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☆ China hopes Germany supports peaceful Taiwan 'reunification' -Top diplomat
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/4] German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang attend a joint press conference at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, China, April 14, 2023. Suo Takekuma/Pool via REUTERSBEIJING, April 15 (Reuters) - China's top diplomat Wang Yi "hopes and believes" Germany will support China's "peaceful reunification" with Taiwan, the Chinese foreign ministry said in a statement on Saturday. Wang made the remarks at a meeting with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, who is visiting China until Saturday, adding that China once supported Germany's reunification. Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen's government rejects China's position, saying only Taiwan's people can decide their future. Wang also said China is willing to strengthen exchanges and communication with Germany to enhance mutual understanding and prepare for a new round of Sino-German government consultations.

"I was previously considered wealthy in the area," said Liu, who also owns some commercial property in the northeastern city of Liaoyuan. In play now in China, where around 70% of household wealth is in property, this phenomenon is weighing on the post-pandemic recovery of household consumption, which Chinese policymakers have vowed to make a more prominent driver of economic growth. Capital Economics estimates net household wealth declined 4.3% overall last year, due to falling house and stock prices, the first decline since at least 2001. Indeed, deposits rose a further 9.9 trillion yuan in the first quarter of this year. ($1 = 6.8376 Chinese yuan renminbi)Additional reporting by Shuyan Wang; Editing by Marius Zaharia and Kim CoghillOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ China's first-quarter GDP growth seen rebounding to 4.0%, 2023 rate seen at 5.4% - Reuters poll
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Kevin Yao | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

That would be the fastest growth since the first quarter of last year. The government has set a modest target for economic growth of around 5% for this year, after badly missing the 2022 goal. The government is due to release first quarter GDP data, along with March activity data, at 0200 GMT on April 18. On a quarterly basis, the economy is forecast to grow 2.2% in January-March, compared with no change in October-December, the poll showed. “We need to maintain the stability and continuity of macro policies to consolidate the economic recovery,” said Wen Bin, chief economist at China Minsheng Bank.

☆ China's Q1 GDP growth seen rebounding to 4.0%, 2023 rate seen at 5.4%: Reuters poll
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Kevin Yao | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

That would be the fastest growth since the first quarter of last year. For 2023, growth was expected to pick up to 5.4%, the poll showed, from 3.0% last year - one of its worst performances in nearly half a century due to strict COVID-19 curbs. The government has set a modest target for economic growth of around 5% for this year, after badly missing the 2022 goal. The government is due to release first quarter GDP data, along with March activity data, at 0200 GMT on April 18. Consumer inflation will likely quicken to 2.3% in 2023 from 2.0% in 2022, before steadying in 2024, the poll showed.

☆ China sanctions U.S. Congress member for Taiwan visit
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

China sanctioned a United States lawmaker Thursday for his visit to Taiwan, saying he violated the "One China" principle that says Beijing has sovereignty over the island. The mainland's ruling Communist Party says Taiwan, which split from the mainland in 1949 amid a civil war, must be reunited with China by force if necessary. It's one of several rounds of sanctions China announced as tensions build between Beijing and Washington. McCaul, R-Texas, visited Taiwan from April 6 to 8 to discuss weapons deals between the U.S. and Taiwan, shortly after the sensitive meeting that drew China's ire. McCaul, who chairs the House Foreign Affairs Committee, has been advocating for a hard-line stance against China and closer ties with Taiwan.

☆ Taiwan president thanks fighter pilots as Chinese drills ebb
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Taiwan Presidential Office/Handout via REUTERS/File PhotoTAIPEI, April 14 (Reuters) - Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen on Friday thanked fighter pilots who scrambled against China's air force during its drills around the island and pledged to keep strengthening the armed forces, as Beijing's military activities around the island ebbed. On Friday morning, Taiwan's defence ministry said it had not spotted any Chinese military aircraft crossing the sensitive median line of the Taiwan Strait in the past 24 hours. In its regular morning report on Chinese military activities in the previous 24-hour period, Taiwan's defence ministry said it had seen four Chinese military aircraft and eight Chinese warships around Taiwan. But in an accompanying map of China's activities it did not show any Chinese warplanes crossing the Taiwan Strait's median line, an unofficial boundary between the two. China says it does not recognise the median line and has since August, when it staged war games after then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, flown fighter jets regularly across it.

