Wu Bangguo, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, emphasized the NPC’s important role regarding China’s economic stimulus package. According to Mr. Wu, the NPC will closely supervise the implementation of major stimulus measures. Of China’s RMB 4 trillion stimulus package announced in November last year, RMB 1.18 trillion consist of central government spending. The NPC’s responsibility, so Mr. Wu, is to supervise the government’s stimulus spending and promote China’s steady and rapid economic development.
China is planning to steadily reduce export-related taxes to “zero” and increase financial support for the export sector, Commerce Minister Chen Deming told in an interview on Monday. China’s exports fell 17.5 percent and imports 43.1 percent year on year in January.
China started initial construction on a third west-east gas pipeline. The new pipeline will transport gas from Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan via Xinjiang to China’s eastern cities. The first west-east gas pipeline has been in operation since December 2004 and the second one is currently still under construction. State oil company China National Petroleum Corporation also mentioned plans for another gas pipeline linking China and Myanmar.
China’s strategic oil reserves have reached their storage capacity, a senior industry executive said on Monday. Strategic oil reserves, usually considered a national secret, have reached maximum capacity of China’s four onshore reserve bases. The industry executive further called for additional floating storage while oil prizes remain on their current low. Oil tankers could store additional strategic reserves until China has finished new storage facilities. As commodity prizes worldwide remain low, China last week announced a $10 billion budget increase for stockpiling resources.
