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Geopolitics
In a phone call with Zelensky, Xi says China will send special representative for Eurasian affairs to visit Ukraine
China’s president said his country will not be a spectator of the crisis, nor will it put wood on the fire, much less use the crisis as an opportunity for profit; Ukrainian President Zelensky welcomed China’s role in seeking the restoration of peace and a diplomatic solution to the crisis
China continues to increase its exports to the Global South, which in March again exceeded exports to Japan, Europe, and the US combined
The trend that began in 2022 has deepened in the first three months of the year; China is investing heavily in energy, mineral resources, and rail transport across Asia, with exports to Central Asia up 55% year-on-year in March
Amidst strengthening relations with the five Central Asian countries, China is preparing to hold the C+C5 Summit in Shaanxi province in May
China’s foreign trade volume with the countries in this region increased by 40% from 2021 to 2022, reaching US$70.2 billion, while the value of China’s investments in these nations was about US$970 million; Beijing wants construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway project to begin as soon as possible
National Politics
The Cyberspace Administration of China published a draft with regulations for Artificial Intelligence services such as ChatGPT
The measures aim to regulate content moderation, security, and algorithmic transparency, and that the content generated is in line with socialist values; the measure will come into force later this year, once the public consultation that began in April is over
Economy
For the first time, yuan surpasses dollar as the most used currency in China’s international transactions
In March, the dollar’s share in China’s international payments and receipts fell to 46.7% (from 48.6% in February), while the yuan hit a record high equivalent to US$549.9 million, reaching 48.4% of the total; increased use of the yuan is largely attributed to China’s expanding trade and investment relations with other countries
Changshu City to start pilot program to pay public employees with digital yuan starting in May
In development since 2014, e-CNY could eventually replace physical cash in China and reduce the country’s dependence on the dollar; central government says the digital currency will help protect people’s privacy because electronic payment platforms will no longer have access to transaction information
Agriculture and Environment
China aims to increase soybean and oilseed planting areas by more than 666,000 hectares this year to ensure supply
The country imports more than 80% of the soybeans it consumes, with Brazil being the largest import source accounting for nearly 60% in 2022, while the US came in second with 32.42%; the government’s goal is to increase national soybean production by 5kg per mu (0.0667 hectares)
From green tea waste, Chinese researchers develop source of cheaper, healthier alternative protein
Research has potential to diversify alternative protein market, which largely uses soy or wheat, for which Asia relies heavily on Western imports; one ton of tea waste can generate about 400kgs of protein at a cost of 2,000 to 3,000 yuan per ton (US$435), almost 50% cheaper than producing protein from soybeans
Science and Technology
Chinese scientists successfully test real-time wireless transmission using 6G technology for the first time
Although 6G cellular networks are far from becoming a reality, the experiment achieved a speed of 100GB per second in a 10GHz bandwidth and in the future it is expected that peak speeds using 6G will reach one terabit (1,000GB) per second; the technology used was terahertz waves, which allows more information to be transported at higher speeds
CATL unveiled a condensed matter battery that could power electric passenger aircraft and will be mass-produced this year
The new battery will have an energy density of 500 Wh/kg, almost double that of one of Tesla’s most powerful batteries and, for the company, “will usher in an era of universal electrification”; the Chinese company, which is the world’s largest battery producer, will also produce condensed matter batteries for electric vehicles later this year
People’s Life and Culture
Journey to the West, a low-budget Chinese sci-fi film, wins critical acclaim and international festival recognition
The mockumentary-style film follows a group of characters searching for aliens and intertwines mystery, comedy, and road trip movie genres; it is inspired by a 16th-century Ming Dynasty novel and will have a limited release in Europe and the United States
A scene from Journey to the West
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