Beijing cancels supermarket sales

The Changying and Chunxiulu branches of Hualian Supermarket have canceled their sales promotion events in January, for fear that there would be safety hazards because of consumers rushing to the same place for cheap goods, the Beijing News reported.

Stricter regulations have been put in place for public events such as supermarket sales to prevent a tragedy like the New Year's Eve stampede in Shanghai, according to the Beijing Municipal Commission of Commerce. In the future, large supermarkets and shopping malls in Beijing, including Wal-Mart, Carrefour and Tai Koo Li, should apply for permission from the public security office in their area 20 days before large promotion events, and they must meet the standard for the required number of security personnel.