People's Daily, China

Love filled the air on Shuangliu Yangtze River Bridge in Wuhan, central China’s Hubei Province on Wednesday, as couples dressed in traditional Chinese attire exchanged vows in a heartwarming group wedding ceremony.

Chinese researchers have discovered a new microbial herbicide that can control weeds without polluting the environment while also supporting crop growth, offering a potential alternative to conventional chemical herbicides 🌾

Chinese scientists have created hexagonal diamond (HD) from highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) compressed along the c-axis at elevated temperatures, with the millimeter-sized, phase-pure HD exhibiting slightly higher hardness than cubic diamond and high thermal stability, resolving the long-standing controversy on the existence of HD and paving the way for the future study of HD in advanced technological applications. The result was published in the journal Nature.

China's State Council has approved Meishan City of Sichuan Province, as a national historical and cultural city, highlighting the city’s long history, profound culture, rich heritage, well-preserved traditional features and distinct regional traits, and recognizing its great historical and cultural value, according to a notice on the website of the Chinese government released on Thursday.

China has put forward three proposals regarding high-quality universal energy access, artificial intelligence (AI) plus energy and coordinated energy governance to promote energy cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region. The proposals were raised at the 71st Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Energy Working Group meeting, held from Wednesday to Thursday in Nanchang, east China's Jiangxi Province.

The World Trade Organization (WTO) said on Thursday that global trade growth is set to slow in 2026 after a stronger-than-expected performance in 2025, warning that the ongoing Middle East conflict could add further pressure on global trade. In its latest Global Trade Outlook and Statistics report, the WTO forecast that in a baseline growth scenario excluding energy price shocks, global merchandise trade growth would slow to 1.9% in 2026 from 4.6% in 2025 before rebounding to 2.6% in 2027, while global GDP growth is projected to moderate slightly from 2.9% in 2025 to 2.8% in both 2026 and 2027. However, the WTO warned that these baseline projections could deteriorate if the ongoing Middle East conflict continues to disrupt energy markets. The United States and Israel launched massive attacks on Iran on Feb. 28, disrupting global shipping, sending oil prices soaring and shaking the global economy.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Thursday that there are no winners in the prolonged wars, and a ceasefire and an end to the hostilities are the will of the people. Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks in a phone conversation with British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper.

When the Bund lights up in Shanghai, the city reveals its most dazzling side.

Eggshell porcelain, or Baotai porcelain in Chinese, is prized for its delicate thinness of about one millimeter and its remarkable translucence. Lu Jiande, 66, from Jingdezhen in east China’s Jiangxi Province, has devoted himself to crafting these intricate pieces, pushing the artistry of eggshell porcelain to new heights.

A total of 8 Chinese-made rubber tyre gantry cranes recently set sail from Nantong, east China's Jiangsu, for the Port of Tanjung Pelepas (PTP) in Malaysia, marking the departure of the third batch of a 58-crane project.

In a quiet residential neighborhood in Beijing Economic Technological Development Area (E-Town), an unassuming four-story building is drawing attention from China’s tech and investment circles. The facility, recently put into operation, is billed as the world’s first smart elderly care center powered by robotics and artificial intelligent devices, combining silver economy services with real-world applications of edge-cutting technology. With a total floor area of about 1,100 square meters, it brings together more than 40 robotic products developed by 24 companies, providing a live testing ground for China’s rapidly expanding robotics industry in elderly care sector, according to the center.

Rows of solar panels turn barren landscapes into a vibrant hub of clean and sustainable development in Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region.

Stunning cherry blossoms sway and fill the air with fresh fragrance amid the spring breeze stirring across Dali University campus at the foot of Cangshan Mountain in Dali, southwest China's Yunnan Province.

