Mainland Media Presses for Hukou Reform

Mar. 2 – Thirteen mainland Chinese newspapers have jointly issued front page stories pressing for immediate reform of the national hukou system, in an unusual show of the central government being placed under political pressure by its own media.

The hukou system was introduced in the 1950s and limits travel by rural workers to urban areas. It was originally planned to help rebuild the local economy from the grass roots up following the devastation of the World War II and the Chinese Civil War and to assist the Communist Party to manage labor resources. In recent years it has also helped prevent mass migration from rural areas to wealthy cities such as Shenzhen, which would not be able to cope with millions of relatively poor migrant workers descending upon it. Read the rest of this entry »

Happy Chinese New Year from China Briefing

Hunchun: China’s Gateway to Eastern Russia and North Korea

Feb. 9 – As investment costs begin to increase in China, the need for new markets have also risen leading to interesting cities to develop as strategic trading hubs. One such example is the Chinese city of Hunchun lying in Eastern Jilin Province, a few miles from the Russian and North Korean border.

The Hunchun investment guide is now available as a free PDF download for China Briefing subscribers. It contains overviews of the city from Liang Li of Peking University, Si Zhang of Cornell University, and Zhao Deyu of Boston University. It contains demographical details of trade, commerce, salaries and related data on cross-border trade between Hunchun, North Korea and Russia and was produced by the Greater Tumen Initiative. Read the rest of this entry »

Latest China Census to Include Expats

SHANGHAI, Jan. 18 – For the first time ever, foreigners including those from Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan will be accounted for by China’s national population census beginning November 1 in Shanghai.

Census workers will scour the city and collect information on the age, nationality, level of education, profession and population migration of foreign residents. For Chinese citizens, marriage, housing, income and social security information will be asked as well. Read the rest of this entry »

Shanghai Expo 2010: The Swedish Pavilion

The 2010 World Exposition in Shanghai will be the first registered one in a developing country. Officially known as “Expo Shanghai 2010,” it will last 184 days and provide China an opportunity to show off its remarkable economic growth. The expo will also give foreign nations and companies a chance to further develop business partnerships with China and Chinese companies. This is the tenth in an ongoing series that will look at the upcoming expo, from country pavilions to trade development. In this article, we take a look at the Swedish Pavilion. Read the rest of this entry »

Is America Stuffed Full of Chinese Products?

Op/Ed Commentary: Chris Devonshire-Ellis

Jan. 8 – I have spent two of the last three months in the United States, mostly on business trips. Taking in New York (twice), Chicago, Miami, Austin and San Francisco (also twice), several things are clear. One is that the U.S. recession is not across the board, as in certain areas, especially in added value such as the tech sector, U.S. businesses are booming. The recession has not affected all aspects of the U.S. economy.

What has been telling, however, is the difference in perception over the need for America to continue to purchase cheap imported goods. Several times, and in different cities, a newer picture began to emerge that has major implications for exports to the United States. On numerous occasions I was told “American households are stuffed full of Chinese products. We simply can’t buy anymore.” While that would appear a generalization, it is an attitude that is worth examining. Read the rest of this entry »

Hong Kong Schools with English Curriculums Face Applications Flood

HONG KONG, Jan. 7 – The 16 schools in Hong Kong that have opted to switch from a fully Chinese language curriculum to a fully English one are facing a flood of applications from parents.

English was taken off the Hong Kong curriculum as a mandatory subject shortly after the handover of Hong Kong to China, and the subject has been focal point of much political and economic commentary ever since. However, despite the government not altering its stance over reintroducing English as a mandatory subject, increasing numbers of schools have been opting to include it in their curriculum. Read the rest of this entry »

Shanghai Expo 2010: The Norwegian Pavilion

The 2010 World Exposition in Shanghai will be the first registered one in a developing country. Officially known as “Expo Shanghai 2010,” it will last 184 days and provide China an opportunity to show off its remarkable economic growth. The expo will also give foreign nations and companies a chance to further develop business partnerships with China and Chinese companies. This is the ninth in an ongoing series that will look at the upcoming expo, from country pavilions to trade development. In this article, we take a look at the Norwegian Pavilion. Read the rest of this entry »

American RMB Concerns and 1997’s Currency Speculation

By Chris Devonshire-Ellis

Dec. 14 – While the United States continues to mutter darkly about the position of the Chinese RMB against the U.S. dollar, claiming that the strength of the Yuan is protecting Chinese manufacturing at the expense of the U.S. economy, political analysts may wish to reflect upon the behavior of U.S.-based hedge funds and currency speculators back in 1997 and their role in the Asian Financial crisis.

While much of the crisis was caused by overbuilding and extension of easy credit to Asian economies ahead of their capability to pay, currency speculators in their droves, most notably lead by George Soros, effectively bet against several Asian currencies and their ability to hold onto their then U.S. dollar peg. The avarice of U.S. speculators at the time – now regarded as a contentious theory, and not fully proven – certainly seemed to assist the meltdown as I recall events. Read the rest of this entry »

From the Edge: The Sweet Smell of Success (China Version)

From the Edge is the collected memories and experiences of an old China hand and will run in an irregular series of articles on this site over the next couple of months.

By I.B. Bogard

Dec. 11 – If I may continue with my business chronicles of misdemeanors, mistakes, misadventures and general misbehaving from a variety of commercial experiences in this fair land of the Middle Kingdom.

I have spoken before about the hazards of IPR issues in China and the following story will, I hope, give the reader some idea of the machinations, intrigue, internationalization and downright innovativeness of some of the more imaginative escapades involving IPR issues. It has always struck me that if such imagination and innovativeness could be turned to genuine and legitimate business plans, then these individuals would be feared and respected within this commercial world of ours. It would keep the likes of Bill Gates continually looking over his shoulder. Read the rest of this entry »

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