Links for Thursday, Dec 8, 2022

China and Saudi Arabia pen a flurry of deals to boost ties
Chinese firms ink Saudi green energy pacts as Xi visits / Bloomberg (paywall)
Xi Jinping travels to Saudi Arabia for high-profile summits with Saudi and Arab leaders / China-Global South Project (paywall)
China’s Xi Jinping to meet Saudi crown prince in pivotal visit / WSJ (paywall)
Saudi lays on lavish welcome as China’s Xi heralds ‘new era’ in relations / Reuters
China’s Xi on ‘epoch-making’ visit to Saudi as Riyadh chafes at U.S. censure / Reuters
Xi’s Saudi visit seeks to shift narrative away from protests / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
China’s Xi at Saudi palace to meet royals on Mideast trip / AP
For the Western press, Xi’s Saudi visit is all about the United States / China-Global South Project (paywall)

Relief and concern as Beijing lifts COVID-zero measures
China risks ‘wave of infections’ after relaxing zero-COVID policy, warns Fauci / FT (paywall)
China faces soaring infections as Xi starts to relax COVID zero / Bloomberg (paywall)
“China is seeing Covid infections start to pick up rapidly as zero-tolerance curbs are relaxed.”
China’s looser anti-COVID measures met with relief, caution / AP

British firms brace for China’s loosening COVID rules
British businesses prepare for rising COVID infections as China scales back controls / Caixin (paywall)
“An annual survey by the British Chamber of Commerce in China shows a pessimistic outlook, with Chair Julian MacCormac saying it’s too early to predict the impact of ‘zero-COVID’ relaxation efforts.”
British firms in China call for ‘clear road map’ on new COVID rules / SCMP (paywall)

China’s economic comeback?
How will China turn its economy back on? The world is about to find out. / NYT (paywall)
“Strict ‘zero COVID’ curbs have been smothering growth. After easing them, Beijing faces the twin challenges of rising caseloads and wary consumers.”
China’s stagnant economy triggers zero-COVID rollback / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
Chinese economists call for fewer COVID-19 restrictions to boost growth / Radio Free Asia

The lines are all blurred between private and Party
The new China shock / Foreign Affairs
“Beijing’s party-state capitalism is changing the global economy.”