Category Archives: China

Swipes at China as Joe Biden and Japanese PM seek united front in Asia Pacific

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In his first in-person summit since taking office, the US president hosts Yoshihide Suga as part of efforts to face down Beijing

Joe Biden has sought to present a united front with Japan’s prime minister, Yoshihide Suga, to counter an increasingly assertive China as the US president held his first face-to-face White House summit since taking office.

Biden hosted Suga for talks on Friday that offered the Democratic president a chance to work further on his pledge to revitalise US alliances that frayed under his Republican predecessor, Donald Trump.

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FTSE 100 closes above 7,000 for first time since Covid crash

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Shares rise by more than 30 points as China reports record economic growth

The FTSE 100 has closed above 7,000 for the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic triggered a collapse in global markets last year, driven by rising hopes for the world economy after record growth in China.

The index of leading UK company shares ended the day up 36 points on Friday, or 0.5%, at 7,019, the highest level since late February 2020 when the first wave of Covid-19 sent shock waves through financial markets around the world.

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Hong Kong’s Jimmy Lai and his media empire face uncertain future

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Analysis: Tycoon and pro-democracy activist’s 14-month jail sentence is only the start of his problems

The sentencing of the high-profile Hong Kong activist Jimmy Lai may offer a foretaste both of his own future and of the media empire he built.

For the 73-year-old tycoon, the 14-month prison sentence handed down on Friday is only the start. He faces six remaining charges, two of which relate to the new national security law, which is deemed draconian by pro-democracy activists but which Beijing argues is necessary.

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Hong Kong pro-democracy figures given jail terms of up to 18 months

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Media mogul Jimmy Lai and veteran activist Lee Cheuk-yan each sentenced to 12 months over protests

Ten of Hong Kong’s most senior pro-democracy activists including the media mogul Jimmy Lai have been sentenced to jail terms of up to 18 months for organising or attending “unauthorised assemblies” during mass protests that rocked the city in 2019.

In the latest blow to Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement, the individuals were either ordered to jail or given suspended sentences in relation to two separate rallies held on 18 and 31 August 2019.

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Beijing hit by third sandstorm in five weeks

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Dust blown in from drought-hit areas to the north sends pollution soaring to twice the hazardous level

The third major sandstorm in five weeks turned Beijing’s skies sepia on Thursday, and sent air quality plummeting in the Chinese capital.

The storms, caused by winds from drought-hit Mongolia and north-western China, sent levels of the pollutant PM10, which can penetrate the lung, to 999 micrograms per cubic metre – a level almost double the “hazardous” stage indicated by the Beijing air pollution real time quality index.

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China ‘must shut 600 coal-fired plants’ to hit climate target

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Move towards renewables to hit net zero by 2060 would also pay off with saving of $1.6tn, analysis finds

China must shut down nearly 600 of its coal-fired power plants in the next 10 years, replacing them with renewable electricity generation, to meet its goal of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2060, a report has said.

But replacing the 364GW of coal generation with renewable power would achieve a net saving of $1.6tn (£1.2tn) over the period, since wind and solar power are now much cheaper than coal, according to the analysis company TransitionZero.

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Alibaba shares jump after record $2.8bn anti-monopoly fine

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E-commerce firm feels penalty by Chinese regulators means focus on company is at an end

Shares in Alibaba surged on Monday after the e-commerce company said that a record $2.8bn fine handed down by Chinese regulators marked the end of an investigation into anti-competitive practices at the company.

Top executives at the company, founded by the billionaire Jack Ma, told investors that while Chinese regulators continued a wider investigation into the sprawling conglomerates in the country’s tech industry, they believed the multibillion dollar fine announced at the weekend marked the end of the focus on Alibaba. The company is listed in Hong Kong and its shares climbed as much as 9% on the management’s comments.

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Secretary of state Blinken hits out at China over Taiwan and Covid

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Joe Biden’s secretary of state, Antony Blinken, said on Sunday the US is concerned about China’s aggressive actions against Taiwan and warned it would be a “serious mistake” for anyone to try to change the status quo in the western Pacific by force.

Related: Chaos Under Heaven: Trump as raging bull in a China policy shop

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China fines Alibaba billions for alleged market abuses

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Platform co-founded by Jack Ma, who has criticised Chinese authorities, misused its dominance, say state regulators

Chinese regulators have hit e-commerce company Alibaba with a fine of 18.2bn yuan (US$2.78bn) over practices deemed to be an abuse of its dominant market position, according to state-run media.

The Xinhua news agency said the state administration for market regulation had assessed the fine after concluding an investigation into Alibaba that began in December.

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China blasts UK for granting asylum to Hong Kong activist Nathan Law

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UK grants protection to pro-democracy figure who is regarded by Beijing as ‘criminal suspect’

Chinese authorities have accused the UK of sheltering a “criminal suspect” after it granted asylum to Hong Kong activist and former politician Nathan Law.

Law, who fled Hong Kong in 2020, said on Wednesday he had been granted political asylum by the Home Office and the warrant for his arrest under the Beijing-imposed national security law showed he was “exposed to severe political persecution”. At least 100 pro-democracy figures have been arrested under the law.

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‘We will respond in kind’: China’s ambassador warns Australia not to join Xinjiang sanctions

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Cheng Jingye hosted a media event at his residence in Canberra that included a two-hour video conference with officials in Xinjiang

China’s ambassador to Australia has warned that Beijing would respond “in kind” if Canberra followed other countries in imposing sanctions against its officials over human rights abuses in Xinjiang.

