Torrential rains have caused severe flooding in southern regions of China, with water levels exceeding warning marks on 27 rivers and thousands of residents evacuated to safety, the Ministry of Water Resources said Sunday.
The worst-hit areas include Guangxi, Guizhou, and Yunnan, where four small rivers surpassed the maximum water level for flood control by up to 2.51 meters. Yunnan's Mengtong River experienced its worst flooding since 1979.
In Sandu Shui Autonomous County, southwest China's Guizhou Province, emergency teams worked through waist-deep waters to rescue residents, including a mother and her newborn baby.
As of 19:00 Saturday, Sandu County had eliminated 36 risk points and evacuated 1,287 people.
Nearby in Qiandongnan Prefecture, firefighters waded through rushing waters to evacuate villagers and salvage household items.
Armed police were deployed in Hechi City, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, where floodwaters reached up to six meters in some areas, submerging streets and farmland. Rescuers using rubber boats evacuated residents from inundated villages threatened by landslides.
On Friday, a dramatic helicopter rescue occurred in Zhangjiajie City, central China's Hunan Province, when two villagers became stranded on a river islet after sudden water surges.
After arriving at the scene, the rescuers carefully evaluated the conditions on site. After five hours of rescue efforts, one villager was pulled to safety using rescue cords, while the other was airlifted to a safe area by a sightseeing helicopter requisitioned for emergency use.
Authorities maintain flood control responses across six provincial level regions, with three ministry teams coordinating relief efforts. Meteorologists predict more rain in the coming week, prompting officials to warn residents to avoid waterways during the ongoing rainy season.
Heavy rains trigger severe flooding across south China, forcing thousands to evacuate
China will strengthen fiscal and financial coordination to amplify policy effectiveness, experts said as the draft central and local budgets for 2026 were unveiled on Friday at the ongoing fourth session of the 14th National People's Congress.
According to the draft central and local budgets for 2026, 1.3 trillion yuan (190 billion U.S. dollars) of ultra-long special treasury bonds will be issued to provide continued support for the implementation of major national strategies and security capacity-building in key areas and for large-scale equipment upgrades and consumer goods trade-in programs.
Ultra-long special treasury bonds totaling 800 billion yuan will be allocated to support the implementation of major national strategies and security capacity-building in key areas, and 250 billion yuan in ultra-long special treasury bonds will be earmarked for consumer goods trade-in programs.
The country will refine these programs in terms of their scope and subsidy standards, and continue to support the scrapping and replacement of automobiles, home appliance trade-in schemes, and purchases of new digital and smart products.
China will also set up a 100-billion-yuan fiscal-financial coordination fund to boost domestic demand. The fund will support consumption and private investment through loan interest subsidies, financing guarantee, and risk compensation.
"Fiscal and monetary policies are the two major macroeconomic tools for macro-control, and their coordination is crucial. For instance, fiscal funds primarily serve as a guiding role, while financial institutions provide the capital. When fiscal guidance and financial resources are combined, the synergistic effect creates a result greater than the sum of its parts," said Yang Zhiyong, director of the Chinese Academy of Fiscal Sciences.
"By leveraging interest subsidies, we can mobilize substantial credit from financial institutions, thereby naturally stimulating consumption. The Ministry of Finance, in collaboration with the People's Bank of China, has introduced highly innovative measures, such as providing guarantees for the issuance of corporate bonds by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and compensating investors for losses. I believe the leveraging effect, making minimal efforts for maximum results, will become even more potent," said Yao Dongmin, director of the Center for China Fiscal Development under the Central University of Finance and Economics.
China's top legislature opened its annual session on Thursday morning at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, with Chinese President Xi Jinping and other Party and state leaders attending the opening meeting alongside more than 2,700 NPC deputies. This year's NPC session is scheduled to run till March 12.
China to strengthen fiscal, financial coordination to amplify policy effectiveness: experts
