Mistral点评

• China fortifies resource security with strategic mineral, energy reserve gains
• China’s Xi Jinping targets deterrence and discipline in PLA Rocket Force inspection
• China table tennis wonder boy wows social media with stunning skills, tipped as future champion
• British Foreign Secretary David Lammy pledges ‘more diplomacy’ in approach to China
• Senior executive calls for orderly Chinese expansion in Southeast Asian market
• Chinese drone maker DJI sues US Defence Department over ‘military ties’ blacklisting
• China consulate in Myanmar hit with explosive device
• India’s air force faces critical shortfall vs China-Pakistan dual threat
• China’s pro-birth policies not yet enough to counter demographic crisis, expert warns
• Getting Hongkongers to retire in mainland China isn’t the answer to poverty: experts
• Beijing urges HSBC Group to keep backing mainland China and Hong Kong’s development push
• China rituals to expel evil spirits, bad luck – beheading roosters, utilising boys’ urine
• China shocked to learn minor rust-belt official fled after ‘pocketing US$400 million’
• ‘Handsome’ China university students offer ‘royalty’ hiking escorts for tourists
• In US vs Chinese soft power, guess how children are voting?
• China’s EV makers jostle for pole position, tempting buyers with cutting-edge tech, luxury
• Wary of China, US ranks Japan ‘first’ among Aukus partners: State Department No 2 official

China fortifies resource security with strategic mineral, energy reserve gains

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3282988/china-fortifies-resource-security-strategic-mineral-energy-reserve-gains?utm_source=rss_feed

China added major gains to its critical mineral reserves and discovered more mineral deposits last year as it ramped up efforts to boost self-reliance and energy security, according to the Ministry of Natural Resources.

Increased investment had led to “significant breakthroughs” in oil and gas exploration, while “substantial progress” was made in mineral resources, resulting in 124 new mineral deposits discovered last year, the ministry said in a report on Tuesday.

In the past year, China saw considerable growth in reserves of strategic minerals such as fluorite and crystalline graphite, the report indicated.

The full annual 2023 assessment of China’s mineral resources has not been made public, but a few details have been released by the ministry and media.

Critical minerals are commodities found in a wide variety of ore deposits that are considered vital to economic or national security and are vulnerable to supply disruption.

In 2021, Beijing launched a 15-year strategy to make “breakthroughs” in mining exploration, aiming to increase reserves and production to boost self-reliance and ensure domestic energy security.

“China is focused on strategically important minerals that are in short supply … vigorously advancing technological innovations, and continuously seeking large, high-quality, and urgently needed mineral deposits,” the ministry said in an article it posted on social media in September.

Reserves of fluorite, also called fluorspar, rose by 24.4 per cent to around 107 million tonnes in 2023, the report on Tuesday said. The mineral – considered critical in several countries including the United States, Australia, and Japan – can be used in the production of semiconductors and electric vehicle batteries.

China’s crystalline graphite reserves grew by 23.9 per cent to more than 100 million tonnes. The raw mineral is essential in several industries including new energy, nuclear energy, military defence, aerospace and photovoltaics.

Chinese investment in mineral exploration grew for a third consecutive year last year, with more than 110 billion yuan (US$15.5 billion) allotted for 2023, according to the report.

In 2023, four new oilfields were discovered in China, each estimated to have more than 100 million tonnes (746 million barrels) of capacity, in addition to four gas fields with a capacity of over 100 billion cubic metres each the ministry said in September.

Large mineral deposits recently discovered have “further consolidated China’s advantageous position” in antimony, crystalline graphite, tungsten, and molybdenum, “enhancing the resource security necessary for the development of strategic emerging industries”, according to the ministry.

China has also been expanding geological surveys of maritime and oceanic zones, the ministry said on Tuesday.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has repeatedly stressed that the domestic hunt for resources is vital to “the national economy, people’s livelihoods, and national security”. China is a major producer, consumer and trader of mineral-based products.

China aimed to improve its capabilities “to rapidly expand production in extreme situations”, the ministry said.