☆ Opinion: Amid fallout of Macron-Xi meeting, another world leader tries his luck
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Frida Ghitis | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Editor’s Note: Frida Ghitis, a former CNN producer and correspondent, is a world affairs columnist. She is a weekly opinion contributor to CNN, a contributing columnist to The Washington Post and a columnist for World Politics Review. Like most of China’s diplomacy, the country paints itself as champion of global peace, even as it launches menacing military maneuvers. French President Emmanuel Macron and Chinese President Xi Jinping shake hands at a signing ceremony at the Great Hall of the People, Beijing, April 6. Just hours after Macron left, China launched an alarming military operation, encircling Taiwan in a simulation of an assault.

☆ China sanctions senior US lawmaker for visiting Taiwan
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BEIJING, April 13 (Reuters) - China's foreign ministry on Thursday announced sanctions against Michael McCaul, chairman of the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee, for "interfering" in the country's domestic affairs and for visiting Taiwan. McCaul visited Taiwan last week and met Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen. Reporting by Beijing newsroom; Writing by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Bernadette BaumOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ China to ban vessels from area near Taiwan over rocket debris
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Jameson Wu/File PhotoBEIJING, April 13 (Reuters) - China will ban vessels from an area near Taiwan on Sunday because of the possibility of falling rocket debris, its maritime safety agency said on Thursday, as Japan sought details from Beijing on a reported no-fly zone in the same location. China has not commented on the no-fly zone but South Korea, which was also briefed on the plans, said it was due to a falling object related to a launch vehicle. China regards Taiwan as its own territory and objects to any interactions between the Taiwanese leadership and foreign officials. The coordinates correspond to a rectangular area to Taiwan's northeast, with the closest point 118 km (73 miles) from Taiwan, illustrated on a map that Taiwan's transport ministry released late on Wednesday. China's foreign ministry declined to comment.

☆ Taiwan says China's no-fly zone will affect around 33 flights
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TAIPEI, April 13 (Reuters) - China's plan to set up a no-fly zone to the north of Taiwan on April 16 will affect about 33 flights, Taiwan's official Central News Agency (CNA) reported, citing the island's transport minister, Wang Kwo-tsai. The impact on flights was greatly reduced after Taiwan said it had successfully urged China to drastically narrow its plan to close air space north of the island, Wang was reported as saying. Reuters first reported that Beijing had initially notified Taipei it would impose a no-fly zone from April 16-18, but Taiwan's transport ministry said this was later reduced to a period of just 27 minutes on Sunday morning after it protested. Taiwan's transport ministry on Wednesday published a map showing what it labelled China's "aerospace activity zone" to the northeast of Taiwan and near a group of disputed islets called Diaoyu by China and Senkaku by Japan. Reporting By Yimou Lee and Ben Blanchard; Editing by Jacqueline Wong & Shri NavaratnamOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ China Eyes Commercial Ships in a Move to Intimidate Taiwan
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Elisabeth Braw | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

When House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen met in California last week, Beijing expressed its displeasure. It did so by sending patrol vessels to the Taiwan Strait, where Chinese authorities said the vessels might conduct inspections. China could use such inspections to block this vital trade artery. Friendly navies should signal support for Taiwan’s navy. Governments should create an early-warning system for the shipping world, so vessels take alternate routes.

The inflation data came on the heels of last Friday's employment report, which showed a solid pace of job growth in March and the unemployment rate falling back to 3.5%. In Europe, stock markets rose after the U.S. data and the broad STOXX 600 index was last up 0.5% (.STOXX) and holding near one-month highs. BONDS UP, DOLLAR DOWNU.S. bonds yields fell after the CPI numbers. Rate-sensitive two-year Treasury yields were last down 12 basis points at 3.93% , while U.S. 10-year yields fell 6 bps to 3.37%. The dollar fell with an index measuring the U.S. currency against six rivals down 0.4% at 101.72.

REUTERS/StaffApril 12 (Reuters) - World stocks and bond yields stalled on Wednesday as markets anticipated crucial U.S. inflation data which could give signals on how soon the Federal Reserve will end its aggressive rate hikes. Markets were in wait-and-see mode ahead of the data, with the pan-European STOXX 600 index inching up 0.3% by 0820 GMT, while Britain's FTSE (.FTSE) was up 0.6%. Government bond yields were also little moved with benchmark U.S. 10-year Treasury yields unchanged on the day at 3.43%. "We do not assume that the discrepancy between Fed and market expectations will end today or in the near future," Reichelt said. With oil prices rising again and labour market cooling only gradually, risk remains tilted for core inflation to remain elevated for longer," they said.

