China

Jack Ma and the Chinese Economic Identity Crisis
Asia, China, Market

Jack Ma and the Chinese Economic Identity Crisis

The CCP has time and again demonstrated its nonchalant use of tyrannic authority over its own citizens; a rather transparent demonstration of its execution of oppressive control can be seen with the implementation of the social credit system; it provides a template for its citizens for acceptable social behavior. Offenses such as purchasing too many video games, spending money frivolously, and driving poorly, can warrant throttled internet connections, domestic travel bans, restricted access to education and employment, etc. Ironically, at the same time, China stands as an elected member of the UN Human Rights Council as of 13 October 2020. Unfortunately, the conventions of international affairs overlook these atrocities for the sake of diplomatic survival. In doing so, nations have au...
EU and China to sign investment deal amid unease over rights
China, Market, World

EU and China to sign investment deal amid unease over rights

Despite rising concerns about the human rights situation in Xinjiang, the European Union (EU) and China are set to sign a business investment deal, which, EU hopes will help correct an imbalance in market access and create new investment opportunities for European companies in China by ensuring they can compete on an equal footing.According to an EU official with direct knowledge of the talks, the provisional agreement is set to be announced on Wednesday.The deal was sealed after China committed to pursuing ratification of the International Labor Organization's rules on forced labor, according to the unnamed official.The EU previously said the agreement, known as CAI, which includes provisions for settling disputes, should increase the transparency of Chinese state subsidies and make susta...
China strategically captured entire supply chain of America: US-based advocacy group
China, World

China strategically captured entire supply chain of America: US-based advocacy group

Over the past year, China has strategically captured the entire supply chain of United States, making dependent on Beijing, and hurting American workers on the job front, said Lucas Kunce, the national security director at the American Economic Liberties Project.In an interview, Kunce said that the business people who testified during the congressional hearings on tariffs revealed that the United States cannot produce essential products including certain weapons systems and US dollars "without some components or resources coming from China.""So, China has strategically captured our entire supply chain," he said. "And it makes us vulnerable, and it hurts American workers too because we are losing skills that we need to try to get back and we're losing good-paying jobs."Kunce noted that the ...
Up to 1 billion people in Asia to face lethal heatwave conditions by 2050 due to climate change: Report
Asia, China, Singapore, World

Up to 1 billion people in Asia to face lethal heatwave conditions by 2050 due to climate change: Report

BANGKOK: Up to 1 billion people in Asia could live in areas experiencing lethal heatwaves by 2050 as a result of worsening climate change, according to a new report by consulting firm McKinsey Global Institute (MGI). The modelling in the report outlines that severe heat is just one of the major risks forecast for the continent under RCP8.5, a worst-case scenario situation that could result without collective action to reduce carbon emissions. Without vastly improved action to reach the goals of the Paris Agreement, Asia is expected to see temperature rises of more than two degrees from pre-industrial levels. While much of the risk lies in subcontinental Asian countries such as India, Bangladesh and Pakistan, Southeast Asia would also face more frequent, dangerous heat conditions, ...
Chinese launch covert cyber-attacks on India: Report
China, World

Chinese launch covert cyber-attacks on India: Report

A cybersecurity think tank has claimed that Chinese hackers from Guangdong and Henan provinces targeted online shoppers during the festive months of October and November, the peak sale season in India.According to CyberPeace Foundation, these hackers created fake URLs disguised as offers by Flipkart and Amazon and lured the netizens to click on them with bogus prizes. These links were disseminated through WhatsApp targeting many online shoppers in India.“The modus operandi of the hackers involved imitating the actual sale campaigns of e-commerce such as Flipkart and Amazon to make them look more credible,” the foundation in its report said.The report said that although the festive season sale was a success for Indian e-commerce companies, the opportunity was used by hackers to target milli...
US Prez signs bill that could remove Chinese stocks from US markets
China, Market, World

