China

Chinese Communist Party Opens Door to Xi Jinping’s Third Term in Office
8Nov By Alan LorenzNo Comments
China, News

Chinese Communist Party Opens Door to Xi Jinping’s Third Term in Office

The Chinese Communist Party's central committee wants to pave the way for a third term in office for party leader and President Xi Jinping.   The party's 370 or so members gathered in Beijing on Monday for a four-day meeting to discuss a "historic resolution." It is only the third time in the party's 100-year history, after 1945 and 1981, that such a resolution will be passed. The resolution will officially describe the party's "great achievements and historical experiences." However, observers believe the document is mainly intended to strengthen Xi's position of power ahead of the party congress in the fall of 2022. Then, the third term in office becomes possible. Xi would become the first leader to start the third term since the revolutionary and founder of the People's Republi...
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China Offers Big Reward for Helping Find Escaped Prisoner Who Previously Fled North Korea
21Oct By Alan LorenzNo Comments
China, News, North Korea

China Offers Big Reward for Helping Find Escaped Prisoner Who Previously Fled North Korea

North Korean Zhu Xianjian entered China illegally in 2013. Three years later, he was sentenced to 11 years in prison for illegally crossing the border and for theft. Since then, he has been in prison in the northeastern city of Jilin.   Monday evening, around 6 p.m. local time, he managed to climb over a shed and escape while the other inmates were working in the yard. That can be seen in images from the surveillance camera that are circulating on social media. The man climbs onto the roof and then uses a rope to damage the electric fence, it seems. In other images, you can see him jumping off the wall and running away. After the escape, the police launched a manhunt in the area. The cops ring at every door to make sure he isn't hiding there. Many roads have also been closed to nea...
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Chinese Industry Sales Prices Rise at Record Pace
14Oct By Alan LorenzNo Comments
Business, China, News

Chinese Industry Sales Prices Rise at Record Pace

Producer prices in China's manufacturing industry rose at their strongest ever pace in September due to high energy and raw material costs.   There are also shortages of certain materials on top of that. Moreover, soaring sales prices in the world's largest exporting country could also further fuel inflation worldwide, as Chinese exporters pass the higher costs on to customers. Producer prices rose by 10.7 percent compared to a year earlier, according to the Chinese statistical office. That is the strongest increase since the start of the measurements in 1996. The figure is also stronger than economists had expected. In August, producer prices in China already climbed by 9.5 percent. Chinese manufacturers are dealing with very sharp increases in the price of coal and electricity a...
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Bondholders Haven’t Seen Money From Evergrande Yet
29Sep By Alan LorenzNo Comments
Business, China, News

Bondholders Haven’t Seen Money From Evergrande Yet

Several bondholders have still not received money from the financially troubled property developer Evergrande. Several investors who owe interest payments from the group told Bloomberg news agency that they had not received a dollar a few hours before the payment term expired.   Evergrande owes more than $45 million in interest by Thursday on the bond that matures in 2024. Under the bond arrangements, there is a grace period of 30 days before a missed payment on that bond would become a default. The developer with the most significant debt burden globally, converted 260 billion euros, would also have missed a payment last week. Credit rating agency Fitch then lowered the developer's credit rating to junk status. The threat of Evergrande's bankruptcy is holding investors globally un...
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China Reopens Coal Mines Due to Rising Energy Demand
5Aug By Alan LorenzNo Comments
China, Business, News

China Reopens Coal Mines Due to Rising Energy Demand

China is reopening 15 more coal mines to meet rising energy demand in the country, in the Xinjiang and Shanxi regions. The Chinese thus prefer economic interests over climate targets.   For the northern region of Inner Mongolia, the reopening of 38 coal mines was already announced last week. With this, the Asian country is also trying to push down the prices of coal. So far this year, they have risen by a third to a record high due to the enormous demand. The government of President Xi Jinping continues to look for a balance between reducing greenhouse gas emissions and meeting the energy demand, partly caused by the recovery of the industry. Chinese policymakers last month advised slowing down the pace of cutting emissions in the country. Otherwise, it could stand in the way of ...
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China is Now Also Attacking the Gaming Sector: Technological Drugs
3Aug By Alan LorenzNo Comments
China, News, Technology

