China warns US, Japan, Australia not to gang up in sea dispute

China said on Monday the United States, Australia and Japan should not use their alliance as an excuse to intervene in territorial disputes in the East China Sea and South China Sea, and urged them to refrain from inflaming regional tensions.

On Friday, Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry raised the maritime disputes during a trilateral strategic dialogue in Bali, Indonesia.

A joint statement from the U.S.-Japan-Australia meeting opposed “coercive or unilateral actions” that could change the status quo in the East China Sea and called on claimants to maritime disputes in the South China Sea to refrain from destabilising actions, according to the State Department website.

“The United States, Japan and Australia are allies but this should not become an excuse to interfere in territorial disputes, otherwise it will only make the problems more complicated and harm the interests of all parties,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said on Monday.

“We urge the relevant countries to respect facts, distinguish right from wrong, be cautious, and stop all words and deeds that are not beneficial to the proper handling of the issue and undermine regional stability,” she said in comments on the ministry website.

The U.S.-Japan-Australia meeting took place on the sidelines of an annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting on the Indonesian island of Bali.

Separately, another Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, Qin Gang, voiced China’s opposition to Kishida’s raising of maritime security at an informal breakfast meeting with foreign ministers, saying that it has long been considered inappropriate to discuss issues of political security or sensitive and controversial topics at APEC.

“There has not been a problem with freedom and security of navigation in this region for a long time,” Qin said in another statement released late on Sunday.

“Playing up so-called maritime security issue goes against real efforts for the freedom and security of navigation.”

China Daily via CHINA US Focus http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ChinaUsFocus/~3/E_JFIpdmOV8/

China and Malaysia announce 5-year plan to boost bilateral trade

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — China and Malaysia announced plans Friday to significantly boost trade in the next five years through measures such as supporting industrial parks in each other’s countries.

Leaders of both nations said during a visit to Malaysia by Chinese President Xi Jinping that the plans would increase two-way trade to $160 billion by 2017.

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China recycling cleanup jolts global industry

China for years has welcomed the world’s trash, creating a roaring business in recycling and livelihoods for tens of thousands. Now authorities are clamping down on an industry that has helped the rich West dispose of its waste but also added to the degradation of China’s environment.

The Chinese campaign is aimed at enforcing standards for waste imports after Beijing decided too many were unusable or even dangerous and would end up in its landfills. Under the crackdown dubbed Green Fence, China has rejected hundreds of containers of waste it said were contaminated or that improperly mixed different types of scrap.

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China’s first tourism law comes into effect, tourists issued manners guides

(CNN) — Travel operators in China have a huge new set of rules to follow now that the country’s first tourism law is in place.

Approved in April, the 112-article law came into effect October 1 and aims to promote sustained industry growth.

It includes measures to address issues — mostly in the domestic industry — such as tourist safety, unfair competition and forced shopping trips, in which agencies offer cheap tours but recoup their costs from commissions in partner shops.

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Karla Cripps, CNN via CHINA US Focus http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ChinaUsFocus/~3/pvsi_iRGWE0/

China Data Lifts Asian Shares

Asian shares closed mostly higher Thursday, casting aside concerns over a partial shutdown of the U.S. government and instead focusing on an encouraging reading on non-manufacturing activity in China.

Trading in Hong Kong ended with a 1% gain for the Hang Seng Index, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.4% and Taiwan’s Taiex jumped 1.7%.

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China Services Index Jumps in Sign of Sustained Rebound

A Chinese services-industry index rose to a six-month high, adding to signs that the world’s second-biggest economy will sustain a rebound after a two-quarter slowdown.

The non-manufacturing purchasing managers’ index rose to 55.4 in September from 53.9 in August, the Beijing-based National Bureau of Statistics and Federation of Logistics and Purchasing said today. A number more than 50 indicates an expansion.

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Paul Panckhurst & Janet Ong, Bloomberg via CHINA US Focus http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ChinaUsFocus/~3/IRmifWIQIY0/

China’s Xi sidesteps SE Asia pressure over South China Sea disputes

Chinese President Xi Jinping showed no sign of bending to Southeast Asian pressure to resolve increasingly irascible territorial disputes over the South China Sea on Thursday, simply repeating calls for dialogue.

Xi, in the first address by a foreign leader to Indonesian MPs, made no reference to regional demands, echoed in Washington, that Beijing deal with the rival claims through multilateral talks rather than with individual negotiations.

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Kanupriya Kapoor, Reuters via CHINA US Focus http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ChinaUsFocus/~3/ZgU0PBjv_d8/