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The difference with TikTok is that the app has kept out of the crosshairs of commercial interests in Europe. "The user base of TikTok is a lot bigger than a lot of people in Europe think," he said. More than half of people aged 16 to 24 in France and Germany use TikTok, according to data.ai. He is worried the platform poses "several unacceptable risks for European users," including "data access by Chinese authorities, censorship, [and] tracking of journalists." Why Europe's tone is changingLast month, ByteDance admitted to using two journalists' TikTok data to locate their physical movements, according to a widely-reported internal memo.

☆ China looks past Covid as tourist bookings surge for the Lunar New Year
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

BEIJING — People in China are moving past the pandemic and going out to travel, preliminary data for the Lunar New Year holiday show. China's Covid "exit wave" is quickly ending as official data show a drop in infections, hospitalizations and deaths, he said. "China has been rapidly reaching its Covid herd immunity, as the government estimates about 80% of the population has already been infected with Covid." The country saw a surge in Covid infections in December, just as Beijing ended nearly three years of stringent contact tracing and border controls. The seven-day Lunar New Year, which officially began Saturday, is the first major holiday since the end of China's Covid restrictions.

☆ Here's where mainland Chinese traveled overseas for the Lunar New Year
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

BEIJING — Travelers from mainland China stuck close to home in Asia during the Lunar New Year, the first holiday after Beijing relaxed its Covid-related border controls. Hong Kong and Macao were the most popular spots, said Trip.com, citing flight bookings on its platform for the first four days of the Lunar New Year. Here are the next three most popular overseas destinations for mainland travelers, according to Trip.com:3. Phuket, ThailandFlight bookings for travel from the mainland to overseas destinations during the first four days of the holiday quadrupled from a year ago, Trip.com said. However, Japan and South Korea — both popular among Chinese tourists — subsequently imposed temporary restrictions on travelers from China, including limits on visas and quarantining Covid-positive individuals.

☆ China's Covid wave drives up consumer interest in insurance after health system shortfalls
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

For people planning to spend more on that health category, 47% said in December they intend to spend more on health insurance. "This experience is also driving increased interest in commercial health insurance which could cover access to premium private providers," Lipson said. Anecdotes depict a public health system overwhelmed with people at the height of the wave, and long wait times for ambulances. Some of the players in China's health insurance industry include Ping An , PICC and AIA . Hospital fundingHowever, one of the barriers to improving China's public health system is its fragmented financing system, according to Qingyue Meng, executive director at Peking University's China Center for Health Development Studies.

☆ China tightens media control with tiny stakes in two Alibaba units
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Sopa Images | Lightrocket | Getty ImagesBEIJING — State-backed entities have taken tiny stakes in parts of two Alibaba subsidiaries that oversee a video platform and web browser. The state-backed stakes reflect a progression of government directives over the last decade to increase control of media in China. "So far most of the stakes announced (including in other Chinese companies) seem to be highly concentrated on media companies and media subsidiaries." watch nowSince 2020, business records show state-backed entities have taken 1% stakes in popular social media or short-video apps Weibo , ByteDance's Douyin and Kuaishou . A provincial state media group completed a 1% investment in September, leaving Alibaba's media arm with 99% ownership.

☆ Treasury Secretary Yellen and China's Liu He talk U.S. tech policy at their first in-person meeting
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Chinese Vice Premier Liu He held their first in-person meeting in Zurich on Jan. 18, 2023. BEIJING — Chinese Vice Premier Liu He discussed U.S. economic and tech policy toward China in a meeting with U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Wednesday, according to a Ministry of Commerce readout. China "hopes the U.S. side pays attention to the policies' impact on both sides," the readout said, according to a CNBC translation. The meeting in Zurich was the first time Yellen and Liu met in person, after three years of Covid-related restrictions on travel. While Beijing retaliated with tariffs of its own, its most substantive response to U.S. tech bans has been filing a dispute with the World Trade Organization in December.

☆ China reports 3% GDP growth for 2022 as December retail sales, industrial production beat estimates
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | Evelyn Cheng Is A Senior Correspondent With Cnbc. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

BEIJING — China reported GDP growth for 2022 that beat expectations as December retail sales came in far better than projected. The GDP growth number did miss the official target of around 5.5% set in March. Retail sales drop far less than expectedRetail sales fell by 0.2% for the year. Those online sales accounted for 27.2% of total retail sales. and U.S.China’s leaders are set to announce the full-year GDP growth target in March at an annual parliamentary meeting.

☆ China’s population drops for the first time in decades
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

BEIJING — China's population declined in 2022, the National Bureau of Statistics said Tuesday. Mainland China's population, excluding foreigners, fell by 850,000 people in 2022 to 1.41 billion, the statistics bureau said. The country reported 9.56 million births and 10.41 million deaths for 2022. In 2021, China's population grew by the slowest increase on record. The mainland China population, excluding foreigners, rose by 480,000 to 1.41 billion people at the end of 2021, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

☆ China reports 3% GDP growth for 2022
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

BEIJING — China reported GDP growth for 2022 that beat expectations. GDP grew by 3% in 2022, the National Bureau of Statistics said Tuesday. In 2021, growth had rebounded by 8.4% from just 2.2% growth in 2020. Fourth-quarter GDP rose by 2.9%, beating expectations from the Reuters' poll of 1.8% growth. In 2022, the metropolis of Shanghai locked down for about two months in an attempt to control a Covid outbreak.

