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CNN —Torrential downpours and flooding have killed at least 15 people and four others remain missing in Chongqing, southwest China, state-run news agency Xinhua reported Wednesday, citing local authorities. More than 85,000 Sichuan residents have been displaced, state-run broadcaster CCTV reported Tuesday. At least 400 emergency teams have been dispatched to help rescue and relief operations in the area, according to state media. Chinese leader Xi Jinping has ordered authorities to “give top priority” to keeping residents safe and minimizing losses, according to Xinhua. This summer has already seen heavy rain, with four people killed and three missing in Sichuan last week after landslides triggered by rainstorms and flash floods, Xinhua reported.

Persons: Xi Jinping, “, ” Organizations: CNN, Xinhua, China’s Ministry of Emergency Management, National Climate Center Locations: Chongqing, China, floodwater, China’s, Sichuan, Xinhua, Henan, Northern China

☆ 3 major companies trying to move supply chains out of China, and how they're faring in their attempts to move away from the factory of the world
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Ted Cannis, a senior executive at Ford, told the Financial Times in December that there is a "large-scale rethinking of logistics operations" across the auto supply chain. "The supply chain is going to be the focus of this decade," Cannis said. Among the companies Apple is relying on to make the Vision Pro is Taiwan's Foxconn — which is the main supplier shifting its supply chain away from China. The move was made after China's COVID-19 lockdowns rocked supply chain and production timelines, but prices are the real driving reason behind the move. "Right now, robustness of our supply chain also needs to be considered to ensure the stable procurement of parts."

Persons: —, Donald Trump, lockdowns, COVID, Ashutosh Sharma, Forrester, Ted Cannis, Cannis, China's, Wellsenn, Cowell, Liu Young, TSMC, Morris Chang, Chips, Dylan Patel, SemiAnalysis, Tim Cook, Fang DongxuFeature, Mazda, China's COVID, Masahiro Moro, ", Moro Organizations: Mazda, Service, Privacy, East, Ford, Financial Times, Apple, Vision, Apple's, Cowell e Holdings, Future Publishing, Reuters Locations: China, India, Zhengzhou, Henan, Vietnam, Mexico, Taiwan, Arizona, Nanjing, Fang DongxuFeature China, Japan Japanese, Japan

☆ Extreme Floods and Heat in China Ravage Farms and Kill Animals
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-24 | by ( Nicole Hong | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The downpour began in late May, drenching the wheat crops in central China. In a viral video, a 79-year-old farmer in Henan Province wiped away tears as he surveyed the damage. In recent years, tensions with the United States, the coronavirus pandemic and Russia’s war on Ukraine have all created more volatility in global food prices, heightening the urgency for China to grow more of its own crops. The country has not experienced food price inflation at the levels seen in other major economies, but officials are concerned about the vulnerability of its food supply to global shocks. Last summer, prices for pork, fruit and vegetables spiked in China, prompting the government to release pork from its strategic reserves to stabilize prices.

Persons: Xi Jinping’s, Xi’s Locations: China, Henan Province, United States, Ukraine

☆ Cheap 'like cabbage' apartments in some Chinese cities draw buyers, and caution
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( Liangping Gao | Marius Zaharia | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Real estate agents said low-cost apartments in smaller Chinese cities such as Huainan and Rushan in the east, and Gejiu in the southwest, are also being bought, largely by people living outside those locations. The deals come at a time the picture for China’s property market is getting darker. For buyers with the means to get back into the market, the rock-bottom prices of second-hand apartments in the smaller cities have been hard to resist. ‘BUYERS ARE NOT LOCALS’Real estate agents said buyers in the small cities are mostly from out of town. “The fact that there are so many people buying low-cost flats in smaller cities reflects caution,” said Hwabao Trust economist Nie Wen.

Persons: Hu Yongwei, Thomas Peter, Hu, “, Zhao, Liu Yong, Gejiu, ”, Nie Wen Organizations: Reuters, REUTERS, Beijing, Hwabao Locations: BEIJING, HONG KONG, Beijing, Hebi, Zhengzhou, Henan province, China, Huainan, Rushan, Anjuke, Chongqing, COVID

The rains are also causing the kernels on his wheat crop to begin sprouting early, which, more crucially, means the grain will produce lower quality flour unsuitable for noodles or bread. "Look, all this wheat has sprouted," Chen told Reuters, pouring kernels into his hand while standing in his fields about 40 km (25 miles) north of the town of Zhumadian. About one-third of China's wheat is grown in Henan province, earning it the nickname the granary of China. A Xiping-based grain dealer surnamed Wang is paying growers 2,100 yuan ($295) per metric ton of germinated wheat, about 75% of the market price for food-grade wheat. "These (sprouted) wheat have a bad taste as they are sticky and doesn't mix well to make dough."

