3 h. ago China shoppers swap boutiques for bargains, fuelling US$30 billion luxury resale boom

At a shopping centre in Shenzhen’s coastal business district, a store’s entrance feels more like a security checkpoint than a retail gateway. Customers check their bags, don white silk gloves, and pass through a gate. Beyond the checkpoint, which also seems incongruent with the outer facade resembling a typical multi-brand fashion shop, lies a 2,000-square-metre (21,527-sq-ft) showroom. Inside, luxury handbags are not displayed under artful lighting. Instead, they are tightly arranged in...

Economics

12 h. ago FO° Talks: Is China’s Economy Really Collapsing or Is the West Misreading the Numbers?

FO° Talks: Is China’s Economy Really Collapsing or Is the West Misreading the Numbers?  Fair Observer

Politics

13 h. ago Secure Arctic shipping route essential for China, senior official says

The Arctic shipping route is essential to safeguard China’s development over the next decade, a senior Chinese official said in Beijing, calling for greater efforts to expand its practical use. With proposals for the next five-year plan incorporating security and development, China must ensure its international transport channels remain unimpeded, Ma Jiantang, deputy director of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference’s economic committee, said. China’s traditional trade lanes...

Politics

14 h. ago China discovers Asia’s largest undersea gold deposit off Jiaodong Peninsula

China has discovered its first undersea gold deposit – the largest in Asia – marking a breakthrough as Beijing steps up nationwide exploration for the precious metal. The discovery, off the coast of Laizhou, in Yantai, Shandong province, lifted Laizhou’s total proven gold reserves to more than 3,900 tonnes (137.57 million ounces) – about 26 per cent of the national total – ranking it top in both gold reserves and output in China, Yantai’s city government disclosed this week at a conference on...

Politics

15 h. ago China–Cartel Nexus: The Liquidity Architecture Transforming the Global Drug Economy

China–Cartel Nexus: The Liquidity Architecture Transforming the Global Drug Economy  New Lines Institute

Events

18 h. ago China set to keep rates steady for seventh month despite slowing economy By Reuters

China set to keep rates steady for seventh month despite slowing economy By Reuters  Investing.com

Politics

18 h. ago China set to keep rates steady for seventh month despite slowing economy

China set to keep rates steady for seventh month despite slowing economy  Reuters

Politics

20 h. ago China cuts US Treasury holdings to lowest level since 2008 amid debt ceiling fears

China reduced its US Treasury holdings in October to its lowest level in 17 years, as mounting concerns over US debt sustainability and the Federal Reserve’s independence further eroded confidence in dollar-backed assets. The country’s stockpile fell to US$688.7 billion in October, down from US$700.5 billion in September, according to US Treasury Department data released on Thursday. October’s figure was the lowest level reported since November 2008, and marked a plunge of more than 47 per cent...

Politics

35 h. ago China confirms issuing of first general licences for rare earth exports

Beijing confirmed on Thursday that it has begun granting general licences with lengthier terms for exports of rare earth elements to foreign companies, though business groups said more guidance was needed on the policy’s implementation. “With the accumulation of relevant export compliance experience, some exporters have initially met the basic requirements to apply for general licences,” said He Yadong, a spokesman for the Ministry of Commerce (Mofcom), at a press conference. “To my knowledge,...

Politics

36 h. ago China slams EU subsidy probes as ‘egregious’ and discriminatory

China’s Ministry of Commerce has expressed strong opposition to recent European Union investigations into Chinese companies and vowed to use necessary means to defend their rights. “The European Union has recently launched a series of Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR) investigations targeting Chinese enterprises such actions are egregious, with clear targeting and discriminatory intent,” ministry spokesman He Yadong said during a press conference on Thursday. Last week, Brussels launched an...

Events

36 h. ago Breakneck: Dan Wang Explores the Strange Symmetry of US and China

Breakneck: Dan Wang Explores the Strange Symmetry of US and China  The Daily Economy

Politics

37 h. ago China jails smugglers of weapon metal antimony, taking tough stance on critical minerals

A Chinese court has convicted 27 individuals of smuggling more than 166 tonnes of antimony, a critical mineral used in weapons, semiconductors and flame retardants, in a significant enforcement action under Beijing’s tighter export controls for dual-use items. The Shenzhen Intermediate People’s Court in Guangdong province ruled that the group had illegally shipped the critical mineral without obtaining export licences, according to a statement released on Tuesday. Lead defendant Wang Wubin was...