Reserves of sylvite, commonly used for producing a chemical fertiliser to boost crop quality and yields, and thus considered crucial for food security, grew by 15.3 per cent to more than 332 million tonnes last year.

Over the last year, Beijing has also tightened its grip on critical mineral shipments, including antimony, gallium, germanium and graphite, raising concerns in industries such as semiconductors, electric vehicles and defence, which rely heavily on the materials.

By the end of 2023, reserves of 173 minerals had been discovered in China. According to the ministry, China’s reserves of 45 of those minerals ranked among the highest globally.

China’s Xi Jinping targets deterrence and discipline in PLA Rocket Force inspection

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3283062/chinas-xi-jinping-targets-deterrence-and-discipline-pla-rocket-force-inspection?utm_source=rss_feed

Chinese President Xi Jinping put the national spotlight back on the military’s missile defences, inspecting a PLA Rocket Force brigade in the country’s southeast roughly a month after a landmark ICBM test.

During the visit to a strategic missile brigade in Anhui province on Thursday, Xi underlined the need for stronger missile deterrence as well as tighter discipline, state news agency Xinhua reported on Saturday.

He told the brigade to “adapt to the changes in modern warfare and combat methods and keep a close eye on [changes in] combat missions, opponents, and environment”.

Xi, who is also head of the Central Military Commission (CMC), the body in charge of the armed forces, said that while troops should refine skills in conventional operations, they should also develop new skills, tactics and abilities with new equipment in a “targeted manner”.

“[Missile troops should] obey political guidance ... [and] enhance strategic deterrence and combat capabilities,” he said, on a trip that included equipment and training inspections.

The brigade was not identified but Xinhua did say it dated back more than 50 years.

The rocket force, which was established in 2015 as part of Xi’s overhaul of the People’s Liberation Army, oversees the country’s nuclear weapons, a central part of China’s strategic deterrence plans.

Those plans were high on the agenda at the party’s third plenum in July, when the leadership pledged to “speed up the development of strategic deterrence forces” as the country developed a “new framework of [military] services and arms”.

The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute forecasts that within a decade, China’s stockpile of intercontinental ballistic missiles could surpass those of Russia and the United States.

China has also been expanding its number of nuclear warheads in recent years, with some estimates putting its total at around 500 in 2023.

In an apparent signal of its combat readiness, the Rocket Force conducted its first known ICBM test in 44 years last month, launching a missile into the Pacific Ocean.

But the force has also been plagued by corruption scandals, with a slew of leaders and generals linked to the military wing removed and investigated.

The most recent case was that of prominent missile scientist Xiao Longxu. The former chief engineer of the rocket force’s top research institute was expelled last week from the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, the country’s top advisory body.

Another case is that of Wei Fenghe, a former PLA Rocket Force commander and one of two former defence ministers under investigation for corruption.

In his trip on Thursday, Xi said the force should uproot “ideological issues” and “seriously investigate and deal with corruption and unhealthy tendencies of officers and soldiers”.

The force should “ensure that it resolutely obeys the command” of the CMC “at all times and under any circumstances”, Xi added.

China table tennis wonder boy wows social media with stunning skills, tipped as future champion

https://www.scmp.com/news/people-culture/trending-china/article/3282428/china-table-tennis-wonder-boy-wows-social-media-stunning-skills-tipped-future-champion?utm_source=rss_feed

A three-year-old toddler in China has taken the internet by storm with a viral video showcasing his impressive table tennis skills played on a home coffee table, demonstrating remarkable forehand and backhand techniques.

Many have hailed him as a future Olympic champion, with some even dubbing him the “next Fan Zhendong”, referring to China’s two-time table tennis gold medallist from the 2024 Paris Olympics.

The video, posted on October 4 by Douyin blogger Xiaowu Richang, who has over 200,000 followers, has generated widespread attention, amassing more than 3.3 million likes.

In the video, the boy is seen enthusiastically playing table tennis with his family on the coffee table, excitedly exclaiming: “Backhand, well done, good, good, good!”

