China

An article by Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, on following the path of financial development with Chinese characteristics and boosting China's strength in finance will be published on Sunday. The article by Xi, also Chinese president and chairman of the Central Military Commission, will be published in this year's third issue of the Qiushi Journal, a flagship magazine of the CPC Central Committee. China's financial development with Chinese characteristics not only follows the path of the development of modern finance, but also has distinctive features that suit China's national conditions, which is different from the Western financial development model, according to the article. It notes that a financially robust country ...

Beyond Belt and Road: the balance-sheet alternative the West has ignored For more than a decade, China’s Belt and Road Initiative has framed how development, infrastructure investment and geopolitical influence are discussed. Responses – from the European Union’s Global Gateway to Japan’s ‘quality infrastructure’ agenda – have largely followed the same logic: mobilise alternative financing, co-finance through multilateral banks and mitigate risk for private capital. What has been almost entirely missed is a more powerful alternative – one that does not rely on exporting capital at all. China’s appeal lies not only in the scale of its financing, but in the concreteness of its offer: visible assets, execution and speed. Yet this debt-led model carries well-known risks, including r...

In Shanghai, rental demand for commercial office buildings recovered significantly in the fourth quarter of 2025. Chen Tong takes a closer look at the factors driving the increase. This is a landmark project in Shanghai's city center. Covering an area of some 390,000 square meters, the development comprises three commercial office buildings. CHEN TONG Shanghai "This property project is located in Xintiandi, one of Shanghai's busiest commercial districts. So far, more than 60 percent of its space has already been rented, mostly by leading and well-known foreign companies." BRUCE DAI Deputy General Manager, Office Business Management Shui On Xintiandi "The Huangpu district is a core CBD area. It's not like a one or two single industries we are focusing. Instead, we have a lot o...