Highlighted links for October 16, 2023

Below are links from our NewsBase to other noteworthy reports published in the last 24 hours from and about China.

BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY:

Economic gloom or boom
IMF warning on China puts ‘Japanization’ risk in spotlight / Reuters
“Hiroshi Watanabe, Japan’s former top currency diplomat, recalls how Chinese policymakers eagerly studied ways to avert a Japan-style burst of an asset bubble that led to prolonged deflation and economic stagnation — until around 2015.”
China’s economy remains shaky after challenging summer / WSJ (paywall)
“Lackluster inflation and declining trade numbers in China have stoked concerns that the world’s second-largest economy is still on shaky footing, despite recent signs of stabilization.”

Consumer spending and Singles’ Day
Alibaba, JD.com locked in brutal price war this Singles’ Day amid weak consumer spending in China / SCMP (paywall)
“Alibaba Group Holding’s Taobao & Tmall Group is defending its dominance in China’s ecommerce market by offering consumers massive rebates and discounts during this year’s Singles’ Day shopping season, putting a brave face on a price competition against rivals JD.com and Pinduoduo.”

Credit easing and liquidity
China ramps up liquidity support to banking system / Reuters
“China’s central bank ramped up liquidity support to the banking system as it rolled over medium-term policy loans on Monday, but kept the interest rate unchanged amid concerns about the risk of more sharp yuan declines.”
China to discuss advancing 2024 bond quota as local authorities struggle for liquidity / SCMP (paywall)
“Amid efforts to tackle local government debt and stressed regional banks as financial stability has jumped high on Beijing’s agenda, China’s lawmakers will meet later this week to discuss front-loading its 2024 bond quota.”
China tells lenders to pour money into car loans, consumer credit / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
“China’s top financial regulator urged lenders to dramatically expand lending to a broad swath of businesses, help consumers buy more cars and create consumer credit products to help new college graduates.”

Banking fraud in Hong Kong
Hong Kong takes aim at banking fraud as complaints surge / Caixin (paywall)
“Hong Kong’s de facto central bank said it received almost twice as many complaints related to banking fraud in the first nine months of 2023 as it did during the entire previous year.”

Foreign businesses in China
Shanghai mayor meets foreign business leaders, vows further support / Sixth Tone
“The city’s economy is recovering well following the pandemic, according to the mayor.”

U.S.-China tech war
Shenzhen trip, DJI visit by China’s vice-premier offers ‘no-limits support’ amid US tech curbs / SCMP (paywall)
“A first trip to Shenzhen, a key technology hub in the Greater Bay Area, by China’s executive vice-premier signaled Beijing’s strong hopes for the city and the region to help break intensifying US technological containment efforts, analysts said.”

Exports and imports
China’s exports and imports sink in September as global demand falters / AP
“China’s exports and imports both fell in September from a year earlier, though they contracted at a slower pace than the month before even as global demand remained muted.”

Real estate and property development
China bet it all on real estate. Now its economy is paying the price. / NYT (paywall)
“After relying on a borrow-to-build model for decades, Beijing must make difficult choices about the country’s housing market and economic future.”

Evergrande
How Evergrande’s chief tried to turn things around—and failed / WSJ (paywall)
“After seeking government help, the property developer made promises to Chinese citizens that it didn’t keep.”

SCIENCE, HEALTH, AND ENVIRONMENT:

Infectious diseases
1 in 4 adult deaths in Hong Kong public hospitals related to sepsis, study finds, prompting calls for early diagnosis and treatment of condition / SCMP (paywall)
“One in four adult deaths in Hong Kong public hospitals between 2009 and 2018 was related to sepsis, a university study has found, triggering calls from researchers for early diagnosis and treatment amid rising incidence and mortality rates.”

POLITICS AND FOREIGN AFFAIRS:

Propaganda: Xi Jinping Thought on Culture
China officials hasten to implement Xi’s doctrine on culture and propaganda / SCMP (paywall)
“Officials around China have pledged to implement President Xí Jìnpíng’s 习近平 recently released ideology on culture and propaganda, in a fresh push for content control and Beijing’s global soft power.”
Xi Jinping’s cathedral of pretense / China Media Project
“With the addition of a grandiose new buzzword in China for culture and civilization, it may seem that a towering future is on the horizon. We take a hard look at the foundations of ‘Xi Jinping Thought on Culture.’”

