Chinascope – Page 847

The potential Risks China’s Financial System Faces

On July 17, 2013, 21cbh.com, a professional financial news website under the 21st Century Media Group in Mainland China, published an article titled, “The Potential Risks that China’s Financial System Faces.” According to the article, China’s financial system faces three potential risks: 1) the real estate market (real estate bubble); 2) local governments’ financing used for investments in land and real estate (the accumulated debt has reached over 12 trillion Chinese yuan); and 3) shadow banking.

Source: 21cbh.com, July 17, 2013
http://epaper.21cbh.com/html/2013-07/15/content_70897.htm?div=-1

Briefings | | July 17, 2013 | Economy/Resources

Xinhua: Uncertainty about the Chinese Economy Lowers Confidence

Xinhua recently reported on some research that the firm Grant Thornton, an international organization of independent audit, tax, and advisory firms, had done on the business indicators of a number of Chinese companies. The study titled, International Business Report (IBR), revealed that 40 percent of the surveyed Chinese companies found the uncertainty that the economy faced was having a major impact on the growth of their businesses. The research results also showed that four percent of the companies felt optimistic about the future. This number had dropped 21 percent from the first quarter to the second quarter of this year. The study indicated that expectations of company sales, product prices, export volume, hiring plans, and profits had all dropped from the first quarter. Especially for the indicators of exports, employment, and profitability, the companies’ level of confidence dropped to a two-year low. Investments in research and development declined by 14 percent in the past 12 months; most of the companies were increasing their cash reserves. Grant Thornton concluded that there is no clear sign of an economic recovery for the Chinese market. The same report for the U.S. market showed a dramatic increase of 24 percent in the confidence level.

Source: Xinhua, July 11, 2013
http://news.xinhuanet.com/fortune/2013-07/11/c_116499670.htm

Briefings | | July 16, 2013 | Economy/Resources

Yu Zhengsheng: Deepening the Fight against the Dalai Lama

Xinhua recently reported that Yu Zhengsheng, the Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and a member of the Politburo Standing Committee of the Communist Party, emphasized the importance of continuing and deepening the fight against the Dalai Lama. He made the comment during a trip to the Tibetan area of Gansu Province. Yu also called for more investments in the Tibetan regions to lift the people’s living standards. He suggested that the Tibetan people will provide better support for the Communist Party only when their living conditions are improved. Yu also visited some Buddhist temples and asked the locals to “love the country.” In a speech given to the local government officials, Yu pointed out that the “self-governance” idea that the Dalai Lama came up with is a complete violation of the Chinese Constitution and is an obvious attempt to divide the country.

Source: Xinhua, July 9, 2013
http://news.xinhuanet.com/politics/2013-07/09/c_116466690.htm

Briefings | | July 16, 2013 | Government/Politics

Xinhua: Japanese Defense Whitepaper Aimed at China

Xinhua recently reported that the newly released Japanese Defense Whitepaper is full of false statements against China. The Japanese Cabinet approved the latest Whitepaper on July 9. It suggested that the Japanese government is pushing hard to counter the “Chinese military threat.” The language in the Whitepaper suggested that China’s military activities at sea are a threat to the safety not only of Japan but to the entire region as well. The report however expressed the belief that this is just a game the Abe administration is playing in order to justify its attempts to modify the Japanese constitution and to break the traditional military limitations Japan has had in place since the end of the Second World War. The Whitepaper claimed that China has taken a lot of “dangerous steps” to change the existing international order and that, in the past ten years, China’s defense budget has tripled while Japan’s showed a five percent decline. The Chinese government issued an official rebuttal immediately, saying that the Japanese allegations are simply lies and Japan is just looking for excuses to increase its defense spending.

