Day: April 19, 2024

Asia’s central bankers struggle to contain strong US dollar

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Asia’s central bankers are bracing for more turbulence from a stronger US dollar as the receding prospect of US interest rate cuts this year sends shockwaves through the yen, renminbi and other regional currencies. Policymakers in Japan, China and South Korea have all talked up the stability of their currencies in recent days as they weaken under the intense pressure of the gap between the US’s high rates and the low rates that underpin Asia’s biggest economies. Investors’ flight to higher-yielding US assets has sent the yen to a 34-year…

Fact-checker on China’s Weibo targets US Embassy, Russian state media

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washington —  This month, when a story claiming Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had secretly purchased a $24 million castle from the British royal family went viral on China’s Weibo social media platform, something interesting happened. A fake-news function on the platform debunked it as misinformation. Since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in early 2022, Chinese social media platforms have been full of pro-Russia false claims and conspiracy theories, some of which the Chinese government has endorsed. Influential Chinese nationalist bloggers, as well as Russia’s state media RT, regularly post…

China’s technology sector faces new round of lay-offs as global firms Ericsson, Tesla, Amazon and Intel continue to shed jobs

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Swedish telecommunications equipment maker Ericsson’s plans in China will involve cutting about 240 positions at its core network research and development (R&D) facility on the mainland, a company representative said in an email. Ericsson, which last month announced it was axing about 1,200 jobs in its home market, is now “diversifying [its] R&D footprint in alignment to sales”, according to the representative, who added that the company “remains committed to our customers in mainland China” and that it is not exiting the market. The firm had earlier indicated a contraction…

Taiwan’s incoming government faces tough task to win back public

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The following week, mainland Chinese coastguard troops boarded and searched a Taiwanese cruise ship near Quemoy. Two Taiwanese fishermen were also detained on March 18, one of whom was handed back. The other remains in mainland custody after being found to be a Taiwanese soldier. Given Quemoy’s proximity to the mainland, Taiwan would probably struggle to reinforce it should Beijing launch a military operation or decide to blockade it. There have been reports that US troops have been training with Taiwanese forces on outlying islands including Quemoy and Penghu, although…

FBI ‘did not intend negative impact’ of prosecuting Chinese academics with ties to Beijing under Trump-era China Initiative

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The FBI did not intend the “negative impact” that the China Initiative had on the Asian-American community and is willing to learn, said an official from the agency on Friday, addressing members of the Committee of 100, a Chinese-American civic group. The controversial initiative, enacted during the administration of former president Donald Trump, was launched in November 2018 to prosecute scientific researchers and academics with ties to China. Ostensibly aimed at stemming industrial espionage by Beijing, it was harshly criticised by Asian-American groups as racist and too willing to punish…

US calls for transparency from Cambodia over China-backed canal

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The United States is urging Cambodia to be transparent over a proposed $1.7 billion canal financed by China that is worrying Vietnam due to its potential impact on water resource management. “The Cambodian people – along with people in neighboring countries and the broader region – would benefit from transparency on any major undertaking with potential implications for regional water management, agricultural sustainability, and security,” Wesley Holzer, a U.S. embassy spokesperson in Phnom Penh, told VOA Khmer in an email on Tuesday. The proposed canal has alarmed neighboring Vietnam because…

Religious leader faces new charge in case that brought 5-year sentence

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Investigators in southern Vietnam charged the 92-year-old leader of a Buddhist community with incest on Friday after gathering evidence – including blood samples – from members of the church, state media reported. Le Tung Van of the the Peng Lei House Buddhist Church in Long An province has previously been at the center of allegations of incest, fraud and abusing freedoms. In 2022, he was sentenced to five years in prison for “abusing democratic freedoms.”  The provincial Security Investigation Agency said it launched the new case after receiving reports of…

China sees ‘opportune moment’ as it pushes for direct Russia-Ukraine talks

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Observers say Li’s trip achieved little, but that China – aiming to be a peace broker – has seen an opportunity to push for direct talks between Russia and Ukraine, with the Swiss summit the first step. Peacemaker ambitions Björn Alexander Düben, an international relations lecturer at Jilin University in northeast China, said Li was sent to Europe because Beijing saw an “opportune moment” to sway Kyiv and Brussels to make concessions amid “shaky” Western support and Ukraine’s recent setbacks on the battlefields. Russia is expanding gains in eastern Ukraine…

China seeks greater global diplomatic role but avoids the Middle East, analysts say

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“There is no desire to play a role. There’s just a desire to sit at the grown-ups’ table,” Alterman said. “China’s goal is partly to quietly enjoy the fact that the US is getting bruised here, but also to try to use the conflict in Gaza as a way to rally the Global South against the United States,” he added. Jon Alterman of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies. Photo: Handout In recent years, Beijing has intensified its diplomatic and economic outreach in the Middle East, particularly towards nations…

Japan, China bicker over Beijing’s actions in Indo-Pacific

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washington —  China is challenging Japan’s latest analysis of the threat posed to the Indo-Pacific region by Beijing as a hyped-up threat and false accusation. In the Japanese Foreign Ministry’s annual Diplomatic Bluebook that was published Tuesday, China’s military moves are described as posing “the greatest strategic challenge,” according to Japanese media. An official English version has not been published. The Bluebook reportedly condemns China’s actions in the South China Sea and its attempts to change the status quo in the East and South China Sea. At the same time,…