Tag: china

Equities and crude drop as China hit by protests

Hong Kong, China (AFP) Stocks and oil prices sank Monday on concerns about protests across China calling for political freedoms and an end to the government’s hardline zero-Covid policy, fuelling uncertainty in the world’s number-two economy. Hundreds of people took to the streets at the weekend in the country’s biggest demonstrations since pro-democracy rallies in 1989 were crushed. A deadly fire in the Xinjiang region on Thursday served as the catalyst for the public anger, […]

Debt-hit developer China Evergrande sells land for $1 bn

Beijing, China | AFP | Embattled property giant China Evergrande has sold land earlier earmarked for its headquarters in the southern tech hub Shenzhen for $1 billion, according to an official document, as it fights for survival. The real estate behemoth has been involved in restructuring negotiations after racking up $300 billion in liabilities following Beijing’s crackdown on excessive debt and rampant speculation in the property sector. The 10,377-square-metre (111,700-square-foot) land in Nanshan district was sold […]

China censors rare, nationwide protests

by Matthew Walsh, with Jing Xuan Teng in Beijing Agence France-Presse SHANGHAI, China (AFP) — China’s censors were working Monday to extinguish signs of rare, social media-driven protests that flared across major cities over the weekend calling for political freedoms and an end to Covid lockdowns. Sunday saw people take to the streets in several major cities across China to call for an end to lockdowns and greater political freedoms, in a wave of nationwide […]

Xi tells Kim China willing to work with N.Korea for ‘world peace’: KCNA

SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — Chinese President Xi Jinping told North Korean leader Kim Jong Un that Beijing was willing to work with Pyongyang for world peace, North Korean state media said Saturday. The message from Xi came days after North Korea fired an intercontinental ballistic missile in one of its most powerful tests yet, declaring it would meet perceived US nuclear threats with nukes of its own. North Korea has conducted a record-breaking blitz […]

Canada unveils new Asia-Pacific strategy with eye on China

Canada on Sunday unveiled its new economic and diplomatic strategy for the Asia-Pacific region, allocating 2.3 billion Canadian dollars (US$1.7 billion) over the next five years to the plan aimed at mitigating risks posed by China. The government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has based its strategy on five major planks: promoting peace and security, notably by sending a warship to the region; bolstering trade and investment; boosting “feminist international assistance”; financing sustainable infrastructure; and […]

‘Long live the people!’ Beijingers gather for frigid anti-lockdown rally

Beijing, China (AFP) by Laurie CHEN One by one Beijingers braved the cold Sunday night after word of a rally spread on social media — a RALLYfor the victims of a deadly fire as well as a protest against China’s harsh Covid-19 restrictions. Within hours, hundreds had gathered on the banks of Liangma river in near freezing temperatures, an AFP journalist at the scene saw, many holding blank white papers — a symbolic protest against […]

China arrests BBC journalist covering Covid protests

London, United Kingdom (AFP) The BBC said on Sunday one of its journalists in China had been arrested and beaten by police while covering protests against the country’s zero-Covid policy. Hundreds of people took to the streets in China’s major cities on Sunday in a rare outpouring of public anger against the state. “The BBC is extremely concerned about the treatment of our journalist Ed Lawrence, who was arrested and handcuffed while covering the protests […]

UK clamps down on Chinese surveillance cameras

LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — UK government departments were ordered Thursday to stop installing Chinese-made surveillance cameras at “sensitive sites”, drawing a strong rebuke from one of the companies targeted. The move comes with the government moving more forcefully against China and its companies on security grounds. Last week it ordered a Chinese-owned firm to divest most of Newport Wafer Fab, Britain’s biggest semiconductor maker. According to the campaign group Big Brother Watch, most public […]

China’s ‘iPhone city’ tightens Covid rules after violent protests

  Beijing, China  (AFP) China has ordered six million people into lockdown in a city where violent protests broke out at an iPhone factory over Covid isolation policies and working conditions. Hundreds of workers took to the streets around the vast iPhone factory in Zhengzhou on Wednesday, confronting hazmat-clad personnel wielding batons in a rare display of public anger in China. In the wake of the unrest, Zhengzhou authorities ordered mass testing and an effective […]

China’s ‘iPhone city’ tightens Covid rules after violent protests

BEIJING, China (AFP) — China has ordered six million people into lockdown in a city where violent protests broke out at an iPhone factory over Covid isolation policies and working conditions. Hundreds of workers took to the streets around the vast iPhone factory in Zhengzhou on Wednesday, confronting hazmat-clad personnel wielding batons in a rare display of public anger in China. In the wake of the unrest, Zhengzhou authorities ordered mass testing and an effective […]

Singapore warns slower economic growth in 2023

SINGAPORE, Singapore (AFP) – Singapore warned on Wednesday that economic growth could slow to a trickle next year owing to weakness in key export markets including the United States, Europe and China, as rising interest rates and the Ukraine war cause headwinds. The city-state’s economic performance is often seen as a useful barometer of the global environment because of its reliance on trade with the rest of the world. The trade ministry said it expected growth […]

Protests erupt at largest iPhone factory in China

BEIJING, China (AFP) – Large-scale protests broke out at Foxconn’s vast iPhone factory in Zhengzhou, central China, images circulating on Weibo and Twitter on Wednesday showed. Videos showed hundreds of workers marching on a road in daylight, with some being confronted by a row of people in hazmat suits and riot police. Another clip from a livestream video showed dozens of workers at night confronting a row of police officers and a police vehicle with flashing […]