[🇨🇳] China----News & Views

[Saif]

Source : https://www.thedailystar.net/business/news/us-raise-tariffs-chinese-electric-vehicles-report-3607441

US to raise tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles: report

Photo: Reuters /File

The United States is planning to increase tariffs on Chinese clean energy goods, news reports said Friday, with levies on electric vehicles expected to roughly quadruple.

The move, reported by the Wall Street Journal, comes at the end of a long-awaited review of tariffs that were imposed during a trade war between Washington and Beijing.

Then-president Donald Trump imposed tariffs on some $300 billion in goods from China.

Officials have since initiated a review of the actions, with the US Trade Representative required to look into the impact of the levies -- first introduced in 2018 -- after four years.

A decision, expected on the coming Tuesday according to news reports, would come as President Joe Biden gears up for a rematch with Trump in November's presidential election.

Last month, he urged for a tripling on tariffs for Chinese steel and aluminum as he courted blue-collar voters in the battleground state of Pennsylvania.

In particular, higher tariffs are set to impact critical minerals and solar goods as well as batteries from China, said the Wall Street Journal.

The tariff rate on EVs is also due to rise from 25 percent to around 100 percent, the report added.

This is unlikely to deal an immediate blow to Chinese EV companies, which do not have a large presence in the United States due to existing levies.

But officials appear to be guarding against Chinese imports.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen recently warned against overcapacity in China, which risks a flood of below-cost goods in the global market, potentially impacting burgeoning US industries.

The United States has been seeking to build up its domestic green tech supply chains, and has been especially concerned about excess capacity in industries such as EVs, batteries and solar energy.

Tariff actions would build on earlier moves by the Biden administration, such as a recent probe into the national security risks posed by Chinese tech in cars.

A concern is that they could be used to collect sensitive data.

Washington has also launched an investigation into China's trade practices in the shipbuilding, maritime and logistics sectors, prompting a furious response from Beijing.

Biden has denied that there was a trade war with China despite calling for a hike in steel tariffs.​

 

[Saif]

China-Russia relations: What is Xi Jinping prepared to pay for Putin’s war?

Breaking News, International News & Multimedia

thedailynewnation.com

China-Russia relations: What is Xi Jinping prepared to pay for Putin's war?
16 May 2024, 12:00 am
BBC :

More than two years into his invasion of Ukraine, China has emerged as a vital ally. It has refused to condemn the war and continues to trade with a heavily sanctioned Russia, much to the ire of the US and the European Union.

However, it appears Mr Putin wants more. But is China willing to pay the price?

It is perhaps not surprising the Russian leader has chosen China as his first foreign trip since he was sworn in for a fifth presidential term last week. The two-day state visit comes as their relationship reached its "highest level ever", he told Chinese state media. He spoke of his interest in Chinese martial arts and philosophy, and said some of his family are learning Mandarin.

"In the face of a difficult international situation, our relations are still strengthening," he said.

But while Mr Putin brags about their friendship, Mr Xi might have reason to worry.

The US has just announced a raft of new sanctions against Beijing and Hong Kong-based banks and companies that work with Moscow, allegedly helping to evade existing restrictions.

Because, while China is not selling arms to Russia, Washington and Brussels believe it is exporting tech and components essential for war. During his recent trip to Beijing, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told the BBC that China was "helping fuel the biggest threat" to European security since the Cold War.

For them, this has become a red line. But China insists its stance on Ukraine is neutral – and the exports, which have commercial uses outside of war, are not breaking the rules.​

 

[Saif]

Putin arrives in China to deepen strategic partnership with Xi

Vladimir Putin arrives in China for talks with Xi Jinping to deepen strategic partnership, sending a message about his priorities and the depth of his personal relationship with Xi.

en.prothomalo.com

Putin arrives in China to deepen strategic partnership with Xi
ReutersMoscow/Beijing
Published: 16 May 2024, 08: 47

Russian President Vladimir Putin and China's President Xi Jinping make a toast during a reception following their talks at the Kremlin in Moscow on 21 March, 2023AFP file photo

Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Beijing early on Thursday for talks with Xi Jinping that the Kremlin hopes will deepen a strategic partnership between the two most powerful geopolitical rivals of the United States.

