This round of macro-control is far from conclusion. It is on a critical time now. The policy has been adopted and implemented amid swirling controversy so far.

Facing mounting pressure from home and abroad, the central government has shown admirable firmness to keep on. Some even doubt that the adjustment is targeting at small and medium sized enterprises with most of them private businesses.

These people do not think of carefully enough about what Premier Wen said. The aim and underlying reasons of the adjustment is quite clear. After years of running on a fast lane, it is time to have the engine upgraded and the navigation system work better. It takes time to do this. But it is not a waste of time.

Now the first goal, namely cooling the sizzling engine down, has basically been scored. It should be followed immediately by the second, that is, upgrading. It is also very important to bear in mind that the upgrading is not expected to be achieved by replacement, but improvement.

As money lenders have been told to whom they should not lend money, they are expected to be clear about to whom they should. Uncertainties are there for the prospect of investment in fixed assets when consumption of the output of these investments has not grown with the same, or even comparable pace of the investment.

In fact, it is worth noticing that besides the decline in credit expansion, another example that efforts are rewarded most can be found in the agriculture.

There is talk about the "shortage of migrant workers" which reflects shrinking labor. Experts agree that one of the reasons for this is that the array of central government's policy of increasing farmers' income have given incentives to farms to stay at home and harvest the fruit of agricultural production instead of working at sweatshops in urban areas.

In fact, Premier Wen means what he says every time when he vows to give top priority to the China's thousands of years of agriculture. So far the potential of the rural market, albeit huge, has not been exploited. This is a lot to do on infrastructure construction, market tapping, technical progress, etc. And from the land will grow what you sow. Chinese premier vows to continue macro-economic control

China's industrial production slowed down further in July. But according to the criteria set by Stephen Roach, chief economist of Morgan Stanley, it is still two high. He argues that a real soft landing means the growth of the industrial production is well below 8 to 10 percent and remains this pace for at least half a year. And the central bank is still under the pressure of raising interest rates as consumer price index rose 5.3 percent year on year. China's industrial output up 15.5 percent in July

Serve something fresh for the old market

Memory about how Ado, the market pioneer for VCD players in China, won the bad for CCTV's prime time advertisement has faded away in Chinese TV viewers' mind. Gone with the memory is the market of VCD players in urban areas. DVD players prevail now. But VCD players are poised for a comeback. Some VCD players manufacturers in Shenzhen have already showcased their new generation products equipped with ESS' MPEG4. These upgraded consumer electronics are featured with low costs, high definition, and more compact dicks. The most important thing is manufacturers do not have to pay patent fees as DVD makers do. But experts warn patent is still a issue that had better be considered before any trouble could be made by the unregistered VCD technology. ESS product to vie with VCD players

Mobile banking is still in its primary stage of development. Existing services are confined in account inquiry and transfer based on short messages. The Construction Bank of China launched its mobile banking based on a downloadable software, the first in China. Subscribers can enjoy a self-service foreign exchanges. China has the largest population of mobile users in the world.Mobile phone banking hits market

Cheapness is not always an edge in the competition. Innovation is. Chinese color TVs are a typical example. They are the focus of anti-dumping cases. Chinese manufacturers begin to learn to make and promote products with high quality, high technology content and high value added. And this proves to be right and successful. In China market, digital TVs have a promising prospect as digital TV programs will dominant the screen by 2010. China's exports of high-end color TV grow hugely in first half

Up or down? Up to you

For housing developers, is this round of macro-control a crisis or an opportunity? Voices are so mixed about this question that if there is anything certain in this sector, it is uncertainty.

This is especially true when August 31, a deadline of having all land transfer agreements, is drawing nearer every day. Tightened land supply and land transfer agreements signed before have got some developers trapped. There will be less housing supply in the market.

Demand for houses is still heating up, particularly in major cities. However, potential buyers have to face more difficult mortgage access.

Time is tough. But major developers, like Pan Shiyi from SOHO China, believe the government's efforts on staging bidding arena for land available will make land supply transparent and fair. They also hope the government have a consistent and long-term policy for land availability. central banks predicts rises in house prices

Eating out is a important life style in China's urban areas. In Beijing, for example, you can try any local flavor from any part of the country and even some from other countries.

As the city tempo is gaining speed, white collars do not feel like cooking supper after a tiring work day. On weekend holidays and special days in your life, families enjoy having dinner in restaurants. More and more families choose to have a big meal in restaurants even for the dinner on the eve of the Spring Festival, the most important dinner for Chinese people in a year. For Chinese people, a good dinner is not only for your appetite, but also for better understanding and closer interpersonal relationship.

Foreign food chains are getting more and more popular. People enjoy the atmosphere and environment there. But for most dinners, western restaurants are mostly much more expensive than Chinese ones. In Beijing, you have to reserve a table or line up a long queue at some restaurants which serve clean, delicious, home-made flavored food at reasonable prices. Retail sales of catering industry to exceed US$84bln: MOC

A recent survey shows that division managers in companies are struggling under higher pressure than their senior executives. Those who work for power companies particularly have to cope with strain as the power shortage is a bottleneck of the country's economic growth. All the power suppliers in China are owned by the state. And state-owned enterprises under the direct control of the central government have a rosy picture for their future. The central government also pins high hope on them and looks forward to having world-class giants with international competitiveness emerge from them. Whether they can fulfill the goal depends on how well they can improve their efficiency which is a lingering problem for them. Sharp profit rise expected for central SOEs

Several factors will drag down China's imports of soybean this year. The country expects a good harvest of its own soybean. The demand for soybean dregs is down partly due to the influence of the bird flue. And the prices of imported soybean are high.China to import less soybean in 2004-2005: official

By People's Daily Online