Light Emitting Diode and Organic Light Emitting Diode technologies are for solid state lighting. Compared to ordinary light bulbs even low power models they are extremely energy efficient. The initial cost of purchase is high, but because of the longevity of the items which can be 10 years or more the overall cost of ownership is lower than ordinary lighting systems too. China is the world’s largest producer of LED and OLED products and the country’s green economic strategy places the technology at the heart of its core offering.

This means that the Chinese government is willing to subsidise the industry to ensure global dominance of the technology. There are three main areas which there is significant financial support available to companies in China, research and development, major equipment purchases and direct product applications. Here’s a bit more detail regarding this:

Research and Development

Nanchang – The provincial government offers 20 million RMB annually in grants towards semi-conductor lighting products.

Shijiazhuang – Is developing a special fund to offer grants of up to 10 million RMB.

Ningbo – Identified LED and OLED technologies in its 11th”5 Year Plan” and is building a fund of 20 million RMB to support local development.

Harbin – is offering capital matching of up to 30% of the value of any local investments in the technology.

Chongqing – has a fund for 10 million RMB towards major infrastructure development and will consider investing in other (unspecified value) projects too.

Major Capital Equipment

Yangzhou – has invested 18 million RMB in two major projects in blue-green and red-yellow LED production, to bring local equipment to tier 1 international standards.

Jiangmen – is offering support to manufacturers who agree to purchase a minimum of 5 MOCVD (Metal-Organic Chemical Vapour Disposition) for the production of LED epitaxial wafers.

Wuhu – is also offering 18 million RMB for those willing to invest in MOCVD technologies.

Product Application

Guangdong – is offering subsidies of up to 50% of purchase price for buildings to change their lighting to LED/OLED.

Shenzhen – will give 10% of the price of equipment over the first 3 years or a full 30% for any building that agrees to become a demonstration site to show the efficiency of the lighting.

Wuhan – has 20 million RMB annually for 3 years to support changeover for businesses, government offices, etc.

Dongguan – is running a scheme similar to Shenzhen.

Xiamen – will invest 80 million RMB in changing over to LED on all major roads, and will purchase 10,000 units for use in government buildings too.

What does this all mean?

It means that for those interested in developing a key position in the LED trade, now could be a great time to forge partnerships with Chinese owned companies which qualify for large amounts of market support and great access to show early successful adoption of the technology on a large scale.

What weighs 6.2 tons and is worth more then 3.1 billion dollars? Are your guessing a new high tech battleship or maybe a new stealth fighter? Well it’s a big ball of glow in the dark fluorite.

Yemengzhus, also known as Legendary Luminous Pearls in China, are balls of a rare glow in the dark fluorite.

It is very rare in the mineral kingdom for a specimen of Fluorite to glow in the dark without the aid of an Ultra Violet light. So rare in fact the western geology textbooks still do not recognize this species of fluorite.

This new deposit was first reported in the Chinese press in November 1982. Workers at the Guangdong Provincial Geological Metallurgical and Geological Exploration Company found a deposit of Yemengzhu Fluorite in a Tungsten mine in Guangdong China. The company ground the deposit into a round sphere ( Pearl) and had the Chinese government put an appraisal value on it. In 1983 the Chinese government made public an appraisal valuing this Yemengzhu at 900 million dollars.

What I found interesting about this appraisal report is that the government clearly states their reasons and methods for arriving at the $900,000.000 price tag. They compared the pearl to the very best grade of diamonds. This appraisal can be found on the internet.

Since the first Yemengzhu came to the public eye in 1982 there have been several more pearls made, each one larger then the last and with an even bigger price tag. Here are two well documented cases.

January 15, 2002, the world’s largest Yemengzhu was put on display in Shenzhen its weight was 14.35 kilograms and had a diameter of 21 cm. This pearl was valued at 1.2 billion U.S. dollars.

Oct. 2007: A new world record holder is put on display in Shanghai. Certified by The World Guinness headquarters. The weight of the Yemengzhu is 6.1 tons and is valued at 3.1 billion U.S. dollars For a rock???

I have found documentation on other smaller pearls coming on the market since 1982. They range from the size of an egg to basketball size. The prices are all over the scale from $64,000 up to $108,000,000.

What makes a six ton rock worth more then a small country? There is actually a lot of debate about that in China right now. National pride and traditions are driving the markets. Every kid in China knows the story of The Legendary Luminous Pearl. It is believed that touching a pearl will bring you great prosperity and good luck The belief has spawned a whole multi million dollar industry making and selling man made Yemengzhus for the home.

There’s documentation on the web telling of all the millions that have been made and lost from Yemengzhus. My favorite is one about a Chinese’s Supermarket owner who borrowed 70 million dollars from his stock holders to buy a Yemengzhu to display in his chain of stores. When the company went bankrupt they sold the pearl for only 5 million dollars because the market is now cooling off. The owner is no where to be found by the press.

I hope you find this story as fascinating as I do, I am still looking for more documentation on the internet and hope to write a book about why a stone ball is worth $3.2 billion dollars.

Herbal tea or liangcha as it is called in Chinese is made from medicinal plants with Guangdong liangcha being the most well known in China and throughout Chinese communities around the world.