Persons: Chen, it's, Darin Friedrichs, Tang Renjian, Wang, Qin Ningwei, Josh Arslan, Dominique Patton, Christian Schmollinger Organizations: Reuters, Sitonia Consulting, El, China's Agriculture, Thomson Locations: COUNTY, China, China's Henan, Zhumadian, Henan province, Henan, Anhui, Shanxi, Shandong, Shanghai, Australia, Ukraine

☆ Farm animals, crops suffer from extreme weather affecting China
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

This year, extreme heat has ravaged many parts of the country even earlier than last year. Animals killedIn recent days, reports of farm animals killed by extreme heat have dominated the news. The pigs suffocated to death amid extreme heat and poor air circulation, Jimu News, a government-owned news website, cited an unnamed employee at the farm as saying. The heat wave was blamed for killing large numbers of farmed carp living in rice fields in the southwestern region of Guangxi. And more extreme weather events are likely to come.

Persons: Sheng Xia, El, El Niño, ”, Sheng, Wang Gang, Niño, Xi Jinping, Shi Guangming Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, China Meteorological Administration, Citic Securities, “, El, World Meteorological Organization, Qiushi, Communist, Villagers, China Today, China Media Group Locations: Hong Kong, China, Yunnan, Sichuan, El, Shanghai, Beijing, Jiangsu, Guangxi, Henan, Pingdingshan, Henan province, Xinjiang

☆ 'Relentless' heatwaves scorch southern China, test power grids
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Ryan Woo | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/3] Workers of grid operator China Southern Power Grid inspect power cables connecting transmission towers in Dongguan, Guangdong province, China May 29, 2018. REUTERS/Stringer/File PhotoBEIJING, June 2 (Reuters) - Having sweltered through May, southern and eastern China face more weeks of unrelenting heatwaves, putting power grids under strain as demand for air-conditioning soars in mega-cities like Shanghai. Like many parts of Asia, China has been besieged by extreme hot weather in recent weeks ahead of summer proper in the northern hemisphere. But how they are occurring - it's just been week on week on week of these records being shattered. Powerful convection weather has also wreaked havoc in central China in recent weeks, with protracted downpours and even hail devastating the country's ongoing wheat harvest.

Persons: Stringer, I'm, Sarah Perkins, Kirkpatrick, Gao Rong, Ryan Woo, Qiaoyi Li, David Stanway, Michael Perry, Simon Cameron, Moore Organizations: China Southern Power Grid, REUTERS, University of New, National Climate Centre, Thomson Locations: Dongguan, Guangdong province, China, BEIJING, Shanghai, Asia, Provinces, University of New South Wales, Guangdong, Hainan, Guangxi, Yunnan, Guizhou, Sichuan, Henan, Beijing, Singapore

In the next three days, most of southern China is expected to suffer temperatures of more than 35 Celsius (95 Fahrenheit), with temperatures in some areas exceeding 40C, national forecasters said on Friday. Extreme hot weather beset China, like many part of Asia in recent weeks, even before summer arrived. But how they are occurring - it's just been week on week on week of these records being shattered," said Sarah Perkins-Kirkpatrick, a climate scientist with the University of New South Wales. ELECTRICITY DEMANDDemand for electricity in southern manufacturing hubs, including Guangdong, has surged in recent days, with China Southern Power Grid, one of the country's two grid operators, seeing peak power load exceeding 200 million kilowatts - weeks earlier than normal and close to historical highs. Powerful convection weather has also wreaked havoc in central China in recent weeks, with protracted downpours and even hail devastating the country's ongoing wheat harvest.

Persons: David Kirton, we've, Zhao, Yang, haven't, heatstroke, I'm, Sarah Perkins, Kirkpatrick, Mei, Gao Rong, Ryan Woo, Qiaoyi Li, David Stanway, Michael Perry, Simon Cameron, Moore Organizations: heatwave, REUTERS, Reuters, University of New, China Southern Power Grid, National Climate Centre, Thomson Locations: Shenzhen, Guangdong province, China, BEIJING, Shanghai, Asia, University of New South Wales, Guangdong, Hainan, Guangxi, Yunnan, Guizhou, Sichuan, Henan, Beijing, Singapore

[1/3] A man looks at job information at an employment fair beside a street in Zhengzhou, Henan province, February 19, 2014. REUTERS/Jason LeeHONG KONG, June 1 (Reuters) - China's Henan province has unveiled a 100-day plan to "dynamically clear" youth unemployment as concern grows over record levels of joblessness among young adults, with millions more students due to graduate this year. The goal is to ensure "zero-dynamic clearing" for long-term unemployment and the "smooth employment of college graduates", the provincial Department of Education said in a social media post this week. Economists expect youth unemployment to become increasingly common in coming years as graduates enter the job market. The "dynamic zero clearing" term the education department used is reminiscent of the language authorities used in the fight against COVID, reflecting the level of concern about unemployment.

