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section of the railway.
Further time saving is, however,
hampered by the existence of certain technical incompatibilities, such as difference in the heights of the pantographs, between the Hong Kong and the Chinese railway systems. With the completion of double-tracking between Beijing and Guangzhou, possibly in 1988, there will be a substantial saving in travel time by rail between Hong Kong and the northern part of China.
8.
Following the decentralisation of its railway system, China has also taken steps to decentralise its air services. Six regional airlines (based in Shanghai, Shenyang, Chengdu, Xian, Guangzhou and Urumqi) will soon
be set up.
Part of the fleet of aircraft presently run by CAAC will be gradually transferred to the new airlines,
CAAC will then become which are to be self-financing.
more of a regulatory body.
9.
In respect of developments in
telecommunications, an optical fibre communications system connecting Guangzhou and Hong Kong will soon be
installed. The system, which is expected to be completed by 1988, will be able to handle 20 000 telephone calls simultaneously.
10.
Apart from developments in the main economic sectors, recent political developments in China and their possible implications for the speed of China's economic reforms have caused some concern. The resignation of Hu Yaobang, the clamp-down by the Chinese authorities on the widespread student demonstrations and the campaign against "bourgeois liberalisation" have led to speculation that party conservatives favouring orthodox socialism are re-asserting themselves. While it is still too early to draw any definite conclusions from these events, they could cause the economic reforms to slow down.
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