Conductor Zheng Xiaoying [Xinhua]
Dear readers,
Gisela Cernadas shared some comments on the Chinese economy in her weekly appearance on Barricada TV in Argentina (in Spanish).
Marco Fernandes participated in Li Jingjing’s Talk it out program (in English) where he gave his opinion on Lula da Silva’s victory in Brazil and the future of relations with China.
– Dongsheng Editorial Collective
Geopolitics
Lula’s victory in Brazil will help strengthen ties with China and BRICS countries, analysts say
Xi congratulated Lula and stated his willingness to raise the strategic partnership to a new level, where trade between China and Brazil hit a record of R$694.2 billion (US$135 billion) in 2021; analysts understand that, with the new scenario, BRICS may resume their role as a counterweight to American hegemony
Report assesses world views on China, Russia, and the United States after the war in Ukraine
Among the 1.2 billion people in the world’s so-called liberal democracies, 75% have a negative view of China, but among the 6.3 billion people in the rest of the world, 70% see China positively; for the first time, more people from the Global South, favor China (62%) than the US (61%)
National Politics
Communist Party of China inducts more cadres with science and technology expertise into the Central Committee, Politburo, and military
Facing increasing US sanctions – with the most recent one on advanced chip technology – government seeks to achieve technological self-sufficiency; at least six new Politburo members specialize in industries such as aerospace, weapons, and nuclear power, while 98.9% of the Central Committee have a university degree
Government issues new regulations to support self-employed workers, accounting for 111 million enterprises and 300 million jobs
COVID-19 and low consumption are impacting these enterprises that are key to stabilizing the economy, with nearly 60% facing serious economic problems, and 80% earning an average of less than 10,000 yuan (US$1,374) per month; new measures reinforce fiscal easing and financial support
Economy
Yuan became the fifth most traded currency in the world in April 2022, jumping from eighth place in 2019, but still far behind the dollar and the euro
Trading in yuan now accounts for 7% of global foreign exchange volume, up from 4% in 2019, and global use of the currency is largely oriented toward international trade; meanwhile, the US dollar exchange rate remained stable at 88.5%, the Japanese yen at 16.8%, and the pound sterling at 12.8%, while the euro fell two points to 30.5%*
*The sum of the exchange rate negotiations is 200% and not 100%, because it takes into account the two currencies used in each operation
Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) slipped into contraction zone* in October due to more frequent Covid-19 outbreaks and rising costs
The index stood at 49.2, down from 50.1 in September, while the five sub-indices that make up the manufacturing PMI (output, new orders, raw material stocks, employment, and supplier delivery time) showed deceleration in demand and output due to rising raw material prices; construction PMI fell two points but remained high at 58.2
*PMI above 50 indicates expansion of economic activity, and below 50, contraction
Agriculture and Environment
China’s agricultural sector expands 4.2% in first nine months and totals 5.48 trillion yuan (US$755 billion)
Online retail sales of agricultural products reached 374.51 billion yuan (US$51.56 billions), an increase of 8.8%; as a result of mechanisms to consolidate achievements in poverty alleviation, per capita disposable income of rural residents reached 14,600 yuan (US$2,012) in the first three quarters, an increase of 4.3%
China passed a law to protect the Yellow River, which provides water to 12% of the population, 17% of cultivated land, and over 50 cities
New legislation seeks to strengthen ecological protection, with monitoring of biodiversity, fisheries, toxic substances, and water quality; the utilization rate of water resources in this basin is 80% – well above the ecological warning of 40% – making scarcity of water resources a major problem
People’s Life and Culture
China has seen a 30% decrease in violent crimes (2013-21), as the country moves towards more lenient sentences for minor crimes
New rules increase the use of fines and probation to replace jail sentences for misdemeanors – which were often treated the same as felonies and generated excessive costs and sentences; in recent years, drunk driving and cybercrime have become criminal offenses
93-year-old Zheng Xiaoying, China’s first woman opera and symphony conductor, remains active in sharing Chinese music with the world
In her youth, she gave up her medical studies to join the Revolutionary War music troupes; she founded Xiamen Philharmonic Orchestra in 1998 to expand people’s access to opera, and has performed over 1,600 concerts and operatic works in over 20 countries in her lifetime
Zheng Xiaoying leading a group song in 1950 [CCTV]
Subscribe to News on China. The digest is published every Saturday in English, Spanish, Portuguese, and French.
Follow our social media channels:
- Twitter: @DongshengNews (English), @DongshengNewsES (Spanish), @DongshengNewsBR (Portuguese)
- Telegram: News on China, Noticias de China, Notícias da China
- Instagram: @DongshengNews
- YouTube: Dongsheng News