Business Archives - Page 6 of 40

10Aug

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Lammy plans China visit for September to kick-start high-level engagement

David Lammy is planning a visit to China in September that would fall within the first 100 days of him taking office. The foreign secretary is in talks over a trip to Beijing next month that would signal the UK wants to resume high-level engagement with the country. No date has been officially confirmed. A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) spokesperson said: “Foreign secretary travel will be confirmed in the usual way.” Lammy had planned to travel to China while Labour was still in opposition earlier this summer, but his trip was postponed when the general election was called. After Labour won the election, Lammy met China’s foreign minister, Wang Yi, at a meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations on 26 July. The FCDO said that, at the m

2Aug

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As Chinese graduates opt for government jobs, what of the private sector?

In China, people are notoriously practical when it comes to selecting college majors. My personal experience illustrates that. After ranking among the top 10 students in my home province’s college entrance examination scores, I received unsolicited advice on picking majors. My parents were counselled to steer me away from journalism, as it no longer promised a decent job placement after graduation. I was also cautioned against majoring in international economics, despite my high scores, because it was considered “too popular” at the time. Instead, international politics was suggested as a safer alternative. Little did we anticipate the profound shifts that would occur. With the abolishment of the job assignment policy and as China’s reform and opening up picked up momentum

23Jul

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The CCP’s third plenum: economic reforms, strategic continuity

The CCP announced structural reforms and measures to attract foreign investment. These reforms reflect technical adjustments rather than strategic shifts, while improvements to China’s resilience, military modernisation and national-security priorities will continue to shape the party’s economic policies. Following an unprecedented nine-month delay, last week the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) finally held its third plenum – a meeting of Central Committee members to outline China’s long-term economic and social policies. It subsequently published an initial brief communiqué on 18 July, with a decision document providing greater detail on 21 July. In the lead-up to the event, the Chinese media and debate within China’s expert and academic communities focused on the n

22Jul

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Nepal’s Political and Economic Challenges

On 15 July 2024, K P Sharma Oli, Chairman of the Communist Party of Nepal (United Marxist and Leninist) [CPN (UML)], was sworn in a Nepal’s prime minister of a coalition government. CPN (UML) is the second largest party in Nepal’s current Parliament. The largest party, the Nepali Congress, is the other major coalition partner. Oli has become the prime minister for the fourth time. He is the country’s 15th prime minister since it became a Federal Democratic Republic in 2008. Since the promulgation of the new constitution in 2015, Oli’s current prime ministership is the eighth in succession. On average, Nepal has seen its prime minister change once every year. Not a single prime minister has been in office for a full five-year term. This shows the state of political i

11Jul

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Expect the expected with Prabowo’s incoming China policy

Indonesia's newly elected president, Prabowo Subianto, is set to maintain a relationship with China similar to his predecessor, Jokowi, despite Indonesia's growing debt exposure to China. A lack of a coherent China policy, high levels of Chinese investment in infrastructure projects and trade, as well as the political legacy of Jokowi's presidency, suggest that Prabowo will continue to cooperate with China. This is even if it risks compromising Indonesia's official nonalignment. On 1 April 2024, Indonesia’s president-elect, Prabowo Subianto, travelled to Beijing at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping. Having secured the presidency on 14 February 2024 via indirect but dubious means, Prabowo wasted little time signalling his intent to cooperate with China. W

4Jul

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Why are Southeast Asian countries looking to join BRICS?

BRICS is attracting Southeast Asian countries, with Thailand and Malaysia being the latest to express their interest in joining the bloc. Last month, Thailand submitted a membership request, while Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said in an interview with Chinese news portal Guancha that his country would soon begin formal procedures. "Being a member of BRICS would open up trade and investment opportunities, so the question is 'why not?'" Piti Srisangam, the executive director of the ASEAN Foundation, told DW. "The bloc has members from all over the world, but none from Southeast Asia yet," he added. According to James Chin, a professor of Asian Studies at the University of Tasmania, "both Thailand ...

25Jun

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China’s premier calls on nations to ‘oppose decoupling’ at economic forum

China’s premier has called for countries to “oppose decoupling”, as economic tensions simmer between Beijing and the European Union ahead of the imposition of new tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles. Friction between the West and the world’s second-largest economy has intensified in recent years, as geopolitical hotspots crop up around the world and Beijing and Washington compete for supremacy in advanced technology. “We should broadly open our minds, work closely together, abandon camp formations, (and) oppose decoupling,” said Li Qiang, China’s second-ranking leader who has been tasked by President Xi Jinping with managing economic affairs. Li’s comments came during a speech at the opening of a World Economic Forum conference known as the “Summer Davos”, held this year in the

19Jun

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China and Malaysia deepen ties with renewed economic pact

China and Malaysia have agreed to renew a five-year economic and trade cooperation pact. The deal, which will deepen relations between the two countries as they mark 50 years of diplomatic ties, was inked during a trip by Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Wednesday. The visit to Malaysia’s administrative capital Putrajaya was the last leg of a regional trip intended to expand China’s influence in the Asia Pacific as geopolitical tensions with the United States rise. “China is ready to work with Malaysia,” said Li as his host, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, rolled out the red carpet for his arrival the previous evening. “China is advancing Chinese modernisation on all fronts through high-quality development. Malaysia, on its part, is promoting national development …” Fo

3Jun

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Sharif’s Beijing trip: Can China-Pakistan Economic Corridor be revived?

Islamabad, Pakistan – Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is scheduled to fly to China on June 4 for a five-day trip that will see him engage with Beijing’s top leadership, at a time when Islamabad has come to increasingly rely on its alliance with the world’s second-largest economy. Sharif will visit Beijing, Xi’an and Shenzhen — the southern city that China showcases as a poster child of its dramatic economic rise since the 1980s. Shenzhen was handpicked by then-leader Deng Xiaoping as the country’s first special economic zone. As Pakistan looks to similarly kick-start its economy from the doldrums, amid high inflation and a debt crisis, one multibillion-dollar economic project is at the heart of its ambitions: The $62bn China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPE

31May

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DRIVING WEDGES: CHINA’S DISINFORMATION CAMPAIGNS IN THE ASIA-PACIFIC

This chapter examines how information operations are being used alongside other tools to negatively impact regional stability in the Asia-Pacific, focusing on China’s disinformation operations against Taiwan and the Philippines. ARGUMENTS AND FINDINGSChina uses disinformation operations to discredit political leaders and to deter the Taiwanese electorate who may be supportive of Taiwan proclaiming de jure independence. In the Philippines, China has pushed the narrative of it being a positive regional actor and has cast doubt on the United States’ leadership in an attempt to drive a wedge in US–Philippine relations. Governments must work with experts and platforms equipped with the tools to monitor, identify, debunk or take down this inauthentic information. The