Links for Wednesday, September 7, 2022

China-Russia gas deals
Gazprom to shift gas sales to China to rubles, yuan from euro / Bloomberg (paywall)
China agrees to pay for Russian gas in roubles and yuan: Gazprom / Al Jazeera
Russia says China will start paying for gas in rubles and yuan / CNN
China-Russia gas deal in yuan, roubles underscores efforts to reduce U.S. dollar hegemony / SCMP (paywall)

China’s export machine stalls
Exports, the engine of China’s slowing economy, are sputtering / WSJ (paywall)
“The export boom that has powered China’s economy through the pandemic decelerated in August, reflecting the impact from rising inflation and slowing growth elsewhere in the world.”
China exports fall as demand slows and lockdowns hit manufacturing / FT (paywall)

Beijing cancels trade expo in Ukraine
China state-backed expo pulls Ukraine trade event at last minute / Bloomberg (paywall)
“A Chinese state-backed trade expo abruptly canceled an event hosted by Ukraine touting the war-torn nation’s investment opportunities, according to a Ukrainian diplomat, a move that could fuel concern Beijing is tacitly backing Moscow in the conflict.”

Cynical Chinese youths tire of soppy headlines
China’s weepy headline problem / Sixth Tone
“Eager to engage with a younger demographic, legacy media outlets adopted cutesy, emotionally charged language in headlines and on social media. But readers now seem tired of tears.”

To learn or not to learn English?
“I decided not to learn English anymore” video goes viral on Chinese social media / What’s on Weibo
“A video in which a Chinese Harvard student shares how she wants to ‘stop trying to learn English’ has gone viral on Chinese social media. While some blame the student for flaunting her privilege, others said the video actually inspires them to study more English.”