A truck transfers containers at Qingdao port in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, Aug. 8, 2016.(Xinhua/Yu Fangping)
BEIJING, Aug. 13 (Xinhua) -- China's top economic planner has pledged more efforts to support the green sector after the country fulfilled its energy-saving targets and saw the environment improve in the first half of this year.
A national plan will be drafted on the development of energy-saving and environmentally friendly industries for the 2016-2020 period, according to a latest statement from the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).
The government will encourage more qualified companies to issue green bonds, the NDRC said.
It will also consider setting up a fund to support the green industry and attract private investment.
Tax breaks will continue for firms using energy-saving and environmentally friendly equipment, the NDRC noted.
It said China made headway in energy saving and environmental protection in the first six months, with the energy consumption per 10,000 yuan (1,500 U.S. dollars) of GDP dropping 5.2 percent year on year, exceeding the annual target of 3.4 percent.
The country also saw lower emissions of major pollutants, with the density of PM2.5, a type of particulate matter that causes hazardous smog, falling 9.3 percent year on year.
In the first half, 338 cities saw the number of days with good air quality reach 76.7 percent of all days in the period, up from 72.7 percent a year earlier, NDRC figures showed.
Related:
China Voice: Innovation drives China's growth, restructuring
BEIJING, Aug. 10 (Xinhua) -- China is looking to universities and research institutes for an engine to sustain economic growth and drive economic restructuring.
On Monday, the State Council published a national plan for progress in science and technology by 2020, listing a set of targets as well as government actions to help meet them. Full story
Xinhua Insight: Reform,innovation upgrade China's economy
SHANGHAI/GUANGZHOU, Aug. 9 (Xinhua) -- When Shanghai INESA held its first technology meeting in 2010, a board erected at the door of the meeting room had almost nothing to display as there were no "decent" quality products at that time.
But things became different when the instruments and electronics products manufacturer held its second technology meeting two years later. Full story
Economic Watch: China's economy stabilizes
BEIJING, Aug. 9 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese economy is showing signs of stability but domestic demand remains fragile.
China's consumer price index (CPI) grew 1.8 percent year on year in July, virtually unchanged from 1.9 percent in June, while the producer price index (PPI), which measures costs of goods at the factory gate, dropped 1.7 percent, the National Bureau of Statistics announced Tuesday. Full story
