Links for Wednesday, October 28, 2020

WORTH THINKING ABOUT

Pieces of news or analysis that caught our eye:

“China’s COVID triumphalism could be premature,” writes Gideon Rachman at the Financial Times.

The New England Journal of Medicine recently noted in an editorial that “our leaders have failed…They have taken a crisis and turned it into a tragedy.”

This scathing criticism of the Trump administration has not, however, led to the arrest of the editors of the New England journal. By contrast, last month, Rèn Zhìqiáng 任志强, a property tycoon, was sentenced to 18 years in prison in China [after criticizing Xi Jinping’s response to COVID]…External critics of China’s handling of COVID-19 are also treated with ferocity. When the Australian government suggested an international inquiry into the pandemic, Beijing responded with trade sanctions.

The inability to accept criticism suggests that pro-Beijing triumphalism is premature. In broad terms, there is not much doubt that China, after mishandling the initial outbreak, has done a good job of containing the disease. But some Asian democracies, such as South Korea and Taiwan, have done even better, which undermines Mr Xi’s claim that China’s “socialist system” was the key to success. China’s urge to suppress criticism also suggests that if there are continuing problems inside the country, Beijing will cover them up.

MORE NEWS FROM AROUND THE WORLD

BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY:

• Beijing eases up on yuan support
  China may scrap key ingredient in setting yuan’s daily fixing / Caixin (paywall)
  China gives market more say in setting yuan’s value / WSJ (paywall)
  China phases out use of ‘X-factor’ in managing yuan value / Reuters
  China is reconsidering yuan internationalization strategy / Bloomberg (porous paywall)
• Trump farm bailouts have totaled $61 billion
  92 percent of Trump’s China tariff proceeds has gone to bail out angry farmers / Council on Foreign Relations
• Chinese smartphones thrive in India
  Xiaomi leads India’s smartphone market with 26.1% share / Caixin
  “Three other Chinese smartphone sellers were in the top five and they were Vivo, Realme and Oppo.”
• Guzzling foreign oil
  China imports most American oil ever / Caixin (paywall)
  Brazil soars to China’s No. 3 crude oil supplier in September / Reuters
• TikTok ecommerce moves
  TikTok moves into social ecommerce with Shopify deal / FT (paywall)
  Shopify partners with TikTok to drive online sales / Caixin
• Regulation of private tutoring
  Private tutors to get a lesson on their own dodgy contracts / Caixin (paywall)
• Can Quanjude survive?
  150-year-old Peking duck brand bleeds cash as food scene leaves it behind / Caixin (paywall)
• $148 phones with 5G from Realme
  China’s Realme sees budget 5G smartphones as key to global growth / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
• Impact of China’s squeeze on Australian imports
  China’s ban on Australian coal causes surge in imports from Mongolia, but difficulties remain / SCMP
  How much is China’s trade war really costing Australia? / Guardian
  “Fresh analysis shows disrupted exports could be worth up to $19 billion a year, but many effects won’t be seen until the pandemic ends.”
• Uneven and uncertain growth
  New York Fed finds ‘implausibly smooth’ Chinese growth data / WSJ (paywall)
  China virus epicenter Hubei lags as regional growth picks up / Bloomberg (porous paywall)
• Baidu pushes into livestreaming
  Baidu nears $4 billion deal to nab Joyy’s China unit: report / TechNode
• Ant Group
  Ant Group IPO draws record influx of cash into Hong Kong / Nikkei Asia (paywall)

SCIENCE, HEALTH, AND THE ENVIRONMENT:

• 183 COVID-19 cases in Kashgar, 22 with symptoms
  Mass COVID-19 testing after Xinjiang flare-up finds 22 new cases / Caixin (paywall)
  Mainland China reports most new COVID-19 cases in more than two months / Reuters
  Related The China Project coverage: China reports over 100 asymptomatic COVID-19 cases linked to Xinjiang garment factory.
• COVID-19 vaccine news
  China coronavirus vaccine: People travel to Zhejiang in hopes of getting experimental shot / CNN
  Students bound for COVID hotbeds scramble for unproven vaccines / Sixth Tone
  COVID-19 vaccine makers see Egypt as crucial launchpad / WSJ (paywall)

POLITICS AND CURRENT AFFAIRS:

• Reaction to India visit by Pompeo
  Chinese Embassy in India urges U.S. to stop undermining regional peace, stability / Xinhua
  Pompeo’s remarks needed to send message to China: Ex-Indian ambassador / CNBC
  Yesterday on The China Project: India signs U.S. deal to make missiles ‘deadlier,’ with eye on Chinese border troops.
• India sent a ship to South China Sea this summer
  India takes its tussle with China to the high seas / FT (paywall)
  “Little was revealed publicly about the vessel or its mission. But Indian security analysts saw its unexpected presence in the heavily disputed waters as a clear warning to Beijing, which has made vast maritime claims there.”
• Pompeo continues “anti-China roadshow”
  Pompeo brings anti-China roadshow to Indian Ocean islands / AP
  Pompeo says China has brought lawlessness to Sri Lanka and the Maldives / Reuters
  Sri Lanka assured of China’s help in burying post-war obligations / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
  China-U.S. rivalry becomes Aliens vs Predator as Chinese embassy in Sri Lanka takes swipe at Mike Pompeo / SCMP
  “The Chinese embassy in Sri Lanka has likened comments made by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on a visit to Colombo to a gory video game, after the American diplomat accused the Chinese Communist Party of being a ‘predator.’”
• U.S. arrests eight Chinese nationals reportedly involved in “Operation Foxhunt”
  Justice Department arrests eight Chinese individuals for illegal operation in U.S. / Bloomberg (porous paywall)
• Indian politicians criticize Twitter for politically incorrect map
  Indian parliamentary panel slams Twitter in China map dispute / Reuters
• U.S. senators introduce resolution on Uyghur “genocide”
  U.S. senators seek to declare Uyghur ‘genocide’ by China in bipartisan push / AFP via Guardian
  China slams U.S. as senators accuse Beijing of genocide against Xinjiang Muslim minority / AFP via Guardian
• Serbia’s balancing act
  Serbia’s PM: Gov’t to be pro-EU keeping Russia, China ties / AP
• Huawei in Egypt
  Egypt is the newest front in the U.S.-China battle over Huawei and Chinese tech in Africa / China-Africa Project

SOCIETY AND CULTURE:

• Activism to get homophobia out of textbooks
  China’s stance on homosexuality has changed. Its textbooks haven’t. / NYT (porous paywall)
  A profile of Ou Jiayong, who also goes by the pseudonym Xīxī 西西. See also on The China Project: Chinese court sides with publisher of homophobic textbooks.
• Fighting sexual harassment
  Company offers free anti-harassment ‘toolkit’ for Chinese firms / Sixth Tone
• Smoking
  The Virginian roots of Yunnan’s tobacco industry / Sixth Tone
• Fashion and body image
  How China became a nation of #brandygirls / Sixth Tone