Erinome: Hello dear friends! Welcome to our daily news roundup. I'm Erinome, and sitting next to me is Enceladus. Let's go through today's top stories, shall we?
Enceladus: Yeah, let's start! First up, any big event news from China?
Erinome: Oh, the 2026 CCTV Spring Festival Gala theme is out! The theme is "Qíjì Chíchěng, Shì Bù Kě Dǎng" – which means "Steeds galloping, unstoppable momentum". Sounds strong, right?
Enceladus: Wow, Spring Festival Gala is always a big deal. I can't wait to see what they prepare with that theme!
Erinome: Next, from the National Bureau of Statistics: In November, the national consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.7% year-on-year. The涨幅 (increase) is 0.5 percentage points higher than last month, and it's the highest since March 2024.
Enceladus: 0.7%! So prices are going up a bit more now?
Erinome: Maybe! Then, housing market news: Data shows that in the first 11 months of this year, the four first-tier cities – Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen – sold 519,000 second-hand houses. That's a 4-year high!
Enceladus: Oh, 519,000! That's a lot of second-hand homes. So the market is really active this year?
Erinome: Seems like it! Now, family support policies. Jingmen city in Hubei province announced: Starting next year, IVF (in vitro fertilization) will get a maximum subsidy of 10,000 yuan. And Shanghai公布 (announced) its childcare subsidy plan: Each child will get 3,600 yuan per year, following national standards.
Enceladus: Oh, that's helpful for families! 10,000 yuan for IVF and 3,600 per child yearly – that should ease some pressure, right?
Erinome: Definitely. Then, a school incident in Henan: A school leader asked students to vote for his child in a competition. The school responded: He was removed from his post and ordered to apologize to the students and teachers involved.
Enceladus: Oh no! That's not fair to the students. Good that the school took action quickly.
Erinome: Next, Disney fans listen up! Shanghai Disneyland said starting January 12 next year, they'll use a tiered refund policy. If you apply for a refund 7 days before your visit, you get all your money back.
Enceladus: That's better! So if plans change, you don't lose money. Nice for visitors.
Erinome: Sports news now! The Chinese Football Association confirmed: Hangzhou will host the 2027 AFC U20 Asian Cup final stage.
Enceladus: Wow, U20 Asian Cup in Hangzhou! Young footballers will play there – exciting!
Erinome: Now international news: The Thailand-Cambodia border conflict is on its fourth day. Fighting continues, and over 500,000 border residents have left their homes. Also, Cambodia said it will quit the 33rd Southeast Asian Games, which is being held in Thailand.
Enceladus: Oh no, that's sad. So many people had to leave, and now the games too... Hope the conflict stops soon.
Erinome: Then, Trump said he will call again to try to mediate the conflict. But Thailand回应 (responded): Talks should start between the two sides, not led by a third party.
Enceladus: So Thailand wants to talk directly with Cambodia, not through others. Makes sense.
Erinome: Next, Japan news: Japanese media say Japan has officially left a big nuclear power plant project in Vietnam. The reason? The construction time is too tight.
Enceladus: Oh, the project was too rushed, so Japan pulled out? That's a big decision.
Erinome: Finally, US visa news: American media report the US has revoked 85,000 visas this year. Over 8,000 are student visas, and the number is double last year's.
Enceladus: 85,000 revoked! That's a lot, especially student visas. Wonder why so many more this year.
Erinome: Okay, that's all the news for today. Thanks for joining us!
Enceladus: Yeah, see you next time, dear friends! Bye!
Erinome: Bye!
