Shi Taifeng, a senior official of the Communist Party of China (CPC), met with a delegation from the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan led by party secretary general Katsuya Okada, in Beijing on Thursday.
Shi, a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and head of the United Front Work Department of the CPC Central Committee, noted that China-Japan relations are currently at a critical stage.
The CPC attaches great importance to exchanges between political parties of China and Japan, and is willing to strengthen exchanges and cooperation with the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan and other ruling and opposition parties in Japan, implement the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, and work together to build China-Japan relations that meet the requirements of the new era, Shi said.
Okada said that the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan is willing to take this visit as a new starting point to strengthen exchanges and cooperation between the two parties, especially the younger generation, and earnestly promote the development and improvement of Japan-China relations.
Senior CPC official meets delegation from Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan
China's total value-added of industrial enterprises above the designated size, an important economic indicator, expanded 4.5 percent year on year in August this year, official data showed Saturday.
On a monthly basis, the industrial output edged up 0.32 percent in August from the previous month, the National Bureau of Statistics(NBS) said in a monthly statement.
The enterprises above the designated size refer to those with an annual main business turnover of at least 20 million yuan (about 2.82 million U.S. dollars).
The value-added of equipment manufacturing grew by 6.4 percent year on year, while that of hi-tech manufacturing surged 8.6 percent, 1.9 percentage points and 4.1 percentage points faster than the average industrial production growth, respectively.
As for consumption, retail sales of consumer goods went up 2.1 percent year on year in August to 3.8726 trillion yuan (about 545 billion U.S. dollars). From January to August, the overall online retail volume reached 9.6352 trillion yuan (about 1.357 trillion U.S. dollars), up 8.9 percent year on year. The retail sales of services increased by 6.9 percent year-on-year.
"In August, the national economy operated in a stable manner on the whole. We adhered to the general principle of seeking progress while maintaining stability and implemented the new development philosophy accurately and comprehensively, strengthened macroeconomic control and focused on promoting high-quality development. The production demand continued to recover and employment and prices remained basically stable. The high-quality development continued to advance. The economy witnessed a generally stable situation and steady development," said NBS spokeswoman Liu Aihua at a press conference in Beijing.
China's industrial output up 4.5 pct in August
