A 6.8-magnitude earthquake jolted Dingri County in Shigatse of Xizang Autonomous Region at 9:05 a.m. Tuesday (Beijing Time), according to the China Earthquake Networks Center (CENC).

The epicenter was monitored at 28.5 degrees north latitude and 87.45 degrees east longitude. The quake struck at a depth of 10 km, said a report issued by the CENC.

The China National Narcotics Control Committee, the Ministry of Public Security, and the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration jointly issued a guideline to intensify the crackdown on illegal activities related to drug-laced e-cigarettes amid rising abuse among the country's youth, China Central Television (CCTV) reported on Tuesday.

The move aims to strengthen efforts against drug-laced and prohibited substance-containing e-cigarettes and bolster inter-agency cooperation for a systematic resolution of the issue, the CCTV report said. 

Currently, the abuse of "getting high e-cigarettes," which contain new drugs and substitute substances such as etonitazene and synthetic cannabinoids, is rapidly spreading among teenagers, posing severe risks to public health, particularly to young people, according to the report. 

The guideline outlines the necessity to clearly define responsibilities across narcotics control offices, public security agencies, and tobacco monopoly departments at all levels in combating related illegal activities and crimes, establish liaison mechanisms, enhance inter-departmental coordination, and foster a unified crackdown. 

Measures will target illegal production and sale of e-cigarettes, the addition of drugs and substitute substances in the vaping liquid, the illegal manufacturing of new drugs and substitute substances, the use of drug-laced e-cigarettes, and online activities facilitating such practices.

The guideline emphasizes that public security agencies and tobacco monopoly departments should enhance information sharing and law enforcement collaboration, with a focus on tracking and dismantling dens illegally producing e-cigarettes and drug-laced e-cigarettes. They should enhance early warning and monitoring of substitute substances added to the e-cigarettes and review the situation regularly.

It also stressed that relevant authorities should increase public awareness efforts, utilizing diverse media platforms to educate youth on the dangers of drug-laced e-cigarettes and relevant drug control laws, leverage the expertise of national drug laboratories and their branches and provide technological support for law enforcement efforts.

China on Thursday reported an outbreak of monkeypox virus, specifically the Ib sub-branch, with four associated cases. The outbreak has been effectively controlled.

The Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (China CDC) announced on Thursday that China has recently discovered a monkeypox virus outbreak, caused by the Ib sub-branch, with the source traced to a foreign individual with a travel history in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Following the outbreak, a joint prevention and control mechanism was activated.

Four related cases were identified among close contacts, all of whom were infected after intimate contact. No infections have been found among the general population, and all affected individuals are receiving medical treatment and are under observation. The relevant cases primarily exhibit symptoms such as rashes and herpes, which are relatively mild.

The outbreak has been effectively controlled.

The CDC on Thursday also published a notice on its WeChat account, remind people to avoid close contact with monkeypox patients or individuals showing suspicious symptoms of monkeypox. The center said it is also important not to come into contact with wild or unknown rodents, as well as primates such as monkeys and apes.

The center said individuals from countries (or regions) where monkeypox is prevalent, who have been in contact with monkeypox patients or exhibit symptoms such as fever, rash, or lymphadenopathy, should report their status to customs upon entry into China.

Close contacts of individuals diagnosed with monkeypox should undergo health monitoring for 21 days under the guidance of disease control agencies, warned the center, advising that they should avoid close contact with others during this period and avoid donating blood.

The China Earthquake Networks Center (CENC) has officially confirmed that a magnitude-4.6 earthquake occurred at 16:43 on Thursday in Jinfeng district of Yinchuan, the capital city of the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region in Northwest China (latitude 38.41°N, longitude 106.26°E).

After the earthquake in Northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, the Earthquake Disaster Relief Headquarters of the State Council and China's Ministry of Emergency Management (MEM) activated an emergency response, dispatching a working group to the affected area to assist with relief efforts, according to CCTV news. Local fire and rescue teams deployed 105 personnel and 20 vehicles to assess conditions near the epicenter. Additionally, 440 personnel, 86 vehicles, and 13 rescue dogs from heavy and light rescue teams are on standby. So far, no casualties have been reported.

This is the second earthquake reported in the same day in Ningxia, with the first one occurring at 10:01 in the morning, located at 38.4 degrees north latitude and 106.22 degrees east longitude, according to Xinhua News Agency.

The public security bureau of Dujiangyan, Southwest China's Sichuan Province, said on Friday that two netizens have been legally transferred for prosecution for widely spreading rumors about giant pandas for profit, inciting netizens to resist international cooperation in giant panda conservation, defaming organizations and slandering relevant experts and professionals, according to a release on its official WeChat account.

According to the release, in March 2024, the local authorities received public reports about netizens who had widely disseminated rumors regarding giant pandas through short videos and livestreaming.

Upon investigation, it was discovered that since June 2023, the two suspects - a 56-year-old woman surnamed Bai from Xianyang, Northwest China's Shaanxi Province, and a 40-year-old man surnamed Xu from the same region - had repeatedly fabricated and disseminated false information online, alleging that the Giant pandas Mei Xiang and Tian Tian, that returned to China from the US in November 2023, were being abused.

