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☆ Amazon's Asian rival Shein wants to be supply chain giant, but some fear Chinese cyber spying inside global trade links
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-08 | by ( Lori Ann Larocco | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +13 min

Shein logistics software is in beta testing with select supply chain customers, according to a person familiar with its plans. "Shein's software could provide unprecedented access to sensitive supply chain data, which the Chinese government could seize under its laws. This exposure poses a direct threat to U.S. supply chain integrity, making it vulnerable to exploitation and manipulation." Even with a headquarters based in Singapore, company supply chain data could be subject to seizure by the Chinese. Shein's fast rise to dominance Shein's dominance lies in the company's hyper-flexible supply chain, according to a recent report from supply chain intelligence firm Zero100.

Persons: Jade Gao, Shein, cybersecurity, Lee Kair, Kair, Dewardric McNeal, McNeal, Ram Ben Tzion, Ben Tzion, Department of Homeland Security's, Shein's, Srini Cherukuri, Chris Xu's, Zero100, Eric Fullerton, Project44 Organizations: Shein, Afp, Getty, Transportation Security Administration, U.S, Authentic Holdings, Simon Property Group, Longview Global, Obama administration's Department of Defense, CNBC, Standards Organization, Secretariat, IAF, Microsoft U.S, EU, Social, International, Uyghur Forced Labor, Department of Homeland, Border Patrol, New York, ITS Logistics, Logistics Locations: Guangzhou, China's Guangdong, Jade, China, U.S, Exiger, Shein, Asia, Singapore, Frankfurt, Germany, Xinjiang Province, Customs, York, United States

Today we celebrate Juneteenth, the day when word of the Emancipation Proclamation reached the farthest outpost in America. Many people do not realize that Emancipation did not legally end slavery in the United States, however. Some historians have described this convict leasing system as “worse than slavery,” because there was no incentive to avoid working those people to death. In fact, federal agencies are mandated to purchase goods from federal prisons, just as state or municipal agencies, including public schools and universities, often must consider sourcing from state penitentiaries. Labor that people have no meaningful right to refuse and that is enforced under conditions of total control is, unquestionably, slavery.

Persons: ” Organizations: Labor Locations: America, United States, Xinjiang, Washington

☆ COP28: What you need to know about the 2023 climate summit in Dubai
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Rachel Ramirez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —Tens of thousands of people are heading to Dubai in early December for COP28, the annual international climate summit convened by the United Nations. While the science behind human-caused climate change was still young, scientists knew even then it would be life-changing. The controversy at COP28The climate summit is hosted at a different location each year. “It tells us clearly that the world is not on track to achieve our global climate goals,” Melanie Robinson, the global climate program director for the World Resources Institute, told CNN. A major debate among the parties has been whether to “phase out” or “phase down” fossil fuels.

Persons: John Kerry, Ian Langsdon, —, United Arab Emirates —, Critics, Al Jaber, Britain's King Charles III, COP28, Sultan Ahmed al Jaber, Aaron Chown, John Kerry —, Al Jaber’s, King Charles III, Pope Francis, Joe Biden, China’s, Jinping, Biden, Xi, Larry Fink, It’s, ” Melanie Robinson, ” Robinson, “, Maya Siddiqui, Nate Warszawski, ”, CNN’s Ivana Kottasová Organizations: CNN, COP28, United Nations, Getty, UN, “ Conference, United, United Arab Emirates, Minister of State, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, Buckingham Palace, US, Publishing, decarbonize, Wall, BlackRock, World Resources Institute, Bloomberg, World Bank Locations: Dubai, Le Bourget, Paris, AFP, Berlin, COP21, United Arab, UAE, Abu Dhabi, Buckingham, France, Germany, Japan, Hami city, Xinjiang province, China, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Russia, Iran, Israel, Egypt, COP27

☆ Meta is returning to China 14 years after Facebook was blocked by striking a deal with Tencent to sell its VR headsets
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-10 | by ( Jyoti Mann | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Meta is making a comeback to China 14 years after Facebook was blocked from being accessed there. The firm has struck a deal with Tencent to sell VR gear in 2024, The Wall Street Journal reported. Deals with Chinese firms are among the few ways big US tech companies can get a foothold there. China has largely banned US tech firms , bar Apple, from doing business there for several years. Meta still extracts cash out of China through Facebook and Instagram ads it sells to Chinese companies.

