China Should Stimulate Bilateral Good Trades to Cope with the Challenge between China and Germany

In recent years,ChinaGermany relations have become increasingly close.2017 marks the 45th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Germany.N o w Germany is the fifth largest trade partner of China around the world,and the largest one in Europe,while China has topped the United States and

Being a Jack of All Trades or Good at One Thing

The Double Take column looks at a single topic from an African and Chinese perspective. This month we discuss the pros and cons of being a generalist or specialist.I was born in Yangzhou, Jiangsu Province, in 1956, and when I started working in the 1970s,being a jack of all trades was not an option.

Variation of Chlorophyll Fluorescence in Leaf Color Mutant of Wandering Jew(Tradescantia fuminensis)Induced by Heavy Ions Irradiation

The thermo-sensitive leaf color mutant of Wandering jew(Tradescantiafiumiensis)was obtained by heavy ion irradiation at HIRFL.The young leaves of this mutant are pink under low-temperature conditions,and the turn back to green under high-temperature conditions.

Blockchain-Enabled Privacy Protection and Access Control Scheme Towards Sensitive Digital Assets Management

With the growth of requirements for data sharing,a novel business model of digital assets trading has emerged that allows data owners to sell their data for monetary gain.In the distributed ledger of blockchain,however,the privacy of stakeholder's identity and the confidentiality of data content are threatened.Therefore,we proposed a blockchainenabled privacy-preserving and access control scheme to address the above problems.First,the multi-channel mechanism is introduced to provide the privacy protection of distributed ledger inside the channel and achieve coarse-grained access control to digital assets.Then,we use multi-authority attribute-based encryption(MAABE)algorithm to build a fine-grained access control model for data trading in a single channel and describe its instantiation in detail.Security analysis shows that the scheme has IND-CPA secure and can provide privacy protection and collusion resistance.Compared with other schemes,our solution has better performance in privacy protection and access control.The evaluation results demonstrate its effectiveness and practicability.

Temporal and spatial evolution of global major grain trade patterns

The complex and volatile international landscape has significantly impacted global grain supply security. This study uses a complex network analysis model to examine the evolution and trends of the global major grain trade from 1990 to 2020, focusing on network topology, centrality ranking, and community structure. There are three major findings. First, the global major grain trade network has expanded in scale, with a growing emphasis on diversification and balance. During the study period, the United States, Canada, China, and Brazil were the core nodes of the network. Grain-exporting countries were mainly situated in Asia, the Americas, and Europe, and importing countries in Asia, Africa, and Europe. Second, a significant increase in the number of high centrality countries with high export capacity occurred, benefiting from natural advantages such as fertile land and favorable climates. Third, the main global grain trade network is divided into four communities, with the Americas-Europe community being the largest and most widespread. The formation of the community pattern was influenced by geographic proximity, driven by the core exporting countries. Therefore, the world needs to enhance the existing trade model, promote the multi-polarization of the grain trade network, and establish a global vision for the future community. Countries and regions should participate actively in global grain trade security governance and institutional reform, expand trade links with other countries, and optimize import and export policies to reduce trade risks.

Electricity Carbon Quota Trading Scheme based on Certificateless Signature and Blockchain

The carbon tradingmarket can promote“carbon peaking”and“carbon neutrality”at low cost,but carbon emission quotas face attacks such as data forgery,tampering,counterfeiting,and replay in the electricity trading market.Certificateless signatures are a new cryptographic technology that can address traditional cryptography’s general essential certificate requirements and avoid the problem of crucial escrowbased on identity cryptography.However,most certificateless signatures still suffer fromvarious security flaws.We present a secure and efficient certificateless signing scheme by examining the security of existing certificateless signature schemes.To ensure the integrity and verifiability of electricity carbon quota trading,we propose an electricity carbon quota trading scheme based on a certificateless signature and blockchain.Our scheme utilizes certificateless signatures to ensure the validity and nonrepudiation of transactions and adopts blockchain technology to achieve immutability and traceability in electricity carbon quota transactions.In addition,validating electricity carbon quota transactions does not require time-consuming bilinear pairing operations.The results of the analysis indicate that our scheme meets existential unforgeability under adaptive selective message attacks,offers conditional identity privacy protection,resists replay attacks,and demonstrates high computing and communication performance.

