In another case – which has drawn considerable attention online – a small, stray dog on a university campus in Chongqing was filmed being grabbed in a net by a dog catcher, prior to being killed. The “smiling” appearance of the dog has prompted a social media hashtag using the name it was given #XiaoHuang. University officials said the dog had chased a student. BBC
In a statement published on Friday, the bureau of market supervision and administration of Pingdu City, where the factory is located, said they immediately set up a team and conducted an on-site investigation after spotting the video, and sealed the whole batch of ingredients that appeared in the clip. BBC
The Global Times also cited experts as saying the investigation may impact the elections and that “if the secessionists who seek ‘Taiwan independence’ win the elections, that would be a huge disaster to the peace and stability of the region, and the Chinese people of both sides of the Taiwan Straits, including the ones in the business circle, should work together to prevent disaster from happening.” BBC
In the absence of direct supplies, buyers from Russia often shop for Chinese drones in countries like Kazakhstan, and, according to Kommersant, the Central Asian state has further complicated things for them by tightening its own drone import regulations. BBC
But, on the less bright side, Beijing’s tensions are also growing with many of the countries – not least the US and European Union nations – that are export markets for its electric vehicles or EVs. As the world shifts to new, cleaner technologies, this is yet another example of how tough it will be for Western countries to move away from their reliance on Chinese goods. BBC
In August, the crisis-hit Country Garden reported a record $6.7bn (£5.2bn) loss for the first six months of the year. If its default is confirmed, Country Garden’s offshore creditors will begin negotiations with the firm’s financial advisors to start a restructuring process which could take many months, given the scale of the debt. BBC
In the last year, MI5 has also seen more than 20 instances of Chinese companies considering or actively trying to gain access to sensitive technology developed by UK companies and universities through investments or other means where the full role of China is hidden, often through complicated company structures. BBC
Declassified US videos show Chinese fighter jets coming close to US aircraft in international airspace. Assistant Secretary of Defense Ely Ratner told reporters that since 2022, the Pentagon had documented more than 180 incidents of “coercive and risky” manoeuvres by Chinese military planes, with the potential to spark inadvertent conflict. BBC
The Semiconductor Industry Association, which represents 99% of the US semiconductor industry by revenue, said in a statement that the new measures are “overly broad” and “risk harming the US semiconductor ecosystem without advancing national security as they encourage overseas customers to look elsewhere”. BBC
With this new strategy, China has cut down financing. It has imposed limits on external lending by Chinese banks, and investment deals are now nearly 50% smaller than they were five years ago, according to a GFDC analysis. It has also moved away from being the only creditor in the BRI, and started a platform where other countries can lend money. BBC