The May break

China’s May holiday this year basically involves a shut-down on business for nine days, plus a couple more for staff to get back into the mood at the end of the process. Ridiculous. A long Chinese New Year holiday is inevitable and justified by tradition immemorial. But the May and October breaks? They should be cut back down to one day each. The original aim was to encourage Chinese consumers to grasp the joys of consuming. They have now got it. No need to labor the point, pardon the pun.