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☆ An empty station, a burning countryside, soot raining from the sky: This is what it's like to ride Laos' gleaming new $6 billion railway in April
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-23 | by ( Marielle Descalsota | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Laos is one of the few remaining communist countries in the world. But a shiny new railway funded by China now cuts through the countryside. It's a massive 1,000-kilometer, or 621-mile train network that aims to connect Laos with Thailand and Kunming in southern China. Despite being one of the poorest countries in Southeast Asia, Laos took on a $1.8 billion loan from China to build the railway. I flew to Laos from Singapore in early April to experience first-hand how the historic railway is developing.

Its oil deals with Russia are seen as undermining Western sanctions by allowing Russia to continue benefiting from energy revenues. A French presidential source told reporters that Brazil's Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva would also meet Zelenskiy while in Hiroshima. [1/9] Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy arrives at Hiroshima airport for attending the G7 leaders' summit in Mihara, Hiroshima prefecture, western Japan May 20, 2023., in this photo released by Kyodo. A Chinese foreign ministry statement accused the G7 of attacking China and interfering in its internal affairs, including Taiwan. Reporting by Reuters G7 team in Hiroshima; Writing by David Dolan; Editing by Nick MacfieOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

HIROSHIMA, Japan, May 20 (Reuters) - Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskiy brought his call for support against Russia's invasion to a Group of Seven (G7) summit on Saturday to Japan, where leaders agreed to tighten sanctions against Moscow and pare back exposure to China. 'MEETINGS WITH FRIENDS'[1/7] Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy arrives at Hiroshima airport for attending the G7 leaders' summit in Mihara, Hiroshima prefecture, western Japan May 20, 2023., in this photo released by Kyodo. As well as bilateral meetings with G7 leaders, Zelenskiy will also meet the leaders of India and Brazil, two countries that have not distanced themselves from Moscow. Zelenskiy is due to hold a session on Sunday with the G7 before a broader session with the Global South attendees. Reporting by Reuters G7 team in Hiroshima; Writing by David Dolan; Editing by Nick MacfieOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

G7 members - the United States, Japan, Germany, France, Britain, Italy and Canada - are grappling with the immense challenges posed by Russia's invasion of Ukraine and tensions with China, notably over Taiwan and economic security. The communique was issued shortly after the French government aircraft that brought Zelenskiy to Hiroshima touched down. Zelenskiy will hold bilateral meetings with G7 leaders, but significantly also the leaders of India and Brazil, two countries that have not distanced themselves from Moscow. He is due to hold a session on Sunday with the G7 before a broader session with the Global South attendees. Reporting by Reuters G7 team in Hiroshima; Writing by David Dolan; Editing by Nick MacfieOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

The Hiroshima summit comes as G7 members are faced with the immense challenges posed by Russia's invasion of Ukraine and tensions with China. The G7 nations are looking to "de-risk, not decouple" from China, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters in Hiroshima. In a draft of the final communique seen by Reuters, G7 leaders agreed that China's status as the world's second-largest economy meant they had to continue to cooperate. U.S. President Joe Biden told G7 leaders on Friday that Washington supports joint allied training programmes for Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets, in a significant endorsement for Kyiv. Reporting by Reuters G7 team in Hiroshima; Writing by David Dolan; Editing by Nick MacfieOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ A Hydropower Renaissance, but Where Are the Giant Dams?
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( Mira Rojanasakul | Max Bearak | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +10 min

Pumped Storage Hydropower, 1900-2040 Global map showing a concentration of planned pumped storage projects in China. Pumped Storage Existing Planned China’s momentum has allowed it to surpass Europe’s capacity for pumped storage. “Our data show that pumped storage is set to grow much faster than conventional dams,” said Joe Bernardi, who runs Global Energy Monitor’s hydropower tracker. UPPER RESERVOIR GENERATORS + TURBINES LOWER RESERVOIR When electricity demand exceeds supply, water is released to race downhill, spinning giant turbines. UPPER RESERVOIR GENERATORS + TURBINES LOWER RESERVOIR When electricity demand exceeds supply, water is released to race downhill, spinning giant turbines.

