30th April 2010

Yiyi Lu, an expert on Chinese civil society, discusses Beijing’s failure to fully appreciate the extent of its soft power deficit vis-à-vis the West. Ms. Lu is a research fellow at the University of Nottingham’s China Policy Institute and an associate fellow at the U.K.-based Chatham House. She is the author of “Non-Governmental Organisations in China: The Rise of Dependent Autonomy” (Routledge 2008).

I recently heard a presentation by an American anthropologist who has spent some time studying a female petitioner in China. The researcher’s findings about the petitioner’s behavior, strategy and mental state were all very interesting, but I was most struck by one detail: The petitioner stresses the vital importance of appearing calm and rational at all times, no matter how frustrated and angry she may feel. If she appears worked up, then she would immediately lose credibility with officials who hear her petition. Officials tend to view agitated petitioners with suspicion and alarm and would be much less prepared to listen to them.

It seems that the Chinese government would do well to learn this wisdom from petitioners when dealing with Western countries.

China's Urban Canaries

Looking for a canary in the coal mine that is China's banking sector? China's city commercial banks may well be the first to run into trouble after China's 2009 lending binge.

These locally focused banks—Bank of Beijing and Bank of Shanghai are among the largest examples—are a small but fast-growing part of China's banking sector. The share of total banking assets held by China's 144 city commercial ...

Policy Change in China Could Boost Solar Sector

SHANGHAI—China is ramping up solar-energy projects this year, but some analysts say the sector could grow much more if Beijing set fixed, preferential fees for the energy source, similar to how such tariffs for wind power have given that industry a big lift in the country.

The New York Times

Sarkozy Urges China to Back Iran Sanctions

BEIJING — President Nicolas Sarkozy of France told President Hu Jintao of China that nations would have to impose new sanctions on Iran if it refuses to curb its nuclear program, official Chinese news organizations reported on Thursday.

China Gains Influence in Korean Affairs as North and South Warily Seek Its Help

SEOUL, South Korea — On Friday, President Lee Myung-bak will travel to China under growing pressure at home to make the case for crucial Chinese support for tough international sanctions against North Korea if, as is widely expected, the North is found responsible for the sinking of a South Korean ship. But he is unlikely to win that support, experts say, a reflection of China’s growing role in the Korean Peninsula.

Asia Times Online

Foreign workers (and wives) pour into China
By Kent Ewing

HONG KONG - Thousands of illegal Vietnamese workers are flooding into China's Pearl River Delta region, the country's manufacturing hub. At the same time, an increasing number of hard-up Chinese men are looking to Vietnam in search of the ideal wife.

China bubbles away
By Robert M Cutler

MONTREAL - Concern continues to mount over a property bubble in China in the near term. Whereas earlier this year economic observers were suggesting that a bubble might burst in one to three years, the overdrive of the Chinese economic recovery has led BNP Paribas, for example, to warn of a 20% fall in real estate prices in the second half of the year. Bloomberg News this week quotes the head of Citigroup’s global head of real estate Thomas Flexner as calling the bubble in the Chinese housing market "very real".

Shanghai Expo: The final countdown
By John Parker

SHANGHAI - The city that is China's financial hub throws off the wraps and lights up the fireworks this week for a grand coming-out party - a celebration of Shanghai's re-emergence as one of the world's great urban centers, marked with the opening of Expo 2010 and its appropriate theme, "Better City, Better Life".

Within the expatriate community in Shanghai, a sense of excitement about the Expo seems to have belatedly arrived - expats in the city have been witnessing the preparations for so long that they had become blase about the event; it seemed it would never arrive. However, as more people have seen the completed site and heard details about the attractions, interest has grown. Almost everyone spoken to by this writer said they intended to see the event at least once. Personally, the author was impressed enough to purchase a one-week pass; there are so many pavilions (and queues to match) that it seems reasonable to devote one full day to each of the five major areas.

In terms of "fun factor", it appears likely that Shanghai's Expo will exceed the Beijing Olympics; also, because it will last for several months, far longer than the Olympics, it will be much more feasible to visit, for the average international tourist.

Kaixin – A detailed look at the Expo, well worth reading

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