Rules toughened on pig insurance to secure supply
China's top financial and agricultural regulators have launched an overhaul of the hog insurance industry, aimed at protecting farmers from disasters and ensuring the country's favorite meat stays affordable.
The move, announced by the National Financial Regulatory Administration, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, is designed to fix long-standing delays in how insurance companies pay out when pigs die from disease or natural disasters. By speeding up the process, the government hopes to prevent farmers from facing financial ruin during outbreaks.
An official with the financial regulator said the relevant guidelines stipulate that the adjustment cycle for hog insurance premium rates should not exceed three years, to improve the sustainability of the insurance product. Meanwhile, oversight of market conduct will be strengthened, and insurance companies involved in serious violations may face the cancellation of their qualification to operate agricultural insurance.
The official said that addressing issues such as underwriting accuracy and claims settlement is expected to improve the efficiency and quality of hog insurance services, optimize the sector's development environment, and enhance the industry's capacity to cope with disasters.
Sci-tech innovation sector posts robust growth in Jan-Feb
China's science and technology innovation sector maintained strong growth momentum in the first two months of the year, with multiple highlights, including rapid expansion of innovation-driven industries, a more active flow of innovation resources and accelerated integration of the digital and real economies, the State Taxation Administration said.
Invoice data showed that sales revenue of the country's high-tech industries rose 16.1 percent year-on-year and sales revenue of scientific research and technology services rose 23.6 percent year-on-year during the January-February period.
Enterprises' purchases of digital technologies grew 10.8 percent year-on-year, reflecting the upgrading of industrial digitalization. Sales revenue from core digital economy industries also rose 10.8 percent, indicating rapid growth in the digital economy.
Chen Binkai, vice-president of the Central University of Finance and Economics, said the development of innovation-driven industries is showing stronger industrial vitality, smoother flow of innovation factors and deeper integration of the digital and real economies.
Refreshed customs policy relaxes e-commerce returns
The General Administration of Customs has announced a policy to expand a cross-customs-district return model for retail export goods from cross-border e-commerce.
Starting April 1, cross-border e-commerce retail export goods returned from overseas will no longer be required to go back to the original customs office through which they were exported.
Instead, companies may choose any customs port across the country to handle return entry procedures, providing greater flexibility for businesses.
The policy, as part of efforts to boost e-commerce exports, builds on a pilot program launched by the GAC in late 2024, which was carried out at 20 customs offices.
According to the GAC announcement, the cross-customs return policy applies only to cross-border e-commerce retail export goods. While returned goods may reenter China through a different customs district, they must be sent back to customs-supervised operation sites or facilities authorized to handle cross-border e-commerce retail export business.
The policy is expected to help companies reduce costs and improve operational efficiency, according to the GAC.
