May 17, 2023 (Wednesday) Three-Minute News

Domestic:

1) Premier Li Qiang spoke with the Dutch Prime Minister on the phone: hoping that the Netherlands will uphold the spirit of contract and maintain the smooth flow of global industrial and supply chains. The National Bureau of Statistics: The operation of the national economy in April continued to show a recovery and improvement trend. Currently, China's economy has not experienced deflation, and it will not happen in the next stage. The pilot work in various regions of the fifth national economic census is steadily progressing.

2) The Central Organization Department and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs recently jointly held a special video training class on comprehensively promoting rural revitalization, with more than 33,000 agricultural cadres participating in the online training simultaneously.

3) [Rule of Law] The Supreme People's Procuratorate: Big data analysis helps improve the efficiency of judicial assistance. The Ministry of Public Security announced 10 typical cases of a special campaign to combat and rectify online rumors, and public security organs across the country have dealt with more than 2,000 accounts involved in rumors. Gu Xingwei, former director of the Guangdong Provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, was "double-opened". Wang Xigang, deputy secretary of the Nanchong Municipal Committee of Sichuan Province, is under disciplinary review and supervisory investigation. Ji Guogang, former vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the People's Congress of the Tibet Autonomous Region, was expelled from the party and removed from public office for serious violations of discipline and law. Zhao Zhonghou, former chairman of the Education, Science, Culture, Health and Sports Committee of the Heilongjiang Provincial People's Congress, was tried for accepting bribes of more than 170 million yuan. Ni Xiangyu, former secretary of the Tianjin High-tech Zone Working Committee, was sentenced to 12 years in prison for accepting bribes of more than 8.72 million yuan. Guigang police in Guangxi responded to the incident of "a boy being beaten in an amusement park": the assailant was detained for 15 days.

4) "Exploration No. 2", China's first manned submersible support and guarantee mother ship with all domestically produced scientific research equipment, arrived in Fuzhou to conduct its first intermediate inspection. A domestically produced 150-megawatt large-scale impact hydropower turbine was successfully launched in Deyang, Sichuan.

6) Civil Aviation Administration: In April, the passenger volume of domestic civil aviation routes in China exceeded the pre-epidemic level, an increase of 214.5% year-on-year. The 3rd China-CEEC Expo and International Consumer Products Expo opened on May 16 in Ningbo, Zhejiang, with more than 5,000 exhibits.

8) [Military] Defense Minister Li Shangfu spoke with the Japanese Minister of Defense, officially launching a direct hotline for the sea and air liaison mechanism between the Chinese and Japanese defense departments. The US sent more than 100 military personnel to Taiwan to assist in training the Taiwanese military? The Ministry of National Defense responded: This is a very wrong and dangerous move. China strongly disapproves and firmly opposes it, and has lodged a strong protest with the US. The US and the Philippines recently reached a "Bilateral Defense Guidance" and formally clarified that the "US-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty" covers the South China Sea. Tan Kefei, spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense: Opposes using so-called bilateral treaties as an excuse to interfere in the South China Sea issue, and the Chinese military will take necessary measures to resolutely safeguard peace and stability in the South China Sea region. Ministry of National Defense: Using Cold War thinking to evaluate the relationship between China and Russia will not lead to correct judgments. The August 1st Flight Demonstration Team will make its first overseas appearance after changing to the J-10C, going to Malaysia to participate in the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace Exhibition.

10) [Taiwan] A group led by Wu Chengdian, chairman of the New Party, visited Fuzhou: "It's like going home." The Kuomintang plans to nominate a candidate for the 2024 Taiwan regional leader election at the Central Standing Committee meeting. Party chairman Zhu Lilun met with Guo Taiming and Hou Youyi at night. Senior Kuomintang officials revealed that the nomination of Hou should be "without suspense." The Taiwan authorities invested hundreds of millions of New Taiwan dollars to subsidize egg imports, and farmers are worried about being hit again. The 34th Golden Melody Awards will be held at the Kaohsiung Arena on June 25. The shortlist was announced recently, including works such as Xu Jiaying's "Quasi-Star", Hong Peiyuyu's "Ming Room", and Jay Chou's "The Greatest Work".

International:

1) Qin Gang held talks with Sierra Leone's Foreign Minister Francis. South Korean player Sun Junhao was criminally detained. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded: Recently, a South Korean citizen was criminally detained by the Liaoning Provincial Public Security Organs for suspected bribery of a non-state employee. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida baselessly named China and Russia. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs refuted: Indulging in provoking and creating camp confrontation. As the US banking crisis unfolded, the two major "creditors" China and Japan increased their holdings of US debt, and China's holdings ended seven consecutive declines. The Cambodian Ministry of Health awarded medals to 17 members of the Chinese-aided Cambodian TCM anti-epidemic medical team. Ethiopian Airlines fully resumed its flights to China, and the first multi-country tour group in Africa set off.

Hong Kong media: The China-Thailand railway continues to be built, and China has agreed to transfer some high-speed rail technology.

2) China's representative urged the international community to promote a political solution to the Ukraine crisis. The United Nations commemorated Palestine's "Catastrophe Day" for the first time. Long-term consumption of non-sugar sweeteners may increase the risk of diabetes. The WHO recommends not using non-sugar sweeteners to control weight.

3) Suspected of being involved in the sex trafficking case of American tycoon Epstein, Musk received a subpoena. A shooting occurred at a train station in western Philadelphia, USA, killing 11 people, including a minor, and injuring dozens more. Rumored to have "died of a heart attack", American financial tycoon Soros tweeted to deny the rumor: I am still alive and very healthy.

4) In the early morning of May 16, local time, the Ukrainian capital Kyiv suffered an "unusually intensive" air raid, the eighth air raid in Kyiv this month. The Ukrainian army said it intercepted all missiles. The Russian army intercepted a British-supplied "Storm Shadow" cruise missile for the first time. Chechen leader Kadyrov rode in a Russian-made tank, saying, "I'll drive it into Kyiv!"

Ukraine officially joined the NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence. Zelensky released a video thanking many Western countries: Bringing new weapons home, Ukraine is closer to victory. Zelensky called on NATO to make a positive decision on its membership application, with possible progress in July. Zelensky's wife visited South Korea and said: If we stop defending against Russia, it will be the end of Ukraine.

6) A fire in a building in New Zealand's capital has killed 6 people. Prime Minister Hipkins: A terrible tragedy.

7) Tokyo residents' blood tests show excessive levels of organic fluorochemicals, suspected to be caused by US military base water contamination. Japanese citizens hold rallies demanding a halt to the nuclear contaminated water discharge plan.

8) Israel lifts security restrictions on Gaza border residents following a ceasefire between Israel and Palestine, restoring local order.

Finance and Securities:

1) The growth rate of national commercial housing sales further expanded in the first four months, and new house prices have risen for three consecutive months.

2) The China Securities Regulatory Commission and the People's Bank of China jointly issued new regulations on the supervision of money market funds.

3) The national industrial added value above designated size increased by 5.6% year-on-year in April. National Development and Reform Commission: Domestic oil prices will see a "second consecutive drop" from 24:00 on May 16, saving 15 yuan per full tank of gas.

4) Baidu: Revenue in the first quarter of 2023 reached 31.1 billion yuan, with net profit increasing significantly by 48%. 360 announced a strategic cooperation with Zhipu AI. Zhou Hongyi: The "dual-hundreds-of-billions" large model layout has been formed.

5) Gree employees claim that "Meng Yutong was not dismissed, but was 'fired' for violating company discipline." ofo founder Dai Wei starts a business in the US. Netizens: Return the deposit first.