☆ China’s exports slump less than expected in December
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Cargo ships dock at the container terminal in Lianyungang Port, East China's Jiangsu province, Dec 7, 2022. BEIJING — China's exports and imports fell less than expected in December, the customs administration said Friday. China's exports fell by 9.9% in December from a year ago in U.S.-dollar terms, slightly better than the 10% decline forecast by a Reuters' poll. China's imports fell by 7.5% year-on-year in December in U.S.-dollar terms, also better than the 9.8% decline predicted by Reuters. Strong exports bolstered China's economy in the last two years.

☆ Chinese hospital says half of its staff got Covid
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Locals line up for medical treatment at the Beijing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine on June 1, 2022. CFOTO | Future Publishing | Getty ImagesBEIJING — About half of the nearly 2,000 workers at the Beijing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine got Covid-19 during the latest wave, director Liu Qingquan said Wednesday. Liu told reporters the workers all recovered by taking traditional Chinese medicine. China has encouraged the use of traditional Chinese medicine alongside Western treatment for Covid. Rather than pharmaceutical drugs, traditional Chinese medicine relies on herb-based remedies and natural methods to help the body heal itself.

South Korea on Tuesday hit back at claims that its Covid rules for Chinese travelers are "discriminatory," saying more than half of its imported cases are coming from China. Citing South Korea's proximity to China, Choi said a surge in infections in China could put South Korea at risk. But South Korea and Japan — two top destinations for Chinese travelers — said they are not increasing flights in response to China's border reopening. China's embassies in South Korea and Japan announced Tuesday that they would stop issuing visas to "Korean nationals" and "Japanese citizens." Choi said South Korea's new Covid travel restrictions are "only temporary" and were made to "place the highest priority on the health and safety of people residing in South Korea."

☆ China's big consumer market isn't rebounding to pre-pandemic levels just yet
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

For the past six months, revenue had dropped to 30% of typical levels, Chong said. The travel season for China's big holiday runs this year from around Jan. 7 to Feb. 15. That's twice what it was last year, and 70% of 2019 levels, China's Ministry of Transport said Friday. It noted most of the trips will likely be for visiting family, while just 10% will be for leisure or business travel. By that time, people will have been able to process their passport applications, while the number of international flights may have recovered to 50% or 60% of 2019 levels, Chen said.

☆ China's big cities are starting to look past Covid, while rural areas brace for infections
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Subway passenger traffic in Shanghai is quickly returning to levels seen before the latest Covid wave, according to Wind data. Subway and road data show traffic in major cities is rebounding, he pointed out, indicating the worst of the latest Covid wave has passed. "The dramatic U-turn in China's Covid policy since mid-Nov implies deeper short-term economic contraction but faster reopening and recovery," Hu said in a report Wednesday. In the last several days, the southern city of Guangzhou and the tourist destination of Sanya said they'd passed the peak of the Covid wave. watch nowChongqing was the most congested city in mainland China during Thursday morning's rush hour, according to Baidu traffic data.

☆ Upstart Chinese electric car brand delivered more cars than Nio in 2022
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

A pink Nezha V and black Nezha U Pro electric car models are on display at a store in Shanghai on Nov. 7, 2021. BEIJING — Another budget-priced electric car brand is taking off in China, this time selling compact SUVs. Nezha, named after a feisty Chinese mythological character, claims its car deliveries more than doubled in 2022 to surpass 152,000 vehicles. However, Nio delivered more than 122,000 electric cars in 2022, up by a modest 34% from the prior year. Nio has emphasized its focus is on the more niche, higher-end segment, but has hinted at plans to launch a mass market brand.

☆ Ant gets approval to expand its consumer finance business
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

BEIJING — Ant Group's consumer finance unit has received approval to more than double its registered capital, a sign of progress in resolving regulators' concerns. Since the abrupt suspension of its massive IPO in late 2020, Ant has been working with Chinese regulators to restructure its business. Ant launched its consumer finance company in 2021 as part of the restructuring. On Friday, the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission said it approved Ant's request to increase the amount of registered capital for the consumer unit, to 18.5 billion yuan from 8 billion yuan. Ant will still hold a 50% stake in the consumer finance company, according to the announcement.

☆ Five Chinese startups that survived a tough year of Covid lockdowns
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Qilai Shen | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesBEIJING — In a year of Covid lockdowns and travel restrictions, some Chinese startups that survived found growth online and overseas. The startup avoided significant impact from China's Covid lockdowns since it could deliver its products virtually, Jiang said. The company aggressively pushed overseas in 2022 – launching subsidiaries in Tokyo, Seoul, Germany, Dubai, Los Angeles and Hong Kong, Wan said. Previously, Wan said that Keenon had seen revenue at least double or more every year from a lower base, when the China market was growing. The company has a staff of 100 people in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong and Los Angeles, Lin said.

