Technology

CGTN: China maps out 2025 economic plans, vows more proactive macro policies

Published

1 year ago

December 13, 2024

BEIJING, Dec. 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — The closely watched Central Economic Work Conference was held in Beijing from Wednesday to Thursday as Chinese leaders decided priorities for the economic work in 2025.

Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, Chinese president and chairman of the Central Military Commission, delivered an important speech at the annual conference.

According to the meeting, despite the “complex and severe situation of growing external pressures and increasing internal difficulties,” China has ensured the overall stability and steady progress of the economy, and the major goals and tasks for economic and social development in 2024 are expected to be accomplished.

It stressed that China must adopt more proactive macro policies, expand domestic demand, and promote the integrated development of scientific and technological innovation and industrial innovation to do a good job in economic work in 2025.

Efforts must also be made to secure the steady development of the real estate and stock markets, guard against and defuse risks and external shocks in key areas, and stabilize expectations and stimulate vitality so as to promote sustained economic recovery, said the meeting.

From fiscal policy to monetary policy

According to the meeting, China will also adopt a “more proactive” fiscal policy, including an increase in the ratio of deficit and in the issuance of ultra-long special treasury bonds and local government special-purpose bonds.

China’s government debt-to-GDP ratio, according to the Ministry of Finance, stood at 67.5 percent at the end of 2023, much lower than the average 118.2 percent among G20 members and 123.4 percent for G7 countries estimated by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). China’s fiscal deficit has long been below 3 percent, significantly lower than other major economies.

With a low government leverage ratio, China’s central budget has room for increased borrowing and deficit expansion, Minister of Finance Lan Fo‘an said in October.

The Central Economic Work Conference said China will adopt a “moderately loose” monetary policy and lower the reserve requirement ratio and interest rates when necessary to ensure adequate liquidity.

It marks the first “prudent” to “moderately loose” transition in the country’s monetary stance since 2011.

Since the beginning of 2024, the People’s Bank of China, the central bank, has cut the reserve requirement ratio twice, by 1 percentage point in total, for financial institutions, releasing approximately 2 trillion yuan (about $274.8 billion) in long-term liquidity.

From domestic demand to opening up

The Central Economic Work Conference listed priorities for economic work in 2025 in nine aspects, from stimulating consumption and developing new quality productive forces to preventing and addressing risks in key areas, consolidating poverty alleviation achievements and boosting green development.

The meeting stressed the need to vigorously boost consumption, improve investment efficiency and expand domestic demand on all fronts.

China remains one of the largest markets in the world. From January to October this year, China’s total retail sales of consumer goods approached 40 trillion yuan, while last year’s total exceeded 47 trillion yuan, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

A national program aimed at promoting consumer goods trade-ins, unveiled in March, has demonstrated the untapped room of China’s domestic demand. Over 30 million participants have been attracted to the program, contributing total sales of over 400 billion yuan.

The two-day meeting also called for more efforts to further promote high-level opening up and secure the steady growth of foreign trade and foreign investment.

“China’s development is open and inclusive,” said Xi while meeting leaders of major international economic organizations, including the IMF, in Beijing on Tuesday, one day before the start of the annual conference.

China will put in place new systems for a higher-standard open economy, provide more opportunities for the development of other countries and share more development benefits with the world, Xi told the leaders at the Great Hall of the People.

Starting December 1, China has granted zero-tariff treatment for 100 percent of tariff lines to all least developed countries with which it has diplomatic relations.

That will help more products from these countries enter the Chinese market, sharing opportunities and boosting development, said Lyu Daliang, an official from China’s General Administration of Customs.

For more information, please click: https://news.cgtn.com/news/2024-12-13/China-maps-out-2025-economic-plans-vows-more-proactive-macro-policies-1zhpqUWwpkA/p.html

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SOURCE CGTN

Technology

Brightstar Lottery Receives Highest MSCI ESG Rating of AAA

Published

20 minutes ago

April 30, 2026

LONDON, April 30, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Brightstar Lottery PLC (NYSE: BRSL) (“Brightstar”) announced that it received the highest MSCI ESG rating of AAA. This rating exemplifies Brightstar’s commitment to global sustainability leadership in managing ESG-related risks and opportunities. Brightstar received a perfect score for carbon emissions and high scores in the product safety and quality category.