Despite his young age, he displays remarkable confidence, effortlessly transitioning to a backhand stance while playing with impressive technique and intensity.

The playful match culminates in a powerful forehand smash, after which he casually walks away.

According to his profile, the toddler, nicknamed Xiaowu, hails from Sichuan province in southwestern China. Inspired by his grandmother, he began learning table tennis at just eight months old.

In other videos, Xiaowu is seen engaging in rigorous training sessions. Due to his small stature, he even has to stand on a small table to reach the professional table tennis table.

Netizens are overwhelmingly impressed by his natural talent, praising him as a future table tennis superstar, with many referring to him as the “future Fan Zhendong”.

His extraordinary skills have captured the imagination of many on mainland social media.

“Foreigners have a stereotype that all Chinese people are born knowing how to play ping pong, and it turns out this stereotype might be true!” one commenter quipped.

“Oh my god, I’m just an average table tennis fan, and I’m not as good as this three-year-old. His forehand and backhand switches are so smooth. That last smash was lightning-fast. This kid definitely has Olympic champion potential,” another praised him.

A third user remarked: “Backhand dominant, but his forehand attack is strong too - total Fan Zhendong vibes!”

Fan, who clinched two gold medals at the 2024 Paris Olympics in both individual and team events, has also seen his popularity soar thanks to his charming and approachable personality.

On October 11, during a tennis exhibition match in Shanghai, Fan made his tennis debut alongside Chinese professional player Zhang Zhizhen. The duo faced tennis legend Roger Federer and Hong Kong singer Eason Chan.

Despite having only a few hours of tennis training, Fan impressed the audience by using his table tennis serve technique to hit an ace against Federer, leaving fans astonished.

British Foreign Secretary David Lammy pledges ‘more diplomacy’ in approach to China

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3283058/british-foreign-secretary-david-lammy-pledges-more-diplomacy-approach-china?utm_source=rss_feed

British Foreign Secretary David Lammy on Saturday called for a resumption of dialogue between London and Beijing, urging the two sides to engage in “more diplomacy” as he concluded a rare diplomatic visit to China.

Lammy met with Chinese officials including his counterpart Wang Yi in Beijing on Friday, before travelling to financial hub Shanghai.

Wang said the relationship “now stands at a new starting point,” adding that “competition among major powers should not be the backdrop of this era”.

“UK policy in the past under the last [Conservative] government was not consistent and what I’m hearing is that we need consistency in our approach,” Lammy told reporters on Saturday.

Lammy said he pressed his Chinese hosts on issues including Hong Kong, Xinjiang, and Taiwan, where Britain is “worried about some of the tensions that we see in the Taiwan Strait, because that is not in the interests of the global community”.

China regards Taiwan as part of its territory and has never renounced the use of force to bring it under its control. Britain, in common with most countries, does not recognise Taiwan as an independent state, but it opposes any attempt to take the island by force.

But Lammy said there were also “areas where we can cooperate and collaborate with the Chinese”.

“I believe what you need is more diplomacy, not less. That’s why it’s so important to be here as a UK foreign secretary and to keep coming back,” Lammy said, adding that he would aim to meet Wang again next year.

Britain’s relations with China under the previous government were soured by clashes over human rights, Hong Kong and allegations of Chinese espionage.

The Labour administration has commissioned a government-wide audit of the UK-China relationship and has said it would be “clear-eyed” when it comes to China, given allegations of cyber-hacking and spying on British soil.

“I’ve been speaking to British industry and it’s important to remember that 95 per cent of that business is not in areas that pertains to national security,” Lammy said, according to Reuters.

“Of course, there are areas of national security interests, and we will always put those first, but what people also want is consistency – what business wants is stability and clarity.”

China is Britain’s sixth-largest trading partner, accounting for 5 per cent of total trade, according to the UK’s Department for Business and Trade.