☆ Asian stocks ease ahead of US inflation data, Fed minutes
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Ankur Banerjee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The Eurostoxx 50 futures was down 0.16%, German DAX futures up 0.01% and FTSE futures down 0.07%. The consumer price index is expected to show core inflation rose 0.4% on a monthly basis and 5.6% year-over-year in March, according to a Reuters poll of economists. Markets are now pricing in a 66% chance of the Fed raising interest rates by 25 basis points in May and then pausing for the subsequent meetings, according to the CME FedWatch tool. The Fed last month raised interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point, taking it to a range of 4.75% to 5.00%. With oil prices rising again and labour market cooling only gradually, risk remains tilted for core inflation to remain elevated for longer," they said.

☆ Macron stands by China interview - French diplomat
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

PARIS, April 12 (Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron is not backtracking on comments in China urging the European Union to reduce dependency on the United States, a senior diplomat said on Wednesday. The French diplomat, who requested anonymity, told reporters that the substance of what Macron said, which focused on his pet project of European strategic autonomy, was clear, and his position on Taiwan and China has not changed. "This is something the president stands by entirely," he said of the interview. "France respects the One China principle and the president told (Chinese President Xi Jinping) that the Taiwan question should only be resolved pacifically," the French diplomat added. "No, Europe will not get dragged into that, but that doesn't mean Europe will disengage (from the Taiwan issue)."

☆ Macron comments leave senior Taiwanese official 'puzzled'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TAIPEI, April 12 (Reuters) - Comments by French President Emmanuel Macron on Taiwan are puzzling, a senior Taiwanese politician said, wondering whether France's founding ideals of liberty, equality and fraternity are now out of fashion. He also called for the European Union to reduce its dependence on the United States and to become a "third pole" in world affairs alongside Washington and Beijing. Taiwan parliament speaker You Si-kun, writing on Facebook late Tuesday above a screengrab of a report about Macron's comments on Taiwan, questioned the French commitment to freedom. "Are 'liberté, égalité, fraternité' out of fashion?," he wrote, referring to the official French motto of "liberty, equality, fraternity". "The actions of President Macron, a leading international democracy, leave me puzzled."

☆ Warren Buffett gives reason for decision to sell stake in Taiwan's TSMC
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Juliana Liu | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Hong Kong CNN —Warren Buffett says geopolitical tensions were “a consideration” in the decision to sell most of Berkshire Hathaway’s shares in global chip giant TSMC, which is based in Taiwan. The 92-year-old “Oracle of Omaha” shed light on the investment call in a Tuesday interview with Japanese news agency Nikkei. He was quoted as sayiing that TSMC was a well-managed company but that Berkshire had “better places” to deploy its capital. In February, Berkshire Hathaway (BRKA) revealed that it had sold 86% of its shares in TSMC, which were purchased for $4.1 billion just months before. TSMC is considered a national treasure in Taiwan and supplies semiconductors to tech giants including Apple (AAPL) and Qualcomm (QCOM).

☆ Macron: France favours 'status quo' on Taiwan, position unchanged
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Michel Rose | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/3] French President Emmanuel Macron and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte speak at a news conference during Macron's state visit to the Netherlands, in Amsterdam, Netherlands April 12, 2023. We're in favour of the status quo. This policy is constant and hasn't changed," Macron told a news conference during a state visit in the Netherlands. "So no, France does not support provocations, does not engage in fantasy politics and considers the status quo, respect and clarity are the best allies of European strategic autonomy," Macron said. The meeting between Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen and U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in California last week - prior to China's drills - was a "provocation", the diplomat said.

☆ The US could lose up to 900 warplanes fighting a Chinese invasion of Taiwan but would emerge victorious, says think tank
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

A think tank ran war game analyses for a conflict between the US and China over Taiwan. One of the analysts told Insider the US and Taiwan would likely succeed in beating back a Chinese invasion. The Washington-based think tank, the Center for Strategic and International Studies, conducted war games last year to imagine how such a conflict would play out. The war games are designed to help envision how conflicts would play out. China conducted military drills around Taiwan following Pelosi's visit and said that further "training and war preparation" would continue, The Guardian reported.