Liangcha and is known to balance the heat build-up within the body due to the weather or the foods and drinks we consume. It is common sense that when our bodies are too warm or too cold the temperature needs to be brought to balance.

Liangcha eliminates heat build-up from dryness and is particularly beneficial for soar throat. It can be said that the “origins of life is from water, but the origins of health comes from liangcha”.

In addition to reducing heat build-up, liangcha can also be used to improve eyesight, and reduce swelling. There are liangcha’s that also relieve red-eye, headache, dizziness, ringing in the ears, and high blood pressure.

In China one of the most popular liangcha and the one I regularly drink as a teacher who often gets dry throat from speaking is wang lao ji or wong lo kat in Cantonese. I also find it very useful for headaches as well. Wang lao ji is said to be a product that was commercialized and sold by Wang Zebang (nicknamed Wang Ji) from Heshan in Guangdong province in 1828.

Currently sold as a herbal beverage, with the ingredients being, seven different kinds of Chinese herbal plants: “Water, white sugar, mesona, dan hua, Bu Zha ye (Microcos paniculata Linn), Chrysanthemum flowers, jin yin hua (Lonicera japonica Thunb.), Prunella vulgaris, and licorice. (The “Dan hua” does not refer to as eggs, but refers to the Apocynaceae species).

White cloud minnows (Tanichthys albonubes), like all true minnows, are members of the family Cyprinidae, more commonly referred to as the carp family. White clouds are a primarily cold water species native to China. They were first discovered in the 1930s on White Cloud Mountainin the Chinese province of Guangdong Boy Scout leader, Tan. The white cloud minnow’s genius name, Tanichthys, literally translates to Tan’s fish.

Unfortunately White Cloud Mountain’s popularity as a tourist attraction and over fishing for the burgeoning aquarium trade industry of the post World War II era soon led to the demise of native populations in the region. From 1980 through 2001 there was not a single reported sighting of this species. It was feared that the white cloud minnow had been driven into extinction. But in a day and age when man’s encroachment on native habitats threatens the very existence of many species, nature persevered, at least in the case of the white cloud minnow. While these minnows struggled for their very existence atop White Cloud Mountain, additional populations were discovered in isolated regions along the Guangdong coastal areas and in the Quang Ninh province of northeastern Vietnam. In 2007 an established population of this species was found on Hainan Island, an island just south of Guandong province. This discovery indicates that Hainan Island and the Guangdong province were land locked at some point in the distant past. White Cloud minnows are currently listed as an endangered species in their natural habitat by the Chinese Government. All white clouds available for sale in the aquarium industry are commercially raised.

Like all minnows, this is a relatively small species. White clouds only grow to a maximum length of 1.5 inches. These minnows grew to immense popularity in the 1940s and 50s. So much so that they earned the nickname “Poor Man’s Neon Tetra,” because they were much more reasonably priced than their more colorful and expensive counter parts. Even to this day, white cloud minnows are commonly marketed under the label White Cloud Tetras. They are also sold under the names Cardinal fish, Cantonand China Danio despite the fact that they bear no relation to danio breeds.

In their wild habitat, white cloud minnow are genetically identical. Interbreeding of what has become known as the Golden Cloud produced a longer finned variation dubbed the Meteor Minnow. Further genetic manipulation between the two led to the development of the Golden Meteor Minnow. A latter genetic deviation of this species resulted in a minnow devoid of much of the natural pigmentation of the parent species, the Blonde Cloud.

Regardless of genetic variation, white clouds are and extremely hardy fish. They make an excellent choice for first time aquarium owners. Their ability to prosper in a multitude of environmental conditions makes them the ideal starter fish for cycling new aquariums. These minnow are a cold water species by nature. Although they can survive in temperatures as low as 41°F, they thrive in the 64-72 °F range. This makes them the ideal candidate for unheated aquariums and common fish bowls. Despite their cold water nature, these minnow can easily endure the slightly higher water temperatures of a standard tropical aquarium community tank. A pH level anywhere between 6.0 and 8.0 is perfectly acceptable. White clouds have an average lifespan of 3-5 years in captivity.

This species works well in a community aquarium provided they are house with even tempered tank mates of similar size. It should be noted that white clouds are schooling fish. They will best adapt to their new environment if introduced in groups of no less than five. When kept as a single species specimen it is common for this minnow to become very timid in nature. The needless stress of a solitary existence will often result in a noticeable reduction of brightness in the color palette. In an aquarium setting, these minnows are top to mid-level swimmers. They rarely venture to the bottom of an aquarium.

In nature, white clouds are carnivores. Their diet consists of small insects, worms and crustaceans. In captivity this species will readily accept standard garden variety fish fare. However high protein supplements will help maintain their general health, coloration and insure longevity.

Males are typically thinner than females. In specimens where natural color pigment has not been bred out, the red coloration is more vibrant in males.

Breeding White Cloud Minnows

This species will reach sexual maturity anywhere between 6 to 12 months. Adult males will typically flare their fins and engage in a ritual courtship mating dance to attract the females’ attention. It is common for males to attempt to out perform each other in the pursuit of a female during the mating cycle. Prior to breeding males will often nip at one another but this display of aggression rarely manifests into a full out skirmish.

