23rd June 2010

The Lion Awakes 

News at a Glance

今天的中国新闻

A compilation of Headlines + Brief Summary from Chinese & International Publications relating to China.

Just 5 Minutes each day to be up-to-date on the News of China

Combined with Kaixin’s boutique SITE SEARCH ENGINE, it is a unique source of knowledge about China"

China News Archive

From 2008

China Daily

Photo taken on June 22, 2010 shows a flooded village in Fuzhou, Jiangxi province. A dyke was breached nearby in the Fuhe River Monday night, endangering 145,000 residents (Photo China Daily)

CCTV-9  Video Report 'RIVER BANK BURSTS IN JIANGXI'

 

China Daily

Latest draft law to boost offshore drilling safety

BEIJING - The country's top legislature has highlighted the safety of its offshore pipelines, amid growing worldwide concern following the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

The latest draft law on oil and natural gas pipelines has authorized the State Council, the country's Cabinet, to make a detailed regulation to protect its offshore pipelines.

Chinese oil giant learns BP spill lesson

BEIJING - China's largest offshore oil company is doing its best to ensure that its production facilities at sea do not repeat the mistakes of BP, which is still struggling to contain the disastrous Gulf of Mexico spill, a senior company official said on Sunday.

The company has "ordered checks on every offshore oil and gas project to ensure safety," said Zhou Shouwei, vice-president of China National Offshore Oil Corp (CNOOC). "We are making every effort to make sure this (oil spill) does not happen."

Among improvements to technological capabilities for safety enhancement, CNOOC has started upgrading the blowout preventer (BOP) system of its 3,000-m deepwater oil-drilling rig which is being built in Shanghai, Zhou said.

After modification, the BOP is expected to shut down automatically when there is an accident.

Yuan drops 2nd day after policy adjustment

SHANGHAI/BEIJING - The yuan fell against the dollar on Tuesday, despite a jump in the reference central parity rate set by the central bank.

The People's Bank of China set the central parity rate of the yuan against the dollar at 6.798 on Tuesday, compared with 6.828 on Monday.

he Chinese currency rose by more than 0.4 percent - the biggest rise in a day since its revaluation in 2005 - on Monday, close to hitting its trading limit of 0.5 percent.

But the yuan on Tuesday saw its biggest decline since December 2008, weakening 0.23 percent to 6.8136 per dollar, the China Foreign Exchange Trade system in Shanghai showed.

"The central bank does not want to see a strong, one-way revaluation of the yuan, as indicated by its weekend statements," said Liu Dongliang, currency analyst of China Merchants Bank.

"But the dollar has been strong on the international markets in the past two days and it's normal for the yuan to weaken against the dollar today," he said.

The yuan will not rise continually and strongly, Liu said, going against expectations of some US politicians and industry players.

Renminbi deserves depreciation

The plunge in the euro and threat of persistent economic instability has caused the Chinese government to take a more cautious approach to adjusting its exchange rate. But ironically, the collapse of the euro presents a golden opportunity for China to introduce greater exchange rate flexibility.

China should do this now, rather than wait for the crisis to abate. And to the surprise of many, it should begin by depreciating rather than appreciating the value of the renminbi.

Hu's Canadian visit to help warm 'cool' ties

Beijing - President Hu Jintao leaves Beijing on Wednesday for a short state visit to Canada to improve ties and tap the potential for the two countries to cooperate better on a range of global issues.

Hu is also scheduled to attend the G20 meeting in Toronto from June 26 to 27 and join others in pushing for global economic recovery and financial reform.

Village heads must gain public approval

BEIJING - Village heads who fail to pass appraisals in the villages for two consecutive years will automatically be removed from their positions, according to the latest draft law amendment designed to better supervise rural officials and village elections.

The second draft amendment to the Organic Law of Villagers' Committees was submitted for review at the ongoing legislative session, which began on Tuesday.BEIJING - Village heads who fail to pass appraisals in the villages for two consecutive years will automatically be removed from their positions, according to the latest draft law amendment designed to better supervise rural officials and village elections.

