China steps up implementation of water conservancy projects backed by additional bonds

More than 7,800 water conservancy projects are being implemented at an accelerated pace in China with the support of additional bonds issued last year, laying a solid foundation for agricultural production and flood and drought prevention next year.

The Chinese central government issued 1 trillion yuan (about 140.42 billion U.S. dollars) in additional government bonds last year to support the rebuilding of disaster-hit areas and raise the country's disaster relief capabilities, with a focus on financing water conservancy projects.

Over 100 billion yuan (about 14.04 billion U.S. dollars) has been invested in water conservancy projects in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, which was hit hard by flooding last year. This accounts for one quarter of the investment for all water conservancy projects nationwide financed by additional treasury bonds.

"China is stepping up implementation of water conservancy projects across the country, with a total of 410.94 billion yuan (around 57.71 billion U.S. dollars) being invested in more than 7,800 projects financed by additional government bonds. Over 15 billion yuan (around 2.1 billion U.S. dollars) has been invested in Hubei, Hunan, Anhui, Sichuan and other provinces in the country," said Yuan Hao, an official from the Ministry of Water Resources.

China steps up implementation of water conservancy projects backed by additional bonds

Grain enterprises across China have purchased 120 million tons of autumn grains recently, according to data from the National Food and Strategic Reserves Administration.

Provinces like Henan, Jiangsu, Heilongjiang, and Anhui have set up the minimum purchase price of middle- and late-season rice. Over 200 purchasing spots have been set up in these four provinces to facilitate grain farmers in selling their crops.

Currently the purchase of middle- and late-season indica rice in the southern region stands at around 40 to 50 percent, while in the northeast region, the purchase of japonica rice is around 20 percent. In the north and northeast China, purchase of corn stands at 20 percent to 30 percent, while that of soybeans is around 15 percent in northeastern region.

The average price of middle- and late-season rice is about 2.6 yuan per kilogram. With demand rising for animal feed, prices of corn and soybean are gradually recovering and stabilizing, boosting acquisition interest.

"Currently, the cumulative procurement of middle- and late-season rice at the minimum purchase price has exceeded 1.8 million tons, effectively stabilizing market expectations and ensuring reasonable grain prices," said Luo Shouquan, director of the grain reserve department of the National Food and Strategic Reserves Administration.

Autumn grain purchases across China total 120 million tons