Corruption
Sports personality’s disappearance linked to bribery probe, source says / Caixin (paywall)
“Widely known sports media personality Duàn Xuān 段暄, a former soccer commentator for state broadcaster CCTV, has disappeared from public view for the last several months, and industry insiders told Caixin that he is linked to a bribery case involving a former official in charge of the country’s Olympics 2022 preparations.”

BRI
Taliban to join China’s Belt and Road forum, elevating ties / Reuters
“The Taliban will attend China’s Belt and Road Forum next week, a spokesman said on Saturday, underscoring Beijing’s growing official ties with the administration, despite its lack of formal recognition by any government.”
Leaders gather in China for smaller, greener Belt and Road summit / Reuters
“When China launched its Belt and Road Initiative 10 years ago, it touted huge infrastructure spending linking it with Western Europe, which as recently as 2019, Britain’s then-finance minister said had ‘tremendous potential to spread prosperity and sustainable development.’”
Putin sees Belt and Road Initiative as China’s desire to cooperate / Reuters
“Russia President Vladimir Putin said that he sees China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) as a desire to cooperate on the global arena, Russian and Chinese news agencies reported on Sunday.”
Chinese capital steps up security ahead of start of Belt and Road forum / SCMP (paywall)
Belt and road forum ‘a showcase’ for China’s growing global influence / SCMP (paywall)
Is China’s Belt and Road Initiative running out of steam? / SCMP (paywall)
China’s Belt and Road came at ‘right time’ for Africa, says AU official / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
China’s Belt and Road Forum to illuminate scope of Russia ties / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
“Russian President Vladimir Putin is due in China this week for a high-stakes visit that should signal the strength and scope of the countries’ ‘no limits’ friendship.”’
Opinion: BRI is only first step in China’s strategy for a new world order / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
Niva Yau writes: “From the beginning, China branded the Belt and Road Initiative as a strategy to boost global connectivity.”
China reboots its Belt and Road Initiative / WSJ (paywall)

Taiwan and South Korea
Fearing China, South Korea targets firms building Taiwan navy submarines / Reuters
“South Korean authorities cited the risk of Chinese economic retaliation when they charged marine technology firm SI Innotec last year with violating trade laws for its work on Taiwan’s new military submarine program, according to a police document seen by Reuters and two people familiar with the matter.”

Israel-Hamas conflict
China calls for ceasefire in Israel, suggests mediation at meeting with Russia / Reuters
“China’s foreign minister on Monday called for a ceasefire to halt the bloodshed in Israel, suggesting at a meeting with his Russian counterpart that major world powers should work to avoid a humanitarian disaster.”
China’s Foreign Minister calls US Secretary of State on crisis in Israel and Gaza / Reuters
“China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi spoke with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken by phone on Saturday on the crisis in Israel and Gaza, a statement from his ministry said.”
Israel-Hamas war upends China’s ambitions in the Middle East but may serve Beijing in the end / AP
“In June, Chinese President Xi Jinping hosted the Palestinian president in Beijing and invited the Israeli prime minister for an official state visit. Benjamin Netanyahu accepted, and China was on track for a bigger role in the region.”
Israel-Hamas war: Chinese social media erupts in war of words as Palestine crisis divides opinion / SCMP (paywall)
“The deadly Israel-Hamas conflict has sparked a war of words on Chinese social media, with the mix of online nationalism and anti-US sentiments reminiscent of reactions to the Ukraine war.”
Opinion: On Israel-Hamas conflict, are US Republicans ready to stand with China? / SCMP (paywall)
Robert Delaney writes: “With Beijing likely to refrain from condemning Hamas, the Republican Party may find itself aligned with China, a country it demonizes at every turn.”
China’s top diplomat Wang Yi meets Russian minister Sergey Lavrov, urges UN Security Council action / SCMP (paywall)
China Middle East envoy meets Arab League on Gaza crisis / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
Israel should stop ‘collective punishment’ of Gaza, Wang Yi says / Caixin (paywall)
Israel-Hamas war tests China’s Middle East ambitions / FT (paywall)

North Korea
Activists slam China after alleged forced repatriation of North Koreans / VOA
“Human rights activists are criticizing China after reports that Beijing forcibly returned more than 500 North Korean defectors.”