Persons: Jason Lee HONG, Farah Master, Robert Birsel Organizations: REUTERS, Department of Education, COVID, Thomson Locations: Zhengzhou, Henan province, Jason Lee HONG KONG, Henan, China, Beijing

☆ Hurricanes of Data: The Tiny Craft Mapping Superstorms at Sea
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Porter Fox | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +35 min

The Tiny Craft Mapping Superstorms at Sea Shortly after dawn on Sept. 30, 2021, Richard Jenkins watched a Category 4 hurricane overrun his life’s work. That August, a sister ship, SD 1031, successfully entered Tropical Storm Henri, but only in its early stages. Hurricane research, modeling and forecasting requires many terabytes of data for every square mile the storm passes through, including vitally important sea-level data from inside a storm. The next day, the depression was upgraded to a tropical storm and officially given the name Sam. And four months later, Tropical Storm Megi killed more than 150, wiped out several villages with landslides and displaced more than a million people.

☆ US bank run victims were bailed out in 3 days. In China, many have been waiting a year
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Selina Wang | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN is not revealing the identities of the bank victims in order to protect their safety. Bank victims protest in Henan in July 2022. Experts say small banks in other parts of China could face the same crisis, as the world’s second largest economy faces a longer term structural slowdown. Some Chinese bank victims even say they’re living in fear of violent reprisals. CNN interviews bank victims in China.

☆ Smaller Chinese banks cut deposit rates on squeezed margins
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

BEIJING, April 11 (Reuters) - Several small and mid-sized banks in China have lowered their deposit interest rates, a move that could help ease costs as loan growth faces more pressure amid rising economic risks. "But the costs of liabilities of banks remain relatively rigid, and net interest margins continue to shrink, which added to their operating pressures," he said. Nicholas Zhu, a banking analyst at Moody's, said smaller banks' pricing changes usually follow larger banks' initiatives with a time lag. In September, China's largest banks lowered deposit rates in their first broad-based move since 2015 to ease margin pressure. Lower deposit rates could also help ease banks' margin pressures at a time when investors have raised their hopes for a cut in lending rates to prop up the economy.

☆ China’s banking troubles are not the same as Silicon Valley Bank, economist says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

A Silicon Valley Bank office is seen in Tempe, Arizona, on March 14, 2023. - With hindsight, there were warning signs ahead of last week's spectacular collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, missed not only by investors, but by bank regulators. Issues at a handful of smaller Chinese banks have emerged in the last few years. On the other hand, SVB reflects a macro risk, Zhu said, noting the U.S. mid-sized lender had adequate capital and liquidity before it collapsed. The banking crisis in the U.S. involved a structural risk from savers moving funds to take advantage of higher interest rates, Zhu pointed out.

☆ China's navy is looking to junior high schools as it scrambles to find pilots for its growing aircraft carrier fleet
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Minnie Chan | South China Morning Post | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The Chinese Navy's youth aviation schools have recruited about 4,500 boys aged 15 to 16 this month. China's navy needs pilots for its fleet of aircraft carriers, which grew to three ships in June. The navy draws on talent from the 14 schools for its aircraft carrier cadet pilot programme. AFP via Getty ImagesIt is unclear if this is the first year that students so young will attend the aviation schools. The average age of the newest crop of cadet pilots is 20, much younger than in previous years.

The last time Cook visited China was in 2019. We also have a thriving App Store,” the Apple chief was quoted as saying in state-run China Daily. On Friday, Cook had posted a picture of himself smiling with customers and staff at the Apple store in the shopping district of Sanlitun on China’s Twitter-like social media site Weibo. “TikTok CEO was under siege at the US hearing, while Apple CEO was enthusiastically welcomed by people at its flagship Chinese store. China’s commerce ministry said Thursday that a forced sale of TikTok would “seriously damage” global investors’ confidence in the United States.

☆ As parliament meets, China keeps would-be protesters at bay
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Engen Tham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/2] Demonstrators hold up signs during a protest over the freezing of deposits by some rural-based banks, outside a People's Bank of China building in Zhengzhou, Henan province, China July 10, 2022, in this screengrab from video obtained by Reuters. Text in foreground reads, "Henan Bank, return to us our legal deposits! The people's life-saving deposits!" China has a low tolerance for group displays of discontent, even if anger is not directed against the government. Some of those who spoke with Reuters declined to use their full names due to the sensitivity of the matter.

Such efforts to attract foreign investment come as the pandemic and geopolitical tensions push companies to diversify their supply chains away from China. The Commerce Ministry said Thursday that for the first time, it would launch events for an "Invest in China Year." Apple later said the Zhengzhou factory disruptions would delay deliveries of some iPhone 14 models. He also noted "serious challenges" to attracting foreign investment. Those include unfair competition with local players in China due to industrial policies, lack of legal protection for foreign business in China and geopolitical risks, Wang said.