China mulls law to protect informants of corruption

BEIJING - The draft amendment to China's Administrative Supervision Law, submitted to China's legislature for its second reading Tuesday, strengthens protection of informants in an effort to encourage tip-offs on official corruption.

Global Times

Editorial

The burden of saving the world economy

At the G10 Rome meeting held in 1971, then US treasury secretary John Connally boldly told his counterparts, "The dollar is our currency, but it's your problem."

The meeting delinked the greenback from gold, led to a 20 percent depreciation of the US dollar, and allowing the US Federal Reserve to print the US dollar freely.

Like some 40 years ago, today the US economy is in deep trouble too. The man in Connally's seat today may not be so outspoken, but the old approach of the US - expecting others to solve its problem - does not seem to have changed.

Before the G20 summit convenes in Toronto this weekend, China has had enough grievances and finger-pointing from US politicians. Perhaps, this is the time the US shows what it can do to help mitigate the global economic woes, which is largely its own creation.

The fundamental reasons for the US leading the world into this economic crisis - reckless fiscal policy, trade imbalance, a weakening manufacturing sector, and over-leverage of equities - are still there.

China to overtake US as largest manufacturer

China is set to overtake the United States as the world's biggest manufacturer next year at the earliest, ending the latter's more-than-a-century reign in the field, according to an economic report.

Some analysts voiced caution Tuesday, saying that without securing core competitiveness through innovation and industry upgrades, goods producers should not celebrate such a title.

The US-based consultancy IHS Global Insight said in a report Monday that China's manufacturing sector will reach the "real inflation-adjusted" size of that of the US "sometime around 2013- 2014," though the US economy as a whole is now three times bigger than China's.

China is very likely to surpass the US in manufacturing in 2011, and it could be a "close call" this year, Mark Kilion, managing director of IHS, was quoted by CNN as saying. By then, China will supply one fifth of the goods consumed worldwide.

What uniquely Chinese term is most resonant to you?

Barry Ball, a British native and chief architect of HKI China Land Ltd

Bottoms up! 干杯

If I have to choose a Chinese word that for me sums up one of the biggest cultural differences between the West and China, it is the drinking toast ganbei. It signifies so much in terms of friendship and trust-building.

It's not the quiet "cheers" foreigners are used to in the West, but a very masculine shout and challenge to better the other at alcohol consumption.

Kaixin - Well worth reading

 

A local flood victim rides on his ox along a flooded street in Fuzhou, Jiangxi province, June 23, 2010. The Changkai Dyke in southern China's Jiangxi province suffered a fresh breach as the Fuhe River punched through the embankment again on Wednesday, after an earlier break in its wall on Monday forced nearly 100,000 residents to flee as heavy rains swelled rivers and dams across the region. (Photo China Daily)

International News

Caixin Online

Payback Time in the Pearl River Factory Belt

While some applaud worker pay increases as long overdue, margin-pinched manufacturers are starting to squirm

Nevertheless, a notice posted at the recruitment office suggested a long and perhaps fruitless wait for the woman as well as the other job hopefuls parked in the rain. The notice is also one reason why rumors, misunderstandings and doubts about Foxconn's salary increases have been brewing in Shenzhen and the rest of the Pearl River Delta, a major manufacturing base, for weeks.

TheWall Street Journal    China RealTime Report

Inflation Perceptions Run High in China

A new poll by Horizon Research Consultancy Group, China’s largest polling firm, finds 60.8% of respondents believe China is experiencing “serious” inflation, a disquieting finding which suggests China’s inflation problem may be more severe than official statistics indicate.

Public perceptions of inflation are important, because inflationary expectations can become self-fulfilling.

In China, Yuan News Is Muted

While China’s weekend announcements that it will allow a more flexible yuan made headlines around the world, Chinese media reaction has been muted. Official television broadcasts have made scarcely any mention of the issue, focusing instead on torrential rain in southern China that have killed at least 199 people, a coal mine explosion in Henan province, and even the World Cup.

The paucity of coverage indicates that the yuan remains a sensitive political issue, and that Beijing is still wary of being perceived as caving to foreign pressure.