Persons: Tencent, —, Susan Li, Meta didn't Organizations: Facebook, Street Journal, Service, titans, Apple, Baidu, Meta, ABC News Locations: China, Xinjiang, Urumqi, Meta's

☆ Meta says it has disrupted a massive disinformation campaign linked to Chinese law enforcement
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-29 | by ( Rohan Goswami | In Rohangoswamicnbc | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Facebook and Instagram parent company Meta on Tuesday said it had disrupted a disinformation campaign linked to Chinese law enforcement that the social media company described as the "largest known cross-platform covert influence operation in the world." Meta began looking for signs of a Chinese influence operation on its own platforms after reports in 2022 highlighted how a disinformation campaign linked to the Chinese government targeted a human rights nongovernmental organization. Meta researchers were able to link this latest disinformation network to a prior influence campaign in 2019, code named Spamouflage. Meta also identified and disrupted other operations and published a more detailed analysis of a Russian disinformation campaign it identified shortly after the beginning of the 2022 war in Ukraine. But this disinformation network, while prolific, was not effective, Meta cybersecurity executives said on a briefing call.

Persons: Meta, Ben Nimmo, CNBC's Eamon Javers Organizations: Meta, Facebook Locations: China, Xinjiang, Ukraine, Cambridge, Bangladesh, Brazil, Vietnam

A global pattern of heat waves that have scorched parts of Europe, Asia and the United States this week have thrown that challenge into sharp relief. The World Meteorological Organization warned on Tuesday of increased risk of deaths linked to excessively high temperatures. In South Korea, deluges of rain have pummelled central and southern regions since last week. In recent days, temperatures in Xinjiang and other parts of Asia, as well as Europe and the United States have shattered records. On Tuesday, Beijing logged its 27th day of temperatures of more than 35C, setting a new local record for the most number of high-temperature days in a year.

Persons: Aly, Kerry, John Kerry, Hawaii's Big, Storm Calvin, Yoon Suk Yeol, Han Duck, ” Han, Han Zheng, Han, Wang Yi, Premier Li Qiang, Xie Zhenhua, Ryan Woo, Valerie Vocovici, Hyonhee, John Geddie, Stephen Coates Organizations: heatwave, REUTERS, Hawaii U.S, World Meteorological Organization, National Weather Service, Meteorological, Premier, Thomson Locations: Shanghai, China, South Korea, Greece, Hawaii, Beijing, BEIJING, SEOUL, Athens, U.S, Europe, Asia, United States, Cheongju, North Gyeongsang, Seoul, China's, Xinjiang, Turpan, Taiwan, Dubai

[1/3] US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen speaks during her meeting with China's Vice Premier He Lifeng (out of frame) at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing on July 8, 2023. Yellen said nothing publicly to indicate that the U.S. was poised to ease tariffs, but commentators in China were hopeful, amid a U.S. Trade Representative review. "While U.S might continue its technological curbs on China, a reduction or exemption of non-core tariffs against China is possible." Yellen last year advocated eliminating some duties on "non-strategic" goods as a way to ease some specific costs amid high inflation. Haley has said she would push Congress to revoke China’s trade status until China curbs its alleged role in the fentanyl trade.

Persons: Janet Yellen, Lifeng, Pedro PARDO, Janet Yellen's, Biden, Harry Broadman, Donald Trump's, Premier Li Qiang, Yellen, Hong Hao, Chad Bown, " Bown, Josh Hawley, Ron DeSantis, Nikki Haley, Haley, Donald Trump, David Lawder, Andrea Shalal, Gram Slattery, Jeff Mason, Heather Timmons, Nick Zieminski Organizations: China's, WASHINGTON, . Treasury, Trump, White House, World Bank, Berkeley Research, Premier, U.S . Treasury, . Trade, China's Finance, U.S, Grow Investment, Times, Peterson Institute of International Economics, Reuters, Republican, Firebrand, Thomson Locations: Diaoyutai, Beijing, China, U.S, Washington, U.s, Donald Trump's China, CHINA, Xinjiang, Hong Kong, Florida, Mexico, Cuba

☆ Hugh Hewitt told Miami Mayor Francis Suarez 'to get smart' after he appeared to become the latest candidate to commit a foreign policy blunder
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

GOP presidential hopeful Francis Suarez appeared not to know what a Uyghur is. The Miami Mayor later told Insider that he did know what a Uyghur is, he was just confused by a radio host's pronunciation. Hewitt asked Suarez, the mayor of Miami. "I didn't recognize the pronunciation my friend Hugh Hewitt used," Suarez said. You really need to know about the Uyghurs, Mayor.

