Xi visits science city on inspection tour in east China's Anhui

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday visited the Hefei Binhu Science City in Hefei -- the capital city of east China's Anhui Province -- on his current inspection tour in the province.

During the visit, Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, asked about the local efforts to advance institutional innovation of science and technology, and accelerate the application of scientific and technological advances.

An inland city much less conspicuous a decade earlier, Hefei today stands as a thriving cluster of cutting-edge science and technology and dynamic tech-intensive industries.

The Hefei Binhu Science City encompasses Feidong County, Feixi County, Baohe District, Shushan District, and Luyang District, covering four national-level development zones and three provincial-level development zones. It is a key development area designated by the national major functional zoning plan and is responsible for the construction of the province's science and technology market, as well as providing support service for national laboratories.

In the course of its development over recent years, the science city, has actively striven to build itself into a world-class science zone with more concentrated scientific research elements, more dynamic technological innovation, better life services, and a more vibrant ecological environment.

Xi visits science city on inspection tour in east China's Anhui

Xi visits science city on inspection tour in east China's Anhui

Xi visits science city on inspection tour in east China's Anhui

Xi visits science city on inspection tour in east China's Anhui

China has seen a surge in passenger traffic on New Year's Day, the first day of its three-day New Year holiday, with significant increases in short- and medium-distance travel and strong year-on-year growth in flight bookings.

Data showed that during the holiday period, short- and medium-distance travel is the main mode of travel in China's Yangtze River Delta, Pearl River Delta, and Chengdu-Chongqing regions, with trips crossing the New Year becoming a major highlight.

Domestic flight bookings for the holiday increased by 28 percent year on year, and international flight bookings increased by approximately 14 percent year on year, according to data from Umetrip, a popular Chinese flight travel application.

"During the New Year holiday, the popularity of winter escape trips to the south increased significantly compared to previous years. On the other hand, new destinations in the south are rapidly emerging. Flight bookings to cities such as Nanning, Jieyang, Quanzhou, and Huizhou all increased by more than 70 percent year on year, becoming highlights of holiday travel growth," said Zhao Nan, general manager of the industry development department at Umetrip.

In China's coastal province of Fujian, the province's maritime administration anticipates that 143 passenger ships will be in operation during the holiday, carrying over 380,000 passengers.

The Mini Three Links, which refers to small-scale trade, shipping and postal services between Fujian province, Kinmen Island and the Matsu Island group, are expected to carry over 20,000 passengers, an increase of more than 50 percent compared to the same period last year.

China sees travel surge on New Year's Day