Three-minute news bulletin, Saturday, May 20, 2023

Domestic:

1) On the morning of May 19, Xi Jinping presided over the first China-Central Asia Summit and delivered a keynote speech, emphasizing the joint construction of a China-Central Asia community with a shared future characterized by mutual trust, common development, universal security, and enduring friendship. Xi Jinping and the heads of state of the five Central Asian countries announced the official establishment of the China-Central Asia Summit mechanism. Leaders of the first China-Central Asia Summit took a "family photo." On the evening of May 18, Xi Jinping and Peng Liyuan held a welcoming ceremony and banquet for the spouses of the heads of state of the Central Asian countries attending the China-Central Asia Summit and jointly watched the opening ceremony performance of the China-Central Asia People's Cultural and Art Year and the China-Central Asia Youth Art Festival.

Peng Liyuan visited the Xi'an Yisuxishe with the spouses of the foreign leaders attending the China-Central Asia Summit.

2) Premier Li Qiang presided over an executive meeting of the State Council on May 19, studying the overall work plan and recent measures for implementing the construction of a national unified large market, and deliberating and adopting the "Opinions on Strengthening the Regularized Supervision of the Use of Medical Insurance Funds."

3) [Rule of Law] Supreme People's Court: Crack down on "Laolai" (debt defaulters) who violate the high-consumption restriction order by purchasing airline tickets and high-speed rail tickets through "scalpers." In 2022, courts nationwide concluded over 9.17 million enforcement cases. The Ministry of Public Security and eight other departments jointly issued a notice to further strengthen safety protection work in hazardous public areas. The Ministry of Civil Affairs announced the first batch of suspected illegal social organizations in 2023. Zhou Qingyu, former vice president of the State Development Bank, is under investigation. Ji Tao, former head of the inspection team of the Chongqing Municipal Party Committee, is suspected of serious disciplinary violations and is currently under investigation. He Guangzhong, former secretary-general of the Hubei Provincial Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, is under investigation. Lin Mingchun, former deputy head of the disciplinary inspection and supervision group of the Guangdong Provincial Commission of Discipline Inspection and Supervision stationed in the Provincial Department of Ecology and Environment, has been "double-opened." Zong Bin, deputy director of the Standing Committee of the Jia Ding District People's Congress in Shanghai, is under investigation. Wang Zhongyan, former deputy secretary-general of the Dalian Municipal Government, has been expelled from the Party. On May 19, the second-instance trial of Wu Xieyu's case of intentional homicide, fraud, and buying and selling identity documents concluded, and a verdict will be delivered at a later date. The defense lawyer applied for a forensic psychiatric evaluation. Wu Xieyu's uncle hopes for a retrial and does not want him to die.

4) Wang Huning met with representatives attending a symposium commemorating the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the China Islamic Association.

5) The Ministry of Ecology and Environment launched the 2023-2024 Yellow River Basin "Clean-up Action" to promote pollution control from the source and improve the Yellow River's ecological environment. The name of the first domestically produced large cruise ship, "Adora-Modu," was officially announced.

6) May 19 is the 13th "World Family Doctor Day": More than 420,000 family doctor teams have been established nationwide. National Healthcare Security Administration: Will conduct centralized procurement of artificial lenses and orthopedic sports medical consumables. Maximum of 8 COVID-19 infections? Experts: No basis, re-infection generally has mild symptoms.

7) A vehicle carrying 14 people overturned off a cliff in Jingxi, Guangxi, and fell into a pond. Preliminary confirmation: Except for 3 survivors, the other 11 people died.

8) [Military] The 940th Hospital of the Joint Logistics Support Force is working hard to solve the urgent, difficult, and worrying problems of officers and soldiers performing missions. National defense mobilization offices in many places have taken multiple measures to improve the public's awareness of disaster prevention.

9) [Hong Kong and Macao] The Hong Kong Stock Exchange plans to launch a dual-counter model for Hong Kong dollar and RMB on June 19, 2023. The Legislative Assembly of the Macao Special Administrative Region passed an amendment to the National Security Law. The Macao SAR government stated that it firmly upholds national security. Spokesperson of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council: The passage of the amended National Security Law by the Macao Special Administrative Region is of great significance. The main gas pipeline network in Macao is fully connected.

10) [Taiwan] The DPP authorities claimed that they will sign the first batch of agreements under the "US-Taiwan 21st Century Trade Initiative" with the US. The Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council refuted this: This shameful act of "exhausting Taiwan's resources to please foreign countries" is doomed to fail. The Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council: Any attempt to hype up the issue of Taiwan's participation in the World Health Assembly is doomed to fail; resuming the business of travel agencies operating group tours for Taiwan residents to the mainland. A visiting group from the Taiwan Travel Commercial Association visited the mainland for exchanges. Taiwan's pro-unification figures called for exchanges and cooperation to promote integration and development, and for compatriots on both sides of the Taiwan Strait to work together for peaceful reunification.

