Page 5 - China

China's factory activity worsens amid Lunar New Year holiday lull

The non-manufacturing measure of activity in construction and services increased slightly to 49.5, compared with a forecast of 49.7

China to unveil priorities for next 5 years at key annual political meeting

China's ceremonial legislature is set to meet Thursday, where it will unveil the country's policy direction and economic goals for the coming years. The meeting is held in Beijing, where the National People's Congress and its advisory body gather. The National People's Congress will ratify new laws decided by China's Communist Party leadership. While the nearly 3,000-member body technically votes, the vote is always almost unanimous. Also meeting is the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, an advisory body composed of elite members of Chinese society, from businessmen to athletes. They also include representatives from China's minority groups, but the body has little power on issues of public policy. The gathering of these two bodies is called the Two Sessions. The political meetings have changed under President Xi Jinping's rule, with tighter scripts and less scope for debate. "A long, long time ago, it was a venue for policy deliberation," and even controversial ..

The Broken China Dream: Minxin Pei's book charts Xi's inevitable rise

The author argues that Xi could dismantle Deng's "reforms" because latter was not totally committed to political reform and was against a third-party check on future establishment of personality cults

China refiners cut runs as war with Iran halts West Asia crude shipping

The world's biggest oil importer, China sources roughly half its crude from the Middle East

India starts countervailing duty probe against Chinese PVC resins

India has initiated a countervailing duty investigation against imports of Chinese PVC resins, used in multiple sectors including pipes, bottles, and cables, following complaints by domestic players. The investigation the DGTR follows an application filed by Chemplast Cuddalore Vinyls, DCM Shriram and DCW Ltd. The applicants have alleged that China is subsidising its PVC Suspension Resin makers and those companies are dumping the goods into Indian markets at cheaper prices, which is impacting domestic manufacturers. The Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR) is an arm of the commerce ministry. "On the basis of the duly substantiated application by the domestic industry, and having satisfied itself, on the basis of the prima facie evidence submitted by the applicants substantiating the existence of subsidization and consequent injury to the domestic industry, the authority hereby initiates an anti-subsidy investigation," the DGTR has said in a notification. The directorate wi

China firms in limbo after Iran strikes disrupt trade, oil flows in Gulf

US-Israel strikes on Iran have left Chinese firms facing stalled deals, shipping delays and oil price risks, exposing China's trade links and heavy dependence on West Asia energy supplies

China's growth ambitions face limits as its national congress meets

China's progress in building a modern economy, evident in its kung-fu fighting robots and self-parking cars, is hitting limits as a downturn in its housing industry drags on, small businesses suffer and young people struggle to find jobs. The gap between Chinese leader Xi Jinping's high-tech, artificial intelligence-driven ambitions and the hard realities of slowing growth is the backdrop for the annual meeting of the country's largely ceremonial national legislature, the National People's Congress, which begins Thursday. During the meetings, which draw about 3,000 deputies to Beijing, top leaders will outline China's annual target for growth and the congress will endorse a five-year blueprint of policy priorities until 2030. "What we'll see is the trade-off between whether it's going to be industry and tech, or looking after domestic demand," said Alexander Davey, an analyst at the Mercator Institute for China Studies. "These are the two priorities that are juggling for Xi Jinping

China refutes reports of selling CM-302 supersonic missiles to Iran

China on Monday denied reports of finalising a deal with Iran to sell CM-302 supersonic anti-ship missiles before the joint US-Israeli airstrikes on the country. If delivered, the missiles would be among the most advanced military hardware to be transferred to Iran by China in recent years, according to media reports. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said that the report of the deal is part of a disinformation campaign. "The report is not true. As a responsible major country, China always abides by its international obligations. China opposes ill-intentioned association and the spread of disinformation, and hopes relevant sides will choose the course of action conducive to de-escalating the tense situation," she said. The report is significant as the US has assembled a flotilla of naval groups, including aircraft carriers, close to Iranian waters to carry out the current military campaign against Iran. Chinese official media on Monday reported that the US planes cras

China says US gave no warning before Iran attack, urges end to hostilities

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning condemned the Trump administration's attack

Economists gauge hit from West Asia war as China seen among losers

Chinese refiners would be impacted if Iranian barrels are disrupted, given they import an estimated 99% of Iranian exports, equivalent to about 13% of Chinese seaborne crude imports in 2025

