Chinascope – Page 725

Ministry of Commerce Official: China Will Soon Become a Net Capital Exporter

On October 22, Zhang Xiangyang, the Assistant Minister of Commerce of China held a State Council Information Office press conference at which he said that China will soon become a net capital exporter. Official data shows that as of the end of 2013, China’s total outbound foreign direct investment stock amounted to a cumulative US$660 billion. For the same period, China accumulated inbound foreign direct investment was US$950. It is widely expected that, as China’s outbound investment is growing at a rate far exceeding its inbound investment, the day for China to become a net exporter of capital is just around the corner. Zhang predicted that the outbound investment for 2014 will show growth of about 10 percent, reaching about US$120 billion.

Zhang said, "In my personal view, it is just a matter of time for the outbound investment to exceed the amount of inbound investment. … China has reached a stage of exporting capital, and will soon become a net exporter of capital. It is a realistic issue."

Zhang pointed out that the stock of China’s US$660 billion foreign investment accounts for only 2.5 percent of the world’s total, the equivalent of 10 percent of the United States and half of Japan. He maintained that, in terms of quantity, China "still has a long way to go."

Source: China News Service, October 22, 2014

http://www.chinanews.com/gn/2014/10-22/6706730.shtml

Briefings | | October 23, 2014 | Economy/Resources

China Has Hunted Down 55 Big Tigers since 2012

According to a Xinhua report, China’s current top authority has hunted down 55 “Big Tigers,” since the 18th Communist Party Congress [November 2012]. "Big Tigers" a name for top level corrupt officials.

Among the 55 officials punished, three were at the deputy national level, seven were members of the Central Committee (two) or Central Committee alternates (five), and one was a member of Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. A total of 12 people were from Central government departments and state organs, two were from the military system, and five were central [state] enterprises executives. The rest were from a number of different provinces.

Source: Xinhua, October 22, 2014

http://news.xinhuanet.com/lianzheng/2014-10/22/c_1112936171.htm

Briefings | | October 23, 2014 | Government/Politics

Xi Jinping Holding Umbrella Won Top Photojournalism Prize

A photo of Xi Jinping, China’s President, holding an umbrella on a rainy day last year won China’s top photojournalism prize in the National News Awards.

The official media, Xinhua, took Xi’s picture during the President’s trip to Wuhan, Hubei Province, on July 21, 2013. The photo shows that, holding an umbrella in hand, Xi stood in the rain with his pants rolled up to keep them dry. The significance of this top prize was noteworthy because of the Hong Kong government’s position against the on-going umbrella revolution in Hong Kong.

Another Xinhua photograph of the disgraced Bo Xilai won the runner-up prize. The photo, titled “Bo Xilai Sentenced to Life Imprisonment,” shows that Bo was handcuffed while two police officers escorted him during his trial. The introduction to the photo said that with a steady presentation, rich in detail, and a strong sense of the actual scene, the photo brought to life the happenings in the courtroom and reflected the sacred, solemn atmosphere of the court. Reports indicated that the photo was widely popular and that 321 media companies had used it.

Sources:

Huanqiu, October 22, 2014

http://china.huanqiu.com/article/2014-10/5176004.html

People’s Daily, Octiber 21, 2014

http://politics.people.com.cn/n/2014/1021/c1001-25880607.html

Briefings | | October 23, 2014 | Government/Politics

People’s Daily: Xi Jinping’s Statements on “The Rule of Law”

It has been widely suggested that one of the major topics of the Chinese Communist Party’s Fourth Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee that is currently taking place in Beijing is "the rule of law." People’s Daily published an article with images quoting Xi Jinping’s past statements on this subject from December 2012 to September 2014.

Source: People’s Daily Online, October 20, 2014
http://politics.people.com.cn/n/2014/1020/c1001-25866473.html

Briefings | | October 22, 2014 | Government/Politics

China News: China May Adopt New Anti-Corruption Measures

As the Chinese Communist Party is holding its Fourth Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee, China News published an article suggesting that the meeting may adopt new measures on anti-corruption work.

