Tag: Politics and Government

A Hungarian Town Seethes Over a Giant Chinese Battery Plant

Chin@Strategy

The small-town mayor, long a loyal foot soldier for Hungary’s governing party, recently committed what he described as “political suicide,” throwing himself in the path of an enormous $7.8 billion Chinese battery factory project promoted by his dissent-intolerant prime minister, Viktor Orban. “It is like lying in front of a steamroller,” Zoltan Timar, the mayor of Mikepercs, said of his decision to side with residents opposed to the project, which his Fidesz party championed. “I just hope it won’t roll over me too soon.” The factory, which would be the…

What to Know About the Covid Lab Leak Theory

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Benjamin Mueller contributed reporting. The Daily is made by Lisa Tobin, Rachel Quester, Lynsea Garrison, Clare Toeniskoetter, Paige Cowett, Michael Simon Johnson, Brad Fisher, Chris Wood, Jessica Cheung, Stella Tan, Alexandra Leigh Young, Lisa Chow, Eric Krupke, Marc Georges, Luke Vander Ploeg, M.J. Davis Lin, Dan Powell, Dave Shaw, Sydney Harper, Robert Jimison, Mike Benoist, Liz O. Baylen, Asthaa Chaturvedi, Rachelle Bonja, Diana Nguyen, Marion Lozano, Corey Schreppel, Anita Badejo, Rob Szypko, Elisheba Ittoop, Chelsea Daniel, Mooj Zadie, Patricia Willens, Rowan Niemisto, Jody Becker, Rikki Novetsky, John Ketchum, Nina Feldman,…

To Rein in China’s Banks, Xi Uses Familiar Playbook

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To a man with a hammer, a renowned psychologist once posited, everything looks like a nail. For most of his decade in power, Xi Jinping, China’s leader, has usually arrived at the same conclusion for how best to deal with the country’s issues: get the Communist Party more involved. And now, as China is confronting an economy lacking the dynamism of the past and teetering from a real estate sector in crisis and local governments overrun with debt, Mr. Xi is again wielding his hammer. At the annual gathering of…

China’s New Premier Needs to Revive Growth. How Far Will Loyalty Get Him?

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Before Li Qiang was appointed China’s No. 2 leader this past week, he oversaw Shanghai, a city that, for a time early last year, was celebrated for trying to contain Covid with relative restraint. City officials wanted to avoid the economic devastation of a full-scale lockdown and instead opted for limited restrictions that applied to, in one instance, a single milk tea shop. But as cases spread, the central government in Beijing intervened. Suddenly, the pragmatism and business-friendly character that had long defined Shanghai’s spirit gave way to “zero Covid,”…

As Economy Falters, China’s New Premier Tries to Boost Business Confidence

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BEIJING — China’s new premier, the country’s No. 2 leader after Xi Jinping, sought on Monday to reinvigorate confidence in the faltering economy, promising that private-sector companies would be treated equally with state-owned ones and that the property rights and other interests of entrepreneurs would be strictly respected. Premier Li Qiang, who took office on Saturday, strongly endorsed the role of entrepreneurs after a decade in which the state and the ruling Communist Party have played a steadily growing role in China’s economy, with some pro-party commentators castigating big businesses.…

A Chinese Commonwealth? An Unpopular Idea Resurfaces in Taiwan.

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The K.M.T. has a long history of arguing for economic integration with China. The party’s roots date back to the nationalist army that lost a civil war against Chinese Communists in 1949 and escaped to Taiwan to regroup. K.M.T. officials, who initially ruled as a military dictatorship, were so committed to the dream of returning to the mainland for a rematch that, a Ming Chuan University professor told me, they routinely barred active-duty soldiers from getting married, out of fear soldiers would be diverted from their cause. The closest that…

Xi Jinping Picks Team to Work Under Him for the Next Five Years

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China’s top leader, Xi Jinping, was confirmed to a norm-breaking third term as state president on Friday, further formalizing his position as China’s most dominant leader in decades. The announcement was no surprise: Mr. Xi oversaw the abolition of presidential term limits in 2018, and in October he secured a third term as head of the Chinese Communist Party, the position from which his real authority derives. Now, as the annual meeting of China’s rubber-stamp legislature concludes in the coming days, many of his loyalists are being elevated to the…

Why China Is Tightening Its Oversight of Banking and Tech

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A real estate market that is threatening the financial system and holding back the economy. A tech industry that is being targeted by aggressive U.S. efforts to cut it off from the world. Tech companies that are trying to keep pace with fast-moving developments in artificial intelligence. As its trade and economic rivalry with the West has intensified, China has launched a government overhaul intended to address some of its biggest stated priorities. A series of changes handed down from the highest reaches of the government were approved Friday at…

Xi Jinping Starts New Term in China, With a Focus on Economy and U.S. Rivalry

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“In the coming period, the risks and challenges that we’re facing will only become more and more numerous and grim,” Mr. Xi said, while urging officials to remain “calm and focused” while also braced for “struggle.” To tackle these challenges, Mr. Xi has emphasized the need for China to wean itself off its reliance on Western-held technologies and expertise, and to fortify itself against risks to food and energy security. He has populated the government’s top ranks with his loyalists and allies to carry out his agenda. Mr. Xi’s No.…

China’s Economy Will Expand About 5 percent, A Cautious Target

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China’s government said it expected the country’s economy to grow “around 5 percent” this year, a goal that may be attainable as activity rebounds quickly but will still require considerable public borrowing and spending on roads, rail lines and other infrastructure. Li Keqiang, who will finish his decade as the country’s premier in the coming days, announced the target on Sunday at the opening of the annual session of the National People’s Congress. “This year, it is essential to prioritize economic stability and pursue progress while ensuring stability,” Mr. Li…