☆ Taiwan determined to safeguard freedom, democracy, President Tsai says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Ben Blanchard | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"Through this trip we again sent a message to the international community that Taiwan is determined to safeguard freedom and democracy which won acknowledgment and support from our democratic partners," Tsai said as she met Canadian lawmakers at her office in Taipei. We are willing to do our utmost to jointly safeguard the values of freedom and democracy with Canada and many more like-minded international partners." Despite China announcing the three days of drills had ended as scheduled on Monday, Beijing has continued military activities around Taiwan. Taiwan's defence ministry said on Wednesday morning that in the previous 24 hours it had detected 35 Chinese military aircraft and eight navy vessels around Taiwan. The aircraft crossing the median line included five Su-30 fighters at its northern end, with the other planes crossing at points in the centre and south.

☆ China to close airspace north of Taiwan April 16-18, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

April 12 (Reuters) - China is planning to close the airspace north of Taiwan from April 16 to 18, four sources with knowledge of the matter said, a move that could disrupt flights around the region. China and Taiwan's foreign ministries did not immediately respond to requests for comment. It comes as China rounds off several days of military training around self-ruled Taiwan, a response to Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen's recent meeting with U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in California which infuriated Beijing. One senior official with direct knowledge of the matter said the flight ban would affect 60%-70% of flights going between Northeast Asia and Southeast Asia, as well as flights between Taiwan and South Korea, Japan and North America. Reporting by Yimou Lee in Taipei and Sakura Murakami and Tim Kelly in Tokyo; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Christian SchmollingerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Taiwan Foreign Minister Joseph Wu: Military exercises suggest China is getting 'ready to launch a war against Taiwan'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Jim Sciutto | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

And no matter whether it is 2025 or 2027 or even beyond, Taiwan simply needs to get ready,” he said. The exercises appeared to mark the first time the Chinese navy has simulated strikes by aircraft carrier-based warplanes on Taiwan. And China cannot dictate how our friends want to show support to Taiwan.”Beijing conducted similar large-scale military exercises around Taiwan last August, after then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited the island. Those exercises included Chinese missile launches over the island, something that has not been seen so far in the current drills. Taiwan and China have been governed separately since the end of a civil war more than seven decades ago, in which the defeated Nationalists fled to Taipei.

☆ Philippines, U.S. begin joint troop exercises amid regional tensions
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/5] General view during the opening ceremony of the annual Philippines-U.S. joint military exercises or Balikatan, at the Armed Forces of the Philippines headquarters, in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines, April 11, 2023. The expanded annual exercises underscore improved defence ties under President Ferdinand Marcos Jr after his predecessor scaled back drills to pursue closer ties with Beijing. For the first time, the Philippines and the United States will hold live-fire drills at sea during the three-week event known as the 'Balikatan' or 'shoulder-to-shoulder' exercises. China's foreign ministry on Monday criticised the joint exercises, saying they "must not interfere in South China Sea disputes, still less harm China's territorial sovereignty, maritime rights and interests and security interests." President Marcos is expected to witness the live-fire sea drills which will involve the sinking of an old Philippines navy ship, according to a Philippine military official.

☆ Photo catches Taiwan pilot with a patch of Winnie the Pooh getting punched in the face — a jab at China's Xi as Beijing ups the pressure
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Amid this, Taiwan's defense ministry published a photo of a patch worn by fighter pilots. The patch depicts a cartoon Winnie the Pooh getting punched by a bear — a dig at Xi Jinping. Her visit stoked ire in Beijing, with China's defense ministry calling it "provocative." Beijing's defense ministry said the war games — dubbed "Joint Sword" — are meant to be a "stern warning" to Taiwan, which sharply criticized the exercises. #ROCArmedForces have monitored the situation and tasked CAP aircraft, Navy vessels, and land-based missile systems to respond these activities," Taiwan's defense ministry wrote in a statement posted to social media.

BEIJING/TAIPEI, April 11 (Reuters) - China's latest military drills near Taiwan show it is serious about being able to cut off the democratically ruled island in a conflict, analysts said, as Beijing said its aircraft carriers could "shatter" defences from the east. 1) Carrier OperationsMany analysts noted the jets flying off the Shandong aircraft carrier, which took up position east of Taiwan, about 230 kilometres (143 miles) south of Japan's Miyajima island. The aim of the drills was to show that they could encircle Taiwan in a blockade and deter foreign powers from intervening, Zhao said. 3) Precision TargetingThe PLA also said it carried out virtual simulations showing how its forces could execute targeted missile attacks on Taiwan. Japan's military said in a briefing on Tuesday that it was assessing China's manoeuvres around Taiwan, but described them as "without question, serious training".

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