Unleashing the Power of Multi-Agent Reinforcement Learning for Algorithmic Trading in the Digital Financial Frontier and Enterprise Information Systems

In the rapidly evolving landscape of today’s digital economy,Financial Technology(Fintech)emerges as a trans-formative force,propelled by the dynamic synergy between Artificial Intelligence(AI)and Algorithmic Trading.Our in-depth investigation delves into the intricacies of merging Multi-Agent Reinforcement Learning(MARL)and Explainable AI(XAI)within Fintech,aiming to refine Algorithmic Trading strategies.Through meticulous examination,we uncover the nuanced interactions of AI-driven agents as they collaborate and compete within the financial realm,employing sophisticated deep learning techniques to enhance the clarity and adaptability of trading decisions.These AI-infused Fintech platforms harness collective intelligence to unearth trends,mitigate risks,and provide tailored financial guidance,fostering benefits for individuals and enterprises navigating the digital landscape.Our research holds the potential to revolutionize finance,opening doors to fresh avenues for investment and asset management in the digital age.Additionally,our statistical evaluation yields encouraging results,with metrics such as Accuracy=0.85,Precision=0.88,and F1 Score=0.86,reaffirming the efficacy of our approach within Fintech and emphasizing its reliability and innovative prowess.

An Energy Trading Method Based on Alliance Blockchain and Multi-Signature

Blockchain,known for its secure encrypted ledger,has garnered attention in financial and data transfer realms,including the field of energy trading.However,the decentralized nature and identity anonymity of user nodes raise uncertainties in energy transactions.The broadcast consensus authentication slows transaction speeds,and frequent single-point transactions in multi-node settings pose key exposure risks without protective measures during user signing.To address these,an alliance blockchain scheme is proposed,reducing the resource-intensive identity verification among nodes.It integrates multi-signature functionality to fortify user resources and transac-tion security.A novel multi-signature process within this framework involves neutral nodes established through central nodes.These neutral nodes participate in multi-signature’s signing and verification,ensuring user identity and transaction content privacy.Reducing interactions among user nodes enhances transaction efficiency by minimizing communication overhead during verification and consensus stages.Rigorous assessments on reliability and operational speed highlight superior security performance,resilient against conventional attack vectors.Simulation shows that compared to traditional solutions,this scheme has advantages in terms of running speed.In conclusion,the alliance blockchain framework introduces a novel approach to tackle blockchain’s limitations in energy transactions.The integrated multi-signature process,involving neutral nodes,significantly enhances security and privacy.The scheme’s efficiency,validated through analytical assessments and simulations,indicates robustness against security threats and improved transactional speeds.This research underscores the potential for improved security and efficiency in blockchain-enabled energy trading systems.

Spatial Heterogeneity of Embedded Water Consumption from the Perspective of Virtual Water Surplus and Deficit in the Yellow River Basin,China

Virtual water trade(VWT)provides a new perspective for alleviating water crisis and has thus attracted widespread attention.However,the heterogeneity of virtual water trade inside and outside the river basin and its influencing factors remains further study.In this study,for better investigating the pattern and heterogeneity of virtual water trade inside and outside provincial regions along the Yellow River Basin in 2015 using the input-output model(MRIO),we proposed two new concepts,i.e.,virtual water surplus and virtual water deficit,and then used the Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index(LMDI)model to identify the inherent mechanism of the imbalance of virtual water trade between provincial regions along the Yellow River Basin and the other four regions in China.The results show that:1)in provincial regions along the Yellow River Basin,the less developed the economy was,the larger the contribution of the agricultural sector in virtual water trade,while the smaller the contribution of the industrial sector.2)Due to the large output of agricultural products,the upstream and midstream provincial regions of the Yellow River Basin had a virtual water surplus,with a net outflow of virtual water of 2.7×10^(8) m^(3) and 0.9×10^(8) m^(3),respectively.3)provincial regions along the Yellow River Basin were in a virtual water deficit with the rest of China,and the decisive factor was the active degree of trade with the outside.This study would be beneficial to illuminate the trade-related water use issues in provincial regions along the Yellow River Basin,which has farreaching practical signific-ance for alleviating water scarcity.