☆ China's A.I. chatbots haven't yet reached the public like ChatGPT did
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Baidu CTO Wang Haifeng speaks at the unveiling of Baidus AI chatbot Ernie Bot at an event in Beijing on March 16, 2023. Those restrictions haven't stopped the Chinese press and social media in general from talking frequently about ChatGPT and AI tech. So far, publicly available figures indicate similar AI products in China are not as widely available. Kunlun claims Tiangong is the only chatbot in China with training metrics at the level of ChatGPT. Some in the industry also expect such AI tools will be easier to commercialize for business products than for public tools such as search.

☆ Brazil's Lula reschedules China trip, will meet Xi on April 14 in Beijing
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BRASILIA, March 31 (Reuters) - Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping on April 14 in Beijing, his office said on Friday, rescheduling a visit that was postponed last week after he was diagnosed with a mild pneumonia last week. Lula will leave for China on April 11 and intends to stick to the original agenda, including the signing of some 20 agreements with Brazil's largest trading partner. The trip's aim is to upgrade relations with China now that Lula is back in office and seek new Chinese investment in the Latin American country. It will still be a state visit, with meetings with Xi, the Chinese Prime Minister, Li Qiang, and an event at the National People's Assembly, Lula's presidential office said. Reporting by Lisandra Paraguassu Editing by Frances KerryOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ U.S.-China relations are going downhill with ‘no trust’ on either side, Stephen Roach says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Sumathi Bala | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

US President Joe Biden and China's President Xi Jinping (L) shake hands as they meet on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Nusa Dua on the Indonesian resort island of Bali on November 14, 2022. "Right now, there is no trust," he told "Squawk Box Asia" on Tuesday, who is currently attending the China Development Forum in Beijing. watch now"The balloon was a spark that really put us on a swift downhill descent," Roach added. The office did not provide details of her itinerary while in the U.S. On Taiwan, China has repeatedly said the issue is an internal affair. Every single Taiwan president in recent memory has done this," White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby, said at a press briefing last week.

☆ China Has a New Vision for Itself: Global Power
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Jonathan Cheng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

BEIJING—China now sees itself as a global power—and it’s starting to act like one. Long reluctant to inject itself into conflicts far from its shores, Beijing is showing a new assertiveness as Xi Jinping begins his third term as the country’s head of state, positioning China to draw like-minded countries to its side and to have a greater say on global matters.

☆ China Is Starting to Act Like a Global Power
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Jonathan Cheng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

BEIJING—China now sees itself as a global power—and it is starting to act like one. Long reluctant to inject itself into conflicts far from its shores, Beijing is showing a new assertiveness as Xi Jinping begins his third term as the country’s head of state, positioning China to draw like-minded countries to its side and to have a greater say on global matters.

It will change the landscape of banking in Switzerland, where branches of Credit Suisse and UBS are dotted everywhere, sometimes just metres apart. The Credit Suisse rescue, orchestrated with public money, shows banks' continued vulnerability and how their problems can quickly rebound on their home country. But it also removes a competitor to Wall Street, with UBS planning to pare back much of Credit Suisse’s investment bank. During the great financial crash, it was UBS and not Credit Suisse that needed state support. UBS earned $7.6 billion in profit in 2022, while Credit Suisse lost $7.9 billion.

☆ From Tesla to under-the-radar battery stocks: Wall Street has a playbook for the EV boom
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Zavier Ong | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The bank's "Battery Electric Vehicles Basket" comprises several stocks across the EV supply chain, including automakers Rivian , Lucid and Li Auto . This may be the opportune moment for Chinese EV brands to knock on the doors of Europe." Among the Chinese EV makers, BYD, Nio and Xpeng are "the ones to watch," according to Bernstein. "We expect Chinese EV players to find better success targeting the compact, mass market EV segment that has so far been under-penetrated in Europe," the bank said. Tesla and under-the-radar plays Tesla is one of Deutsche Bank 's top picks in the EV space.

