Briefings - 158. page
ESMC: Huawei 2021 Consumer Revenue Cut in Half, with Significant Net Profit Increase
Electronics Supply and Manufacturing (ESM) China, the China branch of AspenCore (the largest electronic industry media group, headquartered in Cambridge, MA, USA), recently reported that Huawei just released its 2021 annual report. The company reported a total revenue of RMB 636.8 billion (around US$100 billion) in 2021, which reflects a year-over-year decline of 28.6 percent. This is the first time in a decade for Huawei to report a revenue decline. Its consumer business saw the sharpest drop of 49.6 percent. The company explained that this sharp decline was the result of rounds of U.S. sanctions, the covid impact, and a decline in demand. However, in the meantime, Huawei’s net profit reported an eye-catching year-over-year increase of 76 percent. Diving deep into its annual report numbers shows that the vast majority of the net profit increase came from the sale of its high-end mobile device branch Honor. The company sold Honor last year due to the cut-off of its chip supply from Taiwan as a result of U.S. sanctions. The annual report also showed Huawei’s cloud services achieved a 34 percent growth. On the investment side, Huawei devoted 22.4 percent of its annual revenue into research and development (R&D). In the past decade, the company spent more than RMB 845 billion (around US$133 billion) on R&D. The report also mentioned that, in the future, Huawei plans to focus on using less advanced manufacturing processes to achieve product competitiveness.
Source: ESM China, March 29, 2022
https://www.esmchina.com/news/8837.html
Chinese Foreign Ministry Reiterates: Three “No Limit”s for China-Russia Cooperation
On March 30, Radio France Internationale (RFI) reported that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov arrived in China to participate in the third meeting of the foreign ministers of Afghanistan’s neighboring countries. The meeting was to be held in Tunxi, an ancient town in East China’s Anhui Province. At a press briefing held on the same day, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said, when answering a Reuters reporter’s questions: There is “no limit to China-Russia cooperation, no limit to our pursuit of peace and maintaining security, and no limit to our opposition to hegemony.” China-Russia relations are non-aligned, are not confrontational and do not-target any third country.
The foreign ministers of Pakistan, Iran, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan or their representatives will attend the meeting from Wednesday to Thursday. Qatar and Indonesia will attend as guests. Lavrov will participate in two multinational conferences on Afghanistan along with representatives from Pakistan, Iran, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. This is his first visit to China since Moscow began its invasion of Ukraine last month.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry said the Russian Foreign Minister will also attend a separate Troika meeting with the Chinese and U.S. envoys on Afghanistan. Wang Wenbin said of the Troika meeting, “China, the United States, Russia and Pakistan are all countries with significant influence on the Afghan issue,”
Unlike many Western countries, China has refused to condemn Russia’s invasion into Ukraine and has lagged behind many others in providing humanitarian aid to Ukraine. Also, China does not recognize the Taliban government in Afghanistan, but has ignored harsh criticism from the United States and other countries. It has kept its embassy in Kabul open and has not commented on Taliban moves to restrict girls’ education and other human rights violations.
Successive Afghan governments have always regarded the country’s mineral resources – estimated at $1 trillion – as a key to a prosperous future, but none have been able to exploit them amid ongoing conflict and violence. Now, several countries including Iran, Russia and Turkey, are seeking to invest in order to fill the vacuum left by the U.S. withdrawal last year.
Alexander Cooley, a humanitarian Columbia University political scientist and expert on Central Asia stated that, at the week’s conference, China will seek to position itself as the leader in humanitarian aid and economic development programs in Afghanistan. It will also call publicly on the United States to unfreeze the Afghan government’s assets and accounts. Cooley told the Associated Press that, “China is quietly asserting itself as the leading outside force in the region.” “In doing so, it will position itself as a critic of the U.S. regional policy and as the alternative leader to the humanitarian coalition of Afganistan’s neighbors.”
Source: RFI March 30, 2022
https://rfi.my/8IPB
China and the Solomon Islands Deepen their Police and Military Ties
Guancha, a Shanghai based news and commentary aggregation service in China, reported that, recently, the Solomon Islands signed a police assistance treaty with China. and “some people got really worried.”
China’s Embassy in the Solomon Islands reported that, on March 14, China’s police advisory team and the Solomon Islands police held an opening ceremony for a Sino-Solomon Islands Police Training Class. Hon. Anthony Veke, Minister of the Police of the Solomon Islands spoke at the ceremony. He expressed sincere gratitude to China for providing COVID prevention materials, police equipment, and police training. He hoped all trainees will proactively study China’s police knowledge, skills, and tactics, efficiently use China provided equipment, and quickly improve their skills in handling riots and sudden events.
On March 22, the Solomon Islands Ministry of Police website showed that its police in the training had started using the simulated guns that China had provided.
The Guancha article then stated, “Some people got really worried” about the cooperation plan. Both the Australian and New Zealand governments expressed their “concerns” about the impact of the Sino-Solomon Islands military cooperation on the (South Pacific’s) regional security.