China and Russia declared a "no limits" partnership in February 2022 when Putin visited Beijing just days before he sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine, triggering the deadliest land war in Europe since World War Two.

By picking China for his first foreign trip since being sworn in for a six-year term that will keep him in power until at least 2030, Putin is sending a message to the world about his priorities and the depth of his personal relationship with Xi.

In an interview with China's Xinhua news agency, Putin praised Xi for helping to build a "strategic partnership" with Russia based on national interests and deep mutual trust.

"It was the unprecedentedly high level of the strategic partnership between our countries that determined my choice of China as the first state that I would visit after officially taking office as president of the Russian Federation," Putin said.

"We will try to establish closer cooperation in the field of industry and high technology, space and peaceful nuclear energy, artificial intelligence, renewable energy sources and other innovative sectors," Putin said.

Putin, 71, and Xi, 70, will take part in a gala evening celebrating 75 years since the Soviet Union recognised the People's Republic of China, which was declared by Mao Zedong in 1949.

Xinhua confirmed his arrival for what China's state press has described as a state visit from an "old friend".

Putin's arrival and visit is the top trending item on the Chinese social media platform Weibo, with 1.4 million search requests amid a stream of images, videos and comments.

The United States casts China as its biggest competitor and Russia as its biggest nation-state threat while US President Joe Biden argues that this century will be defined by an existential contest between democracies and autocracies.

Putin and Xi share a broad world view, which sees the West as decadent and in decline just as China challenges US supremacy in everything from quantum computing and synthetic biology to espionage and hard military power.

Putin will also visit Harbin in northeastern China, a city with historic ties to Russia. A mall devoted to Russian-made goods representing some 80 Russian manufacturers opened on Thursday, the China Daily reported.

Xi and Putin

China has strengthened its trade and military ties with Russia in recent years as the United States and its allies imposed sanctions against both countries, particularly against Moscow for the invasion of Ukraine.

The West says China has played a crucial role in helping Russia withstand the sanctions and has supplied key technology which Russia has used on the battlefield in Ukraine.

But China, once the junior partner of Moscow in the global Communist hierarchy, remains by far the most powerful of Russia's friends in the world.

Putin's arrival follows a mission to Beijing late last month by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, in part to warn China's top diplomat Wang Yi against deepening military support for Russia.

Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov said that the two leaders would hold informal talks on Thursday evening over tea and that they would touch on Ukraine, Asia, energy and trade.

Putin's newly appointed defence minister, Andrei Belousov, as well as Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu and foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov, will also attend, along with Russia's most powerful CEOs.

It was not immediately clear if Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller would go to China as he was on a working visit to Iran on Wednesday.​

 

[Saif]

Xi, Putin hail ties as ‘stabilising’ force in chaotic world

Leaders Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin framed their nations’ ties as a stabilising force in a chaotic world as they met Thursday in Beijing, where the Russian president is seeking...

www.newagebd.net

Xi, Putin hail ties as 'stabilising' force in chaotic world
Agence France-Presse . Beijing 16 May, 2024, 23:40

Russia's president Vladimir Putin and China's president Xi Jinping attend a concert marking the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Russia and China and opening of China-Russia Years of Culture at the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing on Thursday. | AFP photo

Leaders Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin framed their nations' ties as a stabilising force in a chaotic world as they met Thursday in Beijing, where the Russian president is seeking greater Chinese support for his war effort in Ukraine.

It is Putin's first trip abroad since his March re-election and the second in just over six months to China, an economic lifeline for Russia after the West hit it with unprecedented sanctions over its military offensive in Ukraine.

Putin was greeted by Xi at a grand welcoming ceremony outside Beijing's Great Hall of the People, footage by state broadcaster CCTV showed.

