees was launched in September last year， Xinhua News Agency reported on May 9.

Public security agencies have investigated and solved 135 criminal cases， leading to the arrest of more than 360 suspects for cases involving the illegal logging， destruction， purchase， transportation， processing and sale of ancient or rare trees， according to the Ministry of Public Security.

The ministry co-launched the operation along with the Ministry of Housing and UrbanRural Development and the National Forestry and Grassland Administration.

Tough as Stele

A 502-year-old stele of an official has been discovered in Hebei Province， according to local authorities， Xinhua reported on May 8. In archaeology， a stele is a vertical piece of stone with writing cut into it， often used as a monument or a commemorative tablet.

Carved on a slab of bluestone， the stele， dating to the Ming Dynasty （1368-1644）， was found in Zhaopai Village of Xingtai City. It is 130 cm tall， 75 cm wide and 22 cm thick.

The stele was erected at the tomb of a local official named Zhao Siming. It bore 854 Chinese characters on one side detailing Zhaos study and work experiences， as well as the filial piety—one of the most important traditional moral beliefs in China—shown by three generations of Zhaos family， from his parents to his son.

On the other side of the stele was the lineage atlas of the Zhao family， who had moved to Hebei from nearby Shanxi Province.

According to local culture and history expert Lan Jianhui， the stele was relatively wellpreserved and its discovery would benefit the study of politics， culture， history and customs in the area during the mid-Ming Dynasty.

Language Model

Chinas leading artificial intelligence （AI） and intelligent speech company iFLYTEK unveiled its AIpowered large language model dubbed Spark Desk on May 6.

The multitask model covers key capabilities including AIgenerated content， multi-language understanding， logical reasoning， mathematics and coding， Chairman of iFLYTEK Liu Qingfeng said.

The model has been applied in diverse fields， including education， office systems and the automobile industry.

According to Liu， the first batch of over 3，000 enterprises from 36 industries will deploy the Spark Desk model to jointly build the AI ecosystem.

“We hope to develop Spark Desk into an innovation accelerator， an inspiration trigger and everyones AI assistant， bringing people a bigger sense of fulfillment in their work and life，” Liu said.

Tourism Routes

The Ministry of Culture and Tourism （MCT） has unveiled 10 travel routes ranging across different themes by marshaling world-class cultural and tourism resources along the Yangtze River international golden tourism belt， Xinhua reported on May 5.

The themes include cultural origins tracing， world-level heritage， Communist revolutionary heritage， nature and ecology， rural revitalization， intangible cultural heritage and urban recreational tours， according to the MCT.

These travel routes are designed to comprehensively exhibit the real， multidimensional and ever-developing image of the Yangtze River and elevate the global appeal and competence of the tourism belt.

The MCT has also launched a travel itinerary of the tourism belt， to further translate the themed routes into market products and meet the real demand of tourists.

A Tasty Test

Chefs whip up local specialties during a culinary competition in Xianju County of Taizhou in Zhejiang Province.

Box Office

Buoyed by strong holiday ticket sales， Chinas 2023 box office hit the 20-billion-yuan （$2.89 billion） milestone on May 7， earlier than last year， according to film data platforms Maoyan and Beacon.

China hit this milestone after recording the third highest-grossing May Day holiday， from April 29 to May 3 this year， when around 1.52 billion yuan （$219.4 million） was generated over the five days. The holiday success was largely driven by the comedy Godspeed and action film Born to Fly， a dramatic depiction of Chinas elite pilots testing new fighter jets.

Back in January， the Spring Festival holiday—usually one of the most lucrative moviegoing periods in China and running from January 21 to 27 this year—was the second highest-grossing to date. It raked in a whopping 6.77 billion yuan （$977.2 million） as crowds flooded theaters following Chinas adjustment of its COVID-19 response late last year.

So far， this years top five earners were all released during the Spring Festival holiday.

Hainan Durian

Hainan Province is anticipating its first durian harvest this summer after years of cultivation， China Daily reported on May 10.

A durian plantation in the Sanya Yuchai Ecological Zone has yielded its first fruit on a large scale， with the crop expected to be ready for market soon.

“Due to lower temperatures in Hainan this year， the maturity of the fruit originally expected to hit the market in May or June has been delayed to the end of June or early July，” Du Baizhong， General Manager of Hainan Youqi Agricultural Company， said， adding the companys planting base in the zone is expected to produce a maximum of 50，000 kg of durian this year.

According to the Sanya Agriculture and Rural Affairs Bureau， the city began planting durian four years ago. The trees began bearing fruit on a large scale this year.

Sanya has planted more than 660 hectares of durian in various districts， and more of the fruit is expected to enter the market.

Hainan sought to grow du- rian back in the 1950s. At first， the almost tropical province planted seeds directly in the ground， but with this method， the trees took more than 10 years to bear fruit. Now， by taking a branch from a tree that is already bearing fruit and grafting it onto one that is growing， farmers can yield fruit within three years.

The global market for durian is driven almost exclusively by supplies to China. The successful cultivation of the tropical fruit in Hainan means that durian lovers in China can enjoy a fresh local variety， according to the bureau.

Pedal Power

People visit the 31st China International Bicycle Fair in Shanghai on May 5. The fair， which ran from May 5 to 8， saw more than 1，200 enterprises participate.

NEV Sales

Nationwide retail sales of newenergy vehicles （NEVs） jumped 85.6 percent year on year in April， data from the China Passenger Car Association （CPCA） showed.

