Latest news with #NationalDevelopmentandReformCommission
ITV News
12 hours ago
- Climate
- ITV News
At least 30 people dead and 80,000 evacuated after heavy flooding in Beijing
At least 30 people have been confirmed dead following severe rainstorms and flooding in Beijing, Chinese authorities have confirmed. The capital has been hit by several heavy rainstorms in recent days, prompting thousands to evacuate rural areas and causing widespread damage in the region. Officials said 21 people drowned, many in underground facilities which suddenly filled with water and some in overflowing rivers. Five people were electrocuted when power systems were compromised by floodwaters, and four others were killed when buildings collapsed. The rainstorms have forced the relocation of more than 80,000 people across the greater Beijing. In the Miyun district to the northeast of the city, authorities recorded a maximum rainfall of 543.4mm. The storms have also severely impacted infrastructure, with power cuts reported in 136 villages, and at least 31 roads have been damaged, hampering rescue and relief efforts. China's national weather observatory on Tuesday continued to issue an orange alert - the second highest in the country's four-tier warning system - for ongoing rainstorms. President Xi Jinping called for "all-out efforts" to safeguard lives and property, describing the recent deluge across East, North, and Northeast China as having caused 'significant casualties and property losses,' particularly in Beijing, Hebei, Jilin, and Shandong provinces. Head of government Li Qiang echoed the urgency, noting that the floods in Miyun District had led to 'heavy casualties.' 'We must make every effort to search and rescue the missing persons, properly resettle the affected people, and do our utmost to reduce casualties,' the leader said. He called on flood control authorities to enhance monitoring of rivers, reservoirs, and urban drainage systems and to transfer people in danger zones as a precautionary measure. In response to the disaster, China's National Development and Reform Commission has pledged 200 million yuan (approximately £21 million) to support emergency relief efforts in Beijing. Emergency teams remain on high alert as heavy rain continues in several parts of North China, raising fears of further floods and landslides in the coming days.
New Straits Times
a day ago
- Climate
- New Straits Times
Four killed as heavy rain, flooding soaks northern China
MIYUN, China: Heavy rains that have soaked swathes of northern China killed four people and left eight missing on Monday, state media said, as downpours forced thousands to evacuate across the capital city and surrounding areas. Authorities in Beijing have issued the country's second-highest warning for rainstorms and the highest for floods, with the downpours expected to last into Tuesday morning. In Hebei province, which encircles the capital, the heavy rains caused a landslide in a village near the city of Chengde, state broadcaster CCTV said. Four were killed and eight are still missing, it said, with the national emergency management department dispatching a team to inspect the "severe" flooding in the province, where a further two died over the weekend. More than 4,600 people were evacuated over the weekend in Fuping County, while in neighbouring Shanxi province, one person was rescued and 13 were missing after a bus accident, state media said. Footage from the broadcaster showed roads in the province and a crop field submerged in rushing water on Sunday. In Beijing, over 4,000 people in suburban Miyun district were evacuated due to torrential rains. "I've never seen so much water before," Cui Xueji, 67, a lifelong resident of Taishitun village in that district, told AFP. "We did some preparations but we had no idea that there would be this much," he said, wading through water in flip-flops with a tricycle loaded with pieces of wood to use as fuel. Nearby in the village of Mujiaya, AFP journalists saw a local reservoir release a torrent of water. Power lines had been swept away by muddy currents while military vehicles and ambulances ploughed through flooded streets. A river had burst its banks, sweeping away trees, while fields of crops were inundated with water. Some roads were badly damaged, with chunks of exposed concrete scattered across lanes and twisted guardrails lining their sides. The low-rise houses in the mountainous area, though mostly intact, were surrounded by gushing floods. China's National Development and Reform Commission has allocated 50 million yuan (US$7 million) to assist relief efforts in Hebei, with the funds going to post-disaster emergency recovery and construction of infrastructure, Xinhua news agency said. Natural disasters are common across China, particularly in the summer when some regions experience heavy rain while others bake in searing heat waves. China is the world's biggest emitter of the greenhouse gases that scientists say drive climate change and contribute to making extreme weather more frequent and intense. But it is also a global renewable energy powerhouse that aims to make its massive economy carbon-neutral by 2060. Flash floods in eastern China's Shandong province killed two people and left 10 missing this month. A landslide on a highway in Sichuan province this month also killed five people after it swept several cars down a mountainside.
