News that caught our eye / The week ending May 9, 2025
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.
China's EV battery waste boom sparks gold rush in recycling sector / May 6, 2025
As EV use and solar panel production become more mainstream, the eventual disintegration of car batteries and solar panels will call for a new recycling industry to prevent pollution, but more importantly, to circle important materials, including rare earth minerals, back into the supply chain, providing another source of those important materials. In China and India, this is already happening (Business Standard).
The Open University of China Holds a System-Wide Youth Collaborative Learning Event / May 7, 2025
To celebrate China’s May 4th Youth Day holiday, the Open University of China (OUC) held a conference touting youths who shared their stories of hard work, achievement, and personal growth, all to encourage other youths to dedicate themselves to make China a leader in education. The conference focused on “Serving the Development of a Learning Society” and received over 500,000 views online (OUC).
Tourist boats capsize in sudden storm in southwest China, leaving 10 dead / May 5, 2025
A sudden storm was likely the cause of four tourist boats capsizing in the Wu River in a popular tourist area in the Guizhou province in southwestern China on Sunday afternoon. Ten people perished and about 70 were sent to hospitals for mostly minor injuries. President Xi urged first responders to do all they could to find the missing. He also called for better safety measures at tourist attractions (AP News).
Xi to visit Russia for Victory Day and talks with Putin / May 4, 2025
President Xi Jinping will visit Moscow for the May 9th celebration of the end of World War II and Russia’s defeat of Nazi Germany. Xi will be in Russia from May 7th through the 10th. While there, he will discuss the two countries’ strategic alliance, sign documents, and observe the important Russian holiday (Reuters).
Xi Jinping’s Moscow visit highlights China’s strategic vulnerabilities / May 5, 2025
As President Xi Jinping stands alongside President Putin this weekend in Moscow as Russia celebrates its victory over Germany at the end of World War II, Xi’s partnership with an autocrat invading another country—Ukraine—will not look good on Xi’s claim to other countries that China is a stabilizing force among nations. Russia’s recent increased relations with North Korea may also spell trouble for China (Brookings).
Vietnam opposes China, Philippines acts on disputed South China Sea reef / May 3, 2025
Vietnam sent diplomatic complaints to both China and the Philippines after China announced it had docked one of its ships in Sandy Cay, a part of the Spratly Islands. The Philippines also sent a ship to investigate but did not find any ship there. Vietnam claims Sandy Cay as its own, but four other countries have claims in the Spratly Islands region, too, so they are stepping on each other’s toes (Reuters).
Japan and China trade accusations of airspace violation near disputed islands / May 4, 2025
At a time when Japan and China were warming up to each other against the cold winds of Trump’s tariff war, the two countries lodged complaints against the other for violating the airspace over the islands known to the Japanese as the Senkaku Islands, and to the Chinese as the Diaoyu Islands in the South China Sea. But the Japanese plane was a civilian aircraft, not a military one (AP News).
Trump says he will not drop tariffs to get China to the negotiating table / May 4, 2025
In a “Meet the Press” interview on Saturday, President Trump said he will not lower tariffs against China in order to bring them to the negotiating table. Trump did say that he also doesn’t want China making billions of dollars off of US trade. He also said he is willing to endure a recession if the ultimate result of the tariff war is a booming US economy (Fox News).
Temu halts China shipments to US as tariff exemption ends / May 2, 2025
An executive order by President Trump that ended the “de minimis” loophole went into effect on Friday, slapping inexpensive goods under $800 in value with tariffs from which the “loophole” had previously protected such goods. Consequently, Temu stopped shipping products from China, telling its US stores to obtain product locally (Axios).
Ports brace for the impact of tariffs as shipments from China drop drastically / May 4, 2025
West Coast ports in the US are bracing for the impact of Trump’s tariff war, especially against China, as they plan to start seeing fewer ships coming into their ports starting this month; the situation will worsen the longer the trade war goes on. That causes a ripple effect in job layoffs, beginning at the ports and extending to truckers, logistics planners, warehouse workers, store workers, and likely, empty shelves (NPR).
In the trade war with the US, China holds a lot more cards than Trump may think / May 4, 2025
China has many more options to defend itself and respond to President Trump’s current tariff war than it had in 2018 during President Trump’s first term. Its sluggish economy may be numb enough to weather any further strikes against it. China can—and has—blocked the export of rare earth minerals needed by US tech and military companies. And China can recruit more trading partners if it can make the US look like the agitator (Yahoo News).
India worried about Chinese 'dumping' as trade tensions with Trump escalate / May 6, 2025
Textile mills in India have begun to slow down their production because Chinese imports of the same type of yarn the Indian mills produce is available at a cheaper cost, cutting under the Indian mills’ profit margin. Many industries in India and Southeast Asia are deeply concerned about China’s dumping of its excess products into their economies at lower prices, which was already happening before President Trump even started his second term (BBC).
Global economy already feeling drag from Trump tariffs / May 5, 2025
Businesses, economic forecasters, and governments all over the world are downsizing their sales targets and growth outlooks as President Trump’s tariffs have shocked economies worldwide. Trump’s unwillingness to be concrete and transparent about what he’ll do with his tariffs adds further anxiety to the global market. One bright spot: India may be a good alternative hub for products that Americans want, at least, for the short term (Reuters).
These Chinese-made products could soon be hard to find in the U.S. / May 6, 2025
As the US imports around 70% of toys, games, sports equipment, and even things like down feathers from China, those items may be hard to find as the back-to-school and holiday shopping seasons get underway later this year. Additionally, items like shoes, cutlery, and glassware may also be hard to find (CBS News).
Protests erupt in China after furious workers demand back pay / May 6, 2025
Beginning already at the end of the COVID pandemic, protests in China have been ongoing over the plight of the Chinese economy. But now, some hi-rise construction workers have threatened to throw themselves off the unfinished buildings they are working on if they don’t get paid; factories have shut down without notice or compensation, so the employees went on strike (New York Post).
US and China to start talks over trade war this week / May 7, 2025
Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng and US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and US Trade Representative (USTR) Jamieson Greer will meet this week in Geneva to begin talks to resolve the trade war begun by President Trump in an attempt to make trade with China better for the US. Experts on the issue advise that any resolution will not appear this weekend; in fact, it could take months or even a year (BBC).
Can China and America resolve their trade differences in Geneva? / May 7, 2025
China and the US have been playing “chicken” lately, both refusing to be the first to bend in the ongoing trade war. But, alas, it appears both countries have representatives who will be in Geneva, Switzerland, at the same time this week, so, they will meet to talk. With its economy suffering, China doesn’t hold a strong position at the bargaining table, but the US is also caught between potential stagnation and inflation (ABC News—Australia).
Standing in the True Light—one man’s journey into the Eastern Orthodox Church / May 5, 2025
Chinese scholar and theologian, Mark Shan, found something deeper than his Protestant house-church faith when he stepped into a Russian Orthodox church outside of Boston in 2019. Moved by the architecture, ambiance, icons, and history in that church, he later adopted a mystic tradition known as Hesychasm, a philosophy that makes a “distinction between God’s essence and energy.” Now he introduces Chinese Christians to “Russian Orthodox spirituality” so that others can deepen their spiritual walk (ChinaSource).