More than 500，000 NEVs were sold that month， down 3.6 percent from March， according to the CPCA.

Major domestic brands accounted for 70.5 percent of the countrys total NEV sales， the data also revealed.

China exported 91，000 newenergy passenger vehicles in April， jumping 1，028.5 percent year on year and up 29.4 percent from March.

In the first four months of the year， retail sales of NEVs in China rose 36 percent year on year to top 1.84 million units， the CPCA said.

Foreign Trade

Chinas total imports and exports expanded 5.8 percent year on year to 13.32 trillion yuan （$1.92 trillion） in the first four months of the year， the General Administration of Customs of China （GACC） said. The growth rate accelerated by 1 percentage point from the pace recorded in the first quarter （Q1） of 2023.

Exports grew 10.6 percent year on year while imports rose 0.02 percent in the first four months， it added.

From January to April， the growth rate of Chinas trade with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations （ASEAN） and the European Union stood at 13.9 percent and 4.2 percent， respectively. Trade with Belt and Road Initiative partners jumped 16 percent year on year to 4.61 trillion yuan （$665.6 billion） during the period.

In particular， the countrys trade with five Central Asian countries—Kazakhstan， Kyrgyzstan， Tajikistan， Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan—surged 37.4 percent， partly making up for the weak demand in traditional markets.

Private enterprises saw a fast growth rate as imports and exports increased 15.8 percent to 7.05 trillion yuan （$1.02 trillion） in the first four months， accounting for more than half of the countrys total.

Exports of mechanical and electrical products expanded 10.5 percent to account for 57.9 percent of the total outbound shipments.

In April alone， foreign trade increased 8.9 percent year on year， according to the GACC.

Forex Reserves

Chinas foreign exchange （forex） reserves amounted to more than$3.2 trillion at the end of April， up 0.66 percent from the amount recorded in late March， the State Administration of Foreign Exchange said.

The forex regulator attributed the rise to currency translation and asset price changes.

The U.S. dollar index， a measure of the value of the U.S. dollar relative to six major currencies， fell and the prices of global financial assets climbed in April， affected by global macroeconomic data and monetary policies of major economies， the administration said.

Chinas forex reserves are expected to remain generally stable as the country has been promoting high-quality development and its economy has shown a positive development trend， according to the regulator.

Express Growth

The monthly express delivery development index came in at 356.4 in April， up 47.7 percent year on year， according to the State Post Bureau.

The sub-index for the development scale grew 35.1 percent from a year earlier， the sub-index for development capacity picked up 25 percent and the sub-index for development trend went up 18.1 percent.

The monthly volume of parcels delivered went up an estimated 37 percent， while express delivery revenue was expected to have climbed 31 percent in April.

Compiled on the basis of data from major logistics firms operating delivery services， the development index reflects the overall business activities and trends in the countrys courier sector.

Port Deal

China Harbor Engineering Co. Ltd.（CHEC） secured a contract from a Cambodian firm on May 5 to construct a multi-purpose seaport in southwest Cambodias Kampot Province.

The contract was inked in the capital of Phnom Penh between CHEC-Cambodia offices managing director Lan Qiuli and Meas Thom， President of the Kampot Logistics and Port Company， in the presence of Cambodian Minister of Public Works and Transport Sun Chanthol.

The 600-hectare Kampot Logistics and Port project began in May last year， with Shanghai Construction Group and China Road and Bridge Corp. both among its contractors.

Chanthol said the 15-year proj- ect is estimated to cost $1.5 billion， and construction has been divided into three phases.

The first phase from 2022 to 2025 is expected to cost $200 million， he said.

The 15-meter deepwater port will be able to accommodate vessels weighing up to 100，000 tons and capable of handling 300，000 twenty-foot equivalent units （TEUs） of containers in 2025 and up to 600，000 TEUs in 2030.

“This mega-project includes a container terminal， a special economic zone， a free trade area， a logistics hub， an oil refinery and a terminal for tourist vessels，” he said.

The minister said it will be the third largest port in the Southeast Asian country after the Sihanoukville Autonomous Port in the coastal city of Sihanoukville and the freshwater Phnom Penh Autonomous Port in Phnom Penh.

Accounting Regulation

Chinese authorities required further regulation of state-owned enterprises and listed companies to hire accounting firms， according to the Ministry of Finance on May 4.

The regulation， recently released by the Ministry of Finance， the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council， and the China Securities Regulatory Commission， aimed to promote fair competition in the certified public accountant profession and improve audit quality.

Both state-owned and listed companies should employ recruitment methods such as， for example， competitive bidding to fully grasp the competence of the accounting firms， according to the regulation.

The financial departments could， under the law， take regulatory measures such as ordering the accounting firm that violates the provisions to rectify its misconduct， summoning the firm for talks， issuing an inquiry or warning letter， and demand- ing a public explanation， the regulation added.

Marine Economy

Chinas gross marine product grew 5.1 percent year on year to 2.3 trillion yuan （$332.1 billion） in Q1， accounting for 8.2 percent of GDP， data from the Ministry of Natural Resources showed.

The output of offshore crude oil and natural gas in the first three months increased 3.8 percent and 6.5 percent from a year earlier， respectively.

The traditional marine industry saw steady development in Q1， supporting the rebound of the marine economy， Cui Xiaojian， Deputy Director of the National Marine Data and Information Service， said.

Chinas marine economy is expected to sustain its upward momentum in the second quarter， as policy effects will become more visible and industrial transformation and upgrading will pick up their pace， Cui added.