ASIA: Cai Fang, a member of China’s central bank’s monetary policy committee, said China’s population is set to peak in just four years and a significant downturn in consumer demand will mark the milestone. Cai, who joined the central bank’s advisory body last month after retiring from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said the […]

ASIA: China’s economy likely grew at record pace of 19% in the first quarter, rebounding from a pandemic slump early last year as demand recovered at home and abroad and as policy support for ailing smaller firms continued, a Reuters poll showed. Reuters poll suggests that the world’s second-largest economy has continued to gain momentum, […]

ASIA: Investors are putting billions of dollars more into U.S. stock funds than Chinese ones, according to data from fund research firm EPFR Global. U.S. and China stock funds are the two regions that have attracted the most inflows from international investors over the past two quarters, Cameron Brandt, director of research at EPFR said. […]

ASIA: International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief economist Gita Gopinath has said its 2021 GDP numbers for India were locked on March 5, around the same time the country started seeing an upsurge in Covid-19 cases and that there could be a downward risk if the country goes for a nationwide lockdown. The IMF this week […]

ASIA: According to a study, some 75% of the world’s bitcoin mining is done in China. The reason given for this in the report is cheap electricity and relatively easy access to manufacturers who make specialized hardware. As a result, the nation’s bitcoin carbon footprint is as big as one of its ten largest cities, […]

ASIA: China’s factory activity in March expanded at the slowest pace in almost a year on softer overall domestic demand, but underlying economic conditions remained positive even as input and output inflationary pressures intensified for manufacturers. The Caixin/Markit Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) dropped to 50.6 last month — the lowest level since April 2020 […]

ASIA: Chinese officials on Monday said Sweden’s H&M and other foreign brands should not make rash moves or step into politics after the companies raised concerns about forced labor in Xinjiang, sparking a furious online backlash and boycotts. H&M, Burberry, Nike, Adidas, and other Western brands have been hit by consumer boycotts in China since […]

ASIA: China is slapping massive duties on wine from Australia for the next five years, a move that threatens to deprive the country’s winemakers of their top export market and escalate a trade dispute. The duties, which range from 116% to 218%, were announced Friday and come after an investigation by Chinese authorities found instances […]

ASIA: Chinese state TV called Thursday for a boycott of H&M as Beijing lashed out at foreign clothing and footwear brands following Western sanctions on Chinese officials accused of human rights abuses in the Xinjiang region. The ruling Communist Party criticized H&M for saying in March 2020 it would stop buying cotton from the northwestern […]

ASIA: Chinese internet giant Tencent on Wednesday reported a 28 percent year-on-year growth in revenue for 2020, raking in around 482 billion yuan (about $73.9 billion). The company’s net profit, calculated on a non-IFRS basis in order to reflect its core earnings by excluding certain one-time or non-cash items, rose 30 percent year on year […]