In a meeting, Xi then told his 'old friend' Putin that China-Russia relations were 'conducive to peace'.

'China is ready to work with Russia to uphold fairness and justice in the world,' Xi added.

Putin, in turn, told Xi the two countries' relations were 'stabilising factors in the international arena'.

'Relations between Russia and China are not opportunistic and not directed against anyone,' Putin said, according to a Kremlin readout.

'Together, we uphold the principles of justice and a democratic world order that reflects multipolar realities and is based on international law,' he added.

Following closed-door meetings, the two leaders then signed a joint statement on deepening their countries' 'comprehensive strategic partnership', state news agency Xinhua said.

The Russian leader's arrival came hours after he hailed his country's troops for advancing on 'all fronts' on the battlefield in Ukraine, following a major new ground assault.

And the Kremlin said Russia and China had agreed to oppose 'further escalation' of the conflict in Ukraine on Thursday.

'The parties note the need to stop any steps that contribute to the prolongation of hostilities,' the Kremlin's readout of their joint statement said.

China has dismissed claims it is aiding Russia's war in Ukraine and insisted that the West is exacerbating the conflict by sending arms to Ukraine.

Xi has also rebuffed Western criticism of his country's close ties with Moscow.

But their economic partnership has come under close scrutiny from the West in recent months.

US secretary of state Antony Blinken warned China's support for Russia's 'brutal war of aggression' in Ukraine had helped Russia ramp up production of rockets, drones and tanks — while stopping short of direct arms exports.

China claims to be a neutral party in the Ukraine conflict, which it has never condemned and in which it has sought to frame itself as a mediator.

And in a statement to media following talks with Putin, Xi said the two sides agreed on the need for a 'political solution' to resolving the war.

'China's position on this issue has always been clear,' Xi said in footage broadcast by Russian TV.

That position included 'respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries' as well as 'respecting the reasonable security concerns of all sides', the Chinese leader added.

The remarks echo a paper issued by Beijing last year, which Western countries said could enable Russia to hold much of the territory it has seized in Ukraine.

China also 'looks forward to the early restoration of peace and stability on the European continent', Xi said, promising Beijing would 'continue to play a constructive role to that end'.

Putin in response said he was 'grateful' to Beijing for its efforts to help resolve the conflict.

He also referenced Beijing's complaints about growing security cooperation between the United States and its allies in Asia, warning of 'harmful' military alliances in the region.

On Thursday afternoon, the Russian leader met premier Li Qiang — China's number two official — who said Beijing was willing to 'continue to deepen cooperation in various fields'.

Putin and Xi then attended a ceremony celebrating 75 years of diplomatic relations between Moscow and Beijing, Xinhua said.

China-Russia trade has boomed since the Ukraine invasion and hit $240 billion in 2023, according to Chinese customs figures.

But after Washington vowed to go after financial institutions that facilitate Moscow, Chinese exports to Russia dipped in March and April, down from a surge early in the year.

An executive order by president Joe Biden in December permits secondary sanctions on foreign banks that deal with Russia's war machine, allowing the US Treasury to cut them out of the dollar-led global financial system.

That, coupled with recent efforts to rebuild fractured ties with the United States, may make Beijing reluctant to openly push more cooperation with Russia — despite what Moscow may want, analysts say.

Putin's post-election trip to Beijing echoes Xi's own visit to Russia after his re-anointing as leader last year.

The Russian leader is due to travel to the northeastern city of Harbin for a trade and investment expo on Friday.​

 

[Saif]

US bars imports from 26 Chinese textile companies over Uyghur forced labour

The United States blocked imports from 26 Chinese cotton traders or warehouse facilities on Thursday as part of its effort to eliminate goods made with the forced labour of Uyghur minorities from the US supply chain. The companies are the latest additions to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

US bars imports from 26 Chinese textile companies over Uyghur forced labour
REUTERS
Published :
May 16, 2024 21:29
Updated :
May 16, 2024 21:29

The United States blocked imports from 26 Chinese cotton traders or warehouse facilities on Thursday as part of its effort to eliminate goods made with the forced labour of Uyghur minorities from the US supply chain.

