Rural compulsory education becomes tuition-free nationwide

China completed a major banking-services transition under its WTO accession commitments, allowing foreign banks broader access to local-currency business. The opening expanded competition and...

The law defined protections for state, collective and private property and became effective in 2007. It sought predictable property relations in a market economy, but did not privatize rural land;...

The law set a unified corporate income-tax framework, replacing separate preferential regimes over a transition period. It reduced one formal distinction between domestic and foreign firms while...

The law sought to formalize employment contracts and strengthen worker protections after years of flexible hiring and restructuring. Employers and workers contested its scope; legal protections...

The law established rules against monopolistic conduct and administrative barriers, and created a framework for competition policy. It applied to market actors within a state-led economy where state...

The congress emphasized balanced development and a more “people-centered” growth model. It signaled recognition of regional and social costs without reversing export- and investment-led growth or...

The new 25 percent standard rate applied to domestic and foreign-funded enterprises, with transitional treatment for some existing incentives. The reform standardized formal rules but altered the...

The law required written contracts and set rules for termination, severance and open-ended employment. It offered a legal tool for workers, but protections were unevenly enforced and migrant and...

The earthquake devastated communities and infrastructure, leading to a large state-directed reconstruction program. Recovery mobilized public resources but also raised questions about relocation,...

By mid-2008 the subsidized rural health program covered all provincial-level regions. Broader enrollment improved access to reimbursement, but financing levels and medical services still differed...