Sun. Jan 20th, 2019

Banking

New yuan rate ‘fixes distortions’

Alex Hoang

Chinese 100 yuan banknotes are seen in this picture illustration taken in Beijing in this July 11, 2013 file photo. [Photo/Agencies]Reference point for RMB exchange vs US dollar cut 1.86% by central bank China’s central bank devaluated the yuan against the US dollar by 1.86 percent on Tuesday, the largest single-day drop since exchange rate reforms began in January 1994. The People’s Bank of China cut the reference rate against the US dollar to 6.2298 yuan per dollar, down from 6.1162 yuan a day earlier, the lowest level in more than two years. In a move seen as a step toward liberalizing the yuan, the People’s Bank of China said that it will base the yuan-US dollar exchange rate more on the previous day’s closing rate at the interbank foreign exchange market. The move would correct price distortions from the bank’s previous interventions, experts said. However, the bank stressed that Tuesday’s depreciation was a “one-off” move to fix the discrepancy between the reference rate and the market’s spot rate.

Chasing the Tinseltown dream

Alex Hoang

Ever since Chinese conglomerate Wanda Group purchased AMC for $2.6 billion in 2012 and subsequently became the world’s largest movie exhibitor, many people in the movie industry have been waiting for the other shoe to drop, namely a Chinese company acquiring a major Hollywood studio. While this has not yet happened, pundits have noted a lot of tire-kicking, to borrow a term used by Variety in its Feb. 3 issue. Hunan TV & Broadcast Intermediary Co. Ltd., an entertainment company based in central China, announced in March it had agreed a $1.5 billion deal with Lionsgate to co-finance all qualifying features made by the North American studio over the next three years

China’s GDP grows by 7%

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Observers are still sorting out what if any effect China’s stock market selloff had on the overall economy, as the Chinese government announced Wednesday that the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 7 percent in the second quarter, bolstered by strength in the stock market selloff . The National Bureau of Statistics said the service sector made up 49.5 percent of total GDP – 2.1 percentage points more than in the same period last year – compared with the industrial sector’s 43.7 percent, with agriculture accounting for the rest. Despite the relatively strong indicator, China’s Shanghai and Shenzhen A Share indices fell 3.01 percent and 4.22 percent respectively, on Wednesday. The market’s tumble, which began last month, prompted extraordinary support measures from the government and the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), the country’s central bank. Darrell Duffie, a professor of finance at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California, said the GDP report would seem to allay fears that China’s economy may not be able to weather the fallout from the stock market downturn. “However, due to lags in economic responses, the performance data for (the) next quarter will be far more revealing of the degree to which the selloff will have an adverse impact,” he said. Meg Lundsager, public policy fellow at the Wilson Center and a former US executive director at the International Monetary Fund, said it’s difficult to predict the impact of the stock market on the economy.

Li promises carbon cuts

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Premier Li Keqiang and France’s President Francois Hollande greet the media at the Elysee Palace in Paris on Tuesday. Michel Euler / AP Sets steeper goals sooner than earlier schedule, cuts in energy consumption Premier Li Keqiang laid out ambitious targets for a reduction in carbon emissions during his visit to Paris on Tuesday. “China’s carbon dioxide emissions will peak by around 2030, but China will work hard to achieve the target at an even earlier date,” Li said. The nation also aims to increase the share of nonfossil fuels in its primary energy consumption to about 20 percent by 2030, while reducing energy consumption per unit of economic output by 60 to 65 percent from its 2005 level. Li announced the targets after meeting with French President Francois Hollande in Paris, which will host United Nations Climate Conference in December. Li’s announcement came the same day that China submitted its commitment plan to the UN, drawing immediate and wide-ranging applause from environmental circles. Jennifer Morgan, global climate director of the climate program at the World Resources Institute based in Washington, said China’s plan reflects its firm commitment to addressing the climate crisis. “Already, 40 countries have released their national commitments, showing the growing momentum behind international climate action this year,” she said.

Entry relaxed for Taiwan visitors

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Yu Zhengsheng (front), chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), attends a meeting with a visiting Taiwanese delegation who came to attend the 7th Strait Forum in Xiamen, Fujian Province, June 13, 2015.[Photo/Xinhua]The Chinese mainland plans to remove the entry permit requirement for Taiwan residents, according to an announcement made on Sunday at the seventh Straits Forum in Xiamen, Fujian province. The mainland will further facilitate cross-Straits exchanges with new preferential policies including permit-free entry, top political adviser Yu Zhengsheng said. Yu, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, made the remarks in a keynote speech at the opening of the forum, scheduled to continue until Saturday. Currently, Taiwan residents wishing to visit the mainland must apply for an entry permit. The passport-like document that carries the permits and serves as proof of identity will be replaced by a card, Yu said. Wang Chi-ren, a businessman from Taipei, said the policy change has gone viral on the Internet and almost all his friends in Taiwan have forwarded him the news via WeChat. “Lifting the entry permit requirement and making the document a card means Taiwan people won’t need to get the document stamped when visiting the mainland,” he said

Book fair symposium focuses on Xi’s book

Alex Hoang

From left: Huang Youyi, former vice-president of CIPG; Zhang Qiyue, Chinese consul general in New York; BEA President Steven Rosato; Chinese Ambassador to the US Cui Tiankai; Wu Shangzhi, vice-minister of the SAPPRFT; Fang Zhenghui, vice-president of the CIPG; attend the symposium on the Foreign Language Press’ latest book, Xi Jinping: The Governance of China at the 2015 BEA on Thursday in New York. Xiao Lixin / China Daily Book by President Xi Jinping explores governance philosophy of a new leadership A symposium on a book by Chinese President Xi Jinping that has been distributed worldwide was held at BookExpo America on Thursday in New York. Xi Jinping: The Governance of China was compiled by the State Council Information Office, the CCCPC Party Literature Research Office and China International Publishing Group. It has been translated and published in Chinese, English, French, Russian, Arabic, Spanish, Portuguese, German and Japanese by the Foreign Languages Press. The multilingual edition of the book was successfully launched in Frankfurt, Germany, on October 8, 2014, and also attracted considerable attention during APEC China 2014, the 26th annual gathering of leaders of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation held in Beijing. Dr Robert Kuhn, China expert, international corporate strategist and political commentator, told the symposium that the book stresses improving people’s lives, reform, rule of law, and building the CPC. These have been codified as Xi’s “Four Comprehensives”, he said. “The unprecedented book presents Xi’s political philosophy, symbolizes his rapid emergence as a strong leader, and communicates his way of thinking,” Kuhn said

China will maintain its policies of ‘active defense’

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China’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying [Photo/gmw.cn]China will continue to pursue “active defense” policies but will never again allow any country to infringe upon its sovereignty, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said on Wednesday. Hua was responding to Japanese comments about China’s first white paper on military strategy, which was released on Tuesday. Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said on Tuesday that after World War II, Japan had won high praise around the world as a peace-loving country. He also said, “Whatever the situation, we have to avoid using force.” The remarks came as the Japanese government is making progress with changing the country’s security policies that were put in place after the war. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has indicated that he will not use the words “apology” and “aggression” in his statement in August marking the 70th anniversary of the end of the war. Such key words have been used by his predecessors in a reference to Japan’s wartime past

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