Skip to content

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

Read More ...

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

Read More ...

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

Read More ...

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

Read More ...

Study Times: The Keys to Resolving Social Conflicts

Study Times, a magazine of the Chinese Communist Party Central Party School, recently published an article discussing how to resolve the social conflicts occurring throughout China. The article categorized social conflicts into six types: conflicts caused by differences in income, conflicts caused by misaligned policies, conflicts caused by growing “social anxiety,” conflicts caused by a lack of proper administrative control over the Internet, conflicts caused by the abuse of government power, and conflicts caused by incomplete reforms. The author expressed the belief that the keys to the resolution of these conflicts are: (1) Relying more on the people to enhance social policies; (2) establishing a comprehensive “social management system;” (3) building a widespread “psychosocial intervention mechanism” by setting positive social expectations; and (4) improving Internet administration by acquiring the latest technologies.
Source: Study Times, November 11, 2013
http://www.studytimes.com.cn:9999/epaper/xxsb/html/2013/11/11/03/03_34.htm
Briefings | | |   Social Stability

People’s Daily: 100 Million Chinese Tourists Expected to Travel Overseas in 2014

The China Consumers Association recently published the 2013 Travel and Meal Investigation Report. According to the report, currently, the number of countries and regions that Chinese citizens have selected for traveling overseas has reached 150. In 2012, Chinese tourists spent US$102.1 billion when they travelled overseas. It is expected that the tourist population will exceed 90 million in 2013 and break the 100 million mark in 2014. The report indicated that, when traveling, more and more people favor the self-guided tour.

Source: People’s Daily, December 6, 2013
http://travel.people.com.cn/n/2013/1206/c41570-23763050.html

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

Media Survey Showed Most People Used “Exhausted” to Describe Their Feelings during 2013

Guangming Daily reported that, in November 2013, Insight China magazine and the Media Survey Lab of Tsinghua University conducted a survey in which 2013 Chinese people participated. The survey results showed that most people had mixed feelings about their lives in 2013. The description that was used most to describe their feelings durig 2013 was that they were exhausted both physically and mentally.

The article quoted Fu Chunsheng, the Principal of Beijing Boai Psychological Medical Research Institute on why Chinese people felt exhausted. According to Fu, feeling exhausted is a reflection of people’s lack of a personal value system in their lives. Therefore, they tend to lack a goal in life; they do not know who they are or why they are busy with life. Another reason is that people often felt insecure due to the uncertainties in their lives: they were unable to afford a car or housing and were therefore unable to get married. In addition to feeling exhausted, people also used “uninterested,” “good,” “busy,” and “irritated” to describe their feelings.

Source: Guangming Daily, December 6, 2013
http://life.gmw.cn/2013-12/06/content_9724288_2.htm

Briefings | | |   Social Stability

Huanqiu: Confucius Institute Connects the China Dream with the Rest of the World

According to an article in Huanqiu, the 8th annual Confucius Institute conference was held in Beijing on December 7. Over 2,000 university principals and Confucius institute representatives from 120 countries and regions attended the conference. The conference awarded recognition to 28 Confucius institutes, 30 individuals, and 10 universities in China. Huanqiu declared that the “Confucius Institute has become a bridge to connect the ‘China Dream’ with the rest of the world.”

Source: Huanqiu, December 8, 2013
http://world.huanqiu.com/exclusive/2013-12/4641125.html

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

Qiushi: Who Has the Highest Level of Control over China’s Economy?

[Editor’s Note: Qiushi Theory Online published an article analyzing the “highest level of power” exercised over China’s economy. The article claimed that the U.S. has long controlled China’s economy because it has controlled the “top-level power.” That includes the right to set the exchange rate, to issue base money, and to set the price of assets. The article concluded that the U.S. has plundered China, divesting it of enormous financial profits. The U.S. is the culprit responsible for China’s economic problems including inflation, the real estate bubble, the bear stock market, and company bankruptcies.

The article heavily criticized China’s central bank for selling China’s interests to the U.S.

Yu Yunhui, who holds a Ph.D. in economics from Xiamen University, is the author. He is not well-known. However, the article appeared in Qiushi, a prominent periodical on political theory that the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP’s) Central Party School and the Central Committee publish. That, in itself, makes it worthy of attention and consideration.

