Schools across Venezuela reopened on Monday for the new semester, with some universities in the country implementing phased returns to campus.
In capital Caracas, one of the city's largest public comprehensive secondary schools welcomed its first batch of students back to class on Monday.
The school has more than 1,800 enrolled students. According to the school principal Joel Acosta, all teachers have returned to school, and by 7:00 on Monday, about 30 to 35 percent of students had returned to school.
"Now our teachers are at classrooms with their students, making some assessments of the students by getting to know how they feel. This is important as we need to know how students are feeling upon returning to school," said Acosta.
According to Katie Balderrama, an English teacher of the school, 19 of 37 students of her class returned to school on Monday. The class order and learning atmosphere are gradually recovering despite the absence of some students.
"I want to provide students with the greatest support, because this period of time has been difficult for everyone. Therefore, our role at school is to make students feel at ease and to motivate them to study. I also hope that learning at school can alleviate some of their anxieties and prevent them from feeling uneasy and insecure," said Balderrama.
Some students expressed their happiness for returning to school and staying with friends.
"I prefer being at school. I feel safer with my classmates than when I'm outside. I'm really happy to be back to school," said Freiberlin Cardoso, a student.
Venezuelan schools resume after US attacks
The agreement between China and the European Union (EU) on providing general guidance on price undertakings for Chinese exporters of passenger battery electric vehicles (BEVs) to the EU will help stabilize industrial and supply chains, said an industry analyst.
The move aims to address relevant concerns in a more practical, targeted, and consistent manner with World Trade Organization (WTO) rules, according to the Ministry of Commerce in a statement on Monday.
The statement noted that in the spirit of mutual respect, the two sides have conducted multiple rounds of consultations in order to implement the consensus of the China-EU Summit and properly resolve the EU's anti-subsidy case concerning Chinese BEVs.
To that end, the European Commission on Monday issued guidance on the submission of price undertaking offers, covering various aspects that should be addressed in any such offer, including the minimum import price, sales channels, cross-compensation, and future investments in the EU.
Each price undertaking offer is subject to the same legal criteria, and the commission will conduct each assessment in an objective and fair manner, following the principle of non-discrimination and in accordance with WTO rules, the commission said.
On the same day, the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products (CCCME) also issued a statement welcoming the positive outcome of the consultations.
Chen Huiqing, director of the CCCME's Legal Department, said that reaching a price commitment helps companies protect their profits from tariffs.
"For companies, reaching a price commitment means profits stay with the firm, instead of being taken away as EU anti-subsidy tariffs," said Chen.
The price-undertaking option will help stabilize supply chains and support global trade, she added.
"After multiple rounds of talks, China and the EU have reached a positive, 'soft-landing' outcome that helps stabilize industrial and supply chains and supports broader China-EU trade and the global trade order," Chen said.
China-EU agreement on price undertaking guidance for EV exports to stabilize supply chains: analyst
