During the first two days of the New Year's Day holiday, offshore duty-free sales in south China's Hainan Free Trade Port (FTP) reached 505 million yuan (over 72 million U.S. dollars), a year on year rise of 121.5 percent, according to latest data released by the customs authorities.
According to Haikou Customs, a total of 307,000 duty-free products were sold on Thursday and Friday, the first two days of the new year, showing an increase of 48.3 percent year on year.
Around 65,000 trips of people went shopping in Hainan during the holiday, an increase of 60.9 percent year on year.
The island-wide special customs operations took effect on Dec. 18, last year in the Hainan FTP, the world's largest free trade port by area, allowing freer entry of overseas goods, expanded zero-tariff coverage and more business-friendly measures.
Meanwhile, a series of policy and regulatory documents related to special customs operations are being implemented in accordance with respective provisions, including the duty-free policy for domestic sales of processed value-added products.
Offshore duty-free sales in Hainan FTP reach 505 mln in first two days of New Year
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
