JUICY FRUITS: A farmer picks blueberries in Majiang County, Guizhou Province, on July 22. The plantation of blueberries has become a pillar industry in the county, with its output value reaching 120 million yuan ($19.38 million) in 2013 (TAO LIANG)

Turbine Engine Deal

The Aviation Industry Corp. of China (AVIC) and French plane maker Safran have announced they will set up a joint venture in China to make turbine engines.

The two companies signed a memorandum on July 23 stipulating that each side will have a 50-percent stake. They will research, design and make core components for turbine engines employed in civilian aircraft.

AVIC and Safran expect to sign a framework agreement during the 10th China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition in Beijing in November.

Details of the agreement have not yet been unveiled.

Lin Zuoming, Board Chairman of AVIC, hailed the tie-up as "a breakthrough" in the company's cooperation with Safran.

Marc Ventre, Deputy CEO of Safran, said the agreement will combine both sides' most advanced technology and enable the venture to become a world-class turbine engine components maker.

Collaboration between AVIC and Safran dates back to 2009 when they agreed to make landing gears and brake devices together. They then extended cooperation into other fields through a string of deals.

Global Currency

The Chinese currency renminbi (RMB), or yuan, will become the world's third largest currency after the U.S. dollar and the euro by 2020, according to a newly released study.

A report by the International Monetary Institute of Renmin University of China and the Bank of Communications, published on July 20, said the RMB internationalization index had risen to 1.69 by the end of 2013 from 0.92 in 2012.

The main impetuses for the RMB internationalization come from cross-border trade settlement and direct investment, according to the report.

In 2013, China's cross-border RMB trade settlement hit 4.63 trillion yuan ($748 billion), up 57.5 percent year on year, and RMB direct investment totaled 534 billion yuan ($86 billion), up 90 percent year on year.

The institute and the bank have been jointly issuing RMB internationalization reports annually since 2012.

Auto Policy

On July 21, the State Council, China's cabinet, issued a guideline to promote new-energy vehicles, which highlights the construction of charging facilities and the elimination of regional protectionism.

The guideline called for layouts of charging facilities to be mapped and technological standards to be established, as well as stating non-governmental funds should be encouraged to participate in the construction of such facilities.

Among the 25 specific policies, seven aim to improve charging facilities through urban planning, discounted electricity prices and technological improvements.

Local governments are not allowed to make their own standards on new-energy vehicles and charging facilities, and they are not allowed to put additional requirements on auto producers to impede new-energy vehicles from entering local markets, according to the guideline.

Government agencies will take the lead in using new-energy autos, the guideline said.

New-energy vehicles should make up no less than 30 percent of the total newly purchased vehicles in government departments in the coming two years, according to the guideline.

Consumers will enjoy tax cuts in buying new-energy vehicles from September 1, 2014 to December 31, 2017, it said.