State Council targets business arrears
Premier Li Qiang chaired a State Council meeting on Aug. 21 that laid out further measures to clear outstanding debts owed to businesses, stressing the need to address the problem of large enterprises defaulting on payments owed to small and midsize enterprises and to strictly prevent new arrears.
Passenger car sales plunge 20.2%
Domestic passenger car sales fell 20.2% year-on-year and 12.8% month-on-month to 1.5 million vehicles in July, with sport utility vehicles remaining the market mainstay at a 55.5% share and joint-venture internal-combustion-engine vehicles accelerating their exit.
Electricity consumption hits record high
China’s total electricity consumption rose 1.7% year-on-year to a record high of 1.04 trillion kilowatt-hours in July, with power use by the charging and internet data service sectors surging 50.3% and 40.1%, respectively, while household power consumption fell 5.1%.
NEWS SUMMARY
China and Switzerland completed negotiations to upgrade their free trade agreement, which will allow 99.8% of Swiss exports to China to enjoy zero tariffs.
China led the establishment of the first international standard for solid-state batteries to promote the development of the new-energy industry.
A new judicial interpretation on copyright stipulates that online platforms can no longer reprint content first and pay remuneration later.
Contact editor Lin Jinbing ([email protected])