Persons: Francis Suarez, Suarez, —, Hugh Hewitt, Will, Hewitt, Mike Pompeo, Antony Blinken, Hugh Hewitt's, “, mispronounced, Hugh, chuckling, You've, Insider's, Gary Johnson, Herman Cain, Donald Trump Organizations: Miami Mayor, Service, Conservative, Miami, Floridian, White, New, New Mexico Gov, Libertarian, Republican, Israel's, Patriots Locations: Xinjiang, New Mexico, Aleppo, Libya, Yemen, Iran

☆ A protestor threw a cake-like pastry at a board member's head during a Volkswagen meeting that descended into chaos
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-11 | by ( Grace Kay | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

About a dozen protestors reportedly created chaos at Volkswagen Groups annual meeting on Wednesday. One protestor threw what appeared to be a cake at a board member's head. The Associated Press reported that the pastry was thrown in the direction of Wolfgang Porsche, the chairman of Volkswagen Group's majority shareholder, Porsche SE. But recordings of the moment, uploaded to YouTube from news outlets including The Guardian, show VW Group chairman Hans Dieter Poetsch dodging remnants of the pastry that flew in his direction. A Reuters video from the event shows the protestors being led out of the meeting by security.

☆ A mysterious new Chinese military blimp was spotted by a satellite in a desert military base
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

BlackSky, a US satellite firm, recorded footage of a mysterious Chinese blimp. The 100 foot blimp was hovering over a remote military base in northwest China. It was pictured shortly before the US shot down a Chinese spy balloon. They show a blimp, believed to be around 100 feet long, over the runway of a military base in Xinjiang Province, northeastern China. Aerospace experts who analysed the images for CNN said they showed a runway and other features indicating that the base was capable of launching airships.

☆ Inside Nike: Sources share claims of sexism, cheating, abuse at the world's wokest brand
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Joshua Hunt | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +51 min

The conservative blowback came as no surprise to Parker, who told Nike's board of directors to expect some short-term backlash. In late 2014, the BBC sent a film crew to Portland to interview several former Oregon Project employees. "He would be at the side of the track calling out runners' splits but wouldn't call Kara's out," Adam Goucher told me. When people asked why she left the Oregon Project, she said it was a "personal decision." "I don't think it has anything to do with who the CEO is," Goucher told me.

☆ Ai Weiwei goes big for design-focused London exhibition
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Hanna Rantala | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Chinese artist Ai Weiwei poses during a photocall, amongst art pieces displayed in his exhibition "Ai Weiwei: making sense" at the Design Museum in London, Britain, April 4, 2023. Titled "Water Lilies #1", the artwork is one of the centrepieces of Ai's new “Making Sense” exhibition at London's Design Museum – his biggest UK show in eight years. There's a black door I integrated into this Monet's 'Water Lilies' because Monet is an artist my father liked. "Making Sense" also includes another new Lego artwork, "Untitled (Lego Incident"), one of five vast “fields” featuring hundreds of thousands of objects laid out on the gallery floor. "Ai Weiwei: Making Sense" runs at the Design Museum from April 7 to July 30.

Summary Customs delays, tariff uncertainty and soaring global demand have hiked solar costs and delayed projects as the U.S. weans itself off Chinese dependence. The Biden administration's Uyghur Forced Labor Protection Act (UFLPA) prevents the import of goods produced using forced labour in China’s Xinjiang Province, including much of the polysilicon used in solar panels. UFLPA checks have blocked panel imports at the U.S. border, delaying projects and driving up project costs. CHART: Solar manufacturing capacity by country, regionSource: International Energy Agency's Report on Solar PV Global Supply Chains, August 2022The UFLPA requires visibility into labour practices along the solar value chain. Lightsource bp has contracted for more than 20 million solar panels through 2028 and is considering imports from Southeast Asia, Turkey and India, Smith said.

