Briefings

Primary Taiwanese news agency Central News Agency (CNA) recently reported that, official Taiwanese government statistics show that Taiwan’s investment in China continues to shrink, with direct investment in China to decrease by 59 percent year-over-year by 2025. And approved investment from mainland China in Taiwan decreased by 65.4 percent year-over-year.

The official report points out that China’s economy grew by five percent last year, but the growth momentum was significantly divergent, with the housing market downturn worsening, foreign direct investment (FDI) continuing to slow, and the shadow of deflation lingering.

The report also indicated that the surge in social protests in mainland China in the second half of 2025 is attributed primarily to slowing economic growth, increasing youth unemployment, insufficient funds for maintaining stability due to local government financial difficulties, and the potential threat to grassroots governance stability from the return and stranding of large numbers of unemployed migrant workers to their hometowns.

Source: CNA, February 11, 2026
https://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/202602110334.aspx

Since the early 2000s, China has systematically built a comprehensive infrastructure to shape global media narratives according to its geopolitical interests, according to French television network TV5MONDE’s fact-checking program “A vrai dire.” Senior journalist Mylène Girardeau explains that while Russia is often cited as the typical example of foreign interference through disinformation, China operates with far greater subtlety and sophistication.

Beijing’s strategy operates through multiple channels. First, it institutionalizes media relationships through bilateral agreements that mandate exchanges between state-owned media outlets, ostensibly to promote mutually beneficial information sharing. China also invites foreign journalists for “training” programs designed more to inspire admiration than impart actual skills. Additionally, three major Chinese state media organizations—Xinhua News Agency, China Radio International, and CGTN—have established offices worldwide. Unlike Western counterparts such as AFP or BBC, these outlets remain under direct Communist Party control, receiving daily guidelines on what to cover and which topics to avoid.

A particularly effective tactic involves providing free content to media outlets globally. Xinhua distributes 15,000 news items daily in eleven languages at no cost to newsrooms facing financial pressures. In February 2022, Beijing launched the All Media Service Platform offering ready-made content in seventy languages for free. Beyond free distribution, China pays news agencies like Reuters and Associated Press to include Chinese state television content in their feeds. In January 2026, over one-fifth of videos available through Reuters to TV5MONDE subscribers came from Chinese state television.

Geopolitics scholar Selma Mihoubi notes that China crafts different narratives for different regions, promoting pro-Russian positions in Africa while exercising more caution in Western markets. The strategy proves especially effective in regions underserved by Western media, where local journalists lacking resources readily adopt freely available Chinese content, often without recognizing its propagandistic nature. Though calculating exact costs proves difficult, experts estimate this influence operation requires billions of dollars annually.

Source: Radio France International, February 11, 2026
https://rfi.my/CR2g

A French government report from the High Commissioner for Strategy and Planning has issued a stark warning about China’s industrial rise, calling it a “systemic shock” to the European economy. The study reveals that Chinese manufacturers now produce goods at four times the speed and one-quarter the cost of European counterparts, while matching or exceeding quality standards.

The report indicates that nearly a quarter of European exports face intense Chinese competition, with up to 55 percent of European manufacturing output potentially threatened in the medium term if current trends continue. Germany stands on the frontlines, having already lost 240,000 industrial jobs since 2023 as Chinese competition directly impacts its core sectors including machinery, industrial equipment, and plastics. Central European countries like Slovakia, Czech Republic, and Hungary, which host German subcontractors, face significant risks as well.

France is not immune to these pressures. Beyond industries intensive in chemicals and industrial inputs such as batteries, plastics, and rubber, over 70 percent of the automotive sector’s exports are affected. Even traditionally high-value French sectors like aerospace and nuclear energy are vulnerable, with Chinese manufacturers operating at remarkable speed and efficiency.

Given the 30 percent to 40 percent cost differential with Chinese products, the report argues that existing trade protection measures are structurally insufficient. High Commissioner Clément Beaune proposes two options to rebalance power with Beijing: either impose a 30 percent tariff on all Chinese products, or depreciate the euro by 20 percent to 30 percent against the yuan, which experts believe is already undervalued by 20 percent to 25 percent.

The tariff option faces challenges, particularly convincing other European nations like Germany, which has already opposed tariffs on electric vehicles. France plans to raise the trade imbalance issue at the next G7 meeting in June at Évian-les-Bains.

Source: Radio France International, February 10, 2026
https://rfi.my/CQnw