As New Year's Day is just around the corner, farmers' markets in Urumqi, capital of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, have been experiencing a pre-holiday shopping rush.
Local vendors have stocked up ahead of time to ensure ample supplies and stable prices during the holiday, catering to residents' varied consumption needs.
At the Jiuding Agricultural Products Wholesale Market, shoppers stream through the aisles as fresh vegetables and fruits, beef and mutton, dried fruits, and other goods fill the stalls. The market attracts more than 30,000 customer visits per day.
"With New Year's Day coming, there are more customers and sales are strong. We're selling about a truckload of apples every day," said a local fruit vendor Zhang Honggang.
To keep the market running smoothly over the holiday, market management authorities have been closely monitoring transactions, strengthening food safety supervision, and coordinating with vendors to boost inventories, so as to ensure sufficient supply and stable prices.
Markets in Xinjiang embrace shopping rush ahead of New Year
United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday reiterated his call for the United States and Israel to stop the war against Iran, and for Iran to stop attacking its neighbors.
Noting that the impacts of the conflict are being felt everywhere, Guterres warned that the world is on the edge of a wider war that would engulf the whole Middle East with dramatic impacts around the globe.
The secretary-general said that "the Middle East crisis has lurched into its second month", and warned that the scale of devastation, indiscriminate attacks, and targeting of civilians and civilian infrastructure are all growing.
"My message is clear. To the United States and Israel, it is high time to stop the war that is inflicting immense human suffering and already triggering devastating economic consequences. To Iran, to stop attacking their neighbors. The Security Council has condemned these attacks and reaffirmed the need to respect navigational rights and freedoms along critical maritime routes, including the Strait of Hormuz. Conflicts do not end on their own. They end when leaders choose dialog over destruction. That choice still exists, and it must be made now," he said.
Guterres said diplomatic efforts are underway to find a peaceful path forward, which "deserve the space and support to succeed -- anchored firmly in international law, including the UN Charter".
UN chief renews call for U.S., Israel to stop war against Iran
