China News - 4 February 2022
International
China is ‘ready’: Winter Olympics get underway amid Covid and boycott. The Beijing Olympics begin today with a return to the scene of China's triumphant 2008 Summer Games launch - the Bird's Nest stadium. According to the Financial Times, Friday’s opening ceremony marks the start of a new chapter in Xi Jinping’s political career. Chinese officials and analysts believe the event offers an opportunity to show off what they maintain is their country’s superior governance system. BBC, FT, Reuters, 4 February
India launches last-minute diplomatic boycott of Beijing Olympics over Chinese soldier carrying torch. CNN, The Times, 4 February
Xi Jinping meets Vladimir Putin as tensions grow with west. China’s Xi Jinping is holding his first face-to-face meeting with a world leader in nearly two years on Friday as he hosts Russia’s Vladimir Putin. The two nations will release a joint statement reflecting their “common views” on security and other issues, before attending the Olympic opening ceremony in the evening, a top Kremlin adviser said at a Wednesday press briefing. The Guardian, 4 February
Analysis:
Russia inches closer to China as ‘new cold war’ looms. Vincent Ni and Andrew Roth. The Guardian, 3 February
China: What does it want from the Ukraine crisis with Russia? Tessa Wong. BBC, 3 February
US lawmakers push to rename Taiwan's de facto embassy in Washington. A bipartisan group of US lawmakers proposed matching bills in the Senate and House of Representatives on Thursday that would require the United States to negotiate the renaming of Taiwan's de facto embassy in Washington as the "Taiwan Representative Office," a move certain to rankle China. Reuters, Nikkei Asia, 4 February
China’s Belt and Road plans face new EU, US competition, but ‘space for cooperation’ remains. Experts say the global infrastructure deficit is so large, there is room for multiple players and even opportunity for collaboration between China and the EU. SCMP, 4 February
Latin American leaders target economic prizes during Beijing trip. Argentina’s Alberto Fernández and Ecuador’s Guillermo Lasso are in China seeking support for national economic priorities - a sign of how Beijing’s influence is growing in Latin America. FT, 4 February
China 'subjected Indian teenager to electric shocks' after abducting him from disputed border. The Telegraph, 3 February
Japan's Kishida confirms cooperation on China, North Korea with US ambassador. Reuters, 4 February
Economy & tech
Clean energy transition to fuel growth for China's rare earths sector in 2022. China is expected to continue increasing production, exports and pricing for the commodity group through 2022, driven by increasing global demand for clean energy. Beijing recently lifted its rare earths mining output quota by 20% year over year to 100,800 tonnes for the first batch of 2022. S&P Global, 4 February
Chinese property group Shimao feels chill of sector’s liquidity crisis. Shanghai-based Shimao was rated investment grade by Fitch and deemed a safe bet.
But months later, its bonds are trading at 63 cents on the dollar and the company has been forced to sell its prized assets after being sucked into a property bond market sell-off that has hit China’s biggest offshore borrowers. FT, 4 February
Building a metaverse with Chinese characteristics. There are signs that Beijing wants Chinese companies to build the metaverse first, and to build it with Chinese characteristics: with content controls, monitoring, censorship and no scope for anonymity. The Economist, 4 February
Cranswick demands support for struggling UK meat industry. A shortage of skilled butchers and halted exports to China have prompted food producer Cranswick to call on the government to address the “magnitude” of the issues facing the meat industry. The Times, 4 February
Japan flags vulnerability to China supply chain constraints. Caixin, 4 February
China’s fully cashless society a step closer after two private banks end services for banknotes and coins. SCMP, 4 February
China focus
To achieve ‘common prosperity,’ Xi Jinping seeks to scale China’s ‘Three Big Mountains’. After decades of prioritising economic growth, Chinese leaders have recently focused their efforts on overhauling the education, housing and healthcare sectors. WSJ, 3 February
China adds harsher penalties for illegal private tutoring. Caixin, 3 February
Records set at global broadcast of 2022 Spring Festival Gala. CGTN, 2 February
Opinion & editorial
Russia can’t go all-in on China to thwart Western punishment. As Moscow threatens war with Ukraine, it can only get so much help from Beijing. Eva Hartog. Politico, 4 February
Most unlevel of playing fields at Beijing Winter Olympics. Almost every nation has had their preparations for the Winter Olympics ravaged by the pandemic – every nation except the hosts. Owen Slot. The Times, 4 February
Review: How I Survived a Chinese ‘Reeducation’ Camp by Gulbahar Haitiwaji - the true story of the Uyghur tragedy. John Phipps. The Times, 4 February
Long reads
Nixon’s visit to China, 50 years on. Eye-witnesses from 1972 offer their views of a relationship in bad shape. Chaguan - The Economist, 4 February
The assault on Apple Daily. The demise of Jimmy Lai’s newspaper shows how far China will go to bring Hong Kong into line. Iain Marlow. Bloomberg, 3 February
China's population peak. Demographic changes in the world's most populous country is posing challenges for health and the health system. Megan Tatum. The Lancet, 4 February