“Receiving the MSCI AAA ESG rating in Brightstar’s first year as a pure-play lottery company highlights our commitment to making sustainability practices a priority throughout our business,” said Wendy Montgomery, Brightstar SVP, Branding, Communications and Sustainability. “This rating from MSCI serves as motivation to continue our work building a sustainable future where our people, our partners, and our planet can thrive.”

MSCI ESG Ratings measure a company’s resilience to long-term, industry-specific sustainability risks using a rules-based methodology. MSCI analysts research and rate companies on a ‘AAA’ (leader) to ‘CCC’ (laggard) scale based on their exposure to and management of these risks relative to peers.

MSCI Sustainability and Climate products and services are provided by MSCI Solutions LLC and certain related entities, and are designed to provide in-depth research, ratings and analysis of environmental, social and governance related business practices to companies worldwide. ESG ratings, data and analysis from MSCI Sustainability and Climate are also used in the construction of MSCI Indexes.

Brightstar received its MSCI ESG rating on March 23, 2026.

About Brightstar Lottery PLC
Brightstar Lottery PLC (NYSE: BRSL) is a global leader in lottery focused on innovation and forward-thinking strategies and solutions, building on our renowned expertise in delivering secure technology and producing reliable, comprehensive solutions for our customers. As a premier pure play global lottery company, our best-in-class lottery operations, retail and digital solutions, and award-winning lottery games enable our customers to achieve their goals, entertain players and distribute meaningful benefits to communities. Brightstar has a well-established local presence and is a trusted partner to governments and regulators around the world, creating value by adhering to the highest standards of service, integrity, and responsibility. Brightstar serves nearly 90 lottery customers and their players on six continents. It is the primary technology provider to 26 of the 46 lottery jurisdictions in the U.S. and eight of the world’s 10 largest lotteries. Brightstar has approximately 6,000 employees. For more information, please visit www.brightstarlottery.com or follow along on LinkedIn.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This news release may contain forward-looking statements (including within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995) concerning Brightstar Lottery PLC and its consolidated subsidiaries and other matters. These statements may discuss goals, intentions, and expectations as to future plans, trends, events, products and services, customer relationships, results of operations, or financial condition, or otherwise, including specific sustainability goals, based on current beliefs of the management of the Company as well as assumptions made by, and information currently available to, such management. Forward-looking statements may be accompanied by words such as “aim,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “plan,” “could,” “would,” “should,” “shall,” “continue,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “future,” “guidance,” “intend,” “may,” “will,” “possible,” “potential,” “predict,” “project” or the negative or other variations of them. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which such statements are made and are subject to various risks and uncertainties, many of which are outside the Company’s control. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any of the underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may differ materially from those predicted in the forward-looking statements and from past results, performance, or achievements. Therefore, you should not place undue reliance on such statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements include (but are not limited to) macroeconomic, regulatory and political uncertainty, including as a result of new or increased tariffs, trade wars, and other restrictions on trade between or among countries in which the Company operates, and related changes in discretionary consumer spending and behavior, fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates, and the other factors and risks described in the Company’s most recent annual report on Form 20-F and other documents filed or furnished from time to time with the SEC, which are available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov and on the investor relations section of the Company’s website at www.brightstarlottery.com. Except as required under applicable law, the Company does not assume any obligation to update these forward-looking statements. You should carefully consider these factors and other risks and uncertainties that may affect the Company’s business. All forward-looking statements contained in this news release are qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. All subsequent written or oral forward-looking statements attributable to the Company, or persons acting on its behalf, are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement.

Contact:
Mike DeAngelis, Corporate Communications, +1 (401) 392-1000, mike.deangelis@brightstarlottery.com
Matteo Selva, Italian media inquiries, +39 366 6803635
James Hurley, Investor Relations, +1 (401) 392-7190

The trademarks and/or service marks used herein are either trademarks or registered trademarks of Brightstar Lottery PLC, its affiliates or its licensors.