The ambassador, Cheng Jingye, said people should not be under the illusion “that China would swallow the bitter pill” of meddling in its internal affairs, nor attempts to mount a “pressure” campaign.

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China’s vast bitcoin mining empire risks derailing its climate targets, says study

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China powers nearly 80% of the global cryptocurrencies trade, but the energy required could jeopardise its pledge to peak carbon emissions by 2030

China’s electricity-hungry bitcoin mines that power nearly 80% of the global trade in cryptocurrencies risk undercutting the country’s climate goals, a study in the journal Nature has said.

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies rely on “blockchain” technology, which is a shared database of transactions, with entries that must be confirmed and encrypted. The network is secured by individuals called “miners” who use high-powered computers to verify transactions, with bitcoins offered as a reward. Those computers consume enormous amounts of electricity.

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Value judgment: Donald Trump tumbles down billionaires’ rankings

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While the richest got spectacularly richer during the pandemic, the ex-president plummeted nearly 300 places in the Forbes list

It’s been a glorious pandemic for the world’s richest people. Forbes annual billionaire poll includes a record-breaking 2,755 billionaires, with Amazon founder Jeff Bezos once again topping the list, the media company said on Tuesday.

The ranks of the super wealthy swelled as the coronavirus pandemic threatened the lives and livelihoods of millions across the planet but stock markets continued to hit new highs.

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Sanctions only escalate tensions. It’s time to tackle the Uyghurs’ plight differently | David Brophy

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The west needs to make a credible case that its opposition to China’s policies is not geopolitical manoeuvring

“Wholly counterproductive”, was how Newcastle academic Joanne Smith Finley described China’s sanctions on her, along with a series of British politicians and lawyers, as punishment for their advocacy for the Uyghurs. That was putting it mildly. But is it the case that western sanctions on China will be, by contrast, productive? Sadly, that seems unlikely.

International outrage at China’s policies of incarceration and social coercion in Xinjiang continues to grow. As someone who has been engaged with the region for two decades, I see that as much needed. But it’s crucial the energy being generated is put to good use. The gloves may be off, but what is the strategy?

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China sandstorms highlight threat of climate crisis

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Experts say extreme weather including droughts will become more common as planet heats

Recent sandstorms that shrouded Beijing in a post-apocalyptic orange haze and intensive droughts in other parts of the country are bringing into stark relief the challenges China faces from rising temperatures induced by the climate crisis.

The widespread sandstorms that pelted the capital and spread as far as central China for several days in mid-March and again at the end of the month were brought on by lower than average snow cover and precipitation, as well as higher than normal temperatures and winds across Mongolia and northern China.

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China launches musical in bid to counter Uyghur abuse allegations

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Beijing is attempting to draw attention away from reports it is holding at least one million in Xinjiang internment camps

A new state-produced musical set in Xinjiang inspired by the Hollywood blockbuster “La La Land” has hit China’s cinemas, portraying a rural idyll of ethnic cohesion devoid of repression, mass surveillance and even the Islam of its majority Uyghur population.

China is on an elaborate PR offensive to rebrand the north-western region where the United States and other western nationals and human rights groups say genocide has been inflicted on the Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities.

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‘Wings of Song’: China launches ‘idyllic’ musical set in Xinjiang – video

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A new Chinese state-produced musical set in Xinjiang portrays a rural idyll of ethnic cohesion devoid of repression, mass surveillance and even the Muslim religion of its majority Uyghur population. The musical appears intended to culturally reframe the debate on the region. Western countries, including the US and UK, have imposed sanctions on Chinese officials they say are involved in the mass interment of up to one million Uyghur Muslims.

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Wait, who is the wolf again? Chinese embassy’s Aesop fable analogy baffles Twitter

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Twitter account of embassy in Ireland riffs on the Wolf and the Lamb but appears to get confused

A butchered Aesop’s fable from the Twitter account of China’s embassy in Ireland has drawn mirth from observers and highlighted the growing sensitivity of Chinese diplomats to international criticism.

As China engages in international disputes ranging from fist fights with Taiwanese officials to trade sanctions and threats of conflict, the belligerent and aggressive style of communication of some of its foreign officials has earned the nickname “wolf warrior diplomacy”.

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Hong Kong democracy leaders found guilty over peaceful 2019 protest

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Seven figures including Martin Lee and media tycoon Jimmy Lai convicted over unauthorised march

Seven of Hong Kong’s most senior and prominent pro-democracy figures, including the lawyer and former legislator Martin Lee and the media tycoon Jimmy Lai, have been found guilty over their involvement in an unauthorised protest rally.

After a four-week trial, the defendants were convicted on Thursday of organising and participating in the rally in 2019, joining two others who pleaded guilty earlier. They could face up to 10 years in prison, though their sentences are likely to be shorter than that.

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UK and US criticise WHO’s Covid report and accuse China of withholding data

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Statement signed by 12 other nations says investigation into virus origins not extensive enough

The US and the UK have sharply criticised a World Health Organization report into the beginnings of the coronavirus pandemic in Wuhan, implicitly accusing China of “withholding access to complete, original data and samples”.

The statement, also signed by 12 other countries including Australia and Canada, came hard on the heels of an admission on Tuesday by the head of the WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, that the investigation was “not extensive enough” and experts had struggled to access raw information during their four-week visit to Wuhan in January.

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