The companies are the latest additions to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List that restricts the import of goods tied to what the US government has characterised as an ongoing genocide of minorities in China's Xinjiang region.

US officials believe Chinese authorities have established labour camps for Uyghurs and other Muslim minority groups in China's western Xinjiang region. Beijing denies any abuses.

Many of the cotton companies listed are based outside of Xinjiang but source their cotton from the region, the US Department of Homeland Security said in a statement.

The designations help "responsible companies conduct due diligence so that, together, we can keep the products of forced labour out of our country," Alejandro Mayorkas, Secretary of Homeland Security, said in the statement.

The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Washington has restricted imports from 65 entities since the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List law was passed in 2021, according to the department.

"We enthusiastically endorse DHS's action today to nearly double the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act's 'Entity List' -- while recognizing that the current list remains only a fraction of the businesses complicit in forced labor," Rep. Chris Smith and Sen. Jeff Merkley, chairs of the bipartisan Congressional-Executive Commission on China said in a statement.

The lawmakers want DHS to blacklist Chinese companies in the polysilicon, aluminum, PVC and rayon industries and any company in other parts of Asia making goods for the US market with inputs sourced from Xinjiang.​

 

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China should sell its cars in Pakistan to break the Japanese monopoly on the car market.

 

[Saif]

China offers to buy up commercial housing to boost property market

China cut the minimum down payment rate for first-time homebuyers on Friday and suggested the government could buy up commercial real estate, in some of Beijing’s most ambitious moves yet to lift the ailing housing market out of an unprecedented debt crisis...

www.newagebd.net

China offers to buy up commercial housing to boost property market
Agence France-Presse . Beijing 17 May, 2024, 22:45

A worker rides a bicycle past a housing complex under construction in Beijing on Friday. China cut the minimum down payment rate for first-time homebuyers on Friday and suggested the government could buy up commercial real estate, in some of Beijing's most ambitious moves yet to lift the ailing housing market out of an unprecedented debt crisis.

China cut the minimum down payment rate for first-time homebuyers on Friday and suggested the government could buy up commercial real estate, in some of Beijing's most ambitious moves yet to lift the ailing housing market out of an unprecedented debt crisis.

Property and construction accounts for more than a quarter of gross domestic product, but the sector has been under unprecedented strain since 2020, when authorities tightened developers' access to credit in a bid to reduce mounting debt.

Since then, major companies including China Evergrande and Country Garden have teetered, while falling prices have dissuaded consumers from investing in property.

Under mounting pressure to boost the ailing market and ensure millions of unused homes go to those in need of housing, Beijing convened a video conference Friday, state news agency Xinhua said.

Friday's meeting was attended by regulators, representatives of top banks, local governments and the property market, Bloomberg News reported.

'Great efforts should be made to promote the handling of commercial housing projects classified as under construction that have been sold and are facing difficulties to deliver,' vice-premier He Lifeng told the meeting, according to state media.

'In cities where there is a large inventory of commercial housing, the government can place orders and purchase some of the commercial housing at reasonable prices as appropriate to use as affordable housing,' he added.

No details were provided on how many houses would be bought.

'Relevant local governments should... properly handle transferred idle residential properties through retaking, acquisition... to help housing companies with financial difficulties solve their challenges,' He said.

State media also reported, citing the central bank and the National Financial Regulatory Administration, that they would cut the minimum down payment rate for first-time homebuyers to 15 per cent, one of the country's lowest-ever rates.

The rate will be cut to 25 per cent for second-home purchases, it added.

The moves are some of Beijing's most ambitious yet in seeking to reverse a chronic crisis in the housing market.

'This is the lowest down payment requirement and the lowest mortgage interest rate in history,' Yan Yuejin, research director of the Yiju Research Institute, told AFP.

