Skip to content

All posts by RWZ - 210. page

China News: U.S. Defense Secretary Visited the Philippines to Arrange Expanded Presence

China News recently reported that, when the U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel was in Manila, he advised that the United States is expected to expand the scale of its rotational deployment in the Philippines. However, Hagel claimed that the U.S. had no plans to establish a permanent military base there. Hagel had visited Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei before landing in the Philippines. He expressed the belief that the new military cooperation model will benefit both the U.S. and the Philippines while providing support for President Aquino’s defense modernization plan. The Philippines is a military ally of the United States. The two countries are in the middle of negotiating a new framework agreement which, once approved, will allow the United States to use all military facilities in the Philippines. Currently the U.S. military can only operate in Subic Bay. 
Source: China News, August 30, 2013
http://www.chinanews.com/gj/2013/08-30/5228382.shtml
Briefings | | |   Geo-Strategic Trend

Xinhua: Four Members in PetroChina Top Management under Investigation

Xinhua recently reported that PetroChina (China National Petroleum Corporation) announced on August 29 that four members of the company’s top management had been removed, pending an investigation for corruption. Three of them were Corporate Vice Presidents and another was the Chief Geologist. The decision of removing the four from their Party positions and corporate executive positions was made by the Chinese Communist Party branch of PetroChina. Another four Party members of the same Party branch have been chosen to fill the vacant positions. Chairman of the Board, Zhou Jiping, who is also the chairman of the Party branch, suggested that the current focus is to maintain normal business operations. According to the China Enterprise Confederation, PetroChina is China’s largest international corporation. In 2012, it was also number six on the (Global) Fortune 500 list and is the fourth largest petroleum company in the world. 
Source: Xinhua, August 29, 2013
http://news.xinhuanet.com/lianzheng/2013-08/29/c_117146503.htm
Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

China News: Foreign Exchange Balance Declined Starting Two Months Ago

China News recently reported that, based on data released by the Chinese central bank, the Chinese foreign exchange reserve has been shrinking rapidly for two months now. In July alone, the total declined by RMB 24.5 billion (around US$4 billion). This could be one of the key causes of tight market liquidity. Experts expressed the belief that the foreign exchange balance decline could be the result of two forces: (1) the US Federal Reserve clearly intends to exit its QE (Quantitative Easing) strategy; (2) the Chinese State Administration of Foreign Exchange is requiring banks to increase their foreign exchange reserve. It is widely expected that international “hot money” will be leaving emerging markets and this trend will continue to impact the Chinese market where the expectation of depreciation in the Chinese currency is high.
Source: China News, August 21, 2013
http://finance.chinanews.com/cj/2013/08-21/5186110.shtml
Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

Xinhua: Significant Policies on Industrial Overcapacity Soon to Be Announced

Xinhua recently reported that, according to high ranking officials in the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry will jointly release, in conjunction with the Development and Reform Commission, an “overall resolution plan for overcapacity.” The plan is being finalized and will be officially put in place very soon. The plan will cover key industries and will take different approaches for different industries. The primary principles that this grand plan follows are: (1) expanding domestic market consumption; (2) moving production capabilities overseas; (3) reorganizing existing companies for optimized output; and (4) retiring high energy consumption and high pollution manufacturers. Focal controls will be applied to industries like steel, cement, electrolytic aluminum, and flat glass. Environmental protection rules will play a very significant role in this round of policy implementation. The China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC) is also involved in the planning process to ensure that necessary financial support can be arrange for adjustments required in various industries.
Source: Xinhua, August 20, 2013
http://news.xinhuanet.com/energy/2013-08/20/c_125202878.htm
Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

People’s Daily: China’s Shipbuilding Industry Makes No Profit

People’s Daily recently reported on the tough situation the entire Chinese shipbuilding industry faces. According to the data that the China Association of the National Shipbuilding Industry (CANSI) released, the industry is suffering a major decline in profits. By the end of July, 80 key companies that the association monitored had a total profit of only RMB 200 million yuan (around US$33 million). At the same time, these companies are unable to collect the pending payments that their customers owe them. As of now, the industry is owed payments totaling RMB 100 billion (US$16.33 billion). This financial dead lock was partially caused by the recent sharp decline in shipbuilding prices. This has led many customers to believe that their original contract price was unfairly high. Cash flow in the shipbuilding industry is becoming a major challenge, making it much harder to get a loan from any bank. Competition from Japan is also an important factor. Since the beginning of the year, the Japanese yen has depreciated 20 percent.
Source: People’s Daily, August 22, 2013
http://gz.people.com.cn/n/2013/0822/c194844-19370272.html
Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

BBC Chinese: Chad Put Chinese Oil Prospecting Operations on Hold

BBC Chinese recently reported that the government of the Republic of Chad ordered a pause in the oil prospecting work contracted to the China National Petroleum Corporation (PetroChina). Chad’s Minister of Energy and Oil, Djerassem Le Bemadjiel, suggested at a press conference that the government stopped the operations in the Koudalwa Oil Field (200 kilometers south of the capital city of N’Djamena) after an environmental protection law compliance inspection. The Minister said the Chinese company intentionally performed drilling without the use of required spill clean-up equipment in order to cut the cost. Afterwards the company ordered the local workers to clean the spill without proper protection. The Chad government did not provide a date when the work can resume. PetroChina started oil prospecting work in Chad in 2009.
Source: BBC Chinese, August 13, 2013
http://www.bbc.co.uk/zhongwen/simp/china/2013/08/130813_china_chad_oil.shtml
Briefings | | |   Geo-Strategic Trend

People’s Daily: Chinese Leadership Structure Better than the U.S. Presidency

People’s Daily recently published a commentary by Professor Hu Angang, Dean of the Institute of China Studies at Tsinghua University. The commentary suggested that the Chinese “joint leadership” structure is more innovative than and superior to the U.S. Presidency coupled with the “dual-party system.” Hu indicated that the U.S. system suffers from a loose organizational structure of political parties, poor mobilization of capabilities, weak political solidarity, a low level of wisdom integrated into its decision-making, and hollow promises made by lying candidates. The U.S. system guarantees ignorance of substantive issues and maximizes delays. The U.S. political structure not only ensures a balance of power, but also introduces mutual constrains and a divided country. The President is often unable to deliver on his promises, as clearly demonstrated by President Obama, who frequently lacks Congressional support. Hu expressed the belief that the 200-year-old U.S. design is largely outdated, while the Chinese Communist Party is structured based on the lessons learned in recent human history, which has been highly competitive. 
Source: People’s Daily, August 16, 2013
http://hb.people.com.cn/n/2013/0816/c194063-19321669.html
Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

Beijing Apartment Rental Market Prices Continue to Increase

Sina Financial News recently reported that Beijing’s apartment rental prices have been increasing for the past 52 months. The national price has been increasing for 42 months. Though the law bans such practices, it is not unusual for seventeen people in the capital city to share a three-room apartment. There are millions of couples living in apartments with less than 20 square meters. Based on the international standard, the cost of rent should be less than 30 percent of a family’s income. In Beijing, the official data for 2012 shows it is 39.3 percent. However, Beijing’s current population and real estate prices are both showing rapid growth. The city government has attempted several times in the past few years to ban overloaded rental apartments with no success. A new round is being implemented in addition to the plan of introducing the Residence Permit System. Rental agents are not really worried, however. They believe that this new effort will fail just like the previous ones.
Source: Sina Financial News, August 16, 2013
http://finance.sina.com.cn/china/20130816/234516476514.shtml
Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources