society

Elderly Care Market Fully Open by 2020

The State Council announced in late December that China would fully open up its elderly care market by 2020. The move aims to improve China’s elderly care services and increase the supply of related products.

According to the official statement， by 2020， when China’s elderly care market has become fully open， the demand-supply structure is expected to be more balanced； China’s related legal system and quality standard system for the industry will be further improved. China’s credit system is also expected to be established by then， and the market supervision mechanism will operate effectively.

While further opening up the market， China will relax restrictions on foreign investment in this field， and encourage foreign investors to establish both profit and non-profit nursing institutions for the aged. Foreignfounded non-profit nursing homes will enjoy the same preferential policies as their local peers.

The statement also said that China will provide targeted financial services for the aged， while guiding and regulating financial institutions C including commercial banks and insurance companies C to develop suitable wealth management and insurance products for elderly people， so meeting their demands in this regard.

Second Child？ No Thanks！

One year after China’s introduction of its universal two-child policy， about 53.3 percent of onechild families interviewed said they did not want a second child， according to a survey released by the All-China Women’s Federation （ACWF） in late December.

The survey， co-conducted with Beijing Normal University’s National Innovation Center for Assessment of Basic Education Quality， interviewed 10，000 families with children under 15 years old in 10 provincial-level regions， including Beijing and Liaoning.

According to Chen Xiaoxia， head of the ACWF children’s department， the key factor for 80 percent of the surveyed parents who were considering having a second child was the quality of public services as regards kindergarten and school entrance， quality of baby products， living environment， and access to medical treatment.

Around 70 percent of those interviewed also listed other important factors， including the parents’stamina to cope with a second child， the family’s social and economic conditions， and whether someone would help take care of the baby before he/she was old enough to go to kindergarten.

Due to financial constraints and the accompanying work load of raising a second child， a considerable number of families “do not dare or want” to have a second child， according to Chen.

China Upgrades Fuel Quality Standard

China has introduced new standards for gasoline and diesel fuel nationwide in 2017 to cut emissions. From January， gasoline and diesel must comply with the National V standard， equivalent to the Euro V standard. Sales of substandard fuel will be halted， according to the National Development and Reform Commission website.

China’s major cities adopted the National V standard before 2017， but it was not mandatory in most inland regions. Regulators hope a national standard will improve air quality.

Winter smog is commonplace in northern China and vehicle emissions are a major source of pollution. More than 20 cities issued smog red alerts in December 2016. According to the Ministry of Environmental Protection， China will adopt the tougher “National VI” emission standard by July 2020.

Beijing’s First Maglev Train

The first train for Beijing’s mediumlow speed “S1” maglev line was debugged and delivered to the capital from its manufacturer， CRRC Tangshan Co.， Ltd.， in Tangshan in North China’s Hebei Province， on December 16.

The train runs without making contact with either the rail or ground through magnetic levitation. Its linear motor and specially designed tracks enable it to run smoothly without derailing or overturning. Maglev trains are safer and cheaper than current metro and light rail cars.

Running over 10.2 km， Line S1 will basically be an overhead line. In the initial stages， 10 trains will operate along it. Although still under construction， Line S1 is expected to begin operating later this year.

Activity

Joe Satriani’s Surfing to Shockwave Tour

Date： February 14， 2017

Place： Shanghai Qianshuiwan Cultural Center

Price： RMB 800

American multi-instrumentalist Joe Satriani is especially eminent as a guitar player. In 1988， he was recruited by Mick Jagger as lead guitarist with the Rolling Stones， and in 1994 he became lead guitarist with Deep Purple. He has also worked with many respected guitarists in G3， a band he founded in 1995.

Cristina Ortiz Piano Recital

Date： February 19， 2017

Place： National Center for the Performing Arts

Price： RMB 50/80/180/280/380/480

Cristina Ortiz’s natural performance， technical ability and commitment to music have ensured her place amongst the world’s most respected pianists. She has performed with the Berliner Philharmoniker， Wiener Philharmoniker， Chicago Symphony Orchestra， and Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra of the Netherlands， among many others. She has also collaborated with such famous conductors as Mariss Jansons， Kurt Masur， André Previn， and David Zinman.