Asia

Beijing, China: Over the past decade, Beijing has been the lender of choice for many nations. It doled out funds for governments to build bullet trains, hydroelectric dams, airports and superhighways. However, as inflation climbed and economies weakened, China found itself in a precarious situation. Keith Bradsher, writing in The Sydney Morning Herald (SMH), said China holds significant sway over the financial futures of many nations and owes huge sums of money that may never be repaid in full forcing its officials to act as debt collectors in poor countries. When Suriname couldn’t make its debt payments, a Chinese state bank seized the money from one of the South American country’s accounts. When Kenyans and Angolans went to the polls in the presidential elections in August, the...

Beijing, China: Since the 2010s, subtle adjustments have occurred to Germany's China policy. Furthermore, the Donald Trump administration of the United States "trade war" with China impacted Germany's opinion of China, reported CGTN.Germany's China policy has been influenced by various factors internally and internationally.The first factor is the game between different industries and interest groups in Germany. Those enterprises and industries that have great interests in China still maintain a pragmatic and friendly stance towards the country.Yet for those enterprises without business dealings with China, they suggest reducing Germany's dependence on China's market to lower their competitive pressures, reported CGTN.The second factor is the coordination of different parties in the co...

“I pay 5.1 per cent interest on my mortgage,” said the ear, nose and throat (ENT) specialist, who bought a two-bedroom flat in Hangzhou, the capital of southeastern Zhejiang province, with a loan of 2 million yuan in 2018. “What kind of wealth management product or stock investment gives you such returns?” she asked rhetorically, referring to the slumping equity markets that has eroded investment returns. The medical practitioner has already repaid 700,000 yuan since 2018, including 150,000 yuan in one go in March. She is among thousands of Chinese borrowers who are in a hurry to clear their mortgages early amid waning consumer confidence over the country’s economy that has been buffeted by headwinds. It also comes as returns from stock market investments have taken a hit, with the ...

In June 2022, the Statistics Bureau of Laos announced that inflation had risen to a 22-year high of 23.6%. Staple goods have been fast becoming scarce and purchasing power of the country’s population declining at an alarming rate. According to the World Bank estimates, Laos' foreign and domestic debt shot up to more than $14.5 billion (€14.2 billion). There is a concern that an escalating debt crisis has been pushing the economy towards a meltdown. Laos' foreign exchange reserves depleted so low that experts worried that the Southeast Asian nation might be embarrassingly close to a loan default. There appeared no way out for the small, landlocked nation, except for external assistance, to honour its debt obligations. "It is on the brink of default," Anushka Shah, vice president and senior...

The ongoing war in Ukraine has had a profoundly destabilizing effect on existing trade arrangements and cooperation between Russia and the European Union. Western sanctions on Russia have escalated to hitherto unseen levels in the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Russia has incurred very little lasting damage since the sanctions have been imposed. While the Ruble initially nose-dived, an increase in energy prices has resulted in billions of dollars of revenue every month from oil and gas exports. The sky-rocketing price of oil and natural gas has seen Russia make enormous profits on its energy sales. These profits have cushioned the impact of the sanctions while also causing enormous hardship in Europe and stoking unrest, division and a perception voiced by Italy’s former Deputy...

Last month, the US-led group – the Minerals Security Partnership – met on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York to discuss priorities, challenges and opportunities in responsible mining and processing of critical minerals. The partnership, which was started in June in Canada, brings together the US, Australia, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Sweden, Britain and the European Commission. Attending the meeting in New York were five of Africa’s mineral-rich countries: the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Mozambique, Namibia, Tanzania and Zambia. The initiative promises to help African nations with funding and information to improve the domestic processing of critical minerals. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said at the meeting that the US...

It is widely anticipated that the Chinese President Xi Jinping, during his speech in the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) would claim that Chinese economy has not only weathered the western sanctions but also the Covid-19 pandemic and successfully managed a reasonable growth. However, unlike the previous congress, this time around he has little to flaunt on the front of economy. In the first half of the year, China recorded only 2.5% growth over the past year, one of the lowest in three decades. Retail sales were 0.7% less in the first half than previous year after plunging 11% in April. The Chinese economy is facing a severe downward pressure and a plethora of problems which do not appear to be surmountable in near and short terms. Some observers opine that...

Beijing, China: Federico Giuliani writing for Inside Over said, “China has been accused of digging holes for others with the “One Belt, One Road” initiative, only to fall into it but the country denies the criticism while refusing to admit its loan losses.” China’s Belt and Road initiative -“One Belt One Road” project is in deep trouble after big losses with many loans to emerging economies falling into repayment troubles due to financial distress and a slowing economy. However, a report from Wall Street Journal stated that after nearly a decade of pressing Chinese banks to be generous with loans, “Chinese policymakers are discussing a more conservative program, dubbed Belt and Road 2.0 in internal discussions, that would more rigorously evaluate new projects for financing,” the ...

Away from the debate on Xi Jinping getting a third term - as general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and president of the country – in violation of the convention set after the Mao era; China’s economy is in bad shape.  Much of it was expected as the global economy, which buys Chinese products, has been slowing down. China could barely avoid a contraction in the June 2022 quarter. However, it was not expected that Beijing would fail to live up to its promises by such a wide margin.  In its latest report, the World Bank projected China to grow by a mere 2.8% in 2022, that’s half of the 5.5% growth promised by Beijing. Moreover, for the first time in three decades, China’s growth would lag behind the rest of the Asia-Pacific region. A 24-country estimate by...

For more than two decades, China emerged as the key player in global supply chains as American, European, Japanese, and Korean companies descended in hordes in the East Asian country to set up their manufacturing bases and earn profits by selling their products to the world. By 2022, signs of multinational companies’ declining business trust in the Chinese market are becoming glaring as a large number of them are moving out of China with no promise of coming back to the country in the foreseeable future. Google’s translation app has joined the list of American tech companies exiting the Chinese market in the recent past. It had to do so because of a tougher regulatory mechanism and strict internet censorship regime which created hurdles in the smooth operation of the US-based company. ...