China is Now Also Attacking the Gaming Sector: Technological Drugs

Chinese state media has launched an attack on the computer games industry in the country. The Economic Daily newspaper talked about 'spiritual opium' and 'electronic drugs'.   Tencent, the market leader in China for video games, plunged 11 percent lower on the stock market due to the news. Investors seem to fear that Beijing will now want to take a stricter look at online entertainment after e-commerce, taxi services and online education. In addition to Tencent, game developers NetEase and XD were also hit on the stock market. Economic Daily, affiliated with the Xinhua state news agency, quoted a student as saying that his classmates play Tencent's Honor of Kings game for up to eight hours a day. Internet addiction is common among minors, and video games have a significant impact ...
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China Blocks Series of Crypto-Related Social Media Accounts
7Jun By Alan LorenzNo Comments
Business, China, News

China Blocks Series of Crypto-Related Social Media Accounts

China has blocked many accounts on the Chinese Weibo platform, similar to Twitter, for their link to cryptos. The ban is in line with Beijing's stricter policy against trading and mining cryptocurrencies.   The blockade is certainly not the last action China will take against digital currencies. Many crypto activities in China are expected to be linked to the country's criminal law, analysts, and financial regulators. This means that mining and trading digital coins may become an illegal activity shortly. Beijing vowed last month to crack down on bitcoin mining and trading. That happened shortly after three agencies in the country banned crypto-related financial payment services. The Weibo interventions also come at a time when Chinese media are harsher in their coverage of crypto...
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Chinese Cinemas Must Show Patriotic Films
6Apr By Alan LorenzNo Comments
Entertainment, China, News

Chinese Cinemas Must Show Patriotic Films

Chinese cinemas must show propaganda films twice a week for the next few months.   According to the authorities, for example, a positive atmosphere should be created in the run-up to the anniversary of the ruling Communist Party, which will be celebrating its 100th anniversary this summer. The Chinese National Film Administration says that films should be shown until the end of the year that show "love for the party, the country and socialism". This must be done in "every province, region and city". Party members and others involved must ensure that those film screenings are well attended, emphasizes the film administration. He mentions discounts and advertisements as ways to lure Chinese people to the cinema. State media reports that films such as Jingang Chuan ('The Sacrifice')...
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Thousands of Beijing Residents in Line for Corona Vaccine
4Jan By Alan LorenzNo Comments
China, News

Thousands of Beijing Residents in Line for Corona Vaccine

More than 73,000 people in the Chinese capital Beijing have been vaccinated against the coronavirus in recent days.   State media broadcast images of lines of people at local hospitals and other health centres. There, the Chinese also have to have their temperature measured before they receive an injection. The health authorities gave the green light last week to use a corona vaccine from pharmaceutical company Sinopharm. Millions of people now need to be vaccinated before the start of the Chinese New Year in February. Then the Chinese usually travel en masse. Sports halls and empty factories are being converted into vaccination centres. The coronavirus first appeared in China at the end of 2019. The Communist People's Republic is combating local outbreaks by mass testing people...
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China is Halting Air Traffic With the United Kingdom Due to Mutation
24Dec By Alan LorenzNo Comments
China, News, UK

China is Halting Air Traffic With the United Kingdom Due to Mutation

China is shutting down air traffic with the United Kingdom altogether. The Chinese authorities have decided to do so because a new variant of the coronavirus is circulating in the United Kingdom.   According to British scientists, this is probably a lot more contagious than previous mutations. No flights are permitted in either direction until further notice. Travel restrictions already applied in China. For example, foreigners were no longer allowed to fly from British airports to China. Chinese nationals were allowed to do that until now, but not anymore. The Chinese Foreign Ministry points to the "exceptional nature of the virus mutation and its potential consequences" to justify the decision. Many other countries took the same conclusion at the beginning of this week, with the...
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