Beijing smoking ban

This item appears on page 4 of the February 2015 issue.

In northeastern China, the city of Beijing passed an ordinance on Nov. 28 that will ban smoking indoors in all public buildings and buses and at outdoor locations near schools and hospitals by June 2015. It also will ban advertising for cigarettes in magazines, newspapers and films. Fines for violating the new rules range from CNY50 (near $8) to CNY200.

The capital city, a municipality of over 21 million people, has an estimated four million smokers.