The article quoted Wang Qishan, the head of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, who once said, "The current [anti-corruption work] should focus on treating the symptoms to win more time for the fundamental cure." Wang also said at the Seventh Meeting of the Twelfth Standing Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference on August 25, "Anti-corruption work needs to achieve [the goal that officials] ‘dare not,’ ‘cannot,’ and ‘do not want to’ [be corrupt]. ‘Dare not’ is to cure the symptom. ‘Cannot’ and ‘Do not want to’ are to cure the problem permanently. We need to combine them together, curing both the symptom and the root cause."

The article quoted an experts’ opinion: It will take China at least 20 to 30 years to complete the undertaking of fixing the corruption problem, starting from punishing corrupt officials to making people "dare not" be corrupt, to building a system in which people "cannot" be corrupt, and to educating people so that they "do not want to" be corrupt, based on Singapore and other country’s experiences.

Source: China News, October 20, 2014
http://www.chinanews.com/gn/2014/10-20/6693592.shtml

Briefings | | October 22, 2014 | Government/Politics

Xinhua: Achievements of Li Keqiang’s Europe Trip

Xinhua reported that "Li Keqiang has successfully completed his trip to Europe and that China has harvested abundantly in its foreign diplomacy."

China has been doing trade diplomacy for decades. The Xinhua article praised the economic deals transacted with the European countries as the highlight of Li’s achievements. During Li’s trip, China and Germany signed 50 commercial and inter-government treaties, with a total of US$18.1 billion in bilateral trade and investment agreements. In Russia, the two countries signed 39 important bilateral documents, including a high-speed train project connecting Moscow and Kazan and a 150 billion yuan (US$25 billion) bilateral currency swap agreement. Chinese companies and Italian companies signed over 10 cooperation agreements, with a total exceeding US$10 billion.

Source: Xinhua, October 20, 2014
http://news.xinhuanet.com/world/2014-10/20/c_1112900663.htm

Briefings | | October 22, 2014 | Geo-Strategic Trend

China Surprisingly Suffered a US$100 Billion Decline in Foreign Exchange Reserves

Well-known Chinese news site Sina recently reported that official third quarter government reports showed an unexpected US$100 billion decline in China’s foreign exchange reserves. This was the first decline after nine consecutive quarters. There is no clear indication of where the money went. Some experts suggested this could have been caused by China’s central bank making international investments. Some expressed the belief that more and more Chinese companies and individuals are holding on to more foreign currencies because they worry about a potential devaluation of the Chinese currency. Another possible cause of the decline could be the recent appreciation of the U.S. dollar, which caused a decline of the valuation of all assets not priced in U.S. dollars. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has said twice this year that the high level of China’s foreign exchange reserves is becoming a very heavy burden for China.

Source: Sina, October 17, 2014

http://finance.sina.com.hk/news/-35-7072165/1.html

Briefings | | October 21, 2014 | Economy/Resources

India Considers Raising Import Tariffs on China

China Stock Network recently reported that India is considering the possibility of increasing the import tariffs on Chinese goods in order to deal with the imbalance seen in the trade between the two countries. In 2013, India’s export volume to China was US$15 billion while its import volume from China reached US$51 billion. In the long run, India cannot sustain the trade deficit on this level. Some kind of protection has to be established. In the meantime, Indian government officials have been concerned about the dumping approach the Chinese companies are taking, which may destroy their Indian competitors. Some international media have expressed the belief that the increase in tariffs may cast distrust between the two countries and India could be criticized for protectionism that kills competition.

Source: China Stock Network, October 16, 2014

http://news.cnstock.com/news/sns_bwkx/201410/3208847.htm

Briefings | | October 21, 2014 | Geo-Strategic Trend

Wu Guoguang: Xi Jinping’s Reversal of the Course, Will China’s Transition be Peaceful or Marked with Bloodshed?

Cheng Xiaonong: U.S.-China Strategic Relations Have Crystallized

Xinhua Commentaries: “Exposing the Three Major Political Deficits of the U.S.”

The CCP’s Performing Arts Troupes in the U.S.