Bai and Xu had generated over 30,000 yuan ($4,110) in earnings from live broadcasts and raised more than 140,000 yuan from their followers, resulting in a total profit exceeding 170,000 yuan, said the release.

At the same time, they tarnished the reputations of the National Forestry and Grassland Administration, the China Giant Panda Conservation and Research Center, and other organizations, defaming relevant experts and professionals while inciting netizens to oppose international cooperation in giant panda conservation, according to the local authorities.

Under the instigation of Bai and Xu, some individuals engaged in illegal activities frequently harassed several experts in the relevant fields through phone calls, abusive text messages, and offline disturbances. This severely impacted the experts' normal work and lives and significantly disrupted the working order of the relevant organizations, the release said.

The release also said some individuals conducted illegal activities such as repeatedly calling the government service hotline and the emergency hotline to file false complaints and reports, maliciously occupying public resources and severely disrupting the normal operations of emergency assistance by the relevant organizations.

The actions of Bai and Xu are suspected of violating relevant provisions of China's criminal law and they have been legally transferred for prosecution. The case is currently under further investigation, the local police said.

A prototype of the CR450 bullet train that will run at 400 kilometers per hour debuted in Beijing on Sunday, said the country's railway operator.

The train is capable of running at 450 kilometers per hour in test.

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday said Macao will surely open up new horizons for development and keep creating new glories, as long as the policy of "one country, two systems" is comprehensively, accurately and unwaveringly implemented.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks at a gathering celebrating the 25th anniversary of Macao's return to the motherland.

The US House of Representatives failed on Thursday to pass a new Republican spending bill after President-elect Donald Trump sank a bipartisan stopgap bill. A Chinese expert said the latest development again highlighted the confusion in US political parties, and the rising US debt, which is at the center of the bill, is the result of irresponsibility on the part of successive governments, which has also cast a shadow of uncertainty over the world economy.

The package failed by a vote of 174-235, leaving lawmakers just one day to approve new funding to avert a government shutdown. A prior bipartisan deal was scuttled after Trump and Elon Musk came out against it on Wednesday, according to a report by Reuters.

Thursday's unsuccessful bill largely resembled the earlier version that Musk and Trump had blasted. It would have extended government funding into March and provided $100 billion in disaster relief and suspended the debt. At Trump's urging, the new version would have suspended limits on the national debt for two years - a maneuver that would make it easier to pass the dramatic tax cuts he has promised, according to the report.

"The bill's failure again highlighted the confusion in US political parties. If the US government shuts down, Americans' daily lives and work may be affected, which is an irresponsible move," Zhou Mi, a senior research fellow at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, told the Global Times on Friday.

Government funding is due to expire at midnight on Friday. If lawmakers fail to extend that deadline, the US government will begin a partial shutdown that would interrupt funding for everything from border enforcement to national parks and cut off paychecks for more than 2 million federal workers. The US Transportation Security Administration warned that travelers during the busy holiday season could face long lines at airports, according to Reuters.

After the bill failed, Trump said in a post on Truth Social that "Congress must get rid of, or extend out to, perhaps, 2029, the ridiculous Debt Ceiling. Without this, we should never make a deal."

The debt limit - commonly called the debt ceiling - is the maximum amount of debt that the US Department of the Treasury can issue to the public or to other federal agencies. On December 16, 2021, lawmakers raised the debt limit by $2.5 trillion to a total of $31.4 trillion. On January 19, 2023, that limit was reached, and the US debt currently amounts to $36.17 trillion.

"Suspending US debt limits is at the center of the revised bill, and the debt issue has been politicized by factors such as the conflict between the Democratic and Republican parties," Zhou said. 

The continually rising US debt has become a persistent problem for the US government, Zhou said, attributing it to successive US governments' irresponsibility, including a chronic inability to make ends meet.

The high cost of goods in the US due to tariffs has also affected people's purchasing willingness, resulting in more obvious constraints on the country's economy, he noted.

"The political incapacity of the US government in resolving huge debts is seriously eroding the country's credibility, which not only undermines the market's confidence in the US government and the dollar, but also drags down the development of the global economy," Zhou noted.

"In addition to affecting US debt holders, the exchange rate and financial market shocks for other countries are also of concern," the expert said.

The Philippine side, with US support and solicitation, has been stirring up troubles on many spots in the SouthChina Sea. From Ren'ai Jiao to Xianbin Jiao and from Houteng Jiao to Huangyan Dao, such repeated provocations have allowed the international community to see clearly who is undermining peace and stability in the South China Sea, and who is fabricating and spreading lies,Wu Qian, a spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense, said on Friday.

Wu made the remarks in response to a question on the Philippine Coast Guard claiming that the Chinese side recently took "aggressive actions" toward Philippine fishing boats heading toward Houteng Jiao. It is also reported that several Philippine government vessels were stopped while trying to intrude into Huangyan Dao. The commander of the Philippine Navy said that they had formulated "Gray Zone" tactics to cope with the activities of Chinese boats operating in the South China Sea.