Chongqing's 'digital roads' serve as training grounds for smarter vehicles Chongqing, a pivotal hub in China's intelligent vehicle industry, is transforming its urban roads into digital proving grounds for automotive innovation. At a demonstration zone in the Western Science City Innovation Center of Intelligent and Connected Vehicle (WICV) in the city, an autonomous electric vehicle recently navigated a scenario emblematic of real-world challenges: as a pedestrian stepped onto a crosswalk, roadside sensors instantly detected the movement, relayed data to the cloud, and triggered a command for the vehicle to slow down and yield -- all without human intervention. This facility exemplifies a future where vehicles communicate, roads perceive, and cloud platforms orchestrate decisions. "In the demonstration zone, all data streams integrate and update in real time," said Chang Xueyang, deputy director of the cloud control technology center at the WICV, gesturing to a live monitoring screen. "Through vehicle–road–cloud integration, these routes function as true digital training grounds." Unlike conventional closed test tracks, this 50-kilometer network spans complex urban environments -- from highways and interchanges to neighborhood streets -- simulating real-world situations such as pedestrians and cyclists crossing, or broken-down vehicles blocking lanes. "For test vehicle, every run is a real-traffic simulation," Chang noted. "And for the road's intelligent system, every day delivers stress testing under authentic loads." The zone supports not only intelligent connected new energy vehicles, but all vehicle types. With the installation of compliant communication terminals and positioning devices, ordinary private cars, logistics vehicles, and buses can access the system and upgrade their connectivity capabilities. While benefiting from enhanced safety and convenience, these vehicles also contribute large volumes of real-world data. To date, the system has connected with more than 1,000 vehicles of various types. "With just a small device installed, our logistics vehicles can run on an intelligent connected system. Parcel deliveries are now linked to traffic signals, real-time road conditions and cloud platforms -- making trips safer and smoother," said Li, a logistics vehicle driver. With continuous accumulation of massive real data -- from different vehicle models and driving behaviors -- the system's decision-making models keep evolving, helping innovative technologies move from the lab into broader application. According to Lai Chenguang, dean of the School of Vehicle Engineering at Chongqing University of Technology, the zone tackles key industry challenges -- bridging the gap between closed testing environments and real-world traffic conditions, and eliminating long-standing "information silos" across systems. "By combining single-vehicle intelligence with networked capabilities, the zone allows automakers to validate technology in realistic scenarios, reduce research and development (R&D) and mass-production risks, and ultimately accelerate the commercialization of intelligent driving-assistance systems," he added. Policy innovation further fuels progress. Chongqing has introduced a series of targeted policies to promote full coverage of perception, decision-making, and control services based on vehicle–road–cloud integration within the demonstration area. At the same time, the city has explored institutional innovations to address key obstacles to open-road testing, such as fragmented management, road access restrictions, and data fragmentation. These efforts include breaking down departmental barriers and promoting coordinated governance among transportation, industry and information technology, and public security authorities; innovating test license issuance and traffic accident insurance mechanisms to reduce constraints on road testing; and establishing unified data sharing and security platforms to enable cross-system integration of vehicle, road, and cloud. With targeted policy support in place, road-testing scenarios have expanded rapidly, generating strong spillover effects for industrial development. Attracted by the testing environment, 15 automakers have conducted joint testing under unified standards. Test vehicles from companies such as Toyota and Changan have accumulated extensive datasets, accelerating iteration in connected driver-assistance systems and virtual–real integrated testing technologies. Supporting enterprises like AI Drive and West Genesis have emerged with robust R&D platforms and order-filled product pipelines. Meanwhile, institutions like China Merchant Testing Vehicle Technology Research Institute Co., Ltd. advance innovations such as full-vehicle thermal runaway simulation for safety design. Today, Chongqing's Western Science City has brought together more than 60 intelligent connected vehicle-related enterprises, spanning vehicle manufacturing, key components, charging infrastructure, and autonomous driving operations. Today, Chongqing hosts more than 270 automotive R&D institutions, including a State Key Laboratory of Intelligent Vehicle Safety Technology. The city has launched an automotive "industrial brain" platform and established four future-ready factories in the automotive sector. Besides, Chongqing is now home to 754 high-tech enterprises and 3,543 technology-based enterprises in the automotive industry. (By Liu Xinwu, People's Daily)

The 20 kN main engine for China-developed Liqing-4 upper-stage propulsion system has recently passed qualification testing at operational limits, with a total of 18 ignitions and a cumulative running duration of 480 seconds. The system features high thrust, low cost, and long-term in-orbit operational capability. It is designed to support the Lijian-2 commercial carrier rocket for low- and high-orbit satellite launch missions and deep-space exploration.

Ruby-red tomatoes hang in heavy clusters from the vines at a greenhouse in Zhongcheng Village of Qiandongnan, southwest China’s Guizhou, as workers fill their containers to the brim amid a bountiful harvest.

China will implement new regulations on the registration of overseas manufacturers exporting food to China, starting from June this year, the General Administration of Customs (GAC) has announced. The registration will be valid for 5 years and will be automatically renewed for another 5 years if no rules are breached.

Chinese archaeologists have uncovered Western Zhou Dynasty (1046BC-771BC) remains at the Jiangliu site in northwest China's Shaanxi Province, revealing burial customs that embody the ancient Chinese philosophy of "stopping war is true valor." A total of 13 Western Zhou tombs have been excavated so far at the site located on a loess plateau south of the lower Jinghe River. Some tombs contain small broken bronze weapons such as knives and dagger-axes, a practice linked to the burial of destroyed weapons, which reflected the idea that "stopping war is valor" and the transformation of practical weapons into grave goods at the individual level. The broken weapons were deliberately damaged before burial to symbolize peace for the deceased in the afterlife, according to Shaanxi Academy of Archaeology.

China on Tuesday delivered the world's largest 24,000-TEU liquefied natural gas (LNG) dual-fuel container ship to a French operator, seven and a half months ahead of schedule. Equipped with an 18,000-cubic-meter MARK III LNG fuel tank, the 399-meter-long, 61.3-meter-wide ship has a range of nearly 20,000 nautical miles, and reduces CO2 emissions by about 20% compared with conventional fuel-powered ships. It is expected to be deployed on Mediterranean routes.

Chinese scientists recently provided a new perspective on the origin of the asteroid 2016HO3 -- the target of the country's first asteroid sample-return mission, Tianwen-2, according to the Purple Mountain Observatory of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Based on systematic numerical simulations of dynamics, scientists have discovered that this near-Earth asteroid, about 57 meters in diameter with an extremely short rotation period of about 28 minutes, may not originate from the moon as previously hypothesized, but could potentially come from the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. Published in the journal Research in Astronomy and Astrophysics, these findings will provide important references for the Tianwen-2 mission, whose probe is currently en route to 2016HO3 and is scheduled to rendezvous with it in July 2026.