GIANT VESSEL: Hebei Qinhuangdao, the biggest cargo vessel made in north China's Hebei Province, with a length of 235 meters and a width of 38 meters, goes into service on May 30 (YANG SHIYAO)

Extended Insurance

Foreign employees with work permits will be able to enjoy the same social insurance benefits as Chinese nationals after China's Social Insurance Law takes effect on July 1, said the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security.

There were about 231,700 foreigners with work permits in China at the end of 2010. Most of them were covered with only work injury and basic medical insurances, said Xu Yanjun, Deputy Director of the ministry's Social Security Center.

The new law specifies all workers have the right to five forms of insurance: basic endowment insurance, basic medical insurance, work injury insurance, unemployment insurance and maternity insurance.

Lawmaking Response

China's top legislature received more than 230,000 public submissions on the draft amendment to the Personal Income Tax up until May 31.

The number broke the previous record set by the draft Labor Contract Law, which was subject to a month-long public feedback in 2006.

The draft amendment, which proposes to increase the minimum threshold for personal income tax from 2,000 yuan ($308) per month to 3,000 yuan ($462), is seen as one of the latest efforts to achieve fairer income distribution.

Toy Quality

China has no double standards on toy quality and is implementing international standards, said the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (GAQSIQ) on May 31.

The administration made the remarks in response to concerns about the potentially harmful chemical Di (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), a plasticizer that has been linked to health hazards including liver and kidney damage.

Toy manufacturing standards in China are compulsory and conform to the ISO 8124 toy safety standards in mechanical functions, combustion and migrant chemicals—mainly soluble heavy metals, said Zhang Yanfen, head of the National Technical Committee of Standardization for Toys.

China has limits on eight migrant chemicals in toys, which is the same as ISO, U.S. and EU standards, the GAQSIQ said.

Geoinformation Service

China has launched a geographic information database in hopes of assisting post-disaster rescue work in southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region.

The database, which took three years to build, will provide detailed and accurate geographical information for rescue operations after major disasters such as earthquakes, mudslides, fire and road accidents, said the State Bureau of Surveying and Mapping.

The database will provide quick post-disaster assistance such as locating the disaster and analyzing data.

The bureau said the database is vital to disaster relief work in Tibet, which is prone to natural disasters due to its fragile geologic conditions.