Events

39 h. ago China’s Hainan launches separate customs regime allowing tariff

China’s southern Hainan province implemented a separate customs regime on Thursday, as Beijing seeks to develop the island into an offshore financing and duty-free hub and position it as a strategic hedge against rising external trade barriers. The new customs regime creates two distinct customs boundaries for Hainan: one separating the island from overseas markets, and another dividing it from the rest of mainland China. Most overseas goods entering the island – which is roughly the size of...

Politics

41 h. ago As trade deficit mounts, is EU offering China what it wants to buy?

Facing an ever-increasing trade deficit with China, Europe has limited options to balance the situation in the short term even though it still holds an edge in key sectors including pharmaceuticals, machinery and components, analysts said. China’s global trade surplus hit an all-time high of US$1.076 trillion in the first 11 months of this year, despite a decline in exports to the United States following US President Donald Trump’s imposition of steep tariffs. A lot of China’s redirected exports...

Politics

45 h. ago China’s jobless rate for young people eases to 16.9% as graduates settle for less

China’s youth-unemployment rate ticked lower in November, though competition remains fierce for university graduates trying to find work that matches their qualifications. The jobless rate for those aged 16 to 24, excluding students, fell to 16.9 per cent in November from 17.3 per cent in October, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Thursday. The rate has eased since August, when the graduation of a record 12.2 million university students over the summer pushed it...

Politics

48 h. ago Laos cleared to export fresh durians to China as Malaysia, Thailand face new rival

Laos has received approval to begin exporting fresh durians to China, becoming the latest Southeast Asian nation to vie for a slice of the vast Chinese market for the tropical fruit. China’s General Administration of Customs said on its website that Laos was given clearance to begin exports from this past Friday as long as its shipments met phytosanitary standards. Laos could emerge as a challenger in China’s increasingly crowded durian market, as it benefits from cheap labour, logistical...

Politics

62 h. ago China warns platforms on monopolistic tactics such as ‘lowest

China’s market regulator has warned that internet platforms demanding merchants offer the “lowest price across the internet” may face antitrust action, as Beijing steps up efforts to curb malpractice. The State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) explained some details of its draft – Antitrust Compliance Guidelines for Internet Platforms – at a press conference on Wednesday, according to Xinhua. The “lowest-price” requirement, where platforms bar merchants from selling cheaper elsewhere,...

Events

63 h. ago China bets big on copper, but ‘weaponisation’ risks low, unlike with rare earths: analysts

China is accelerating efforts to secure its copper supply chain, designating the metal as critical across strategic industries such as electric vehicles, artificial intelligence and defence amid rising geopolitical tensions. Provincial governments are leading the charge. On Monday, Jiangxi – already a hub for heavy rare earth mines – pledged in its 15th five-year plan to develop a world-leading hub for advanced copper-based new materials. That follows a similar move in Shandong, where provincial...

Events

64 h. ago Not lovin’ it: Chinese fume at McDonald’s raised prices, costlier ‘poor man’s meal’

McDonald’s China arm has raised prices on most menu items, igniting a social media backlash as consumers grapple with job uncertainty and stagnant wages. Patrons discovered this week that prices for burgers, snacks and combos rose by up to 1 yuan (US$0.14). While modest, the increase drew attention because the chain’s budget combo has long been dubbed the “poor man’s meal” by frugal young adults. Some quipped online that “McDonald’s prices are rising, but my salary isn’t”, or that the popular...

Economics

65 h. ago Policy body urges China to confront economic challenges, confident of demand recovery

China’s top economic policy coordinator has urged the country to confront unavoidable challenges, while expressing confidence that investment and consumption growth will recover next year as efforts to boost domestic demand intensify. An unnamed official from the Office of the Central Financial and Economic Affairs Commission said the current challenges were “issues arising in the course of development and transition”. “[They] cannot be avoided or sidestepped, but with effort they can be...

Economics