As the Spring Festival is drawing near, many Hangzhou-based enterprises charter couches to transfer employees going to and from Zhejiang Province for free, while quite a few out-of-province employees stick to their posts. Recently, Hangzhou Employment Service Center has announced labor-friendly measures to ensure stable production of enterprises during the Spring Festival by encouraging employees to return work and stick to posts and by offering more jobs for employees.

To encourage employees to return to work, Hangzhou will compensate 50% of the fee for chartering couches to pick up employees from outside the province to return to work, with capped subsidiary of 200,000 yuan for each enterprise and 500 yuan for each out-of-province employee who covers social insurance in Hangzhou and sticks to the post for two days during the Spring Festival.

To offer more jobs for employees, Hangzhou will hold 100 online and offline job fairs where several thousand enterprises will offer ten thousand jobs. In addition, to ensure employment of personnel in bottom strata, Hangzhou will offer a number of public posts for personnel in difficulty and provide them with precise assistance in employment.

Russia’s Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said that the Russian Finance Ministry will not resume foreign currency purchases this year, including RMB, and will do so only if it receives additional oil and gas revenues in 2023 beyond the budgeted base.

Earlier, the finance minister did not rule out buying “friendly” foreign currencies on the market this year, he noted, referring to the purchase of RMB. In this case, Siluanov said, the excess oil and gas revenues will be calculated using the cessation of supply prices initially set in the 2022 budget, before the suspension of budget rules due to strict sanctions against Russia.

According to Business News International, Kommersant cited a report by the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT) as saying RMB international settlement rose 15.6 percent, compared with a 19.86 per cent increase in October.

International settlements in other currencies grew by 3.9 percent in the latest month, the report said.

RMB maintained the fifth most active currency for international payments, accounting for 2.37%. In November 2022, the RMB ranked sixth in terms of international payments outside the euro area, accounting for 1.63%.

Earlier on December 1, 2022, the Bank of Russia announced that the share of RMB trading volume in total foreign exchange transactions on Russian exchanges rose from 3% in March to 33% in November.

Zhejiang Province is China’s demonstration zone for achieving common prosperity. Its gross domestic product level has been doubled in the past ten years, and ranked fourth in the country in 2021. In another episode of our special series “Decoding the Common Prosperity,” our reporter Wu Bin takes a look at how digitization is boosting economic growth in the province.

WU BIN Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province “To reach common prosperity, the first step is to generate more wealth. To put it simply, make the figurative pie larger. Zhejiang’s economic pie has doubled in the past ten years. What’s the secret behind this?”

In ten years’ time, Zhejiang’s GDP has increased from 3.44 trillion yuan in 2012 to 7.35 trillion yuan in 2021.

The larger pie has laid a solid foundation for common prosperity for all people, and digital economy has undoubtedly been Zhejiang’s main economic pillar.

In 2017, Zhejiang initiated the digital economy “Project No. 1” and since then, digital tools have become the main engine for its economy, taking up almost half of the province’s GDP last year.

To find out how digital tools are helping the province to increase more wealth, I went to a lift factory that has gone through some major transformations under the government’s digital initiative.

WU BIN Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province “Here I am in a factory in Hangzhou, the provincial capital. Looking around, not one worker can be seen. Everything is automated.”

The lift factory is one of the 32 so-called “future factories” in Zhejiang Province. To tell us why it’s called “future factory,” XIOLIFT’s vice president of Factory Operation asked me to stand in front of a big screen.

“This is our digital twin factory. At first, I had to have five or six workers to adjust the parameters of different equipment. I don’t need to do that anymore. Now, I just need to come to the digital twin factory, press a button and everything is quickly adjusted.”

Digital tools have made it easier to manage the machines in the real factory. According to Feng, it only takes a minimum of two minutes to make an elevator. And for customized needs, only five working days.

FENG TIEYING Vice President, Factory Operation XIOLIFT “We have been using more advanced information and manufacturing technologies in the past few years. We now have a lot of automatic and intelligent production lines. The factory efficiency has also increased by 50 percent.”

With an annual growth rate of around 30 percent, it has become the top company of its kind in the country.

Like XIOLIFT, digitization has also boosted the industry upgrading of many other manufacturers in Zhejiang.

YE JIANSONG Deputy Director Economy and Information Technology Department of Zhejiang “In recent years, Zhejiang has embarked on an industrial digitization path to become a demonstration zone for the integrated development of the industrial Internet in the Yangtze River Delta. Its industrial digitization index has ranked first in the country for three consecutive years.”

WU BIN Huzhou City, Zhejiang Province “China’s digital path can be traced back to over two decades ago. In the early 2000s, when President Xi Jinping worked as a government leader in Fujian and Zhejiang, he promoted digital economy in both provinces.”

Since he became president in 2012, President Xi has made the development of digital economy a national strategy.