☆ Yellen to meet China's vice premier Liu He in Zurich on Wednesday -U.S. Treasury
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( Andrea Shalal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Shelby Tauber/File PhotoWASHINGTON, Jan 16 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen will meet Chinese Vice Premier Liu He in Switzerland on Wednesday to exchange views on economic developments and deepen communication between the world's two largest economies, a Treasury official said. But some African countries, including Zambia, have soured on Chinese lending and are looking for alternatives, economic analysts said. Liu is in Switzerland for the World Economic Forum meetings in Davos, which Yellen does not plan to attend. Yellen has met virtually three times with Liu since taking office, and met in Bali with Chinese central bank governor Yi Gang. Liu will step down this year as part of an overhaul of China's economic leadership disclosed in September.

REUTERS/Shelby Tauber/File PhotoWASHINGTON/DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 16 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen will meet Chinese Vice Premier Liu He in Switzerland on Wednesday to exchange views on economic developments and deepen communication between the world's two largest economies, a Treasury official said. Yellen and Liu will also discuss global challenges like the possibility of a world recession, the corresponding risks, and how to enhance cooperation, the official said. Yellen does not plan to attend the World Economic Forum. Yellen has met virtually three times with Liu since taking office, and met in Bali, Indonesia with Chinese central bank governor Yi Gang. Liu will step down this year as part of an overhaul of China's economic leadership disclosed in September.

☆ How Saudi Arabia's crown prince snubbed Biden repeatedly to forge ties with authoritarian China and Russia
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-01 | by ( Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

In 2022, Saudi Arabia sought closer ties with Russia and China. Russia's President Vladimir Putin (R) and Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman attend the G20 Leaders' Summit in Buenos Aires, on November 30, 2018. Analysts say that US criticism of Saudi Arabia's human-rights record and its suppression of domestic dissent infuriate Riyadh. Crown Prince Mohammed has more affinity with the ideology of fellow strongmen Xi or Putin than with the US, said Alterman. "Saudi Arabia, China, and Russia all believe in the model of 'authoritarian stability'.

☆ 23 major brands suspected of illegally sourcing products made by forced labor in China
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-17 | by ( Jacob Zinkula | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

And more ...Mary Meisenzahl/InsiderThese companies have also been suspected of having direct or indirect ties to Chinese forced labor in the aforementioned reports. Bosch"Bosch is committed to ensuring that its products are not produced wholly or in part by forced labor. "Compliance with human rights, labor rights and environmental standards is a top priority at PUMA and has been specified in our Codes of Conduct for over 20 years." As stated in our Business Conduct Guidelines, we reject all forms of oppression, forced labor and participation in human rights violations. We will continue to respect human rights and take a strong stand against forced labor."

☆ Twitter searches for China protests bombarded by spam and porn, raising alarms among researchers
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

The fire, and long simmering frustration over the country’s zero Covid policies, helped spur the rare protests in China. GreatFire.org, which helps Chinese citizens get around the country’s internet censorship, noted a torrent of “dating” spam tweets appearing on Friday tagged with “Urumqi,” the capital of Xinjiang. The flood of spam tweets is still ongoing, Smith told CNN on Monday. Twitter is officially blocked in China, but estimates of the number of Twitter users in China have ranged between 3 million and 10 million. Musk has pushed back on suggestions that his ownership of Tesla, which is heavily invested in China, may give the Chinese government “leverage” over Twitter.

☆ Protests in China send a chill through global markets
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

The protests had an immediate impact on global markets, and raised questions about the path forward for China’s increasingly sluggish economy. The protests began Friday after 10 people were killed in a fire in China’s Xinjiang province, where Covid lockdown restrictions reportedly hindered first responders from reaching the blaze. Step down, Communist Party!”Meanwhile, the prospect of social upheaval in the world’s second-biggest economy has sent a chill through global markets. Oil prices dropped sharply as investors feared that surging Covid cases and protests in China would sap demand from one of the world’s largest oil consumers. To fix its economy, China needs to ease lockdowns to allow its people to get back to their lives.

The visit — the first by a G7 leader to China in roughly three years — comes as Germany slides towards recession. A spokesperson for Hamburger Hafen und Logistik (HHLA), the company operating the port terminal, told CNN Business on Thursday that it was still negotiating the deal with Cosco. “The restrictions are suffocating economic growth and heavily impact China’s attractiveness as a destination for foreign direct investment,” he told CNN Business. The ministry did not respond to a request for comment from CNN Business. He predicted that “the large majority will stay committed to the Chinese market and is expecting to expand their business.”Companies appear to be toeing that line.

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