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Maiko Todoroki, head of Japan’s biggest nanny provider, first truly felt the value of the kind of services offered by her mother’s company when she suffered from postnatal depression. The cavalry arrived, in the shape of her mother Noriko Nakamura and a nanny who both travelled from Japan to her home in the UK, and a local maternity nurse. Nakamura was founder and chief executive of Poppins, a nanny agency that she set up in 1985 and which has become one of the biggest nursery operators in Japan. “I managed…
Stay informed with free updates Simply sign up to the Fund management myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox. US investors are increasingly asking Asian fund managers to carve out special vehicles so they can invest in the region without falling foul of American investment restrictions on Chinese technology. American investors held $361bn of Chinese stocks and bonds as recently as the end of 2024, according to the US Treasury, but rules introduced last year threaten large fines and imprisonment for those invested in certain high-tech Chinese sectors, such…
China will allocate more of its fiscal spending this year towards human capital and social safety nets, as Beijing seeks to boost domestic demand and unlock new growth through “investing in people”. “Efforts must be sustained to optimise the expenditure structure, with greater emphasis on supporting the boosting of consumption, investing in people, and safeguarding people’s livelihoods,” Premier Li Qiang said in his annual work report, delivered during the opening session of the National People’s Congress on Thursday. Incorporated into China’s 15th five-year plan, the “investing in people” concept reflects…
To read this article for free Register now Once registered, you can: • Read free articles • Get our Editor’s Digest and other newsletters • Follow topics and set up personalised events • Access Alphaville: our popular markets and finance blog Financial Times
Jimmy Lai, the prominent pro-democracy activist who was recently sentenced to 20 years in prison in Hong Kong, has said he will not appeal his conviction. The decision marks the end of a years-long legal saga for the 78-year-old critic of the Chinese Communist party (CCP), and opens the door for political negotiations to his release. A member of Lai’s Hong Kong legal team said: “We can confirm we have clear and definitive instructions not to lodge an appeal against conviction or sentence.” Lai, a British citizen, was sentenced in…
China will soon power up an ultra-efficient, nuclear waste-burning reactor with a groundbreaking technology that it projects will safely meet humanity’s energy needs for the next 1,000 years. Accelerator-driven subcritical systems (ADS) are advanced nuclear reactors that can both generate energy and transmute long-lived radioactive waste into shorter-lived and less hazardous isotopes. Designed by researchers at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) along with state nuclear enterprises, the China Initiative Accelerator Driven System will be the world’s first megawatt-level prototype of such a system once it goes online in southern…
Leading Chinese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer BYD has unveiled a new-generation battery featuring charging speeds that the company says can rival a refill at a petrol station. BYD’s Blade Battery 2.0, launched on Thursday, can be charged from 10 per cent to 70 per cent in five minutes, and to 97 per cent in nine minutes, which the company said was the world’s fastest charging speed for a mass-manufactured unit. Even in extreme weather, with temperatures as low as minus 30 degrees Celsius (minus 22 degrees Fahrenheit), it will only…
A top Chinese political adviser has sounded the alarm on forced marriages of women with mental disabilities in rural areas, calling for a prevention mechanism and a nationwide investigation campaign. Jiang Shengnan, a writer and member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), China’s top political advisory body, warned that tackling the issue presented multiple challenges. There was a lack of support for such women when it came to marriage-related decision-making, Jiang told the state-run China News Service on Tuesday, ahead of the “two sessions” – China’s annual top…