And now digitization has become an important accelerator for the country’s economic growth. In Zhejiang’s vast rural sector, digital tools are also helping generate more wealth for farmers.

West Zhejiang’s Huzhou City is quite famous for its sheep.

In an intelligent farmland in Lvshan County, we met Lv Chenchen, a college graduate who chose to go back to the countryside, and become a technician for raising sheep.

Reporter: I see that every sheep has a thing like this on its ear. What is this for?

“This is an electronic ear tag, like an ID card, which is with them for their whole life. After scanning the electronic ear tag, you can see the birth information. So, we can pair up the mother and her lambs.”

In the control room, we see how a digital platform is helping Lv to manage over 50,000 sheep.

This is something many farmers could never imagine before.

LV CHENCHEN Technician, Tianxia Husbandry “They say they could never imagine this. Working here is much more efficient and the labor cost is lower. Raising sheep has become easier.”

With an estimated output value of around 460 million yuan, the sheep industry now takes up 60 percent of the county’s rural sector.

Digitization is also helping farmers. And more agricultural producers in Huzhou are using digital tools to expand and sell.

CHEN HAO Secretary, Huzhou Municipal CPC Committee “Over the years, we have boosted the comprehensive revitalization and common prosperity of the countryside with digital reform. As part of the ’14th Five-Year Plan,’ we will build 100 high-standard ‘future farms’ and promote the comprehensive transformation and upgrading of 191 breeding bases.”

Apart from manufacturing and agriculture, digitization is also accelerating growth in other sectors. The province’s digitization level in the manufacturing, service, and agricultural industries ranked first in the country in 2021.

It is expected to double its digital economy added value from 3.57 trillion to seven trillion yuan by 2027.

From bustling cities to vast countryside, from manufacturing to service industry, the digital economy is accelerating Zhejiang’s economic growth, and paving its path to common prosperity.

The 5th World Oil Merchants Conference opened in Zhoushan on August 31. With the theme of “Discussing Oil and Gas, Sharing Opportunities, and Seeking Common Development,” this conference brought together well-known companies, well-known experts, and authoritative institutions in the whole global oil and gas industry chain to jointly discuss the oil and gas industry “offline and online” and strive to inject strong momentum into the transformation and innovation of the global oil and gas industry in the future. Governor Wang Hao attended the opening ceremony and delivered a speech.

Ke Liangdong, Vice President of China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, and relevant officials from the Ministry of Commerce, General Administration of Customs, and China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation delivered speeches at the opening ceremony. Lu Shan presided over this meeting.

On behalf of the Zhejiang Provincial Committee of the CPC and the People’s Government of Zhejiang Province, Wang Hao first welcomed the guests and expressed his gratitude to the leaders, entrepreneurs, and people from all walks of life who have long cared about and supported Zhejiang’s economic and social development. He pointed out that energy cooperation is an important part of global economic and trade cooperation. Since the first World Oil Merchants Conference was held in 2017, Zhejiang has focused on the construction of “one center, three bases, and one demonstration zone,” including an international oil and gas trading center, an international green petrochemical base, an international oil and gas storage and transportation base, an international maritime service base, and an international demonstration zone for cross-border trade in bulk commodities, attracting and cultivating nearly 10,000 oil and gas enterprises, fully promoting the construction of a number of major oil and gas storage and transportation projects, accelerating the creation of the entire oil and gas industry chain, actively integrating into the new global oil and gas pattern, and creating a different development path.

Wang Hao pointed out that the glorious mission entrusted by the Party Central Committee to Zhejiang for high-quality development and the construction of a demonstration zone for common prosperity has brought unprecedented opportunities for Zhejiang’s reform and development, as well as the open development and industrial upgrading of oil and gas cooperation. And new opportunities for market demand. Only by embracing the world can we embrace tomorrow; only by working together can we achieve steady progress. Zhejiang is willing to work with you to continue to promote the liberalization and facilitation of trade and investment, accelerate the planning and promotion of multiple major platforms, major industries, and major projects, continue to deepen cooperation in the fields of oil and gas storage and transportation, processing, and services, and promote the development of the entire oil and gas industry chain. New and greater contributions to the development of the global oil and gas industry and energy economy.

On the 31st, Wang Hao took a boat to Liuheng Island in Putuo District, and Jintang Island and Cezi Island in Dinghai District to inspect the construction progress of the Liuheng Bridge Project, the Xiaoguoju Reclamation Block Project, the Yongzhou Railway Project, and the Jintang New Material Project. He emphasized that major projects and good projects are scarce resources and an important support for stabilizing the economic market. Governments at all levels must resolutely implement the decisions and deployments of the central and provincial Party committees, seize the policy “window period” to focus on implementing a number of major infrastructure and industrial projects that lay the foundation and work in the long run, earnestly focus on the three links of quality, safety, and progress, and allow the projects to be completed as soon as possible to achieve benefits and provide strong support for the steady progress and quality of the province’s economy. It is necessary to do a good job in the overall planning of island development, utilization, and protection, strengthen planning guidance, plan and layout with advanced vision and first-class standards, be down-to-earth and work hard, and strive to draw a beautiful blueprint for the construction of a powerful marine province.

