The China Agenda for September 25–October 1 — Asian Games and EU-China talks

The key events this week are the Asian Games in Hangzhou and a number of United Nations high-level meetings.

The Mid-Autumn Festival also falls on this Friday, September 29: We wish you all the best of the season and may all your mooncakes be delicious. 中秋节快乐 zhōngqiū jié kuàilè!

Upcoming diplomatic visits and international political events

Several United Nations events are happening this week:

• The General Assembly High Level Week continues in New York, with the General Debate concluding on September 26.
• The 54th session of the UN Human Rights Council continues in Geneva until October 3.
• The high-level political forum on sustainable development is convening under the auspices of the General Assembly (Sustainable Development Goals Summit) on September 26 in New York.
• UN nuclear watchdog IAEA holds its annual General Conference in Geneva, September 25–29.
• The International Energy Agency’s Critical Minerals and Clean Energy Summit is on September 28.

The 2022 Asian Games are being held in Hangzhou September 23–October 8. Xí Jìnpíng 习近平 attended opening ceremonies on September 22 and 23 and held a welcome banquet and bilateral events for foreign leaders coming to China to attend the opening ceremony.

Foreign leaders and dignitaries attending the events include:

• King Sihamoni of Cambodia
• President Bashar of Syria
• Crown Prince Mishal of Kuwait
• Prime Minister Prachanda of Nepal
• Prime Minister Xanana of Timor-Leste
• Prime Minister Han Deok-soo of South Korea
• Speaker of the Lower House of the Parliament of Malaysia, Mr. Zoharie
• Prince Sufri, representative of the Sultan of Brunei
• Prince Jauan, representative of the Emir of Qatar
• Prince Faisal of Jordan
• Princess Hiriwanwali of Thailand
• Deputy Prime Minister Baysalov of Kyrgyzstan

The 10th China-EU High-Level Economic and Trade Dialogue will be held in Beijing on September 25. EU Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis will represent the EU side, which he will co-chair alongside Hé Lìfēng 何立峰, Vice Premier of the State Council.

• Dombrovskis is expected to deliver a tough message on the bleak business environment for European firms, and protest Beijing’s deepening relationship with Russia.

Chén Wénqīng 陈文清, Politburo member and secretary of the Central Political and Law Commission, is in Germany until September 28 to attend the fourth China-Germany high-level security dialogue. He will also visit Italy and Serbia.

Political events in China

The National People’s Congress (NPC) is now soliciting public comment on five draft law revisions through September 30. The drafts are the Company Law, the Value-Added Tax Law, the Preschool Education Law, the Academic Degrees Law, and the Public Security Administrative Punishments Law. You can find the Chinese drafts texts and unofficial translations on the NPC Observer website.

China-related political events in the U.S. and around the world

This week, several relevant sessions are being held in Congress:

• On September 27 at 10 a.m. ET, the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee will hold a hearing on “Hearings to examine foreign ownership in U.S. agriculture.”
• On September 27 at 10:30 a.m. ET, the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Innovation, Data, and Commerce will hold a hearing on “Proposals to Enhance Product Safety and Transparency for Americans.”
• On September 27 at 1 p.m. ET, the House Oversight and Accountability Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Information Technology, and Government Innovation will hold a hearing on “Combating Ransomware Attacks.”
• On September 27 at 2:30 p.m. ET, the Senate Intelligence (Select) Committee will hold hearings to examine countering China’s malign influence operations in the United States.
• On September 28 at 10 a.m. ET, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will hold hearings to examine opportunities to counter the People’s Republic of China’s control of critical mineral supply chains through increased mining and processing in the United States as well as international engagement and trade.
• On September 28 at 2 p.m. ET, the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere will hold a hearing: “Communism on Our Doorstep: The Threat of China’s Malign Influence in Latin America.”

India and the U.S. will hold another edition of the Yudh Abhyas joint military exercise in Alaska on September 25–October 8.

U.S. President Biden will hold the second Pacific Island Country Summit on September 25.

Earnings reports, IPOs, and other business and market events

Data releases:

• On September 26 at 9:30 p.m. ET, China will release its industrial profits data for the month.
• On September 28, China will release its final current account figures for the month.
• On September 29 at 9:30 p.m. ET, the National Bureau of Statistics will publish its monthly Price Managers Index (PMI), including PMI data for both manufacturing and non-manufacturing sectors.
• On September 30 at 9:45 p.m. ET, Caixin will publish its monthly Price Managers Index (PMI), including both manufacturing and services PMI data.

IPOs

• On September 25, 恒兴新材 Jiangsu Hengxing New Material Technology will list on the Shanghai Stock Exchange.
• On September 25, 科强股份 Jiangsu Keqiang New Material will list on the Shanghai Stock Exchange. It will also launch on the Shanghai Stock Exchange the following day.
• On September 25, 樂艙物流股份 LC Logistics will list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
• On September 25, 武漢友芝友生物製藥 Wuhan Youzhiyou Biology Pharmacy will list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
• On September 26, 途虎養車 Tuhu, an automotive services platform company, will list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
• On September 28, 北京第四 4paradigm, an AI business services firm, will list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
• On September 28, 東軟熙康控 Neusoft Kaxing will list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
• September 28, 中旭未來 ZX, a digital business services firm, will list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

Other events

Academic and think-tank events this week include:

CSIS: ROK-U.S. Strategic Forum 2023, September 25, 8:45 a.m. ET.

UPenn: Distinguished Global Lecture: “The Taiwan Straits Crisis and Its Influence on Japanese National Security,” September 25, 12 p.m. ET.

Columbia-Harvard China and the World Program: ‘Making sense of how we make sense of Chinese Foreign Policy’ with Todd Hall, Oxford University, September 25, 4:30 p.m. ET.

Brookings: The 2023 Knight Forum on Geopolitics, September 26, 9 a.m. ET.

Stimson Center: The UN Cybercrime Treaty: Is It a Crime?, September 26, 11 a.m. ET.

Asia Society: AI’s Impact on the Chinese Economy, September 27, 10 a.m. ET.

Wilson Center: Challenging Autocracy From the Front Lines, September 27, 10 a.m. ET.

Atlantic Council: An allied approach to countering Beijing’s Military-Civil Fusion, September 27, 2 p.m. ET.

CSIS: China’s Strategy of Political Warfare: Views from Congress, September 28, 8:45 a.m. ET.

CSIS: Solving the Semiconductor Workforce Crunch, September 28, 3 p.m. ET.

Stanford: 2023 Hsieh Memorial Lecture Featuring Yasheng Huang, September 28, 7:45 p.m. ET.