US Prez signs bill that could remove Chinese stocks from US markets

United States President Donald Trump has signed a legislation with a potential to kick Chinese companies off of U.S. exchanges unless American regulators can review their financial audits.The measure, which could affect corporate giants like Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and Baidu Inc., is yet another parting shot at China before Trump leaves office in January.The de-listing law won bipartisan support in the House early this month after clearing the U.S. Senate in May. While it applies to any foreign company, the bill’s sponsors have said their goal was to target China.For years, Chinese firms have used American capital markets and dollar-based finance as a key funding component to grow their businesses. While the measure includes a phase-in period, with penalties kicking in after three strai...
Singapore revises growth outlook again as Q3 GDP shrinks at slower 5.8% amid COVID-19
Asia, China, Market, Singapore, World

Singapore revises growth outlook again as Q3 GDP shrinks at slower 5.8% amid COVID-19

SINGAPORE: The Singapore economy is expected to shrink between 6 per cent and 6.5 per cent this year, said the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) on Monday (Nov 23) in another revision to its 2020 outlook after growth data confirmed a smaller-than-expected contraction in the third quarter. Its previous estimate, announced in August, was for the economy to contract between 5 per cent and 7 per cent amid the blow from the COVID-19 pandemic. Policymakers also offered for the first time a glimpse of their economic forecast for 2021 – a recovery into positive growth territory, with the economy envisaged to expand between 4 per cent and 6 per cent next year partly on the back of a low base. For the third quarter, Singapore’s gross domestic product (GDP) contracted by 5.8 per cent on a y...
Biden picks longtime China critic Katherine Tai as top U.S. trade official
Asia, China, World

Biden picks longtime China critic Katherine Tai as top U.S. trade official

Katherine Tai speaks during a House Ways and Means Committee meeting to consider the US-Mexico-Canada (USMCA) trade agreement in 2019. CSPAN President-elect Joe Biden on Thursday named Katherine Tai, a trade lawyer with a history of taking on China, as his incoming administration's pick for the United States' top trade representative. If confirmed by the Senate, Tai would inherit a critical, Cabinet-level position tasked with enforcing America's import rules and brokering trading terms with China and other nations. Tai, who is Asian-American, would also be the first woman of color to serve as the USTR. She is fluent in Mandarin. In choosing Tai, the senior trade lawyer on the House Ways and Means Committee, the Biden team likely signals an intent to return to a more multilateral trade app...
US slams China for charging Jimmy Lai under National Security Law
China, Singapore, World

US slams China for charging Jimmy Lai under National Security Law

The United States Secretary of State Michael Pompeo has slammed China for charging Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai under its draconian National Security Law and demanded that charges must be dropped.Taking to Twitter, Pompeo said: “Hong Kong’s National Security Law makes a mockery of justice. @JimmyLaiApple’s only “crime” is speaking the truth about the Chinese Communist Party’s authoritarianism and fear of freedom. Charges should be dropped and he should be released immediately.”Jimmy Lai is set to appear in West Kowloon Court on Saturday after being charged with colluding with foreign powers under the Beijing-imposed national security law, an offense that carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.Earlier, Lai, the founder of the Apple Daily newspaper was reported to have been charge...
China bails out Pakistan to pay Saudi debt again
China, Singapore, World

China bails out Pakistan to pay Saudi debt again

Pakistan is saved yet again as China has agrees to immediately provide $1.5 billion financing line to Islamabad to repay the $2 billion Saudi Arabia debt.Now, out of $2 billion, Pakistan is set to return the $1 billion on Monday, said sources in the finance ministry and the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). “The remaining $1 billion is due in January,” they added.“However, this time, China has not given the loan from its State Administration of Foreign Exchange, commonly known as SAFE deposits, nor has it extended a commercial loan,” said the sources.Instead, both the countries have agreed to augment the size of a 2011 bilateral Currency-Swap Agreement (CSA) by an additional 10 billion Chinse Yuan or around $1.5 billion, the sources said. This has increased the size of the overall trade facili...