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Anticipates More Trade Wars Ahead

China will face increasingly more trade protectionism over the coming two to five years, according to an official at the Economic Forecast Division/State Information Center.  Mr. Zhang stated that, as the global economy enters the post-crisis era, then trade wars will escalate.  


“In the next two to five years, China will face increasingly more trade frictions. China’s export will inevitably be the hardest hit by trade protectionism. Furthermore, trade barriers will be the norm and there will be pressure on China’s RMB, expecting it to further appreciate. Filing complaints or turning to the WTO (World Trade Organization) may be of no use. The key to breaking encroaching trade barriers lies in China’s transformation, strategic realignments and the State’s earnings model.

Source: Shanghai Securities News, August 11, 2010
http://paper.cnstock.com/html/2010-08/11/content_39773.htm

Huanqiu: U.S. versus China in an Asian NATO

Huanqiu published an analysis of China’s advantages and disadvantages in a pro-U.S. Asian NATO environment. The U.S. does not have direct disputes over territorial and offshore interests with Asian countries. China’s rapid rise has caused distrust and uneasiness among its Asian neighbors. The U.S. has maintained several military bases and, coupled with its close economic ties and ability to deliver resources to critical regions, every corner in Asia feels the presence of the United States. Notwithstanding the above, China has its advantages. First, due to its close proximity, no one in Asia can afford the consequences of antagonizing China. Second, China’s rapid economic growth will bring more benefits to Asian countries than the U.S. Third, the issues and solutions in China are similar to its Asian neighbors, which leads to better political communication.

Source: Huanqiu, August 11, 2010
http://mil.huanqiu.com/Exclusive/2010-08/1007230.html

Qiushi Journal on ‘Four Major Boundaries’

Qiushi Journal, the publication of the CCP Central Committee organs, published an article discussing drawing boundaries on four major issues:

1. Staying with Marxism. “If Marxism’s leading position is shaken, there will be no theoretical foundation for Communism with Chinese Characteristics…”
2. Insisting on socialist public ownership as the main economic form with the supplement of multiple other economic forms (e.g. private ownership). [Ed: This would mean state-owned enterprises will control the majority of China’s economy.]3. Staying with Chinese style democracy, which is under the CCP’s leadership. The “CCP’s strong leadership is the largest political advantage for China.” “Western style democracy is not ‘universal.’”
4. Insisting on socialist ideology and culture. The capitalist ideology and culture is gradually becoming China’s main challenge. “The struggle in ideology is, in essence, the struggle between the socialist value system and the capitalist value system.”

Source: Qiushi Journal, August 16, 2010
http://www.qstheory.cn/zxdk/2010/201016/201008/t20100811_42394.htm

Xu Caihou: To Continue the Rise of the Military’s Training Wave

Xu Caihou, Vice Chairman of the CCP Central Military Committee, stated on August 16, 2010, that China should continue the rise of the big wave of military training. Xu stressed the focus on transitioning the military training from mechanization to information technology. The essence of controlling information is to control electromagnetic power. Strengthening the training under complex electromagnetic conditions is the focal point of the military training transition. Xu also asked that the party organizations in the military increase their leadership over military training.

Source: China Review News, August 16, 2010
http://gb.chinareviewnews.com/doc/1014/1/6/8/101416842.html?coluid=4&kindid=16&docid=101416842&mdate=0816224307

China Review News: Aircraft Carrier Show Reveals U.S. Anxiety

China Review News republished an article by China Youth Daily that analyzed the reasons for the U.S. showing off its aircraft carrier to China:

1. Mid-term Election Politics. As the election approaches, the Democrats are in a bad position due to a poor economic situation and a high unemployment rate. They are trying to change the focus to outside the U.S, and are therefore targeting China, the “frequent target for U.S. politics to attack.”
2. Strategic Anxiety over China. The recent issue of China’s “threat on the sea,” which the U.S. media “cooked up,” shows that the U.S. is anxious about China as China starts to build its sea power.
3. Using China to “Return to Asia.” U.S. strategists are using China as an excuse for them to stay or return to Asia. They did it successfully to Japan, South Korea, Vietnam and other Southeast Asian countries.

Source: China Review News, August 16, 2010
http://gb.chinareviewnews.com/doc/1014/1/5/1/101415194.html?coluid=148&kindid=0&docid=101415194&mdate=0816001022

CRN: US Mid-Term Election Squeezes US-China Relationship

China Review News recently published an analysis of the results of a search for the cause of the “issues” between China and the U.S. this year. The analysis identified an unusually high number of incidents that have happened since the beginning of the year, such as Google Leaving China, Arms Sales to Taiwan, the Dalai Lama Visiting the U.S., the RMB Exchange Rate, Intellectual Properties, and the South China Sea Conflict. The author of the analysis believes that the U.S. mid-term election has had a major impact on these events. He believes the events were triggered by U.S. politicians playing the “China Card” again to gain popularity, especially the Democrats, who are facing an uphill battle in the upcoming election. Senator Charles Schumer (D. NY) was used as an example, due to the fact that he has become a leading fundraiser by bashing China.

Source: China Review News, August 12, 2010
http://gb.chinareviewnews.com/doc/1014/1/1/4/101411431.html?coluid=148&kindid=0&docid=101411431&mdate=0812003237

China News Net: 2010 Chinese Domestic Market Estimated to be $2,000 Billion

The Chinese Minister of Commerce, Chen Deming, recently wrote an article estimating China’s domestic market size for 2010 to be US$2,000 Billion. The article was published with the background that many foreign investors have recently started to worry that China is no longer focusing on attracting foreign investments and is no longer welcoming foreign capital. The article also admitted that foreign investments have declined 2.6% so far this year. The article discussed the strategy on how China plans to get out of the “crisis.” The primary solution is to adjust and upgrade industry structures. Services, high-end manufacturing and environmental products are identified as key areas.

Source: China News Net, July 28, 2010
http://www.chinanews.com.cn/cj/2010/07-28/2432022.shtml

China Youth Daily: Beijing’s ‘Middle Class’ is Just a Fairy Tale

China Review News recently reviewed an article by China Youth Daily on the recently published number of the percentage of the Beijing population that is middle class. It was reported that 40% of the population, which equals 5.4 million, are considered “middle class.” This percentage is above the national average – 23%. However the article questions the accuracy of the numbers and suggests that the largest majority is at the bottom of the “middle class” range. The article also refers to other statistics to prove that the 40% is hard to justify. Also, the new 40% number is based on registered households. A large number of people who live in Beijing are not registered. The article concluded that the latest optimistic number is just a “fairy tale.”

Source: China Review News, August 2, 2010
http://gb.chinareviewnews.com/doc/1014/0/1/0/101401061.html?coluid=5&kindid=24&docid=101401061&mdate=0802224246