"If the brothers are of the same mind, their sharpness can cut through metal."

Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, speaking at a meeting with visiting Honorary Chairman of the Kuomintang Lien Chan, on February 25, suggesting the two sides can overcome any difficulty if they work together

"Although the whole industry is still mired in gloom, we still plan to raise workers' salaries by 10 percent this year."

Tian Chengjie, Vice President of Silverman Holdings Ltd., a textile company in Zibo of Shandong Province, speaking to China Daily on February 26. The country's labor force aged between 15 and 59 shrank by 3.5 million last year, forcing many low-cost manufacturers to raise salaries to retain employees

"A lack of transparency and high procurement prices will invite public suspicion."

Tian He, a researcher with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences who led a survey of government procurement prices, on February 25. The study showed that nearly 80 percent of government procurement was purchased at a price much higher than market figures

"Local governments need political incentives and fiscal support if they are to turn the country's 260 million migrants into urban citizens."

Feng Kui, a researcher at the China Center for Urban Development under the National Development and Reform Commission, speaking on February 27