“China Shock”or China Dividend?-China GVC Participation’s Effects on Trading Partners’Technological Progress

This paper explores the effects of China’s global value chain(GVC)participation on technological progress in trading-partner countries based on estimated data on value-added trade between China and 52 trading partners.We find that,first,although China’s exports lowered the total factor productivity(TFP)of its trading partners(competitive effect),its imports greatly increased trading partners’TFP(effect of scale).This implies that China’s GVC participation is beneficial to its trading partners’technological progress in the form of a considerable technology dividend effect.Second,China’s export dividend effect compensates for the negative effect of Chinese competition on trading partners’technological progress;the innovation effects attributable to China’s imports reinforce the positive effects of scale on technological progress.When innovation is factored in,the China dividend thus becomes further reinforced.Third,China’s merchandise imports have a diminishing positive effect on technological progress in trading partners as geographical distance increases,but trade in services transcends geographical boundaries,and the positive technological progress effect of China’s service imports do not diminish as distance increases.We find that the“China dividend”from China’s GVC participation is a significant contributor to technological progress in partner nations,and China’s imports are conducive to innovation and technological progress in developed countries in the long run.

Impact of BRICS Trade Facilitation on China's Exports Using Cross-Border E-Commerce

With the rapid growth of the global digital economy, cross-border e-commerce, as an emerging form of trade, has gradually become a powerful engine to promote the development of global trade. BRICS is an important force in the global economy, and the progress of the BRICS countries' trade facilitation level has an important impact on the global trade environment. This paper conducts an in-depth study of the dynamic changes in BRICS trade facilitation from 2013 to 2022, and uses an extended gravity model to analyze the specific impact of this change on China's exports using cross-border e-commerce. The results show that although the BRICS countries have made some progress in trade facilitation, the overall level still needs to be improved, and there are obvious differences among member countries. However, the improvement of trade facilitation among BRICS countries has undoubtedly brought significant positive effects to China's exports using cross-border e-commerce.

Optimal Operation Strategy of Electricity-Hydrogen Regional Energy System under Carbon-Electricity Market Trading

Given the“double carbon”objective and the drive toward low-carbon power,investigating the integration and interaction within the carbon-electricity market can enhance renewable energy utilization and facilitate energy conservation and emission reduction endeavors.However,further research is necessary to explore operational optimization methods for establishing a regional energy system using Power-to-Hydrogen(P2H)technology,focusing on participating in combined carbon-electricity market transactions.This study introduces an innovative Electro-Hydrogen Regional Energy System(EHRES)in this context.This system integrates renewable energy sources,a P2H system,cogeneration units,and energy storage devices.The core purpose of this integration is to optimize renewable energy utilization and minimize carbon emissions.This study aims to formulate an optimal operational strategy for EHRES,enabling its dynamic engagement in carbon-electricity market transactions.The initial phase entails establishing the technological framework of the electricity-hydrogen coupling system integrated with P2H.Subsequently,an analysis is conducted to examine the operational mode of EHRES as it participates in carbon-electricity market transactions.Additionally,the system scheduling model includes a stepped carbon trading price mechanism,considering the combined heat and power generation characteristics of the Hydrogen Fuel Cell(HFC).This facilitates the establishment of an optimal operational model for EHRES,aiming to minimize the overall operating cost.The simulation example illustrates that the coordinated operation of EHRES in carbon-electricity market transactions holds the potential to improve renewable energy utilization and reduce the overall system cost.This result carries significant implications for attaining advantages in both low-carbon and economic aspects.

