ASIA: China’s parliament on Thursday overwhelmingly endorsed a proposal on “improving the electoral system” of Hong Kong, further restricting the ability of people in the city to elect their leaders freely. Members of the National People’s Congress in Beijing voted 2,895 in favor of the proposal, with no votes against and one abstention. The decision […]

ASIA: China’s new five-year plan, made public on Friday, called tech development a matter of national security, not just economic development, in a break from the previous plan. China is freeing up tens of billions of dollars for its tech industry to borrow. It is cataloging the sectors where the United States or others could […]

ASIA: Microsoft has blamed a huge attack on its Exchange email service on a group linked to China, which has affected hundreds of thousands of customers worldwide. The American tech giant revealed last week that a hacking group called Hafnium exploited Microsoft Exchange and was able to gain access to computers. The company said the […]

ASIA: China will invest more in coal to power its economy over the next five years, according to a government plan released Friday (Mar 5) that only modestly increased renewable ambitions. Environmentalists had been hoping China’s five-year national development plan, unveiled at its annual parliamentary session would give a roadmap for its goal of carbon […]

ASIA: China is aiming for an economic growth rate above 6% in 2021. After scrapping its target last year, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang announced the target on Friday at the opening of this year’s National People’s Congress. The target marks a return to strong growth after the Covid-19 pandemic impacted the world’s second-largest economy. By […]

ASIA: The latest edition of the Heritage Foundation’s annual “Index of Economic Freedom,” which ranks countries of world’s freest economies, released Thursday, saw Hong Kong excluded from the list it once dominated because its policies are “controlled from Beijing, the agency reported. The news comes on the eve of China’s annual National People’s Congress, which […]

ASIA: The Chinese government is set to kick off an annual parliamentary meeting this week for approving national priorities for 2021. The “Two Sessions” parliamentary meeting is slated to begin Thursday with the opening of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, an advisory body. The National People’s Congress legislature is scheduled to kick off its […]

ASIA: Bank of America economist said China stands a good chance of doubling the size of its economy by 2035 — and surpassing the U.S. as the world’s largest economy along the way. Helen Qiao, head of Asia economics at BofA Global Research, said some reform measures would help China get there. Doubling of China’s […]

ASIA: China’s manufacturing sector grew at a markedly slower pace in February than the month before, surveys released over the weekend suggested, even as similar indicators in the US are signaling rapid growth. Chinese purchasing managers indexes have been trending lower since December when officials mandated new lockdowns in some northern cities to contain a […]

ASIA: US Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack believes China is making good on promises it made as part of the landmark phase one trade deal it signed with the US last year. Vilsack said that the deal allows for market conditions to dictate how much Beijing is required to purchase from US farmers. The COVID pandemic, […]