The China Media Group (CMG) on Sunday announced the host line-up for the 2025 Spring Festival Gala, with five experienced hosts at its headquarters in Beijing and eight joining in from the four sub-venues.
The constellation at the main venue includes Ren Luyu, Sa Beining, Neghmet Raxman, Long Yang and Ma Fanshu, who will host the gala on January 28, the eve of the 2025 Chinese Lunar New Year, which will be a Year of the Snake.
The Spring Festival Gala, also known as "Chunwan" in Chinese, has been seen as a major cultural symbol for the Chinese New Year celebrations in China since its debut in 1983. As a cherished tradition, it unites families and friends to enjoy a show of songs, dances, comic sketches, operas and folk arts, and is recognized by the Guinness World Records as the world's most-watched TV program.
A multi-venue plan has been adopted since 2016. This year, the organizer has selected Chongqing Municipality in southwest China, Wuhan, the capital city of central China's Hubei Province, Lhasa of southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, and Wuxi in east China's Jiangsu Province as sub-venues.
Zhang Tao and He Miaomiao will host the show from Chongqing, while Yang Fan and Chen Chao will be at the venue in Wuhan, Zhu Xun and Stroob will join in from Lhasa, and Wang Yinqi and Li Hao will appear at Wuxi sub-venue.
CMG unveils host line-up for 2025 Spring Festival Gala
China's two major power grid operators -- the State Grid Corporation of China (State Grid) and China Southern Power Grid (CSG) -- reported a surge in investment in the first quarter of 2026, underscoring efforts to strengthen infrastructure construction and support high-quality socioeconomic development in China.
The State Grid said it completed fixed-asset investment worth 129 billion yuan (about 18.77 billion U.S. dollars) in the first three months of this year, up 37 percent the corresponding period of the previous year. The spending has driven more than 250 billion yuan (36 billion U.S. dollars) of investment across the wider industrial chain.
Key projects such as the Panxi ultra-high-voltage (UHV) alternating current (AC) line and the Anhui-Hubei back-to-back direct current (DC) project have seen ground broken for their construction, while several west-to-east power transmission projects have been upgraded.
Investment in connecting renewable energy generation to the grid was reported to have exceeded 10 billion yuan (1.45 billion U.S. dollars) from January to March, a year-on-year rise of more than 50 percent.
The CSG also reported robust growth in investment in the three-month period, with fixed-asset investment reaching 38.45 billion yuan (5.58 billion U.S. dollars), up about 50 percent from a year earlier.
Among its achievements, the company completed and commissioned 80 key projects, including the 220 kV cross-sea power grid interconnection project, which was officially put into operation on March 20. The project ended years of grid isolation on the Weizhou Island in south China by linking it to the main power system of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.
The construction of 17 other major energy projects, including one linking the power grid of the Xizang Autonomous Region in southwest China with that of Guangdong Province in south China, is advancing rapidly. These projects are expected to bolster regional industries, the maritime economy, digital collaboration and the transition to green energy.
"By accelerating major project construction, investment during the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030) is expected to approach 1 trillion yuan (145 billion U.S. dollars), driving a further 2 trillion yuan (290 billion U.S. dollars) of investment across upstream and downstream industries," said Dong Yanle, deputy general manager of the Engineering Construction Department under the China Southern Power Grid.
China ramps up power grid investment in January-March to boost growth