EU
EU warns China that European public could turn more protectionist if trade deficit isn’t reduced / AP
“The European Union’s top foreign policy official warned Friday that public sentiment in Europe could turn more protectionist if the region’s trade deficit with China is not reduced.”
Borrell calls on China to treat EU as a ‘geopolitical power’ in its own right / FT (paywall)
“The EU has called on China to take it seriously as a geopolitical power in its own right rather than look at the bloc ‘through the lens’ of its ties with third powers, in a veiled reference to accusations from Beijing officials that Brussels follows the US on security issues.”

Central Asia
Russia, China, U.S. and more woo Central Asia with summit diplomacy / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
“A recent flurry of summits with Central Asian leaders by Russia, China, the U.S. and Germany underscores the intensifying battle for influence in a region expected to play an increasingly important role in international trade.”

Nepal
China got a big contract. Nepal got debt and a pricey airport. / NYT (paywall)
“China called the project a ‘signature’ of its cooperation with Nepal. Insiders and documents reveal the pitfalls of China’s infrastructure-at-any-cost model.”

Chile
China’s Tsingshan plans $233m lithium investment in Chile / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
“China’s Tsingshan Holding Group will invest $233.2 million to set up a plant in Chile to produce lithium iron phosphate (LFP), used to power electric vehicles, Chilean President Gabriel Boric said on Monday.”

South Korea
South Korea says it expressed concern to China for sending North Korean escapees back home / AP
“South Korea on Friday said it had expressed its concerns to China after assessing that it recently returned a ‘large number’ of North Koreans, including escapees, back to their homeland.”

Japan
Chinese boycott beauty products after Fukushima water discharge / FT (paywall)
“Online sales of Japanese-made cosmetics in China have taken a hit after shoppers started boycotting beauty brands following Japan’s decision to release radioactive water from its stricken Fukushima nuclear plant into the Pacific Ocean.”

Russia
What to watch for at Xi’s meeting with Putin / Reuters
“Russian President Vladimir Putin will travel to China this week to meet Xí Jìnpíng 习近平, the Kremlin chief’s first trip outside the former Soviet Union this year.”
Russia-China energy cooperation in focus as Putin visits Xi / Reuters
“Since the start of the Ukrainian conflict, Russia, a leading global oil producer, has cemented its energy ties with China, the world’s No. 2 oil consumer after the United States.”
China’s top diplomat Wang Yi meets Russia’s Lavrov / Reuters
“China’s top diplomat Wáng Yì 王毅 met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Monday, Chinese state media CGTN reported.”
Putin to visit China to deepen ‘no limits’ partnership with Xi / Reuters
Putin says suggestions of U.S. war against Russia and China are nonsense / Reuters

Philippines
Philippines demands China halt “dangerous and offensive” actions in S.C. Sea / Reuters
“The Philippine military has demanded China stop ‘dangerous and offensive’ actions in the South China Sea, after a Chinese navy ship shadowed and attempted to cut off a Philippine navy vessel conducting a resupply mission late last week.”

SOCIETY AND CULTURE:

Child policy
China’s two-child policy runs out of gas / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
“Fewer Chinese families gave birth to a second child last year, signaling the fading effects of China’s two-child policy initiated in 2016.”

Education
Read more, test less: An elementary principal’s endeavor in rural China / Sixth Tone
“In Boluochi, a rural town in Chaoyang County in the northeastern Liaoning province, an abandoned cafeteria that has been converted into a school library stands as the result of Boluochi Elementary School principal Zhao Guobin’s endeavor over the course of 13 years.”

Music
The Chinese musicians making melodies out of nothing — and everything / Sixth Tone
“China’s latest social media challenge has creators fashioning instruments out of everything from carrots to screwdrivers.”

Life coaching
In China, life coaches are seeing booming demand from Gen-Zers / Sixth Tone
“Just a few years ago, life coaching was a tiny industry in China. But the profession is now rapidly going mainstream.”