Senior executive calls for orderly Chinese expansion in Southeast Asian market

https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3283056/senior-executive-calls-orderly-chinese-expansion-southeast-asian-market?utm_source=rss_feed

Chinese companies venturing into Southeast Asia, one of the hottest destinations for overseas expansion, should refrain from flooding the market with homogeneous products and services that would lead to vicious competition, a senior Chinese bank executive has urged.

Internationally competitive Chinese companies’ Southeast Asian operations in the green energy and infrastructure construction sectors had subjected local companies to a great deal of pressure, said Lin Jingzhen, Bank of China’s executive director and executive vice-president.

Lin made the comments at the annual meeting of the Financial Street Forum on Friday, warning about potential consequences from host countries.

“This is something we need to attach great attention to, as it will also seriously hinder the development of Chinese-funded enterprises in the area,” Lin said according to a copy of his speech obtained by the Post.

Facing an increasingly saturated domestic market and rising trade barriers from Western countries targeting “Made-in-China” products, launching operations and building factories overseas have become the only path to growth for many Chinese companies.

Thanks to lower tariffs, cheap land and labour, preferential tax policies, cultural similarities and geographic proximity, Southeast Asian has become the first choice among Chinese companies looking to expand overseas and has been the primary destination for industrial transfers from China.

The Chinese and Asean supply chains were “complementary”, China Galaxy Securities chairman Wang Sheng told the same session, adding that China’s investment in the region has exceeded that in Europe and the United States.

From January to July, China’s direct investment in members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations had increased by 15 per cent year on year, he said.

But the hyper-competitive mindset of Chinese business executives operating in foreign countries has long been a source of resentment among local communities.

Lin from Bank of China suggested that authorities such the National Development and Reform Commission – China’s top economic planner – and the Ministry of Commerce work with industrial associations in the overall planning of Chinese companies’ investment in Southeast Asia, with the aim of avoiding the creation of oligopolies, homogeneous competition and excessive waste of resources.

China has been Asean’s largest trading partner for the past 15 years, and Asean has been China’s biggest trading partner since 2020.

After a meeting in the Laotian capital Vientiane this month, both sides announced that negotiations on Version 3.0 of the China-Asean Free Trade Area had reached “substantial conclusion” and they were working towards signing the revised agreement next year.

Chinese drone maker DJI sues US Defence Department over ‘military ties’ blacklisting

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3283046/chinese-drone-maker-dji-sues-us-defence-department-over-military-ties-blacklisting?utm_source=rss_feed

Chinese drone maker DJI is suing the US Defence Department for adding it to a list of companies working with Beijing’s military, saying the designation is wrong and has caused it significant financial harm.

The lawsuit says it is challenging the “erroneous designation of the company as a ‘Chinese Military Company’” and is seeking to be removed from the blacklist.

“[DJI] determined it had no alternative other than to seek relief in federal court. DJI is not owned or controlled by the Chinese military, and the DOD [Department of Defence] itself acknowledges that DJI makes consumer and commercial drones, not military drones,” the firm said.

It says it has engaged with the Pentagon for more than 16 months but “determined it had no alternative other than to seek relief in federal court”, adding that the drone supplier has always been “dedicated to promoting the application of civilian drone products and opposes the use of its products for military purposes”.

The lawsuit says that as a result of the “unlawful and misguided decision”, it has “lost business deals, been stigmatised as a national security threat and banned from contracting with multiple federal government agencies”.

It also said “US and international customers have terminated existing contracts with DJI and refuse to enter into new ones” and insisted the company “is neither controlled nor owned by the Chinese military”.

The Pentagon blacklisted the firm in 2022, saying it was seeking to “highlight and counter [China’s] military-civil fusion strategy, which supports the modernisation goals of the People’s Liberation Army”.

Other major companies on the list include the aviation firm AVIC, oil company CNOOC, telecoms giant China Mobile and chip maker YMTC.

The firm, which American lawmakers have claimed accounts for 50 per cent of the US civilian drone market, has been facing increasing pressure from Washington as it pushes to curb Chinese tech companies on national security grounds.