Wu said that wherever they go, whether transiting or re-supplying, the Philippine ships always have a full deck of reporters. The real issue, however, is never about who has more reporters, but who has more legitimacy.

The territories of the Philippines are defined by a series of international treaties, which do not include the Nansha Islands and Huangyan Dao. The Philippine side knows this fact very well. China's position is clear and consistent: more provocations lead to stronger countermeasures; should the Philippine side stubbornly follow the wrong path, China will never back down, Wu said.

The just-concluded Central Economic Work Conference has drawn warm responses from officials, entrepreneurs, as well as Chinese and foreign observers, boosting their confidence in China's economic operation. Global media outlets also attached great attention to the world's second-largest economy's latest policy stance, which has significant global implications.

The annual Central Economic Work Conference was held in Beijing from Wednesday to Thursday as Chinese leaders decided on priorities for the economic work in 2025, according to the Xinhua News Agency. Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, Chinese president and chairman of the Central Military Commission, delivered an important speech at the conference.

The meeting acknowledged the deepened adverse impact brought about by changes in the external environment and the many difficulties and challenges still facing the domestic economic operation, and pointed out that the supporting conditions and fundamental trend for the Chinese economy's long-term sound development remain unchanged.

"We must face up to the difficulties, strengthen our confidence, and strive to transform all positive factors into actual achievements in development," the meeting said.

The important speech delivered by Xi has instilled fresh confidence into the conference participants, as officials expressed resolve to fulfill the goals and tasks in the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) with high quality and lay a solid foundation for a good start to the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30), according to Xinhua News Agency.

Warm response

Representatives from Chinese companies paid close attention to the key meeting, as it outlined a number of key tasks for 2025, including efforts to vigorously boost consumption, improve investment efficiency, and expand domestic demand on all fronts.

Zhou Hongyi, founder and chairman of 360 Security Technology, told the Global Times on Friday that the top meeting's emphasis on innovation-driven growth portends more supportive policies and efforts to improve the business environment in the tech sector, and his company will seek to seize the opportunities in the new era to contribute more to the high-quality development of the Chinese economy by achieving constant innovation and industrial application and promoting the fusion of tech and industries.

Zhou Mi, a senior research fellow at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, noted that China will in the next phase spend more effort on improving its investment environment based on the meeting's guidelines.

"The meeting called for efforts to be made to expand the pilot programs in opening up such fields as telecom, healthcare and education, and stabilize foreign investment… it means there will be more stability when it comes to attracting foreign investment, as it is also a common aspiration for global companies doing business in China," Zhou told the Global Times on Friday, noting that the priority given to further boosting consumption also reflected policymakers' considerations on both the domestic and external fronts.

Tao Wang, chief China economist with UBS Investment Bank, told the Global Times on Friday that the Central Economic Work Conference prioritized "stabilizing growth" and emphasized boosting domestic demand with more proactive macro policies, with "reviving household consumption" listed as a key task.

"The meeting set a much more supportive macro policy tone to stabilize growth, while more details are still set to be revealed later," Wang said, noting that the government explicitly called for cutting reserve requirement ratio and policy rates.

Zou Lan, an official with the People's Bank of China, said that the moderately loose monetary policy tone-setting sends a very strong signal, intensifying the continuity and effectiveness of policies, and is set to boost investor confidence, shore up consumption willingness and further invigorate the activeness of market entities, promoting the real economy to develop in a virtuous cycle, according to state broadcaster CCTV.

The Ministry of Commerce announced on Friday that the policy-backed trade-in programs for consumer goods has lifted sales revenues of related products by 1 trillion yuan ($137.45 billion) as of Friday, including the sale of 5.2 million cars, over 49 million home appliance products and 900,000 electric bikes.

Boon for global growth

The meeting with vital implications for world economy was closely watched by world media.

Bloomberg, in a report, said Chinese policymakers made "lifting consumption vigorously" and stimulating overall domestic demand their top priority, which happens "only the second time in at least a decade."

The New York Times highlighted China's emphasis on borrowing more and cutting interest rates in a bid to bolster growth and analyzed that the statements suggest a "willingness by Beijing to take more aggressive steps to increase spending."

The South China Morning Post noted that the meeting calls for making space for the private sector and increasing fiscal deficit and pledging more spending to keep demand high.

Maya Majueran, director of Belt and Road Initiative Sri Lanka (BRISL), a Sri Lanka-based organization that specializes in BRI cooperation, told the Global Times on Friday that despite facing numerous domestic and international challenges, supportive policies including a more proactive fiscal policy and a moderately loose monetary stance are expected to support stable and sustained economic growth and this creates a favorable opportunity for developing countries to boost their exports to the world's second-largest economy, with continued growth and influence.

Incremental policies, rolled out in September, have raised expectations of China's economic outlook and boosted market confidence, with a number of foreign financial institutions making positive remarks.

The economy is likely to maintain the momentum, Bloomberg reported on Friday, citing a forecast by a group of economists.

During a meeting on Tuesday in Beijing with heads of major international economic organizations, who came to attend the "1+10" dialogue, Xi said that China has full confidence in achieving this year's economic growth target and will continue to play its role as the biggest engine of world economic growth.