Chinese vice premier encourages multinational companies to expand investment in China

China will continue to open up at a higher level, and welcomes multinational companies to expand investment in China to deepen mutual benefit and win-win results, Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng said on Sunday.

He, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the statement in a meeting in Beijing with business executives of leading global multinational companies, as they exchanged views on the global and Chinese economic situation, China-U.S. economic and trade cooperation, and expanding investment in China.

Noting that China's economy has strong resilience, vast potential and ample vitality, He said China is committed to promoting high-quality development, expanding high-standard opening up, and continuously improving the business environment, while welcoming increased investment by multinational companies in China to share in the country's development opportunities.

Business executives from multinational companies present at this meeting said they attached importance to the Chinese market and were optimistic about China's economic prospects, and also expressed their willingness to commit to long-term cooperation with China.

Chinese vice premier encourages multinational companies to expand investment in China

Chinese vice premier encourages multinational companies to expand investment in China

The death toll from a landfill collapse in the central Philippine city of Cebu has risen to eight by Monday morning as search and rescue operations continued for another 28 missing people.

The landfill collapse occurred on Thursday as dozens of sanitation workers were working at the site. The disaster has already caused injuries of 18 people.

Family members of the missing people said the rescue progress is slow, and the hope for the survival of their loved ones is fading.

"For me, maybe I’ve accepted the worst result already because the garbage is poisonous and yesterday, it was raining very hard the whole day. Maybe they’ve been poisoned. For us, alive or dead, I hope we can get their bodies out of the garbage rubble," said Maria Kareen Rubin, a family member of a victim.

Families have set up camps on high ground near the landfill, awaiting news of their relatives. Some people at the site said cries for help could still be heard hours after the landfill collapsed, but these voices gradually faded away.

Bienvenido Ranido, who lost his wife in the disaster, said he can't believe all that happened.

"After they gave my wife oxygen, my kids and I were expecting that she would be saved that night because she was still alive. But the night came and till the next morning, they didn't manage to save her," he said.

Death toll in central Philippine landfill collapse rises to eight