Construction of BDS Spatiotemporal Information Agricultural Product Digital Credit System

Spatiotemporal information,positioning and navigation services have become important elements of new type infrastructure.The rapid development of global digital trade provides a large-scale application scenario for the use of Beidou Navigation Satellite System(BDS)spatiotemporal information to support the certification of origin of agricultural products.The BDS spatiotemporal information agricultural product digital credit system uses such modules as BDS,spatiotemporal information collection,spatiotemporal coding,and spatiotemporal blockchain.It incorporates multi-level joint supervision mechanisms such as government,associations,and users.Starting from the initial production link of agricultural products,it realizes the correspondence and locking of online and offline products,effectively improves the integrity and credibility of information in the production process,finished product quality and circulation process of products,effectively manages the green production and anti-channel conflicts of producers,and provides credible information for consumers,thus realizing the digital credit certification of products.The successful practice of characteristic agricultural products in Yunnan Province has verified the application ability of the BDS spatiotemporal information agricultural product digital credit system.This system has played a significant role in promoting the online and offline locking,credible information,effective supervision and high quality and high price of characteristic agricultural products from the field.The BDS provides services for global digital trade and contributes to the further enhancement of the global application scale of GNSS.

World Trade Organization Reform and the Role of the Global South

Under the impact of unilateralism and protectionism,trade disputes among countries have increased in recent years,bringing uncertainty to global trade and jeopardizing the multilateral trading system.The World Trade Organization(WTO)plays a crucial role in the development of the global economy and trade.It also plays a key role in maintaining a fair,open and sustainable international trade environment,and provides a solid foundation for the development of global economy and trade.As the Global South has played an important role in promoting WTO reform and safeguarding the rights and interests of developing countries,it’s important to further strengthen its solidarity,actively participate in the reform of the global trade governance system and promote the building of a more open,fair and balanced global trade environment.

The Tenth Anniversary of Free Trade Pilot Zones in China:Fundamental Experiences and Enhancement Strategies

Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China,the country has established 21 Free Trade Pilot Zones(FTZs),achieving significant pioneering results in reform and opening up and creating a strong demonstrative effect nationwide.The basic experience from a decade of FTZs includes:adhering to the centralized and unified leadership of the CPC Central Committee;combining top-level design with encouragement of grassroots innovation;leveraging the distinct characteristics and strengths of FTZs to form a differentiated development pattern;maintaining the integration of opening up with domestic reforms;using openness to drive reforms;and organically combining openness with national security assurance.Under the current and future new circumstances,China’s FTZs face new challenges and tasks.In accordance with the directives of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China,an enhancement strategy for the FTZs needs to be implemented.This involves the following:First,accurately understanding and responding to the changing situation to create strategic opportunities.Second,shifting paradigms to implement innovation-driven strategies,using the new development pattern concept to guide the reform experiments and construction of the FTZs.Third,granting more autonomy to FTZs for reforms,pursuing progress while maintaining stability,and solidly advancing the reform experiments in the FTZs.Fourth,orderly expanding the opening up of the service sector and cautiously advancing the internationalization of the renminbi.Fifth,promoting innovative development in trade to build a strong trade nation.Sixth,establishing synergy with bilateral FTZs,Belt and Road cooperation,and national diplomatic strategies to enhance the linkage effect.

Blue Carbon,Big Potential

Besides becoming a key player in emission mitigation,China is now drafting domestic standards to boost carbon trading at home and meet its zero carbon goal.ABOUT 55 percent of the carbon absorbed by the global natural ecosystems each year is attributable to marine organisms,who collectively form what is known as the marine carbon sink.

German Überzeugt in China

In this exclusive interview,Michael Schumann,chairman of the Board of the German Federal Association for Economic Development and Foreign Trade,discusses Sino-German trade relations and the“out-of-proportion”debate on Xinjiang.

BRIEFING

CCPIT BRICS Women’s Leadership Forum Was Held On June 11,the 2024 BRICS Women’s Leadership Forum was held in Beijing.Ren Hongbin,Chairman of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade(CCPIT)and the China Chamber of International Commerce(CCOIC),Huang Xiaowei,Vice-President and First Member of the Secretariat of the All-China Women’s Federation(ACWF),and Vice-Chairperson of the National Working Committee on Children and Women under the State Council,Siyabonga Cyprian Cwele,Ambassador of South Africa to China,Assem Hanafi,Ambassador of Egypt to China,Zhao Haiying,Chairperson of the Chinese Chapter of the BRICS Women’s Business Alliance(WBA),and Anna Nesterova,Rotating Chairperson of the BRICS WBA in 2024,attended the opening ceremony and delivered speeches.Yu Jianlong,Vice Chairman of the CCPIT and the CCOIC,presided over the opening ceremony.