At China International Fair For Trade In Services held held in the National Conference Center and Shougang Park yesterday, new technologies, new services and new products for global services trade were combined to present a service trade feast. Hangzhou enterprises collectively showcased corporate brands and strength, and worked to enhance the popularity and brand influence of the city’s service trade with a purpose to seek a new opportunity for cooperation and development.

Hangzhou digital service trade enterprises with brilliant latest technological achievements drew attention from visitors. Some visitors were purchasing Liangzhu culture derivatives with digital RMB; some were experiencing immersive cloud exhibition platforms, while some others were enjoying AI poem composing and metaverse wedding ceremony. As a domestic unicorn blockchain enterprise, Hangzhou Hyerchain Technology Co., Ltd. presented multiple achievements in blockchain science and technology at the fair.

Global exhibitors availed the exhibition to make negotiation and issue digital trade offers. Hangzhou also took the opportunity to display its cultural brand, exchange with and learn from each other and seek new opportunities for cooperation and development.

Yuan Jiajun speaks and emphasizes the importance of hard work and efficient action to consolidate the momentum of economic stabilization and recovery

Wang Hao presides over the meeting; Huang Jianfa is present

On the afternoon of the 29th, the province held a regular working meeting on economic stabilization and quality improvement in Hangzhou. Yuan Jiajun, Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, emphasized the necessity to implement the instructions of General Secretary Xi Jinping on the “three major events”, and the spirit of the Provincial Party Congress. He also emphasized the importance of economic stability and quality improvement, production security, reform, hard work and efficient actions, so as to ensure that the economy operates within a reasonable range, that the overall social situation is safe and stable. He said we must make more contributions to the overall situation of the country with Zhejiang’s stability and progress, and take practical actions to meet the Party’s 20th National Congress.

Wang Hao, deputy secretary of the provincial party committee and governor, presided over the meeting, and Huang Jianfa and other leaders at or above the deputy provincial level were present. The person in charge of the Provincial Development and Reform Commission reported on the economic operation, and showed the city and county (city, district) indicators. The Secretary-General of the Provincial Government and the leaders of the Provincial Department of Economy and Information Technology, the Provincial Department of Construction, the Provincial Department of Commerce, the Provincial Department of Human Resources and Social Security, and the Provincial State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission reported the progress of the relevant work. The leaders of Ningbo City, Shangcheng District and Jiangshan City made speeches. The meeting clarified the goals for September.

Yuan Jiajun fully affirmed the achievements of the past month, and further analyzed the current economic problems and the shortcomings in the present actions. He emphasized that the more severe the situation is, the more we must stay awake in our actions, and do our things well. We must take reform as our driving force, improve our ability and solve problems creatively. We must stimulate the initiative and fighting spirit of enterprises and the whole society, make concerted efforts to overcome difficulties and assume our leading responsibility.

Yuan Jiajun said we must “fight a battle and go further”, and rely on the power of science and technology to improve our capacity for regional epidemic prevention and control. We must reverse the downward trend of the service industry as soon as possible, and effectively promote the stable and healthy development of the real estate market. We must go all out to smooth the circulation and stabilize the industry, stabilize and solidify the chains in a coordinative way, and promote the efficient operation of logistics. We must better promote the implementation of policies, vigorously expand the investment structure,

pay close attention to the projects under construction, and optimize the “horse racing” mechanism. We must take multiple measures to stabilize foreign trade, foreign investment and consumption, do everything possible to optimize the factors, and focus on solving problems such as energy supply and price reduction, and financing for small, medium and micro enterprises. We must do our best to stabilize employment and benefit people’s livelihood, tap employment potential, promote employment growth, and expand income-increasing channels, so as to ensure the basic bottom line and eliminate risks.

Wang Hao emphasized that we must accurately analyze the shortcomings in economic operation, enhance the awareness and the ability of reform, and overcome difficulties with innovation, so as to promote stable economic progress and quality. We must implement the supervision feedback from the State Council and the service working group on stabilizing the economic market, make full use of policy-based financial tools, and go all out to promote the construction of major projects. We must strengthen our service awareness and service capacity, deepen digital reform, reduce taxes and fees, stabilize employment, optimize supervision, and create a market-oriented, legal-oriented international business environment.

The meeting was held in the form of video conference to all cities, counties (cities, districts), and the heads of relevant provincial departments participated in the main venue.