EMS letter to Blighty from China takes 3 days to get there, but costs about 250 RMB!
Air mail 1 X A4 foolscap costs 7 RMB or so, but takes between 7 and 10 days!

My better half and I visited a Chinese post office the other day to purchase small air mail envelopes, the size which one would normally use to fold an A4 page of foolscap twice before inserting it rather easily into the envelope. The post office was quite small, but by no means the smallest I have ever visited in China.
Guess what, that PO was sold out of those envelopes! I cursed out loud, which led to a verbal reprimand from my better half!

Another problem worth mentioning - my wife had arranged a telegraphic transfer for 5,000 GBP from her Isle OF Man bond to her BOC account. Unbeknown to her at that time, it had been blocked at this end, and what's worse, her branch had denied all knowledge of any such proposed transfer. Subsequently, she obtained an e-mail of the transfer document from the Isle Of Man, after telephoning there. She then re-visited her BOC branch with a photocopy of that e-mail. The branch then admitted they had had knowledge of that proposed transfer since the 5th of August! She was told it had been blocked by a watchdog body that oversees all proposed foreign currency transfers from abroad to Chinese citizens. After photocopying her bond certificates, the BOC clerk presented them to the watchdog body. It was quickly unblocked thereafter.

She had also got information from the SPD Bank, where she has no account. Seemingly, there is an annual ceiling of 50,000 USD, or its equivalent value in other currencies for transfers to Chinese citizens. And the aforementioned watchdog body does exist! So much bureaucracy here!