President Xi Jinping met with the leaders of Micronesia, Nepal and Madagascar, with the Belt and Road Initiative topping the agenda, the official Xinhua News Agency said. China will hold a summit on the development initiative in May, with about 20 heads of state from Asia, Africa, Europe and Latin America planning to attend, according to Xinhua.  Elsewhere:
  • More Chinese cities announced restrictions on home purchases to help cool prices. Fuzhou, Hangzhou and Xiamen announced curbs Tuesday, the China News Service reported. Overheating property markets have spurred policy makers to warn about asset bubbles and the need to reduce financial risk. Soaring property prices also may force China’s middle class to cut spending.
  • Beijing announced its urban plan for the next decade and a half. The capital will cap total population at 23 million by the end of the decade, the Beijing News reported. The population already stood at 21.7 million by the end of last year, indicating controls will be tightened in coming years. The plans also aim to reduce air pollution and to treat other “urban diseases” such as traffic, according to the paper.
  • A feature story by Xinhua chronicled how an Irish man found work at a Chinese tech startup months before getting his master’s degree in computer science. The story details the changes following relaxed work visa regulations and greater openness to foreigners.