All is well on the inflation front

China's consumer price index grew 2.5 percent year on year in December, and 2.6 percent for the whole of 2013, well below the government's full-year target of 3.5 percent, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Jan 9.

Local debt surges to nearly $3 trillion

The result of the most thorough audit of the nation's local government debt at the end of last year offered a sense of relief as well as worry to global investors.

New bonds approved for old debt

The National Development and Reform Commission, China's top economic planner, will allow bond swaps in an effort to avoid defaults in local government-created separate investment agencies.

Art of doing business the Chinese way

Ambitious Chinese youngsters have long sought to learn from Western economic theories and best practices. Why don't they tap into wisdom closer to home?

95% self-sufficiency urged for grains

After enjoying a decade of stable growth for grain production, China will take decisive measures to ensure its self-sufficiency rate, with enough arable land and adequate overseas cooperation in 2014.

Tuning up for 2014

The annual Central Economic Work Conference in Beijing last month attracted more international attention than usual.

Expert sidepanel

Shuang Ding,

Big players want to be in the Hefei zone

It came as no surprise when The Economist magazine named five Chinese cities as the fastest-growing metropolitan economies in the world in 2012. What was unexpected was who they were. Not Guangzhou, Shanghai or Chongqing, but places such as Baotou, Anshan and - topping the list - Hefei, the capital of Anhui province.

Recycling gathers momentum

Students help residents of Hefei's development zone take oride in their environment

IN BRIEF (Page 18)

Quotable

"We believe the markets and the Chinese government should be alarmed by the rapidly rising leverage, but we do not believe China is on the brink of a debt crisis, especially if the new leaders can take decisive measures to arrest its rising leverage."

Baby, you should see us now!

With about 20 million births in China every year, the baby products market is monster size, and the world's biggest companies in the field - P&G, Johnson & Johnson, Pigeon and the like - are all battling for a big share.