☆ How China's shifting growth picture could hit global markets
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

A shopping mall in Qingzhou, Shandong province, broadcasts the opening ceremony of China's National People's Congress on Sunday, March 5, 2023. Future Publishing | Future Publishing | Getty ImagesChina's economy will be forced to recalibrate because of a "fractured" global order, and the new drivers of growth will "disappoint" global markets, according to David Roche, president of Independent Strategy. President Xi Jinping and other officials took aim at the West for constraining China's growth prospects, as relations between Beijing and Washington continue to deteriorate. Veteran investment strategist Roche told CNBC's "Squawk Box Europe" on Tuesday that "things have changed" permanently with regards to China's role in the global economy, as Beijing will be forced to look inward to achieve its growth ambitions. watch nowRoche also noted that the "hegemony of the U.S. is now fractured" in the global economic order, with Russia and China detaching from Western democracies.

☆ Morning Bid: War and PCE
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

A look at the day ahead in U.S. and global markets from Mike DolanWith world headlines focussed on first anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the inflationary consequences that pounded world markets last year still smoulder. Curiously, the initial energy shock from the Ukraine war is already less of a problem than the change in pricing behaviour that it seeded - especially in services still distorted by the pandemic, in corporate margin building and rising wage settlements. But it's the pickup and stickiness in underlying "core" prices, excluding energy and food, that is irking the central banks and the Federal Reserve most of all. Alongside another tight U.S. weekly jobs report, markets got another glimpse of those price pressures on Thursday. And increasingly buoyed by the still intense geopolitical fallout from a year of the war in Ukraine, the dollar pushed higher yet again.

LONDON, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Rio Tinto (RIO.AX), (RIO.L) posted a 38% drop in annual profit and more than halved its dividend on Wednesday, hurt by weaker iron ore prices as demand from China slowed, while higher labour and material costs also ate into earnings. Strict COVID-19 curbs in top steel producer China curtailed economic activity last year, dragging down iron ore prices from lofty levels a year earlier. The world's top iron ore producer said China consumption showed signs of rebounding and commodity prices had found support in recent months, although the economy remained volatile. Rio Tinto last year earned an average realised price of just $106.10 per dry metric tonne (dmt) of iron ore, down from $143.80 per dmt in 2021. Rio Tinto reported underlying earnings of $13.3 billion for 2022, compared with a record $21.4 billion in 2021.

☆ China is getting rid of its 'grandpa' fighter jets, but they may make a comeback for a one-way mission against Taiwan
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( Michael Peck | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

China's last J-7 fighter jets may leave active service this year, according to Chinese state media. China's air force may convert some J-7s into drones, which could be used in an attack on Taiwan. (Between its air force and navy, China now has the world's third-largest aviation force, according to the Pentagon.) A J-7 fighter at the People's Liberation Army Aviation Museum in Beijing in December 2013. UCAVs make it possible for China's air force "to use relatively cheap, capable, low-risk airframes as a first-in asset to either strike or soften Taiwan's air defense systems," Rice added.

☆ South Africa's naval exercise with Russia, China raises Western alarm
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Carien Du Plessis | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

"These exercises are going to be a lightning rod," said Steven Gruzd, of the South African Institute of International Affairs. "South Africa, like any independent and sovereign state, has a right to conduct its foreign relations in line with its ... national interests," South Africa's defence ministry said last month. Russia's defence ministry did not respond to a request for comment, and South Africa's National Defence Force has denied the TASS report. China is now Africa's top bilateral trading partner, but the EU is by far the largest market for South African exports. Domestic critics of South Africa's push to deepen ties with Russia and China say that economic reality alone should be enough to give the government serious pause.

☆ What do Chinese travelers want? Luxury 'star-rated' hotels, says new survey
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | Chris Dwyer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The research points to growing demand for high-end and luxury hotels in China now that the country has ended domestic travel restrictions — and a Covid wave has passed. watch nowThe report said that "37% of the consumers prefer higher star-rated hotels, up from 18% in 2020, with higher-income consumers showing even stronger appetites for luxury hotel stays (47% vs. 31% in 2020)." "The growing mid-/high-income population in China will fuel continued growth in demand for upscale hotels," the UBS report said. "At present, the number of upscale and luxury hotel guest room contribution and brand penetration rate in China are both lower than in North America." "China's hotel groups are still exploring the upscale hotel market, and we think acquisition of established overseas upscale brands may be their best option, and that founding joint ventures with real estate developers could provide property management resources for expansion into the upscale hotel market."