☆ Companies can ‘hire’ a virtual person for about $14k a year in China
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-02 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Virtual singer Luo Tianyi performing with world renowned pianist Lang Lang in 2019 at the Mercedes-Benz Arena in Shanghai, China. Launched in 2012, Luo Tianyi has nearly 3 million fans and even performed at the Winter Olympics opening ceremony in Beijing this year. BEIJING — From customer service to the entertainment industry, businesses in China are paying big bucks for virtual employees. It costs about 100,000 yuan ($14,300) a year for a three-dimensional virtual person, and 20,000 yuan for a two-dimensional one. Li expects the virtual person industry overall will keep growing by 50% annually through 2025.

☆ Risk of a dangerous new Covid variant in China is ‘quite low,’ U.S. health expert says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-30 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | Evelyn Cheng Is A Senior Correspondent With Cnbc. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

Murray, director of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, pointed out there were likely billions of omicron infections worldwide this year, but no new Covid variant has emerged, only subvariants of omicron. “That’s why I would put the risk as quite low that there is a dangerous new variant in China,” he said. The U.S., Japan and a few other countries this week subsequently announced new Covid testing requirements for travelers from China. China’s National Health Commission said Sunday it would stop releasing daily information on Covid infections and deaths. Covid testing is no longer mandatory in China.

☆ Risk of a dangerous new Covid variant in China is 'quite low,' U.S. health expert says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-30 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

BEIJING — It's unlikely that a dangerous new Covid-19 variant is spreading in China, said Dr. Chris Murray, Seattle-based director of a health research center at the University of Washington. His comments Friday on CNBC's "Squawk Box Asia" come as U.S. health officials warned this week about the chance of a new Covid variant emerging in China's nationwide outbreak — and how Beijing's lack of transparency could delay detection of public health risks. Murray, director of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, pointed out there were likely billions of omicron infections worldwide this year, but no new Covid variant has emerged, only subvariants of omicron. "That's why I would put the risk as quite low that there is a dangerous new variant in China," he said. Omicron is far more transmissible, but causes less severe disease, than when Covid first emerged in Wuhan, China, in late 2019.

☆ Here's where Covid rules for visitors from China are changing
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Vernon Yuen | Nurphoto | Getty ImagesBEIJING — Some countries announced new Covid testing requirements for visitors from China after the mainland said it would finally relax border controls. Covid-19 infections surged this month in mainland China, but there is limited data available publicly. Those who test positive will need to quarantine at a designated facility, the ministry said. The new rules also apply to people who visited mainland China within the seven days prior to arrival in Japan, the health ministry said. The rules do not apply to flights from Hong Kong or Macao.

☆ Most Chinese shoppers are very cautious about going out, survey finds
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

BEIJING — Most Chinese people still don't want to leave their apartments, despite a relaxation in Covid-related restrictions, an Oliver Wyman survey found. More than 90% of consumers surveyed over the weekend said they are avoiding going out, the consulting firm said. Nearly 60% of respondents said they wouldn't be comfortable going out in public for at least the next few months. "We observed that many high streets and shopping malls were deserted in December," Kenneth Chow, principal, Oliver Wyman, said in an email this week. Anecdotally, while many more people went out to malls and attractions in Beijing over the weekend, not all stores had reopened yet.

☆ Chinese provinces hit hard by Covid are seeing a strain on critical care, health officials say
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-27 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

BEIJING — Some Chinese provinces' intensive care beds and resources are nearing capacity as Covid-19 infections soar, national health authorities said Tuesday. In such regions, Jiao said, "it is necessary to expand the availability of ICU beds and resources, or speed up turnover." Overall, Jiao claimed national availability of ICU beds was sufficient, at 12.8 per 100,000 people as of Dec. 25. It is unclear at what scale Covid outbreaks have hit the country, with few official figures on recent infections and deaths. China's National Health Commission on Sunday stopped sharing daily figures after a halt in mandatory virus testing.

☆ Here are the countries Chinese tourists want to visit the most
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-27 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Travelers check in at Shanghai's Hongqiao International Airport in on Dec. 12, 2022, after China relaxed domestic travel restrictions. Within half an hour of China's announced policy change, searches for travel abroad surged to a three-year high, the travel booking company said. Macao and Hong Kong also made the list, which did not include any countries on the European continent. Authorities also said they would allow Chinese citizens to resume travel, without providing details on timing or process. During the pandemic, Beijing prevented Chinese citizens from getting passports or leaving the country unless they had a clear reason, typically for business.

☆ China to scrap quarantine for international travelers in an essential end of zero-Covid
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-27 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

BEIJING — China announced late Monday that travelers will no longer need to quarantine upon arrival on the mainland starting Jan. 8. The changes end the bulk of the most restrictive measures that China had imposed for nearly three years under its zero-Covid policy. Since March 2020, travelers to the mainland have had to quarantine, typically at a designated hotel and for 14 days. That isolation period subsequently began to increase to 21 days or more for some travelers, before China began cutting quarantine times this summer. Current policy requires five days of quarantine at a centralized facility, followed by three days at home.

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