Reuters reported that the Solomon Islands government confirmed that it was “diversifying the country’s security partnership including that with China,” and that it would sign off on a number of agreements with Beijing “to further create a secure and safe environment for local and foreign investments.” Reuters later reported on a leaked draft security treaty that would allow China’s armed police and its military to protect Chinese projects that are in the Solomon Islands.
Source:
1. Guancha, March 25, 2022
https://www.guancha.cn/internation/2022_03_25_631859.shtml
2. Reuter, March 25, 2022
https://www.cnbc.com/2022/03/25/australia-nz-concerned-as-solomon-islands-confirm-china-security-deal.html
3. Reuter, March 28, 2022
https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/solomons-prime-minister-says-will-not-pick-sides-confirms-security-negotiations-2022-03-28/
China Held Online Training for Teachers on How to Explain the Russia Ukraine War
Recently schools in Shandong, Shaanxi, Zhejiang, and Heilongjiang provinces held a “Hands-on Online Group Preparation for Teaching” activity. The topic was the “Ukraine Situation.” This event targeted teachers of political education classes. The goal was the implementation of the authorities’ requirement of “precisely grasping China’s principle position and the caliber of the situation in the Russia and Ukraine War.”
Shandong Provincial Department of Education issued a document entitled “Notice on Holding a Group Preparation Activity on the Situation of Russia and Ukraine War.” According to screenshots that a Chinese teacher uploaded to the Internet, the teacher explained to the students in answer to the question, “Why did Russia send troops to Ukraine?” in the following way. First, Ukraine is politically corrupt and economically depleted. It is split among ethnic groups and hates Russia. Second, NATO has expanded eastward five times, reducing Russia’s strategic space to the brink of extinction. The teacher also told students that, “(Ukraine) Nazis killed 14,000 ethnic Russians in Eastern Ukraine” and “the United States is the cause of the tragedy of the Russia and Ukraine War.”
Source: Radio Free Asia, March 28, 2022
https://www.rfa.org/mandarin/yataibaodao/meiti/ql2-03282022073544.html
Hu Xijin: Why Russia Is Strategically Very Important to China
Hu Xijin, the former chief editor of the CCP’s mouthpiece Global Times, published an article explaining China’s position in the Russia-Ukraine war. Below is a translation of the article:
“Some people in China have always advocated that we should follow the West in condemning and sanctioning Russia as a nice gesture to improve relations with the United States. This claim is very naive. Let me explain here plainly and clearly why Russia is crucially and strategically important to China.
“The most obvious reason is that China and Russia are mutually supportive diplomatically. This, however, is only the most superficial reason. I don’t need to say more about Russia’s support for China on Taiwan, Hong Kong, Xinjiang, Tibet and other issues. The most important thing is the ‘back-to-back’ mutual strategic relationship between China and Russia.
“Let me ask you, who is the number one strategic adversary of the United States today? It is China, not Russia! Now that Russia is in the whirlwind, the United States is putting most of its pressure on Moscow. In the Trump era, Washington wanted to improve its relations with Russia.” Pence once said, “Forget Russia. Please believe that, over time, the primary edge of American pressure will definitely turn back to China. At that time we will feel how valuable it is to have the support of Russia, even just a neutral Russia.”
“Even now, Russia has suddenly taken away a large part of the pressure from the United States. Russia and the United States will be dead (worst) enemies to each other for a long time into the future. Since the trade war began, China has been at the forefront of fighting against U.S. hegemony. Now it is happening that Russia is standing at the forefront. Isn’t it equally significant for China to accumulate power? It is a completely different geopolitical situation for the two countries, China and Russia, to resist U.S. hegemony than for one country to face the U.S. alone.
“The China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination in the 21st century is very special and its ‘no upper limit’ connotation is a deterrent to the United States. For example, if the United States carries out extreme strategic coercion against China, with Russia as a partner, China will not be afraid of the United States’ energy blockade and our food supply will be more secure, as will many other raw materials. It will be even harder for the United States to make up its mind to have a comprehensive strategic showdown with China.
“In the event of a war between China and the United States in the Taiwan Strait or the South China Sea, China’s conventional forces will increasingly have the power to overwhelm the U.S. military. With Russia as a super-nuclear force hostile to the United States (regardless of whether Moscow supports China at that time or is neutral), it will be more difficult for the United States to deal with China using nuclear blackmail. Because China itself is a feared nuclear power, the United States must also be wary of Russia’s leap from nuclear parity with the United States to nuclear superiority.
“The strengths of China and Russia have strong strategic complementarity. The geopolitical potential formed by the two countries is boundless. For example, the Sino-Russian strategic relationship has a certain potential effect containing Japan. It also has a certain influence on India. Also, importantly, China and Russia together are powerful enough to strategically stabilize Central Asia.
