As the Chinese New Year approaches, fireworks companies in Dayao, Hunan Province, have ramped up their production. The history of fireworks in China dates back over 2,000 years; it is traditionally a staple of the Chinese New Year celebration.However, in recent years, many major cities have banned fireworks and firecrackers – a ban that continues […]
Hong Kong’s Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu wants to pass his own national security law for the special administrative region. Consultations on this could be completed by the predominantly Beijing-friendly parliament as early as the end of February. The existing security law was enacted by Beijing in 2020 in response to the so-called “umbrella” protests […]
In response to the growing threat from the mainland, Taiwan’s government announced an extension of mandatory military service from four months to one year in late 2022. Last Thursday, the first recruits began their training under this regulation. According to Army Command Headquarters Chief of Staff Chen Chien-yi, 9,127 new recruits have been enlisted. 7,514 […]
If you turn up your Bluetooth speaker too loud in public, you can also expect harsh comments in China. However, anyone complaining about the sounds from the “Ideology Power Bank” could face a very different kind of trouble. The combination of speaker and power bank allows the user to charge their smartphone while listening to […]
In a study, the Bundesbank cautions against a too rapid decoupling from China. In its monthly report for January, the bank’s analysts state that “an abrupt decoupling, such as due to a geopolitical crisis”, would significantly impact the German industry. Companies directly engaged in China could lose a substantial portion of their revenue and profit […]
At least 39 people died in a major fire in the city of Xinyu in the central Chinese province of Jiangxi. Another nine people are reported to have been injured. According to reports from the Xinhua news agency, the fire broke out in the basement of a business in the city of Xinyu in the […]
A year ago, German companies in China hoped that the country would open up after the pandemic and experience a strong upswing in 2023. At least, that was the result of a survey by the German Chamber of Commerce in Beijing at that time. The survey results from this year, shedding light on the current […]
“He Cha – drinking tea” is a Chinese euphemism for a summons to the police station. The Suzhou City Public Security Bureau has obviously taken the phrase to heart. This month, it opened its own milk tea café in a police station. The Jǐngchá 警茶, a pun on the characters for police and tea, focuses […]
Wang Yi has finished his nearly one-week Africa trip. The Chinese Foreign Minister visited Egypt, Tunisia, Togo and Côte d’Ivoire. As usual, officials have not commented on why these countries were on the agenda. However, there are some clues why the focus was now on Francophone West Africa and the continent’s Mediterranean coast after Wang’s […]
China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi is currently back in Africa. And even though he is not visiting Kenya this time, China’s influence can be felt everywhere in the country. For example, traveling on the railway line from Mombasa to Nairobi, financed by bank loans from the People’s Republic, is a very Chinese experience. Making the […]