International:

1) Qin Gang attended the opening ceremony of the Consulate General of Kazakhstan in Xi'an. The Prime Minister of Russia, the Foreign Minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands will visit China soon. China donated emergency rescue robots to Lebanon.

The number of ships participating in the search and rescue operation for the capsized "Lupengyuan Fishing 028" has increased to 13. Ukraine extended its martial law until August 18, 2023. The Chinese Embassy reminded: Please do not come to Ukraine for the time being. The "Splendid Silk Road, Ingenious Dreams" China-ASEAN cultural exchange activity was held in Bangkok, Thailand.

2) The G7 Hiroshima Summit announced its agreement to impose new sanctions on Russia. Russia had previously issued a warning. Yang Yu, Minister Counselor of the Chinese Embassy in Japan, expressed serious concerns to the Japanese side regarding the issues related to China at the G7 Hiroshima Summit. Nine EU countries agreed to establish a Mediterranean green energy hub.

3) Biden canceled his visit to Papua New Guinea due to the debt crisis. The White House statement: Blinken will replace him. The US and Japanese leaders held talks before the G7 Hiroshima Summit, emphasizing strengthening bilateral relations. In Hiroshima, which was once subjected to a US nuclear bombing, Biden pledged to use nuclear weapons to defend Japan if necessary.

US lawmakers announced plans to impeach Biden. The White House condemned it as a shameless political stunt. The Pentagon admitted a mistake! The value of weapons aid to Ukraine was overestimated by US$3 billion. Polls show that most US users have stopped using Twitter in the past year. A report says that more than 1 million buildings in New York are sinking, sinking 1 to 2 millimeters per year.

4) Russian media: Kyiv confirmed that Zelensky will attend the G7 summit in Hiroshima.

5) French President Macron's wife bid farewell to the giant pandas "Yuanmeng" who are about to be sent back to China.

Former French President Sarkozy responded to the failure of his appeal: The truth will eventually prevail. The Queen's funeral cost £162 million, or about 1.42 billion yuan. Heavy rains in northern Italy caused floods and landslides, resulting in 9 deaths, multiple missing persons, and tens of thousands of people being evacuated. Former Australian Foreign Minister: The Biden-Trump showdown is a "very terrible choice" for Australia.

6) Tokyo Electric Power Company announced the tritium concentration index in the seawater after the discharge of nuclear-contaminated water has stopped.

7) The Angkor Museum in Cambodia held an exhibition of newly unearthed cultural relics, with free admission on International Museum Day. Sara Duterte, the daughter of Duterte and Vice President of the Philippines, announced her withdrawal from the ruling party, but did not provide a specific reason. A large tree fell in the Recto district of Manila, the capital of the Philippines, crushing several nearby houses, resulting in 3 deaths and 5 injuries. A 10-party coalition in Thailand decided to form a coalition government and support Pita as prime minister.

8) Cameroon Ministry of Health: From May 7th to 15th, a total of 512 new cholera cases were reported, with 17 deaths. A 7.7 magnitude earthquake occurred in the Loyalty Islands, triggering a tsunami warning.

Finance and Securities:

1) State Council: Appointed Li Yunze as the Director of the National Financial Regulatory Administration. Central Bank, State Administration of Foreign Exchange: Optimized and upgraded the cross-border fund centralized operation management policies for multinational companies. China Foreign Exchange Market Guidance Committee: Curb speculation, and resolutely suppress large fluctuations in exchange rates.

2) National Energy Administration: By the end of April, the country's total installed power generation capacity increased by 9.7% year-on-year. National Development and Reform Commission: Gradually incorporate demand-side resources into power balancing through virtual power plants and other methods.

3) The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs deployed the "three summers" cross-regional wheat harvesting and mechanized production. Ministry of Industry and Information Technology: The overall production and operation of small and medium-sized enterprises maintained a recovery trend.

4) The first China International Supply Chain Promotion Expo will be held in Beijing at the end of November.

5) Exporting surpasses Japan, China's auto industry takes the lead in a new way. Huawei offers 5 times the salary to recruit "genius teenagers" again, requiring special achievements in related fields.

6) Yesterday's closing price:

Shanghai Composite Index 3283.54/-0.42%

Shenzhen Component Index 11091.36/+0.12%

ChiNext 2278.59/+0.03%

Hang Seng Index 19450.57/-1.40%.

Culture, Education, Sports and Entertainment:

1) Ministry of Education: In areas with conditions, rule of law practice education should be included in the after-school service scope of primary and secondary schools. Netizens suggested opening up online lottery sales, and the China Welfare Lottery Center responded: Opening up online lottery sales requires approval from the Ministry of Finance before implementation.

2) On May 19, the 6th China Federation of Literary and Art Circles' Exhibition of Artistic Achievements of Famous Veteran Artists opened at the China Artists' Home Exhibition Hall, with Tie Ning, chairman of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles, attending the opening ceremony.