China

财经聚焦丨安全标准修订，对玩具产业影响几何？

Xinhua | Local Language | News | Nov. 21, 2025 | Regulation

The revised mandatory national toy safety standards in China will take effect on November 1, 2026, aiming to address new quality and safety risks emerging from the rapid growth and technological advancements in the toy industry. The domestic toy market is expected to exceed 100 billion yuan in retail sales by 2025, bolstered by increased variety, improved quality, and brand creation as urged under the 14th Five-Year Plan.

The updated standards expand technical requirements and tests, incorporating limits for 10 new harmful chemical substances, including formaldehyde and volatile organic compounds, to prevent health damage from toys. Mechanical and physical safety requirements now cover new product types, such as toys with open flame devices and food-shaped designs. Fire safety measures have also been enhanced, including flammability standards for headwear toys and children’s play tents.

The transition to the new standards includes a 12-month production adjustment period followed by a 12-month sales transition period. Leading companies like Aofei Entertainment have proactively modified their production lines and supply chains, investing substantial resources to comply. The revisions align mainly with international standards, facilitating domestic and international market access.

In parallel, regulatory authorities have intensified supervision, conducting tens of thousands of inspections and enforcing corrective actions against non-compliant enterprises. A three-year joint government action aims to improve safety in children’s products by 2027 through strengthened supervision and social co-governance involving companies, platforms, and consumers. The new standards are expected to contribute to a safer, more innovative, and higher-quality development phase for China’s toy industry during the 15th Five-Year Plan period.

Xinhua | English | News | Nov. 21, 2025 | Shifting Geopolitical Alliances

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Kyrgyz Foreign Minister Jeenbek Kulubaev held their first strategic dialogue in Bishkek on November 19, 2025. Wang highlighted that the dialogue mechanism reflects the consensus between their heads of state and aims to strengthen strategic trust, coordination, and cooperation between China and Kyrgyzstan. He emphasized building a China-Kyrgyzstan community with shared interests of good-neighborliness, friendship, and common prosperity. Wang also expressed China's support for Kyrgyzstan's rotating chairmanship of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and its readiness to deepen collaboration on international affairs.

Kulubaev reaffirmed Kyrgyzstan’s adherence to the one-China principle and its commitment to advancing Belt and Road cooperation. He outlined plans to enhance cooperation in trade, investment, agriculture, mining, connectivity, and the accelerated construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway. Kulubaev also emphasized strengthening people-to-people and cultural exchanges, coordinating within the UN on global initiatives proposed by China, and promoting development within the China-Central Asia mechanism.

Following the dialogue, the two countries signed a joint statement on the outcomes and a cooperation program for 2026-2027 between their foreign ministries.

China Daily | English | News | Nov. 21, 2025 | Supply Chain Issues

China-Europe freight trains operating through the China-SCO Local Economic and Trade Cooperation Demonstration Area (SCODA) in Qingdao, Shandong province, have reached record levels in 2025. In the first ten months, 1,042 trains operated, a 13.8 percent year-on-year increase that surpassed the total for the previous year. The SCODA hub expanded its multimodal transport links and overseas consolidation centers, launching 32 routes to 54 cities across 23 countries within the SCO and Belt and Road networks, connecting regions including Japan, South Korea, Eurasia, Mongolia, Russia, and ASEAN.

The zone supports specialized and tailored freight services for sectors such as home appliances, tires, finished vehicles, and grain, benefiting over 7,000 exporters and aligning with Shandong's industrial strengths. It has developed an international logistics corridor facilitating flows eastward, westward, southward, and northward, with a focus on enhancing cargo aggregation, overseas warehouses, and innovative transport models like "trains + cross-border e-commerce" and "trains + cold chain."

Recent shipments, such as an 86-container freight train from Kazakhstan, demonstrate the hub's efficient multimodal transfer and 20-day end-to-end delivery. SCODA has established overseas consolidation centers in key locations including Belgrade, Almaty, Moscow, and Vientiane to optimize costs and logistics. The Moscow center, for example, supports round-trip services linking Russian cities and Belarus, aiding production and reducing expenditures.

The Qingdao hub is part of a newly approved national China-Europe assembly center project, featuring six integrated platforms covering train operations, cross-border e-commerce, supply-chain finance, commodity futures delivery, grain supervision, and cold-chain logistics. This cluster is designed to enhance regional cooperation under the SCO, with local authorities emphasizing trade growth and quality improvements.

Entrepreneurs like Lu Junlin report significantly reduced transit times and streamlined customs procedures, facilitating quicker access to markets such as Russia. These developments reinforce Qingdao’s role as a critical logistics node in China’s broader strategy to deepen cooperation and expand trade via the Belt and Road Initiative.