Economy/Resources - 82. page

Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK), the official broadcasting service in Hong Kong, reported that the American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong surveyed 183 businesses regarding the national security law, which accounted for 15 percent of its total membership.

Forty-nine percent of the respondents believed that the national security law has had a negative impact on business. Thirty percent considered divestment or moving their business out of Hong Kong over the medium or long term. Another 5.5 percent were thinking about short-term divestment. The study showed that 41 percent of the interviewees are extremely concerned about the national security laws, including the coverage of the law, the ambiguity of law enforcement, the impact on the judicial independence of Hong Kong, and the weakened status of Hong Kong as a financial center. Another 56 percent believed that the provisions were stricter than expected, and worried about provisions such as extraterritorial jurisdiction, extradition to China, and collusion with foreign forces.

Fifty-one percent of the respondents felt working and living conditions in Hong Kong were less safe after the implementation of the law, and 41 percent were pessimistic about the prospects of Hong Kong.

Source: Radio Television Hong Kong, July 13, 2020
https://news.rthk.hk/rthk/ch/component/k2/1537397-20200713.htm

The China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission (CBIRC), which regulates the country’s financial industry, is concerned about the rise in non-performing assets, or bad loans, due to the deteriorating economic and epidemic conditions. The CBIRC suggested measures to prepare for the increase in non-performing loans.

In response to the questions from journalists, the spokesperson of the CBIRC listed four major risks and challenges.

1. The increased pressure of non-performing loans. Although the balance of non-performing loans has not increased significantly since the beginning of this year, due to the time lag between the decline in the real economy and the impact seen in the financial sector, as well as the short-term hedging effect of macro policies, the risk of default has been temporarily delayed. However, the number of non-performing loans will continue to rise in the coming months.

2. Serious problems in some small and medium-sized financial institutions. As the asset quality has increasingly deteriorated under the impact of the epidemic, risks continue to build up.

3. The resurgence of chaotic practices. Some high-risk shadow banks have revived; the leverage (debt) ratio of companies and households has increased. Some funds have flown into the real estate and stock markets, adding to the asset bubbles.

4. Illegalities occur from time to time. For example, the fake gold scandal of Wuhan’s Kingold Jewelry has revealed the almost nonexistent internal control and risk management in some financial institutions.

As of the end of June, the balance of non-performing loans in the banking industry was RMB 3.6 trillion (US $0.51 trillion), an increase of RMB 400.4 billion (US $57.2 billion) from the beginning of the year, with a non-performing loan ratio of 2.10 percent, 0.08 percentage points higher than the beginning of the year.

Source: Central News Agency, July 11, 2020
http://https://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/202007110163.aspx

On June 30, a video posted on Weibo and Twitter showed that, overnight, a large number of locust swarms invaded Quanzhou County, Guiling city of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Locust swarms destroyed the crops and covered over the farmers’ clothes. People posted comments stating that, judging by experience, this is the prelude to a large-scale outbreak of locust plagues. If it is not controlled in time, the consequences will be worrisome. Another post on Weibo reported that the locust swarms also spread to more towns and villages in Quanzhou County. It was estimated that it hit at least 100 acres of the farmland in the Town of Shaoshui and all of the crops were decimated.

The local official has not issued any notice about the locust swarms and Guiling City of Guangxi province was recently hit by flooding also.

Source: Liberty Times, July 2, 2020
https://news.ltn.com.tw/news/world/breakingnews/3215318

Singapore’s primary Chinese language newspaper Lianhe Zaobao recently reported on China’s largest trade show. The China Import Export Fair (also known as The Canton Fair), just concluded on June 24. This Canton Fair was held online as a virtual fair. According to the official report, the Fair attracted buyers from 217 countries or regions. Around 26,000 domestic and foreign companies participated as suppliers. However, no official numbers on sales were announced, which is very unusual. Traditionally the Canton Fair host always announces the total turnover on the last day of the Fair. According to the spokesperson for the Fair, the outcome of this Fair demonstrated China’s export future is facing increased uncertainty, with “extremely complex and serious” risks and challenges. The Chinese suppliers are focusing on innovations in the areas of smart manufacturing, distribution channels, business models, and service systems. The spokesperson emphasized that the overall long-term trend of the Chinese exports remains positive and unchanged.

Source: Lianhe Zaobao, June 26, 2020
https://www.zaobao.com.sg/realtime/china/story20200626-1064203

On June 23, the National Flood Control and Drought Relief Department hosted a video conference and disclosed that, as of June 23, flooding was reported in 26 provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities) including Guangxi, Guizhou, Guangdong, Hunan, Jiangxi, and Chongqing. There were 11.22 million people affected. Among them, 571,000 people were relocated; 213,000 people needed emergency assistance; more than 9,300 houses collapsed; 171,000 houses were damaged to varying degrees; 861,000 hectares of crops were affected; and direct economic losses were estimated to be 24.1 billion yuan (US$3.4 billion).

In a news article, The Epoch Times reported that there was different video footage that showed the flooding in many regions where streets were flooded, cars trapped, railroads suspend their service, and schools were closed.

Yichang City, 20 kilometers (12 miles) away from the Three Gorges Dam is the first city downstream of the Three Gorges Dam. Local residents told The Epoch Times that it had been decades since they had seen flooding that was over 3 feet deep. They suspected that there had been an emergency flood discharge from the Three Gorges Dam but they didn’t receive any advanced warning from the government.

It has been over one month since the flooding was first reported in China. However, the heavy rainy season in the middle and lower stream of the Yangtze River has yet to come.

Source: The Epoch Times, June 27 & 28, 2020
https://www.epochtimes.com/gb/20/6/27/n12216263.htm?utm_source=dable
https://www.epochtimes.com/gb/20/6/28/n12217383.htm

Since the beginning of June, heavy rains have been reported in regions of southern China. As a power plant in the upper stream of the Three Gorges Reservoir was damaged by a flash flood and mudslide, concerns over the safety of the Three Gorges Reservoir were brought up again. On June 21, the CCTV Economy channel reported that the water level in the Three Gorges Reservoir rose to 147 meters (482 feet) which exceeded the flood control limit by about 2 meters (6.56 feet). On June 11, the Ministry of Water Resources held a press conference and stated that China has entered the flood season and there are a total of 148 rivers in the country that exceed the flood warning level. In the early morning on June 17, heavy rain upstream of the Three Gorges Dam damaged a power plant in Damba County of Ganzi, Sichuan province and resulted in a mudslide. A video posted on twitter showed the flood water and mudslide wiped out the villages along the way. Meanwhile people re-tweeted a warning from a licensed structural engineer telling the people in the Lower Yangtze River region to escape.

Wang Weiluo, a specialist on the safety of Three Gorges Reservoir and currently residing in Germany told Epoch Times that heavy rain in the Three Gorges region caused a flash flood and a mudslide. It will be disastrous if the reservoir collapses at the lower Yangtze because it is a high density populated area. Wang said that the Three Gorges Reservoir shouldn’t have been started in the first place. Many people opposed the idea. One famous irrigationist wrote three letters to Jiang Zemin, then the head of the CCP, warning of the potential risk of the project and predicting that, if the reservoir were to be built, it would be demolished in the end. Jiang and Li Peng, then Prime Minister, still went ahead with the project. The three Gorges Reservoir project started in 1994 and was completed in 2009.

Source: Epoch Times, June 21, 2020
https://www.epochtimes.com/b5/20/6/21/n12201515.htm