The following is a translation of a majority of the article. The Chinascope editors do not analyze the author’s arguments, but leave it to the reader to do so.] [1]

Continue reading →

Reports | | |   Report

Trading of Chinese Renminbi Is Increasing Rapidly in Russia

Russian Finam recently released data indicating that, as of November, the trading volume of the RMB at the Moscow Interbank Currency Exchange (MICEX) had increased 19 times since April. At the same time, statistics from many Russian banks with RMB-related businesses showed that the Russian public’s recognition and acceptance of the RMB has also risen. Analysts believe that the weakening of the euro and the dollar, the steady growth of Sino-Russian trade, and other factors have been accelerating the process of the internationalization of the RMB. 

Back in December 2010, MICEX started direct trading of the RMB against the ruble and became the first overseas brokerage offering an RMB exchange. In April of this year, the brokerage increased the trading options of the RMB against the ruble, extended trading hours, and added more delivery methods. Trenin, director of the Moscow Carnegie Center, told reporters that, by adjusting the trading rules, the RMB obtained the same trading conditions as the dollar and the euro. Trenin affirmed that, as the liquidity of the dollar and euro is tightening, the average daily trading volume of the RMB has been increasing significantly. Since May of this year, the average daily trading volume of RMB has exceeded 22 million yuan. 

People’s Daily, December 3, 2013 
http://world.people.com.cn/n/2013/1203/c1002-23721945.html

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

Non-Performing Loans Continue to Grow

According to the China Banking Regulatory Commission, the total value of non-performing loans has increased for seven consecutive quarters. 

As of the end of the third quarter of this year, commercial banks saw their non-performing loans reach 565.6 billion yuan (US$92.85 billion), an increase of 70.7 billion yuan (US$11.61 billion) since the beginning of the year. This accounts for 0.97 percent of total loans, an increase of 0.01 percentage point compared to the end of the second quarter; the figures show that there has been an upward trend for seven consecutive quarters. 
The total of non-performing loans for 16 banks that are listed on stock exchanges amounted to 460 billion yuan (US$75.52 billion) in the third quarter, an increase of 18 billion (US$2.96 billion) from the second quarter. Of these 16 banks, 14 have seen both their non-performing loan ratio and the value of the loans increase. Meanwhile, the profit growth of the 16 banks has dropped from 17 percent for the same period last year to 13 percent. 
Source: Huanqiu, December 3, 2013 
http://finance.huanqiu.com/data/2013-12/4623461.html
Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

IMG Artists & China Arts and Entertainment Group Announce Sino-U.S. Joint Venture

On November 22, The China Arts and Entertainment Group (CAEG) and IMG Artists announced a new joint venture – Sino America Global Entertainment (SAGE) – effectively the largest private, performing arts partnership between the United States and China. Liu Yandong, Vice Premier of the State Council, and Ding Wei, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Culture oversaw the official signing during a Symposium held at Carnegie Hall in New York. Dignitaries and executives from the leading arts, education, and culture institutions in New York were in attendance.

IMG Artists LLC is a leading universal performing arts management corporation with diverse lines of business. IMG Artists’ capabilities include the management and touring of world renowned musicians, dance companies, orchestras, and attractions, as well as consulting and advisory work for independent clients, arts institutions, concert halls, and culturally engaged corporations.

According to CAEG’s website, "China Arts & Entertainment Group (CAEG) is a large State-owned cultural company, and one of the four national model bases for cultural exports affirmed by the Ministry of Culture. CAEG so far has organized 290 programs and 21,000 performances in some 60 countries and regions, attracting more than 28 million audience members. The group has 19 wholly-owned companies at home and abroad."

According to Zhang Yu, president and general manager of CAEG, the mission of CAEG is to have Chinese culture "go global." With SAGE, Chinese cultural programs can reach mainstream audience in North America via operations such as North American business tour, "Chinese Culture Week," and "Chinese Cultural Festival." But there is a greater significance. "For a long time, the landing of our cultural and arts products overseas has depended almost entirely on foreign performing companies. Although this avoided risk, we lost the autonomy of our cultural products. As we could not reach the end consumers, we were not able, on a fundamental level, to enter the market and effectively compete. The launch of the joint venture allows us to be effective in localizing the operations in New York, the center of world’s performing arts, and other parts of the North America market, so as to transition from the model of relying on local performing companies to directly facing the end consumers."

SAGE will build new platforms for global entertainment and performing arts initiatives including international arts festivals, talent exchange, sharing of local market expertise and more.

Source: Xinhua, December 3, 2013
http://news.xinhuanet.com/2013-12/03/c_118393477.htm

Briefings | | |   Geo-Strategic Trend