Source: Xinhua, July 11, 2013
http://news.xinhuanet.com/mrdx/2013-07/10/c_132527928.htm

Briefings | | July 16, 2013 | Geo-Strategic Trend

China Has the Highest Number of People Who Die from Overwork

Xinhua carried a news article that China Review News had originally published reporting that 600,000 people in China die from overwork or Karōshi each year, which is an average of 1,600 people a day. This number is the highest in the world and even surpasses Japan. Most of them are young professionals; they die from cardio-cerebrovascular disease symptoms. Work pressure, over-exhaustion, and stress are the main contributors to the cause of death. Close to 70 percent of the people born in the 1980s claim they feel overworked.

Source: Xinhua, July 14, 2013
http://news.xinhuanet.com/overseas/2013-07/14/c_124998901_2.htm

Briefings | | July 15, 2013 | Information/Technology

Wanda Group CEO: Build Channels to Export Chinese Culture Overseas

Huanqiu recently interviewed Wang Jianling, CEO of Wanda, who told Huanqiu that China’s ability to export its culture overseas would be very difficult without acquiring and having control of the proper channels. Wang acknowledged that acquiring AMC has enabled Wanda to take a first step into the world’s culture industry. Wanda’s goal is to reach a 20 percent market share worldwide by 2020. Wang continued, “We plan to show three to five Chinese movies in the U.S. this year. I don’t care which movies will be shown but AMC must do so. Otherwise, we will fire the management. If we have worldwide channels like this, why should we be concerned about not exporting Chinese movies to the world?” Wang also claimed that Wanda might consider investing in some influential television stations overseas or participating in the distribution of English films worldwide. “Only through this, can we make culture infiltration possible and allow our culture to go out the door,” Wang said. Wanda Group recently announced a US$1.08 billion investment in building a Wanda Hotel in London and a US$483 million purchase of UK yacht builder Sunseeker. It was back in May 2012, that Wanda announced its acquisition of AMC, a U.S. Cinema chain, for US$260 million. The purchase made Wanda the largest owner of movie theaters in the world.

Source: Xinhua, July 11, 2013
http://news.xinhuanet.com/globe/2013-07/11/c_132525691.htm

Briefings | | July 15, 2013 | Geo-Strategic Trend

Huanqiu Editorial-: The U.S. Should Be More Honest in the Sino-U.S. Dialogue

Huanqiu published an editorial to give “suggestions” to the Chinese delegates participating in the China-U.S. dialogue. The following are excerpts from the article:

“The biggest problem in China-U.S. relations is that the U.S. appears to be frank and honest, but actually, it has a lot of hidden hypocrisy and tricks. The U.S. has many systems through which it can channel and express its demands. Congressmen, labor unions, and the media can always weigh in on the issue of Sino-US relations. Some play good cop and some others play bad cop, forming a pattern of dealing with the Chinese from multi-sides.”

“The U.S. is also good at openly posturing, trying to control the high ground through the media before the dialogue. Regarding the Internet security issues, the United States has been pretending to be a victim for several years. It has now been proven that the U.S. is the world’s most serious organizer and implementer of cyber espionage.”

“The United States is so used to hypocrisy and being bossy. The Americans even suggest that their pretense is "good faith." We must suppress how the Americans play these bad habits in front of us.”

“The Snowden [incident] is a good opportunity. We do not necessarily need to play the Snowden card in the China-U.S. strategic dialogue, but whether to play this card or not, the Chinese delegate should have the card ready in hand, applying it as a psychological pressure to the Americans.”

“We should spare no effort to dissolve the American’s strong negotiating power. China now has a capital advantage; its market capacity is developing rapidly; technological progress is gradually catching up. The equality status between China and the U.S. is already closing; and now it is time for the United States to reflect on its attitude toward China.”

“The Chinese delegate should strive to get stronger in the dialogue. There is no need to worry that it will damage China-U.S. relations. China-U.S. strategic relations are backed by a gigantic exchange of contents and are not so fragile.”

Source: Huanqiu (Globe), July 11, 2013

http://opinion.huanqiu.com/editorial/2013-07/4115156.html

Briefings | | July 12, 2013 | US-China Relations

China’s Reaction to Trump’s Election Win

Xinhua Commentary Series: Spotlight on the U.S. Presidential Election

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