Chinascope – Page 869

2013 Hurun Report: The Growth of the Super-Rich Slowing Down

According to the 2013 Hurun Report released on April 15, 2013, the number of super-rich Chinese, defined as individuals with a net worth of 100 million yuan, grew two percent to 64,500 individuals, the slowest growth in the past four years. Beijing is home to more millionaires than any other city in China, accounting for 475,000 millionaires (in US dollars), followed by Shanghai with 390,000.

Eighty percent of these people are business owners, 15 percent are real estate investors, and five percent are day traders in the stock market.

These estimates of the 2013 Hurun Report are based on the macro-statistics from the National Bureau of statistics of China and on micro-statistics, including ownership of luxury homes and automobiles, income tax returns, sales of other luxuy items and registered capital of businesses.

Source: Xinhua, April 18, 2013
http://news.xinhuanet.com/overseas/2013-04/18/c_124595059.htm

Briefings | | April 19, 2013 | Economy/Resources

ShineWing: Local Government Debt is Out of Control

Zhang Ke, Vice President of the Chinese Institute of Certified Public Accounts and chairman of the Beijing based ShineWing (HK) CPA Limited said during an interview with Financial Times that due to concerns about risks, his firm has ceased its audit businesses relating to local governments’ issuance of bonds. “The situation is out of control.”

“We have audited the bonds that some local governments have issued. We found they were very high risk, so we withdrew.” Zhang continued, “Most local governments do not have the ability to pay back the principal or service the debt. Things could become very serious.”

Zhang also said, “The situation is out of control. There may be a crisis. However, because the due dates on these debts keep getting extended, they have become long-term debts. Therefore, the timing of the burst is uncertain.” He indicated that, from public squares to road improvements, many local governments have put money into investments and received mediocre returns. Now they can do nothing but borrow new money to pay old debts. Zhang said, “This approach will not survive much longer. … When that time comes, it will not be the government but CPA firms and banks that will bear the ultimate responsibility.”

The Beijing based ShineWing (HK) CPA Limited claims that it is the largest domestic CPA firm in China.

Source: Caijing.com, April 17, 2013
http://economy.caijing.com.cn/2013-04-17/112682959.html

Briefings | | April 19, 2013 | Economy/Resources

PLA Daily: The U.S. Cyber Strategy: Cooperation Is a Pretense; Confrontation Is What’s True

China’s military newspaper PLA Daily published an article claiming that the U.S. proposal to cooperate with China on the issue of cyber security is no more than a pretense. Confrontation is the real truth. The article referred to two news reports on April 9, 2013, regarding the U.S. cyber strategy. The first one said that, at the sixth China-U.S. Forum on the Internet, the U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Robert Hormats stated, “Both sides need cooperation rather than confrontation." The second one said that John Hayden, deputy commander of the U.S. Air Force Space Command, announced at the U.S. National Space Symposium, "The U.S. Air Force has officially designated six kinds of Internet tools as weapons." The article said, “Taking the two news items together, one cannot help but wonder how sincere the United States’ proposal for cooperation really is.”

The article concluded, “Whether the United States is talking about cyberspace cooperation or promoting the development of Internet tools, it cannot cover the fact that its purpose is to maintain hegemony in the name of cooperation and the intention to threaten other countries by displaying new cyber weapons. One thing is for sure; the U.S. military bringing cyberspace into the arms race will make the fighting on cyberspace strategy increasingly fierce.”

The article was republished on almost all of China’s state-run media’s major websites.

Source: PLA Daily, April 15, 2013

http://chn.chinamil.com.cn/jwjj/2013-04/15/content_5299495.htm

http://news.xinhuanet.com/mil/2013-04/15/c_124579968.htm http://military.people.com.cn/BIG5/n/2013/0415/c1011-21135822.html

Briefings | | April 18, 2013 | US-China Relations

China Review News: The Direction of China’s Economic Development in 2013

On April 15, 2013, China Review News published an article on the direction of China’s economic development during 2013. According to the article, the new direction of China’s economic and social development in 2013 includes the quality of economic growth and the security of the people’s livelihood.

Following an economic growth of 7.5 percent in 2012, the goal for economic growth in 2013 was once again set at 7.5 percent. China must be vigilant about inflation. The current inflation rate is 3.5 percent. Therefore, the regulation of the economy in 2013 should focus on the application of monetary policy, stabilizing the prices of real estate and agricultural products, and on other related functions.

Resource: China Review News, April 15, 2013
http://www.zhgpl.com/doc/1025/0/2/8/102502820.html?coluid=53&kindid=0&docid=102502820&mdate=0415143926

Briefings | | April 17, 2013 | Economy/Resources

Qiushi Stressed the Absolute Leadership of the Chinese Communist Party over the Armed Forces.

On April 16, 2012, Qiushi, a journal of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, published an article titled, “With a Stronger Military Force as the Goal, We Must Work on the Ideological and Political Development of the Army.” The article repeatedly stressed the absolute leadership of the Chinese Communist Party over the armed forces.

“Chairman Xi emphasized that the priority in building an army is to follow the Party’s leadership, ensuring the absolute loyalty, absolute purity, and absolute reliability of the army. This is the highest political demand of the Party and the people. It is the fundamental condition for ideological and political development, to which we must pay close attention.”

Source: Qiushi, April 16, 2012
http://www.qstheory.cn/zxdk/2013/201308/201304/t20130412_222741.htm

Briefings | | April 17, 2013 | Defense/Military

China Review News: Figure out the Significance of Kerry’s Visit to China

On April 16, 2013, China Review News published an article on U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry’s visit to China, titled “Figure out the Significance of Kerry’s Visit to China.” “Kerry usually supports the positive development of cooperative relations between the U.S. and China.” "Sino-US bilateral relations have achieved a good start."

“Over the next 10-15 years, Sino-US relations are bound to face unprecedented challenges. Currently, the two powerful countries are building a new type of relationship. The window won’t stay open. The leaders we need are those who have wisdom, courage, and responsibility to seize the opportunity and shape the future.”

Source: China Review News, April 16, 2013
http://www.zhgpl.com/doc/1025/0/3/5/102503528.html?coluid=148&kindid=7550&docid=102503528&mdate=0416002227

Briefings | | April 17, 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