SHOOTING WORLD CHAMPION ON FOURTH OLYMPIC TRIP

　　Pang Wei， nailing the gold medal of the men’s 10-meter air pistol at the Olympic Summer Games Beijing 2008， has become one of the most experienced athletes in the Chinese delegation to the upcoming Olympic Summer Games Tokyo 2021.
　　The 34-year-old started his shooting career in 2000 and debuted at the Olympic arena after eight years. Pang， suffering lumbar and cervical pain from time to time， is eager to bag medals from his fourth Olympics.
　　“My goal is certainly a good result， and hopefully we will hear the Chinese national anthem at the award ceremony，” he told Xinhua News Agency in April.
　　Unveiled on July 14 in Beijing， the Chinese delegation， the country’s largest representation in an overseas Olympic Games， has a total of 777 members.

Biodiversity Efforts

　　Guancha.gmw.cn July 9
　　The status of the wild giant panda in China has been downgraded from “endangered”to “vulnerable” amid the country’s active efforts in biodiversity protection and ecological restoration， an official of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment announced at a press conference on July 7.
　　The populations of several rare and endangered species have gradually recovered and the numbers of Siberian tigers， Asian elephants and crested ibises have seen rapid growth.
　　The improvement in wildlife living conditions lies in the country’s drive to establish a relatively complete system of nature reserves， protecting large areas of natural ecosystems in a systematic and complete manner.
　　However， the spatial structure of nature reserves needs to be more rationally arranged. Moreover， it is possible to strengthen protection outside the sheltered area and carry out pilot demonstrations to gradually expand the space of nature reserves.
　　It is expected to see China and other countries pool their wisdom and resources to generate a transformation in society’s relationship with biodiversity and to ensure that the shared vision of living in harmony with nature is achieved.

Rising Global Inflation

　　China Newsweek July 12
　　The highly anticipated jump in inflation has arrived in different countries worldwide. While the duration of the rise remains open to debate， key indicators are showing sizable increases in measures of inflation expectations. 　　Take the U.S. consumer price index growth as one example. It continued in May and came in at 5 percent year on year， the fastest pace in nearly 13 years， according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
　　In tandem， the global economy is bouncing back with surprising vigor. According to the latest Global Economic Prospects report released by the World Bank in June， the global economy will grow by 5.6 percent in 2021， the fastest growth rate in 80 years. China’s GDP growth is expected to reach 8.5 percent， and the growth rates of major developed economies like the U.S.， the EU and Japan will reach 6.8 percent， 4.2 percent and 2.9 percent， respectively.
　　However， there are still some latent risks behind the projected strong recovery. To deal with the shocks of the COVID-19 outbreak， some developed countries rolled out drastic stimulus policies with fast fiscal expansion and unprecedented liquidity easing.
　　These policies may help stabilize the market in the short term， but their side effects， including a rise in financial asset and property prices， may arise for all.

Optimized Spending Structure

　　People.com.cn July 9
　　The central government departments’final accounts for 2020 went public recently， showing that more than 100 departments have cut spending in keeping with austerity measures.
　　The budgets of various government departments， particularly those for sangong expenses， that is， spending on official overseas visits， official vehicles and official hospitality， have been reduced.
　　Altogether， 2.98 billion yuan （$461.04 million） went to sangong expenses of the Central Government in 2020， demonstrating a budget reduction of 2.53 billion yuan （$390.79 million）.
　　Tightening the budget for various central government departments should not be the ultimate goal. Instead， the government has tightened its belt and cut outlay to allow more funding to be allocated to the people’s livelihood. China will continue to increase its expenditure on employment， education， social security and healthcare in keeping with its people-centered philosophy.

CHINA’S NEW AMBASSADOR TO THE UK

　　China’s Ambassador to the UK， Zheng Zeguang， hosted an online reception on July 14， four days after he presented his Letter of Credence to Queen Elizabeth II. He arrived in London and made his first public appearance in June.
　　Zheng joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1986 and later worked at China’s embassy in Trinidad and Tobago briefly. He was then based in the U.S. twice， between 1994-1997 and 2005-2008. His most recent role was vice minister of foreign affairs. 　　The 58-year-old studied at Cardiff University in the UK from 1986 to 1987. He highlighted student mobility as one of the strengths in the China-UK relationship. “China and Britain have a long history of cultural and people-to-people exchanges，” he said at the reception， adding they have been increasingly vibrant and expanded into new areas.
　　When the pandemic is over， both countries should expand people-to-people exchanges and facilitate mutual visits， not least between the young people， he said.
　　“The transformation that China achieved is staggering. It is not a gratuitous miracle， but the result of long-term planning and continuous efforts of the Communist Party of China （CPC）.”
　　Javier Miranda， President of Uruguay’s Broad Front Party， hailing structural reforms promoted by the CPC that uplifted people’s wellbeing in China， in an interview with Xinhua News Agency on July 13
　　“As China’s green transition takes off， its social， industrial and energy structures will all face an in-depth transformation， where financing institutions can help and must take on their responsibilities.”
　　Xu Shouben， Vice President of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China， at the opening ceremony of Eco Forum Global Guiyang on July 12
　　“China’s views on the future of international relations based on win-win cooperation and respect regardless of the size and strength of a country are truly revolutionary... Armenia will benefit much from China’s efforts to make international relations fairer and more inclusive.”
　　Benyamin Poghosyan， Chairman of the Center for Political and Economic Strategic Studies， Yerevan， Armenia， in an article published in China Daily on July 14
　　“Speaking of genocide， crimes against humanity and forced labor， I would like to ask you a question. Why can the U.S. always come up with these unfounded charges against other countries？ The simple answer is that they are the sins the U.S. once committed.”
　　Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian criticizing the U.S. for repeatedly fabricating accusations about Xinjiang， at a press conference on July 14