'These policies send very bullish signals and will be very helpful in boosting market moods,' he added.

'We are very optimistic about the potential effects they will have on boosting the real estate market.'

During a State Council briefing Friday afternoon attended by officials from the housing ministry as well as those from China's top regulator and its central bank, officials pointed to 'significant difficulties' in the market.

'Significant changes have taken place in the supply and demand dynamics of the property market,' said Dong Jianguo, deputy head of China's housing ministry, adding that the sector 'is in the process of adjustment'.

The briefing also saw central bank deputy governor Tao Ling announce that the government would set up a loan scheme for low-income housing totalling over $41 billion.

Shares in Chinese developers have rallied in Hong Kong in recent days on hopes of fresh support for the sector.

Jeff Zhang, an analyst at Morningstar Inc. in Hong Kong, told Bloomberg Friday's move was 'unexpected and positive for property stocks'.

Agile Group soared 23 per cent and Fantasia added 8.3 per cent Friday, while Sino-Ocean Group and CIFI Holdings each gained more than 12 per cent.

Longfor Group added 10 per cent and China Vanke piled on 19 per cent each, having jumped 15 per cent and 16 per cent respectively on Thursday, according to Bloomberg News.

The meeting comes as official figures Friday showed that property prices and sales in the country continued to slip in April.

Further economic data showed that industrial production picked up last month, but consumption continued to slow.

China on Friday also issued around $5.5 billion in ultra-long treasury bonds, Xinhua said, the first batch of a planned sale of nearly $140 billion in such bonds this year.

Measures introduced by the central government to support the sector have so far had little effect.

But HSBC economists wrote in a note that, with Friday's announcement: 'China's property stabilisation plan is underway.'

'The quicker and bolder the intervention plan, the more effective it will be, in our view,' they said.​

 

[Saif]

US tariffs on Chinese EVs hurt green transition: XPeng boss

The president of Chinese electric vehicle maker XPeng on Friday criticised the fresh tariffs on Chinese cars imposed by Washington as ‘unfavourable’ for the United States’ energy transition...

www.newagebd.net

US tariffs on Chinese EVs hurt green transition: XPeng boss
Agence France-Presse . Hong Kong 17 May, 2024, 22:28

The president of Chinese electric vehicle maker XPeng on Friday criticised the fresh tariffs on Chinese cars imposed by Washington as 'unfavourable' for the United States' energy transition.

US president Joe Biden announced earlier this week the quadrupling of customs duties on Chinese electric cars to 100 per cent, which China slammed as politicising an economic issue and a breach of World Trade Organisation rules.

XPeng president and vice-chairman Brian Gu said at an event in Hong Kong on Friday that the levies will lead to 'higher costs and slower product iteration', hampering the US's green energy ambitions.

'For an auto market as important and large as the US, they would want to have carbon-neutral, green energy transition,' Gu told reporters. 'The tariffs are unfavourable to its own climate and energy transition.'

'I hope one day it can become more open, so that products all over the world can compete there.'

XPeng - which sold more than 1,40,000 cars last year - is not directly impacted by the tariffs as it does not sell in the US, he added.

Gu's comments came a day after XPeng announced its launch in France and Germany, with plans to expand to the United Kingdom, Spain and Italy before the end of 2024.

Asked if he was concerned that the European Union will mirror American tariffs, Gu told AFP that XPeng would press ahead with its global strategy and not be limited as a China-only EV manufacturer.

Europe's anti-subsidy investigation into Chinese EVs had 'gone on for some time' but there is 'nothing conclusive', he said.

Founded in 2014, the Guangzhou-headquartered EV manufacturer said on Thursday it will market its premium SUV models in France, with prices starting at $65,200.

The company's senior product planning expert Alan Ma, said XPeng plans to introduce smaller SUVs to the French market in future.

'In France, we can see that smaller cars are more popular... We will fully consider the needs of the French market and bring in smaller models to suit French buyers,' Ma told AFP.​