US income inequality grew in 2021 for the first time in a decade, according to data the Census Bureau released in September 2022. That might sound surprising, since the most accurate measure of the poverty rate declined during the same time span. But for development experts like me, this apparent contradiction makes perfect sense. That’s […]Continue Reading
Once again Covid and China’s policy for combating it are causing a lot of excitement. Hong Kong stock markets were up on Tuesday after an unconfirmed social media post said China was preparing to “reopen its border” in March next year. The Hang Seng Index jumped 5.23% to 15,455 points. Tencent surged 10.6% while Meituan […]Continue Reading
Huawei’s sales and profits are showing signs of recovery after more than three years of US sanctions while its industrial 5G is taking it far beyond smartphones as a shaper of the global economy. On October 27, the company announced business results for the first nine months of 2022, reporting sales of 445.8 billion Chinese […]Continue Reading
Soaring inflation is the top issue for a lot of voters heading into the midterms, with most saying Republicans would do a better job of handling the problem. Indeed, Republican candidates are taking full advantage of voter concern about inflation by hammering Democrats on the issue and pushing their own ideas to fight inflation, such […]Continue Reading
The United States reportedly is calling on the European Union to impose a semiconductor export ban on China – but Chinese officials and media doubt the Americans, simply by asking, can persuade the Europeans to give up a highly lucrative export market. Bloomberg reports that the Biden administration is urging the EU to share information […]Continue Reading
Elon Musk’s proposed US$44 billion deal to acquire Twitter and take it private is reportedly coming together as a court’s October 28, 2022, deadline is upon us. Musk told his bankers he intends to complete the deal by then – and his lenders have reportedly already begun funding the deal. If he doesn’t, Twitter’s lawsuit […]Continue Reading
Nokia has won important contracts in both India and China recently, demonstrating that “both-and” still works in the “either-or” world of decoupling from China. That may be a lesson for Sweden’s Ericcson, which has taken a different route. On October 17, Finland’s telecom infrastructure company announced that it had been selected by Reliance Jio Infocomm […]Continue Reading
China’s government will implement a series of measures to attract foreign companies to invest in high-end manufacturing in mainland China, a counter to US-led efforts to persuade firms and allied nations to “decouple” from China and its supply chains. The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Industry and […]Continue Reading
Vietnam currently benefits from China’s Covid-19 lockdowns and the geopolitical tensions between the United States and China — especially in electronics manufacturing. The country flirted with its own “zero-Covid” policy and lockdowns in 2021 but changed course quickly to have two-thirds of its population vaccinated by December 2021. News leaked that Apple would move its iPad […]Continue Reading
Stock markets in Hong Kong and Shanghai fell sharply on Monday (October 24) as China’s new leadership was formed after the week-long 20th Communist Party National Congress closed on Saturday. The Hang Seng Index fell 1,030 points, or 6.36%, to 15,180, the lowest level in 13 years. Technology and property stocks fell by more than […]Continue Reading