1. China launches consumer stimulus campaign on May 1 

On May 1, Chinese authorities launched a "Consumer Incentive Month" campaign aimed at increasing consumer spending as the epidemic situation improved and the economy recovered after the pandemic. This was reported by CGTN. 

According to it, the campaign was organized by the Ministry of Commerce of the People's Republic of China together with local authorities. During the month, the country will host a number of events, consumer coupons will be issued, discounts will be provided. According to the TV channel, both traditional shops and e-commerce platforms will take part in the consumer festival. According to CGTN, more than 260 e-commerce companies will provide customers with discounts, promotional items, including household items, light industry products. 

One of the most significant events of the month, the Channel  notes, will be the First Chinese International Consumer Fair, which will be held in the southern province of Hainan from 7th to 10th of May. According to the organizers, more than 600 foreign companies will take part in it. 

In June last year, a "Consumption Season" campaign was launched to stimulate consumption after the Beijing pandemic. Residents of the capital were issued consumer vouchers totaling 12.2 billion yuan (about $ 1.87 billion). Coupons could be used for 14 days in both traditional stores and online for shopping in tourism, education, culture, sports, catering and other industries. In total, more than 400 online and offline events took place in the Chinese capital as part of the "Consumption Season".

According to the State Statistics Office of China, in the first quarter of this year, retail sales of consumer goods in China amounted to 10.52 trillion yuan (about 1.61 trillion dollars), 33.9% more compared to the same period of the last year. At the same time, sales of goods over the Internet in January-March increased by 29.9% to 2.8 trillion yuan ($ 430.29 billion). 

China's consumer market in recent years has shown a smooth reduction of retail sales rate increase. In 2018, they increased by 9%, in 2019 - by 8%, and last year due to the pandemic - only 3.9%. According to official statistics, domestic consumption accounts for more than half of China's economic growth. 

2. The People's Bank of China has decided to provide state-controlled consumer data on consumer lending to Ant Group, Alibaba's financial instrument, and Jack Ma. The new structure will work with Ant's competitors, such as state-owned banks, according to the Financial Times. 

• The new company is run by former heads of the Central Bank of China. 

 • Ant insisted on leading the new structure, FT interlocutors told FT. However, the People's Bank of China has indicated that this will create a conflict of interest. 

 • State control will jeopardize Ant's ability to collect and analyze information on key sectors of its business, including consumer lending. 

 • In January, the People's Bank of China issued rules requiring Chinese companies to obtain government approval before lending. So far, three licenses have been issued to government-controlled firms. 

3.China's efforts and achievements in the field of protection of intellectual property rights (IPR) have been recognized both domestically and abroad, said the head of the State Administration for Intellectual Property of China Shen Chanyu on Friday at a forum in Beijing. In his speech, he cited two indicators as evidence, one of which is the result of a topical study of social satisfaction with IPR protection in China with a record 80 points out of 100. Another indicator is the Global Innovation Index of the World Intellectual Property Organization, which ranks China 14th, ranking first among the world's middle-income economies. 

 Shen Chanyui also noted China's efforts over the past two years to resolve patent infringement disputes, establish specialized centers across the country and abroad to provide faster services, and reduce the duration and cost of IPR protection. 

In the future, work to promote equal protection of intellectual property rights at home and abroad will be intensified, he added. 

4. The Ukrainian company Centravis, one of Europe's largest suppliers of stainless steel pipes, has been approved as a supplier to the Chinese oil and chemical corporation Sinopec. This was reported to GMK Center by the company's press service.

It took Centravis and Hy-Lok China agent two years to prepare and agree on documents confirming the product's compliance with the customer's requirements.

 Centravis is now open to participating in the corporation's projects, which cover 60-70% of petrochemical projects in China.  This will allow to increase the supply of tool pipes to the country and to assert itself more loudly in the East Asian market, ”the company said in a statement.

 For reference: SINOPEC is the second largest oil and gas producer in China, the third largest chemical company in the world.  The company owns 30 refineries, 353 storages for oil products with a capacity of 18.8 million m³.

 CENTRAVIS PRODUCTION UKRAINE (CENTRAVIS) is one of the largest in Europe manufacturers of seamless stainless steel pipes for mechanical engineering, oil and gas and aircraft industry, energy.  The company produces more than 1,000 sizes of pipes from more than 100 types of corrosion-resistant and heat-resistant steel grades.