☆ China says it wants its busted balloon back after the US Navy fished the suspected spy craft out of the ocean
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Natalie Musumeci | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

China now wants its busted balloon returned to it after the US shot it down. US Navy divers fished pieces of the massive balloon out of the Atlantic Ocean this weekend. The suspected Chinese spy balloon drifts to the ocean after being shot down off the coast in Surfside Beach, South Carolina, U.S. February 4, 2023. Chinese officials have admitted the balloon belongs to China but said it was a weather balloon that blew off course. Newly released images from the US Navy show divers pulling debris from the massive balloon out of the Atlantic Ocean.

☆ China Has More ICBM Launchers Than U.S., American Military Reports
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Michael R. Gordon | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

An earlier satellite image shows what analysts believe is construction on an intercontinental ballistic missile silo near Hami, China. The U.S. military has notified Congress that China now has more land-based intercontinental-range missile launchers than the U.S., fueling the debate about how Washington should respond to Beijing’s nuclear buildup. “The number of land-based fixed and mobile ICBM launchers in China exceeds the number of ICBM launchers in the United States,” the commander of the U.S. Strategic Command, which oversees nuclear forces, wrote the Senate’s and House’s Armed Services Committees on Jan. 26.

☆ The US military says China now has more ICBM launchers than it does, but the US still has the nuclear edge
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The US military says that China now has more ICBM launchers than Washington does. However, the US still has an edge in the number of ICBMs and nuclear warheads it has. "The number of land-based fixed and mobile ICBM launchers in China exceeds the number of ICBM launchers in the United States," Cotton wrote in letters sent to the respective committees on January 26, letters obtained by Insider. He also said that the "number of nuclear warheads equipped on such missiles of China has not exceeded the number of nuclear warheads equipped on such missiles of the United States." That said, China's edge in land-based fixed and mobile launchers does bring Beijing closer to fielding a more robust ICBM capacity.

☆ Goldman Sachs: China's reopening economy is gaining momentum, and these 50 stocks are best positioned to benefit from the robust rally
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( James Faris | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Goldman Sachs recently boosted economic growth estimates for both China and Europe. Since November, the SSE Composite Index (in dark blue) and the STOXX Europe 600 (in purple) have beaten the S&P 500 (in light blue). That led Goldman Sachs to boost its 2023 GDP estimate for the nation from 4.5% to 5.5%, driven by an 8.5% increase in inflation-adjusted consumption. Robust growth in China now means that Europe will avoid a recession this winter, according to Goldman Sachs. But Chinese stocks won't be the only ones to benefit from the nation's economic boom.

☆ Luxury eyes focused on China after Richemont's Q3 sales miss
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( John Revill | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SummarySummary Companies Q3 sales rise by 8% but miss market forecastsMainland China sales drop 24%Company says customer demand in China now picking upAll eyes on China for luxury sector, say analystsZURICH, Jan 18 (Reuters) - Cartier jewellery maker Richemont (CFR.S) missed market forecasts during its latest quarter as the resurgence of COVID-19 in China hit sales there, highlighting the country's importance for the luxury sector. Richemont, whose other brands include Swiss watchmakers IWC and Jaeger-LeCoultre, has been seeing strong sales growth in Europe, the Middle East and Japan, particularly for jewellery. But the mainland Chinese market - which accounts for about a fifth of the group's sales, according to Zuercher Kantonalbank estimates - struggled with sales down 24% in constant currency terms. The prospect of a pickup in Chinese sales meant analysts were not too worried by Richemont's quarterly miss. "The catch-up from Chinese consumers will come as strong as sales decelerated in 3Q, as they were able to save money during the lockdowns."

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