Spawning is best suited for a breeding tank to protect unborn eggs and newly hatched fry from possible predation. A breeding tank as small as 5 gallons will suffice. You can select a single mature pair if you wish. However since male aggression is of no serious consequence, you can place two or three males in the breeding tank with an equal or greater number of females and let nature take its course.

A pH balance of 6.5-7.5 with a temperature range between 68-75 °F is conducive to initiating the breeding cycle. You should also provide an adequate supply of java mass as a spawning medium.

Females will lay as few as a dozen or as many as couple hundred eggs during spawning. The eggs will hatch in approximately two days. White cloud minnow are not noted for eating their eggs or hatchlings. Some may be eaten but many will survive. Therefore, removing the adults from the breeding tank after spawning is purely discretionary.

Within a few days the fry will become free swimming. Newly hatched fry can be fed infusuria or luqifry. Within a week their diet can be switched over to baby brine shrimp or finely crushed fish flakes. The fry will grow to within 1/2 inch in the first three months and will reach full adult size within a year.

The Unfavorable Factors Now Facing Shoe Industry in China

More Cost for Labors

The Uprising in RMB

Raw Material Price Keeping Rising

Foreign Anti-dumping Charges

America Sub-prime Mortgage

The “Red Sea” Competition Within Shoe Manufacturers Themselves

Shoe Export Slows Down

Guangdong, a province in south China, exported 490 million pairs of shoes in January and February 2008, valued at USD 1.59 billion, decreasing 27.5% and 0.6% from one year before, citing customs statistics.

From September 2007, Guangdong’s export of shoes began to fall, 18.5% year on year in November of the year and 20.3% and 35.7% in January and February 2008. Besides, in the first two months, the number of shoes exporters in the delta decreased 1,855 year on year to 1,512, due to a rising renminbi, the US’ subprime mortgage crisis and a rise in China’s labor cost.

China has 40,000 shoe manufacturing plants with annual output of 6.5 billion pairs, accounting for 20 percent of the world’s total. However, 85 percent of them are middle and low-end products. Experts suggest that China’s shoe industry development should base itself on fashion culture and advanced management concepts, transforming the industrial strategy from simple manufacturing to brand promotion.Half of the country’s shoe output originates in south China’s Guangdong province, but most shoe factories there are small in scale and use simple manufacturing processes without much added value.

Four Manufacturer Bases of Footwear Industry in China

Guangdong Province

Many factories Close-downs is the must paid price for the industry transformation

Jingjiang City in Fujian Provice

Who will laugh at last? The “red sea” competition condition for the sports shoe in Olympic 2008 is getting more and more fierce.

Jiangsu Province

Brand cultivating and promotion is the core

Making technological innovations and taking the lead with technologies

In recent years, the footwear industry in Jinjiang has been paying attention to making more investment in technology improvement and encouraging innovations in terms of new technologies, new materials and new craftworks. Nevertheless, the footwear industry in Jinjiang just takes the lead in terms of manufacturing equipments but the level of technological innovation remains low, the research and development is still rather weak, there still lack high-end talents and relevant software and hardware, there is no sufficient production capacity of top-grade products, and it still lags far behind the international advanced level as far as studies on new products in terms of comforts and functions are concerned.

2008 Dongguan China Shoes – China Shoetec

This UFI approved event is widely supported by footwear industry. China Chamber of Commerce for I/E of Light Industrial Products and Art-Crafts(CCCLA), Hong Kong Footwear Association, Taiwan Footwear Manufacturers Association, Dongguan Leather & Footwear Association have confirmed to organize exhibiting pavilions in Spring 2008, and will bring in brand new exhibitors, allowing footwear manufacturers and traders enjoy the rewards that China Shoes âEUR¢ China Shoetec will bring. At the same time, overseas buyers express great interests to visit the exhibition and show gratitude to the organizers for providing suppliers with good quality sources. It is expected that the show will attract around 25,000 domestic and overseas buyers.

E-business Web Choice – Finding Authentic Shoe Suppliers in China

If you happen to be a buyer, looking for appropriate China Supplier partners. Would you like to get comprehensive information, such as company business registration condition, actual production, trade, R & D abilities and quality management system, of potential partners quickly? Do you hope that this information is from an impartial authoritative organization like SGS? If you are looking for such suppliers and need such important business information, please choose Made-in-China.com. It has already become a leading B2B portal especially in assisting global buyers and Chinese manufacturers to make contact and conduct international trade.

The influence of Beijing 2008 Olympic Games to science and technology content of sports shoes product. Nowadays the current of product with the same quality is more and more serious, who can keep ahead of technology and make out larruping and suitable product for customers, who will be favorite. Besides, sport shoes manufactures need improve professional capability, at the same time enclose with athletic sports requirement, via reduce cost to supply bargain gym shoes product for person.

Compared with burgeoning markets such as Vietnam and India, experts said China still has advantages in terms of cheap power and water supply, excellent infrastructure and an integrated industry.