China News recently reported that an official (who would prefer to remain anonymous) of the South Korean Defense Ministry advised that the deputy defense ministers of South Korea, the United States, and Japan planned to sign a memorandum of understanding on sharing intelligence involving North Korea, especially on military topics like nuclear plans and guided missiles. The memorandum was set to be signed on December 29. The South Korean side emphasized that the intelligence sharing between South Korea and Japan will be communicated indirectly via the United States as the middle man. The Memorandum is not considered legally binding and does not require approval by the legislative branches of the three countries. 

Source: China News, December 27, 2014

http://www.chinanews.com/gj/2014/12-27/6916536.shtml

Well-known Chinese news site Sina recently reported that, based on the data Bloomberg obtained from the China General Administration of Customs, the volume of Russian oil exported to China increased by 65 percent in November, reaching a record high monthly volume of 3.31 million tons. According to Bloomberg, the average price of these November exports was at US$90 per barrel. However, given the sharp decline in the oil price on the global market, the current standard for oil prices is below US$60. The Russian State Duma recently passed laws to cut the oil export tax. At a press conference earlier, Russian President Putin suggested that the Russian economy must adjust to the reality of oil prices staying at US$40. According to Chinese Customs records, China’s imports from the largest OPEC oil exporter, Saudi Arabia, were in their second consecutive month of decline, which is the equivalent of a 5.9 percent decline year-over-year. The Russian Ministry of Energy recently mentioned that, during January to September, Russian oil exports to China increased by 45 percent year-over-year. 

Source: Sina, December 24, 2014

http://finance.sina.com.cn/world/20141224/174421156026.shtml

Global Times recently reported that the National Reform and Development Commission (NDRC) has been conducting an antitrust investigation against U.S. chip maker Qualcomm, who may be fined US$1 billion for abuse of its monopoly power. NDRC accused Qualcomm of price gouging and misusing its standard-setting power in the wireless communications market. According to Chinese antitrust laws, NDRC can fine the company in the range of 1 to 10 percent of its annual sales amount. As the largest wireless communications chip maker in the world, Qualcomm’s fiscal year 2013 sales income in the Chinese market was US$12.3 billion, which was half of its global sales total. China is in the process of upgrading its nationwide wireless network infrastructure to 4G technology, which requires Qualcomm-patented chips that are widely used in smartphones. Some analysts suggested that the Chinese antitrust move had the intention of influencing the negotiations on licensing the Qualcomm patents. 

Source: Global Times, December 26, 2014

http://china.huanqiu.com/News/mofcom/2014-12/5302952.html