Day: April 5, 2024

China’s overcapacity results from state interference in markets, say analysts

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washington —  U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is on a five-day visit to China, where she expressed concern to Chinese officials Friday about state subsidies that fuel manufacturing overcapacity in industries such as electric vehicles, solar panels and semiconductors. U.S. officials and economists have warned that China’s overcapacity — when its production ability significantly exceeds what is needed in markets — will further drive down prices and cost jobs, especially if China seeks to offload excess production through exports instead of domestic consumption. U.S. President Joe Biden, in a phone…

Chinese archaeologists reconstruct face of sixth century emperor using new DNA technique – and find new clues to his death

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Ancient texts have given rise to speculation he died from poison – either accidentally through taking toxic substances as an elixir or deliberately at the hands of an enemy. This theory received some backing after his bones were rediscovered in 1996 and were later found to contain a larger than normal amount of arsenic, news portal The Paper reported last month. His femur also showed evidence of poisoning-related necrosis. However, a thorough analysis of the emperor’s DNA obtained from his limb bones by a team led by researchers from Fudan…

US official urges China to address ‘industrial overcapacity’

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washington —  U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen called on China Friday to address its industrial overcapacity, reform its trade practices and create a “healthy economic relationship” with the United States. “The United States seeks a healthy economic relationship with China that benefits both sides,” Yellen said in remarks in the industrial southern Chinese city of Guangzhou. “But a healthy relationship must provide a level playing field for firms and workers in both countries.” Yellen also met with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng and other high-level central bank officials Friday. During…

China pushing to break down payment barriers for visitors, with 90,000 overseas buyers set to flock to Canton Fair

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With foreigners still struggling to obtain change for cash transactions, or even pay for museum tickets electronically, officials are seeking to make life easier for the 93,000 buyers from over 200 countries that will attend the upcoming edition of China’s largest trade fair. Tackling payment issues of foreign traders is a small, but important part of Beijing’s broader efforts to bring down barriers for foreigners in a bid to attract global tourists and businesses, as it is closely related to China’s trade prospects and post-pandemic rebound amid a set of…

Sri Lankans present rare Buddha relics to the Dalai Lama

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A delegation of Sri Lankan Buddhists on Thursday presented relics of the Buddha to the Dalai Lama at his home in Dharamsala, India, in a gesture that was celebrated by hundreds of Tibetans who lined the streets with silk scarves and flowers. The relics – fragments of the Buddha’s bones and teeth – have immense historical and spiritual significance, connecting Buddhist worshippers to the legacy of Buddha, a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived during the 6th and 5th centuries BCE and whose teachings formed the key tenets of…

Global tourism is recovering, but for Asia it’s a mixed bag at best

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But behind the headlines, the story is more complex – and for many worldwide, rather less encouraging. For countries like China, it is a story of a “swift and sound” recovery in domestic tourism, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), and of “tepid and partial growth” in international travel last year. In Europe, by far the world’s largest tourism market, it is a story of strong recovery. Across Asia, the story is anaemic at best. And it is a story of new tourism markets and travel patterns, with much…

Chinese delegation in Myanmar in bid to end conflict in western Rakhine state

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A Chinese delegation has traveled to Myanmar in a bid to end the conflict between the junta and the Arakan Army in western Rakhine state, Beijing’s envoy to the United Nations said Thursday, but observers suggest there will be no peace unless the military regime makes significant concessions. In November, the Arakan Army, or AA, ended a ceasefire agreement with the military that had been in place since the military seized control of Myanmar in a February 2021 coup.  Since then, the ethnic army has dealt junta forces a series…

Terraform Labs and Do Kwon found liable for fraud in SEC case

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Stay informed with free updates Simply sign up to the Cryptocurrencies myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox. A New York jury has found Terraform Labs and its co-founder Do Kwon liable for defrauding cryptocurrency investors as part of a scheme that allegedly triggered a $40bn loss in market value. The civil verdict, handed down after a nine-day trial in Manhattan federal court, is a win for the US Securities and Exchange Commission as the regulator has unleashed a crackdown on the cryptocurrency sector. The SEC last year sued…

Student leader who had spoken up in land dispute detained

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In two separate incidents, Cambodian police on Friday arrested the leader of a student organization and a senior opposition party activist in the latest examples of clampdowns on critics of the government or official policies. Koet Saray, who spoke to reporters last month in defense of a group of 100 villagers who recently fled to a forest in northern Cambodia, was pushed into a car by about 10 police officers at the offices of the Khmer Student Intelligent League Association. It was unclear what charges were being brought against Koet…

Suspected food poisoning in Vietnam leaves 1 student dead, nearly 40 hospitalized

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In a case of suspected food poisoning in Vietnam, an elementary school student died after eating breakfast at an eatery in front of her school on Friday, while about three dozen other pupils who did the same fell ill and had to be hospitalized, officials said. The fifth-grader who died had fainted inside Vinh Truong Primary School in the southern city of Nha Trang at about 6:55 a.m., according to the city’s People’s Committee. School staff quickly administered first aid and called an emergency number for assistance. The student was…