As China's economy slows, young people buy cheap homes to retire early

The "Life in Venice" housing development, a multibillion-dollar replica of the Italian city on the Chinese coast, stands silent. Many of the tens of thousands of homes are hollow husks of concrete and alabaster. But in recent years the remote, partially abandoned complex has drawn unlikely new residents like Sasa Chen, a burned-out young Chinese woman who until recently worked a high-earning finance job in Shanghai, China's bustling commerce hub. The appeal? Chen pays just 1200 RMB, or USD 168, a month for her apartment in faux Venice in the eastern Chinese province of Jiangsu. It's so cheap that it's allowed Chen to retire at the tender age of 28. Experts say Chen is part of a broader trend that has seen a growing number of young people across China migrating to small towns and cities, taking advantage of cheap real estate prices that have been plummeting since the COVID pandemic. It's a stark reversal from previous generations that prised upward mobility. In decades past, China'

China's key policy meeting puts tech, stimulus in focus for investors

At the weeklong gathering of the National People's Congress starting March 5, officials are expected to set a 2026 growth target of 4.5% to 5%, down from around 5% in recent years

China advises its nationals in Israel to strengthen safety precautions

Earlier on Friday, China advised nationals to avoid travelling to Iran and urged those in the country to evacuate as soon as possible, as tensions build between Tehran and Washington

US tells embassy staff to 'leave Israel if they wish' as war fears mount

The US Embassy in Israel on Friday told its staff that it could leave the country and urged anyone considering departure to do so immediately, as the threat of an American strike on Iran looms. US Ambassador Mike Huckabee told embassy employees in an email that discussions with officials in Washington had led to a decision authorizing departures for those who wished to leave. The email was recounted to The Associated Press by someone involved with the US mission who wasn't authorised to share details. Sent before 10:30 a.m., it urged staff considering departure to do so quickly, advising them to to focus initially on getting any flight out of Israel and to then make their way to Washington. "Those wishing to take AD should do so TODAY," Huckabee wrote, using an acronym for "authorized departure." "While there may be outbound flights over the coming days, there may not be," he added. Huckabee said that there was no need for panic, but for those desiring to leave, it was important t

China expresses concern, urges Pakistan-Afghanistan to reach ceasefire soon

China on Friday called on Pakistan and Afghanistan to work out a ceasefire while expressing concern over the escalation of the conflict between the two countries. China is closely following the developments of the situation in the conflict between Pakistan and Afghanistan, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told a media briefing here, responding to questions on the current conflict between the two countries. Pakistan and Afghanistan are close neighbours, and both are neighbouring countries of China. As a neighbour and friend, China is deeply concerned about the escalation of the conflict and deeply saddened by the casualties caused by the conflict, Mao said. She said China supports combating all forms of terrorism and calls on both sides to exercise calm and restraint, properly resolve their differences and disputes through dialogue and consultation, and realise a ceasefire as soon as possible to avoid more suffering. The de-escalation serves the fundamental interests o

How China using cheap AI will get the world hooked on its technology

For liberal democracies such as the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada, the growth of Chinese AI tools creates a strategic headache

Women are falling in love with AI chatbots. It's a problem for Beijing

China's ruling Communist Party wants young women to prioritise getting married and having babies. Instead, many of them are finding romance with chatbots

Trump tariff turmoil yet to dent emerging countries' growth: EBRD report

Exports from some EBRD countries to the United States even grew, particularly those related to the AI boom, as those countries replaced China's exports

Online extortion centres in Myanmar, Cambodia completely dismantled: China

China's security officials claim to have "completely dismantled" Myanmar and Cambodia based notorious Chinese criminal gangs who terrorised the world with online extortion rackets forcing people to part with their hard-earned savings. Thousands of people in India, China and several other countries were defrauded by these gangs operating in Thai-Myanmar borders and Cambodia. By the end of 2025, Chinese courts nationwide had sentenced more than 41,000 individuals repatriated from northern Myanmar for their involvement in telecom fraud, executing 16 after death sentences were pronounced against them and sentenced 39 to life terms in jail, a spokesman of China's Supreme People's Court (SPC) said. The notorious Ming and Bai family criminal gangs based in northern Myanmar have been completely dismantled, state-run Global Times quoted the spokesman as saying on Thursday. More than 27,000 first-instance cases involving telecom fraud linked to northern Myanmar had been concluded by Chinese

India's auto, renewable sector support compliant with WTO norms: Official

India's support measures to promote manufacturing in the automobile and renewable energy sectors are fully compliant with World Trade Organisation norms and the country will strongly defend them at the WTO's dispute settlement panel meetings, an official said. Following a request by China, the WTO dispute settlement body on Tuesday announced the setting up of a panel to hear the case. The official said that India regrets China's decision to proceed with panel establishment despite extensive bilateral consultation on the matter in good-faith, during which India provided detailed explanations and clarifications on the measures. "India is of the view that China's request for panel establishment reflects an incorrect understanding of both the design and operation of the measures at issue. India maintains that the measures challenged by China are fully consistent with India's rights and obligations under the WTO Agreements, including the GATT (General Agreement on Trade and Tariffs) 1994