China’s Changing View on Mental Illness

Recent rhetoric in China’s state-run media suggests the government is publicly signing onto the view that rising social imbalances along with insufficient treatment for the mentally ill contributed to a recent spate of attacks on schoolchildren.

The New Old Mao

As every person in the Hunan province town of Shaoshan knows, Mao Zedong was born there in 1893. Today, 117 years later, the city is about to have the final say on who the man really was – at least physically speaking. Responding to tourist complaints, the Shaoshan City Bureau of Quality Supervision is this week announcing new standards for Mao statues and busts produced for sale as souvenirs.

China's Consumerism Offers Opportunities

HONG KONG—Milk, insurance and air conditioners have one thing in common—they all offer potential plays on the growing importance of the Chinese consumer.

Domestic consumption in China is a theme global investors will want to follow. For years, China has depended on investment and exports to drive its economy, but the government is now pushing hard to promote domestic consumption as a new engine of growth.

In the next five years, economists predict the government will continue to goose spending through incentives such as rebates that have been given on certain consumer goods. Efforts to improve the country's social safety ...

China Tames Hopes of Yuan Surging

Central Bank Seeks to Deter Speculators Making One-Way Bets on Its Currency After Easing of Peg

BEIJING—The Chinese yuan weakened against the dollar, erasing most of Monday's sharp gains and reflecting an apparent effort by the central bank to tame hopes of yuan appreciation and send a message that China's exchange-rate overhaul doesn't mean a guaranteed one-way bet on its currency.

Kaixin - China will not be held hostage to hedge funds or nations trying to manipulate its currency. Given America's disgraceful manipulation of its currency since 1971 it is little wonder the Chinese government does not trust the integrity of the $US.

China Recasts Its Global Role

President Barack Obama, badly in need of good news, got some over the weekend from the most unlikely of sources: China, which said it would allow the value of its currency to rise, thereby answering the single most fervent prayer U.S. officials utter when seeking divine intervention to help with America's big trade deficit.

The New York Times

Exporters Optimistic Over Move on Currency

Embracing China’s decision to let its currency move more freely, American businesses said on Monday that the move would make it easier to compete against Chinese companies and would help reduce the United States trade deficit.

I.H.T. Op-Ed Contributor
East Asian Unity

HONG KONG — Two of the reasons for China’s shift to a slightly flexible exchange rate are obvious: foreign pressure in advance of this week’s G-20 meeting and the need to stimulate domestic demand and dampen inflation. But there is a third: China’s desire not to be seen as frustrating East Asian attempts at monetary cooperation aimed at the eventual creation of an Asian Monetary Fund.

With Strike, Toyota Idles Auto Plant in China

TOKYO — Toyota Motor halted production at a car factory in China on Tuesday for the second time this month after workers at a supplier staged a walkout. It was the latest in a string of strikes that has hit Japanese carmakers just as they look to increase production in China, the world’s biggest auto market.

The Australian

China's well-timed currency kowtow

PROMISED 'flexibility' will appease the US, not rebalance the domestic economy.

Beijing caves in on Hong Kong reform

HONG Kong's legislature is poised to approve electoral reforms proposed by the Democratic Party that has unexpectedly been backed by Beijing.

This follows Beijing's loosening of the lock on the valuation of the yuan, and may indicate a new round of cautious liberalisation by the ruling Chinese Communist Party.

The Age

China's yuan weakens as gains seen limited

China's yuan declined the most since December 2008 on speculation the central bank will intervene to limit gains after dropping its two-year peg to the US dollar.

Asia Times Online

Compulsory retirement irks 'old guard'
By Wu Zhong, China Editor

An ex-senior Chinese Communist Party member's call that retired officials should not meddle in state affairs is either an admonishment of aging former leaders who cling to influence rather than accept the end of the dynastic system of lifetime tenure, or an early warning for present leaders to abide with new retirement ages

THEMES

A selection of News and OpEd

reflecting the main themes for

contemporary China

starting from August 2008

Green China  

Insights into China

Economic China

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Yuan Revaluation & Internationalisation

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