Sino-US trade

China on Monday lashed out at U.S. “economic intimidation*” following U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement of new import tariffs, but said it was open to negotiations to resolve trade frictions.

Vice President Mike Pence boasted the tariffs mean that the “era of economic surrender is over.” Asked about the remarks, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chun-ying told a press briefing on Monday that “it would have been more appropriate to say that it’s time to stop the U.S. economic intimidation and hegemony*.”

College entrance exam

The Ministry of Education has issued an announcement on the country’s annual national college entrance examination, commonly known as gaokao, to further promote educational equality.

Starting from this year’s gaokao, sports, math and science competition winners nationwide will no longer get bonus points added to their gaokao results, the ministry said. The ministry also canceled extra points for those who are named “provincial-level outstanding students” or those recognized for excellent moral performance. The ministry said it would raise enrollment quotas for students from less developed central and western parts of the country and those from populous provinces.

Overseas campus

Peking University officially opened its first overseas campus just outside Oxford on Sunday.

The opening ceremony at Boars Hill, Oxfordshire, was attended by 400 scholars, students, and representatives from China and the United Kingdom. Founded in 1898, Peking University was originally known as the Imperial University of Peking before it adopted its present name in 1912.

Jail term

Wu Ying, a former business tycoon, had her suspended death sentence reduced to 25 years in prison at a local court in Zhejiang Province on Friday.

Wu, previously the owner of Zhejiang-based Bense Holding Group and once one of China’s richest women, was sentenced to death in 2009 for illegal fundraising. (SD-Agencies)