South China Morning Post
4 days ago
- Business
- South China Morning Post
China to amend key law as push to stamp out vicious price wars intensifies
China plans to amend a decades-old pricing law as part of an ongoing campaign to curb the vicious price wars plaguing several industries – a deep-rooted issue that threatens to wipe out corporate profits and fuel deflationary pressure. The amendment, which covers 10 clauses in the law, updates the definition of unfair pricing practices to include 'involution-style' competition, according to a draft released by China's National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and the State Administration for Market Regulation on Thursday. The term 'involution' has become a buzzword in China that refers to the excessive, cutthroat style of competition that has emerged in several industries, as companies facing weak domestic demand and oversupply problems slash prices in a bid to attract customers. The trend has become a serious concern for Beijing in recent months, with Chinese officials repeatedly vowing to stamp out the price wars and criticising companies that engage in 'disorderly' styles of competition that risk undermining economic growth. As China's economic landscape had undergone profound changes, the pricing law that originally came into effect in 1998 needed to be updated, government agencies said in a statement. 'With new economic forms and business models continuing to emerge, some industries have seen prominent cases of disorderly low-price competition, creating new demand for price regulation and oversight,' the statement said. The amendment, which is open for public comment until August 23, adds a new clause stating that businesses shall not force other operators to dump products at below-cost prices. Previously, the law only banned firms from selling goods below cost to eliminate competitors or monopolise the market.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
China releases draft law amendment to help curb price wars
BEIJING (Reuters) -China released a draft amendment to its pricing law on Thursday as part of efforts to curb excessive competition and price wars among firms, amid persistent deflationary pressures. Chinese leaders have signaled they will rein in price wars among producers as expectations grow for a new round of factory capacity cuts in a long-awaited but challenging campaign against deflation - a move that could pose risks to economic growth. Under the proposed revisions, apart from lawful discounts on seasonal or overstocked goods, or other legitimate reasons for price cuts, firms will be prohibited from selling below cost to drive out competitors or monopolise the market, and from forcing others to adopt similar pricing practices. The draft law, published on the website of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) - the state planner, also stipulates that firms cannot use data, algorithms, or technology to engage in improper pricing behaviors. The NDRC and the State Administration for Market Regulation said in a statement that China's economic landscape has changed significantly since the current pricing law was adopted in 1998. "The vast majority of goods and services prices are now formed by the market, new economic forms and business models are constantly emerging, and issues such as disorderly low-price competition in some industries have become prominent," they said. China will refine standards for identifying price collusion, price gouging, price discrimination and other unfair pricing practices, and take steps to address "involution-style" competition, the state agencies said. The draft amendment, which is open for public comment until August 23, also proposes tougher penalties for unfair pricing practices, including higher fines for violations of clear price marking requirements. China's producer prices dropped for the 33rd month in June.
Business Times
5 days ago
- Business
- Business Times
China releases draft law amendment to help curb price wars
[BEIJING] China released a draft amendment to its pricing law on Thursday (Jul 24) as part of efforts to curb excessive competition and price wars among firms, amid persistent deflationary pressures. Chinese leaders have signalled they will rein in price wars among producers as expectations grow for a new round of factory capacity cuts in a long-awaited but challenging campaign against deflation – a move that could pose risks to economic growth. Under the proposed revisions, apart from lawful discounts on seasonal or overstocked goods, or other legitimate reasons for price cuts, firms will be prohibited from selling below cost to drive out competitors or monopolise the market, and from forcing others to adopt similar pricing practices. The draft law, published on the website of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) – the state planner, also stipulates that firms cannot use data, algorithms, or technology to engage in improper pricing behaviours. The NDRC and the State Administration for Market Regulation said in a statement that China's economic landscape has changed significantly since the current pricing law was adopted in 1998. 'The vast majority of goods and services prices are now formed by the market, new economic forms and business models are constantly emerging, and issues such as disorderly low-price competition in some industries have become prominent,' they said. China will refine standards for identifying price collusion, price gouging, price discrimination and other unfair pricing practices, and take steps to address 'involution-style' competition, the state agencies said. The draft amendment, which is open for public comment until Aug 23, also proposes tougher penalties for unfair pricing practices, including higher fines for violations of clear price marking requirements. China's producer prices dropped for the 33rd month in June. REUTERS