☆ Foxconn chairman meets senior officials in China's Henan - provincial govt
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BEIJING, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Foxconn Chairman Liu Young-way met with the party chief of China's Henan province, home to the company's iPhone plant that was hit late last year by a COVID-19 outbreak, the provincial government said on Wednesday. Liu, who departed on Tuesday for a four-day inspection of the plant in the provincial capital of Zhengzhou, has met Lou Yangsheng, the Communist Party chief of Henan province and Wang Kai, provincial governor, the statement said. Henan pledged broad support for businesses and hoped Foxconn would continue to expand in the province, the statement added. Reporting by Ethan Wang and Meg Shen; Editing by Kirsten DonovanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ BYD to build $1.2 bln EV battery plant in central China - website
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SHANGHAI, Feb 14 (Reuters) - BYD , the world's largest maker of electrified vehicles, plans to invest $1.2 billion to build a new factory for its batteries in China, according to environmental appraisal filings. BYD's Blade Battery is a less bulky lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery that its Chairman Wang Chuanfu has said is safer than other alternatives in the market and will not catch fire. It has been powering BYD's best-selling battery electric cars such as the Han and Seal sedans that compete with Tesla's (TSLA.O) Model 3 in China. The South China Morning Post earlier reported BYD's Zhengzhou battery plant. Reporting by Zhang Yan and Brenda Goh; Editing by Christian SchmollingerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Is the iPhone's 'Made in India' era beginning as Apple breaks with China?
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Diksha Madhok | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal said Apple was already making between 5% and 7% of its products in India. His comments come at a time when Foxconn (HNHPF), a top Apple supplier, is looking to expand its operations in India after suffering severe supply disruptions in China. For years, Apple had relied on a vast manufacturing network in China to mass produce iPhones, iPads and other popular products. China headaches mountBut the world’s most valuable company posted shockingly weak earnings this month, partly because of its recent problems in China. According to Counterpoint’s Pathak, India accounts for 16% of the global smartphone production, while China constitutes 70%.

☆ They Poured Their Savings Into Homes That Were Never Built
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Isabelle Qian | Agnes Chang | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +13 min

We talked to four people who emptied their life savings and took out huge loans for homes that have not been completed. “It was a simple dream — to have a home, a family,” Mr. Tang said. Mr. Tang, who works in a restaurant, sold a small place he had out in the countryside. “When I think about the unfinished apartment, it’s as if I’m falling from heaven to hell, ” Mr. Tang said. Homeowners atop one of the unfinished apartment towers call for construction to fully resume.

☆ COVID wave past its peak in many parts of China - state media
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Bernard Orr | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

BEIJING, Jan 10 (Reuters) - Many parts of China are already past their peak of COVID-19 infections, state media reported on Tuesday, with officials further downplaying the severity of the outbreak despite international concerns about its scale and impact. One official was quoted as saying nearly 90 million people had already been infected in Henan province. On Tuesday, a Health Times compilation of reports from local government officials and health experts across the country, suggested the COVID wave may be past its peak in many regions. Yin Yong, acting mayor of Beijing, was cited as saying the capital was also past its peak. Separately in the state-run China Daily, a prominent health official said the percentage of severe cases remained unclear.

☆ Foxconn's COVID-hit China plant close to resuming full production, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( Yimou Lee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TAIPEI, Jan 3 (Reuters) - Foxconn's COVID-hit iPhone plant in China's Zhengzhou city is almost back to full production, with its December shipments reaching about 90% of initial plans, two people with direct knowledge of the matter said. A company source told Reuters last month that it was aiming for the plant to resume full production around late December to early January. "Production has almost fully resumed," said one of the people on Tuesday, who declined to be identified as the information was private. The second person said production was nearly back to normal but that company officials remained cautious over the outlook due to a spike of COVID-19 cases across China. The Zhengzhou plant's troubles highlighted the difficulties companies and workers had in adhering to China's zero-COVID-19 policy.

☆ Foxconn's COVID-hit China plant close to resuming full production -sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( Yimou Lee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Dec 22 (Reuters) - China's imports of primary aluminium jumped to a one-year high of 110,700 tonnes in November in a significant reversal of the recent trend. China's imports and exports of primary unwrought aluminiumTRADE FLOWS FLIP AGAINChina's primary aluminium export surge has passed. Global aluminium production monthly change annualisedSLOWING MOMENTUMChina's renewed import appetite for primary aluminium looks at odds with the combination of lockdown-weakened demand and strong domestic production growth. Expressed in terms of annualised production, China's collective run-rate has dropped by almost 1.2 million tonnes since August. Sichuan briefly rationed power to industrial users, including aluminium smelters, in August because of a protracted drought in the hydro-rich province.

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