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SOURCE Brightstar Lottery PLC

Technology

CNFinance Files Annual Report on Form 20-F for Fiscal Year 2025

Published

20 minutes ago

April 30, 2026

GUANGZHOU, China, April 30, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — CNFinance Holdings Limited (NYSE: CNF) (“CNFinance” or the “Company”), a leading home equity loan service provider in China, today announced that it filed its annual report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2025 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on April 30, 2026.

The annual report can be accessed on the Company’s investor relations website at http://ir.cashchina.cn as well as the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov.

The Company will provide a hard copy of its annual report, free of charge, to its shareholders and ADS holders upon request. Requests should be directed to the Company’s IR Department at ir@cashchina.cn.

About CNFinance Holdings Limited

CNFinance Holdings Limited (NYSE: CNF) (“CNFinance” or the “Company”) is a leading home equity loan service provider in China. CNFinance, through its operating subsidiaries in China, conducts business by connecting demands and supplies through collaborating with sales partners and trust companies under the trust lending model, and sales partners, local channel partners and commercial banks under the commercial bank partnership model. Sales partners and local channel partners are responsible for recommending micro- and small-enterprise (“MSE”) owners with financing needs to the Company and the Company introduces eligible borrowers to licensed financial institutions with sufficient funding sources including trust companies and commercial banks who will then conduct their own risk assessments and make credit decisions. The Company’s primary target borrower segment is MSE owners who own real properties in Tier 1 and Tier 2 cities and other major cities in China. The Company’s risk mitigation mechanism is embedded in the design of its loan products, supported by an integrated online and offline process focusing on risks of both borrowers and collateral and further enhanced by effective post-loan management procedures.

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SOURCE CNFinance Holdings Limited

Technology

Abram’s Kaizen Program Announces 10-Year Milestone in Online Health Coaching

Published

20 minutes ago

April 30, 2026

LOS ANGELES, April 30, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Abram’s Kaizen Program, an online health coaching program for women aged 35 and older, today announced that it has served more than 6,000 clients since its founding in 2014 and currently supports approximately 1,000 active members.

The program was founded by Abram Anderson, a nutritionist, published author and public speaker who developed the company’s methodology after investing, by his account, more than $200,000 in direct mentorship from practitioners in behaviour change, gut health and women’s hormonal health. Abram’s Kaizen Program focuses on women navigating perimenopause, menopause and postmenopause — a demographic the company says is often overlooked by mainstream weight management programs.

“A lot of women in this age group come to us after trying multiple approaches that didn’t produce the results they were looking for,” said Abram Anderson, Founder of Abram’s Kaizen Program. “Our program offers a different framework. Whether it’s the right fit depends on the individual, but the demand we’ve seen over the past decade tells us there’s a gap in the market.”

Abram’s Kaizen Program uses what the company calls a “Data-Driven Decision” methodology — an approach adapted from the Japanese manufacturing principle of kaizen, or continuous improvement. Rather than prescribing standardised meal plans, clients are guided to track how their bodies respond to specific foods. Monitoring energy levels, digestive patterns and weight fluctuations and use that information to make individualised dietary adjustments.

The program places emphasis on gut microbiome health and hormonal balance, which the company considers relevant factors in weight management for its target demographic. Research published in Frontiers in Nutrition has explored the relationship between gut microbiota composition and metabolic health, including the role of low-grade inflammation.

Program members receive access to a custom mobile application, a support chat with responses guaranteed within 24 hours, optional access to over 20 live coaching calls per week with nutritionists, a year-long curriculum, and an AI coaching assistant. “The goal is for clients to build habits they can sustain on their own,” said Abram Anderson. “We want people to eventually graduate from the program, not stay in it indefinitely.”

About Abram’s Kaizen Program

Abram’s Kaizen Program is an online health coaching program for women aged 35 and older. Founded in 2014 by nutritionist and published author Abram Anderson, the program uses a personalised, data-informed approach with a focus on gut health and hormonal balance. The program has served more than 6,000 clients and currently supports approximately 1,000 active members. For more information, visit abramskmtp.com

Media Details:

Company Name: Abram’s Kaizen Program
Founder: Abram Anderson
Email Contact: media@abramskmtp.com
Company Website: https://www.abramskmtp.com/
Location: Los Angeles, United States

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