News that caught our eye / The week ending October 11, 2024
Tap here for our archives.
NOTE: The news reports below are not in chronological order. There is often a time lag in their reaching the US and in gaining our attention. These reports reflect the opinions of a variety of news sources.
Curated by James Getka.
Joe Biden ‘sent Xi congratulatory message’ to mark China’s 75th National Day / October 5, 2024
President Biden sent a congratulatory message to President Xi as China celebrated the 75th anniversary of its founding as the People’s Republic of China with a week-long celebration that began on October 1st. China’s foreign ministry made the announcement on Saturday, Oct. 5th but did not say when the missive had been sent. Typically, the US sends such greetings at the end of September (SCMP).
US says Taiwan speech no justification for China military pressure / October 9, 2024
Just after China celebrates the anniversary of the CCP’s rule over mainland China in the first week of October, the Republic of China in Taiwan observes its anniversary on October 10th. Taiwanese President Lai will commemorate the event with a speech, and US officials are saying there is no need for China to express its displeasure through military exercises around the island (Reuters).
Taiwan's president vows to resist 'annexation' / October 10, 2024
President Lai’s speech marking the 113th anniversary of the rule of the Republic of China on the island drew criticism from China as Lai defended his goal to uphold the island’s self-governing status. Lai’s speech was actually “softer” than previous speeches where he took a more aggressive tone against Chinese aggression toward Taiwan (BBC).
Chinese hackers breached US court wiretap systems / October 6, 2024
US telecom companies’ networks may have been breached by Chinese hackers according to a Wall Street Times report, exposing sensitive information. China’s foreign ministry denied knowledge of the incident and claimed that the report was another “false narrative” created by the US to disrupt international dialogue (Reuters).
Frustrated with US, Argentina's Milei seeks rapprochement with China / October 5, 2024
Argentina’s President Javier Milei was once critical of China and its aggressive stance on the global stage, but now he appears to be interested in what China has to offer his country economically. The change in perspective may be due to a deal brokered with China regarding currency swap contracts and China’s insistence that Milei attend the next China-CELAC Forum (Yahoo Finance).
China Stock Skepticism Gets Louder as World-Beating Run Extends / October 7, 2024
While China’s stock markets have enjoyed a hefty rebound in the last few weeks, fueled by new stimuli from the CCP, global fund managers are skeptical that the rebound is solid because many stocks may now be over-inflated, these stimuli are not enough to correct all the problems in the economy, and the economy is still fragile and could revert again if something goes wrong (Yahoo Finance).
China stock rally fizzles as stimulus news disappoints / October 8, 2024
Investors were disappointed in the government’s announcement on Tuesday regarding its next plans to boost the economy, causing the recent rally in Chinese stocks to cool. The government plans to pour more money into the economy but it isn’t enough according to some investors (BBC).
China’s ultra-wealthy are fleeing and taking $1 trillion with them / October 8, 2024
China has seen an exodus of the ultra-rich, not just over the last few years, but almost for the last decade. President Xi and the CCP’s “common prosperity” program of wealth redistribution and the government’s crackdown on “corruption” are among the reasons for the flight as the wealthy even resort to illegal means to get their money out of the country (news.com.au).
Why civil engineering students are disappearing from China’s top universities / October 7, 2024
China’s housing crisis started with too much debt and an overabundance of housing units. Then construction halted and there were too many construction workers, resulting in layoffs. Now, university civil engineering programs are downsizing or even closing as students choose different careers or transfer out of engineering to other disciplines (SCMP).
China says two citizens killed, one injured in Pakistan ‘terrorist attack’ / October 7, 2024
The Chinese Embassy in Pakistan reported that two Chinese citizens were killed and a third was wounded last Sunday night by an IED set off by a group called the BLA, the Balochistan Liberation Army. The BLA has been banned in Pakistan, yet still has committed other acts of violence in its fight for autonomy in Pakistan’s Balochistan Province (Al Jazeera).