If China and Russia are successfully divided by the United States, today’s Russia will immediately face a strategic dead chess fate. In the future Sino-U.S. conflicts, China will also face a dead chess fate. Today we are facing many challenges and uncertainties in the east and south. If Russia is pulled away by the United States, and China and Russia return to the hostility of the 1970s, China will be back to the 1960s’situation of ‘anti-American imperialist’ and ‘anti-Soviet (revisionist)’ at the same time. Fighting on both fronts, is that conceivable?
Some people suggest to abandon Russia in exchange for reconciliation with the United States. How naive it is to make such a claim. The ultimate goal of the United States on Russia is only to make it no longer a ‘nuclear threat,’ whereas its goal on China is to make China completely lose its development ability and its competitiveness. It is best to divide China into several pieces. Each piece becomes a parallel piece next to Japan, South Korea, and the ASEAN countries so that every individual one is controlled by the U.S. They will buy its weapons, and produce cheap goods for the U.S.
“Those naive Chinese people should stop dreaming. China should not take the initiative to challenge the United States and should try to avoid Sino-U.S. confrontation, but we must use our own strength to make the United States accept peaceful coexistence with China. Russia is China’s most important partner to achieve this goal. Therefore, China can’t do anything against Russia, i.e., against China-Russia relations today. The Chinese government’s balanced stance on the Russian-Ukrainian conflict is most in line with China’s actual and long-term national interests.”
Source: ifeng.com, March 20, 2022
https://news.ifeng.com/c/8EXkKXoIC8D
Korea’s Lotte to Close Its China Headquarters, Shifting Focus to Southeast Asia
After Lotte Supermarkets left China in recent years, Korean media reported that the Lotte Group will close its China headquarters in Shanghai and shift its focus to Southeast Asia.
The reports quoted sources from inside the Lotte Group that the company made the decision to disband its China headquarters late last year and expects to complete the process before June. Lotte will continue to operate its Department Store in Chengdu city.
Lotte Group is a South Korean multinational conglomerate corporation. It entered the Chinese market in 1994 and established its China headquarters in Shanghai in 2006. As of 2017, there were more than 100 Lotte Mart supermarkets across the country, with 70 percent of the group’s total sales revenue coming from China. In the same year, Lotte Group agreed to provide land to the U.S. military for the Terminal High Altitude Defense (THAAD) anti-missile system, triggering protests in China. Beginning in 2018, Lotte gradually withdrew its Lotte Mart, department stores, beverages and other businesses from the Chinese market.
Lotte Group is expanding into Southeast Asian markets. Recently, Lotte opened additional Lotte Mart supermarkets in Vietnam. The first trip that the new head of Lotte Supermarket made after taking office was to Indonesia.
Source: Radio Free Asia, March 23, 2022
https://www.rfa.org/mandarin/yataibaodao/jingmao/ql2-03232022072406.html
One in Four Hong Kong Residents Plan to Emigrate, Said Survey
Since March 2021, the Hong Kong Public Opinion Research Institute (HKPORI) has been conducting semiannual online surv percenteys on immigration related opinions. The most recent one was conducted from March 21 to March 24). In that survey, 6,723 Hong Kong citizens aged 12 or above were being interviewed via an online questionnaire.
The results showed that 24 percent of respondents have plans to emigrate, of which 3 percent are “ready to leave at any time,” 7% are “preparing,” and 14 percent “have plans but haven’t prepared.”
When asked about confidence in Hong Kong’s future, 58 percent of the surveyed showed no confidence in Hong Kong’s future political environment, 57 percent were not confident in the personal freedom, and almost half, or 4 percent, were pessimistic about its the economic outlook.
As for the factors affecting respondents’ desire to leave Hong Kong permanently, 85 percent worried about the deterioration of personal freedom or personal safety; 79 percent worried about the future of their families, the education of their next generation or the deterioration of Hong Kong’s economic prospects; and 50 percent complained about the epidemic situation in Hong Kong or the government’s ineffective measures.
According to the Hong Kong Immigration Department, from the fifth wave of the COVID-19 outbreak to early March this year, the net departure of Hong Kong residents exceeded 92,000, including as many as 65,300 in February this year, a significant increase of more than three times compared to January this year. The vast majority of those departed were via the Hong Kong International Airport.
The number of residents leaving Hong Kong with money is also on the rise. According to the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority (MPFA), the number of claims for withdrawal of the Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) on the grounds of permanent departure from Hong Kong in 2021 was 33,800, an increase of nearly 12 percent over 2020. The applications for Certificates of No Criminal Conviction (commonly known as “Good Citizen Certificates”), a necessary document for emigration, has risen to 38,000 in 2021, from 29,000 the year before, or an increase of over 30%.
Source: Voice of America, March 28, 2022
https://www.voachinese.com/a/hong-kong-survey-shows-24-have-emigration-plans-under-pandemic-20220328/6505017.html