ASIA:   China’s debt has grown dramatically over the past decade and is one of the biggest economic challenges confronting the ruling Chinese Communist Party, a major online news agency reported. The pandemic last year hit China’s economic growth and prompted authorities to make it easier for companies to get loans. As a result, China’s […]

ASIA:   The major Asian stock markets had a negative day today: NIKKEI 225 decreased 235.41 points or -0.81% to 28,812.61 Shanghai decreased 33.19 points or -0.92% to 3,573.18 Hang Seng decreased 274.20 points or -0.94% to 28,994.10 ASX 200 decreased 6.10 points or -0.08% to 7,301.20 Kospi decreased 15.21 points or -0.46% to 3,286.68 […]

ASIA: Washington’s effort to bring manufacturing from China to the US – so-called reshoring – is nothing but “empty talk” and the US will become increasingly dependent on the world’s second-largest economy for the foreseeable future, according to a top former Chinese economic official. Wei Jianguo, a former vice commerce minister said “The US will […]

ASIA: Russia and China have presented a plan to build the joint International Lunar Research Station (ILRS). The proposed lunar base is intended to be ready for crewed visits by 2036 and is unrelated to the American-led Artemis program, which has pledged to land “the first woman and person of color” on the moon by […]

ASIA: India’s antitrust watchdog on Tuesday ordered an investigation into allegations that Alphabet Inc’s Google abused its Android operating system’s position in the country’s smart television market. The Competition Commission of India (CCI), which last year began looking into a case filed by two lawyers against the U.S. tech giant, said its initial review found Google had […]

ASIA: China’s imports from Saudi Arabia fell 21% in May from a year earlier but retained their top ranking among suppliers for the ninth month in a row, customs data showed on Sunday. Shipments from Saudi Arabia were 7.2 million tonnes last month, or 1.69 million barrels per day (bpd), data from the General Administration […]

ASIA: Australia’s complaint to the World Trade Organization over China’s anti-dumping duties on wine exports should enable bilateral negotiations, Foreign Minister Marise Payne said on Sunday. The government filed a complaint on Saturday over duties that were applied last year and nearly wiped out exports of Australian wine to the Chinese market. The Australian government […]

ASIA: The Bank of Japan is expected to maintain its massive stimulus and may extend a deadline for its pandemic-relief program on Friday, in a sign that a fragile economy and tepid inflation will keep any exit from its ultra-easy policy a long way off. The decision would come in the wake of hawkish signals […]

ASIA: China’s economy steadied for a second month, a sign that the post-pandemic recovery is in a more stable phase and that growth is slowly rebalancing toward the consumer. Industrial production rose 6.6% in May on a two-year average basis — which strips out the impact of last year’s pandemic — while retail sales grew […]

ASIA: NATO leaders warned on Monday that China presents “systemic challenges,” taking a forceful stance towards Beijing in a communique at Joe Biden’s first summit with an alliance that Donald Trump openly disparaged. The new U.S. president has urged his fellow NATO leaders to stand up to China’s authoritarianism and growing military might, a change […]