Last month, the US House of Representatives voted to bar new drones from DJI from operating in the country, a move that is now awaiting confirmation by the Senate.

The company has also been blacklisted by the US Treasury for allegedly supporting Beijing in its surveillance in Xinjiang – an accusation it denies – and it has been banned from using American communications infrastructure.

DJI drones have also been alleged to have been used by Russia in its war against Ukraine, claims the firm also denies.

Meanwhile, the US Commerce Department is seeking comment on whether to impose restrictions on Chinese drones.

Earlier this week, the Chinese foreign ministry urged the US to provide a “fair and non-discriminatory environment for Chinese enterprises” after the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party asked the White House to expand its entity list to prevent Huawei Technologies from acquiring American chip materials.

Lu Xiang, a research fellow at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said DJI’s lawsuit was positive and encouraging but warned “the [US] administration’s decisions are often not easily challenged by the courts”.

In May this year, China’s Hesai Group – one of the world’s top makers of lidar (light detecting and ranging) sensors used in smart cars – filed a lawsuit in a US federal court over its blacklisting.

The Pentagon subsequently removed it from the list, but the firm was reinstated this week “based on the latest information available”.

Additional reporting by Iris Deng

China consulate in Myanmar hit with explosive device

https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3283047/china-consulate-myanmar-hit-explosive-device?utm_source=rss_feed

China’s consulate in Myanmar’s Mandalay city was attacked with an explosive device, local media said on Saturday, adding that no deaths or injuries were reported.

The blast occurred at the consulate office in central Mandalay, south of the sprawling Royal Palace, around 7pm local time on Friday (12:30 GMT Friday).

China is a major ally and arms supplier to Myanmar’s junta, but it also maintains ties with ethnic groups fighting the military in Myanmar’s northern Shan state, according to analysts.

Myanmar has been in turmoil since the military deposed the government of Aung San Suu Kyi and seized power in 2021.

A Myanmar official in Mandalay confirmed there had been “an incident at the Chinese consulate office compound in Mandalay late evening yesterday”.

“There was no one injured,” the official said, without specifying the nature of the incident.

The Irrawaddy outlet reported a grenade had been thrown at the compound, which is usually guarded by members of Myanmar’s security forces.

The Voice of Myanmar reported the consulate had been hit by an unidentified “explosion” without giving details.

China’s embassy in Yangon did not respond to requests for comment, and a junta spokesman was unreachable for comment.

India’s air force faces critical shortfall vs China-Pakistan dual threat

https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3282965/indias-air-force-faces-critical-shortfall-vs-china-pakistan-dual-threat?utm_source=rss_feed

India’s air force strength has dropped to a historic low, raising alarms over the country’s preparedness for potential conflicts with both Pakistan and China, as delays in fighter jet production continue to undermine efforts to replenish the ageing fleet.

The Indian Air Force now operates just 31 squadrons – far below the sanctioned strength of 42 and the lowest count since war with Pakistan nearly six decades ago.

Air Chief Marshal A.P. Singh recently made headlines by vowing to fight on with “whatever we have”, but his stoic resolve comes amid escalating concerns about production setbacks facing the domestically produced Tejas light combat aircraft.

These delays have forced the retirement of dozens of ageing Soviet-era planes without adequate replacements.

Acquiring and inducting new aircraft is a time-consuming process, Singh said earlier this month, citing not just procurement but also pilot training and operational support. He warned in separate remarks that maintaining squadron strength above 30 was crucial and suggested that private firms should work with state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to expedite production of the new planes.

Defence experts echoed Singh’s concerns, highlighting the strategic vulnerability posed by India’s current fleet size – especially in a simultaneous two-front war with both Pakistan and China.

“The two countries pose a collusive threat,” said Ashok Mehta, an independent defence analyst, arguing that India’s squadron strength is inadequate for engaging both adversaries simultaneously. “With 31 squadrons, what we have is a defensive deterrence … not an active deterrence to deter the Chinese.”

In March, New Delhi approved an ambitious project to develop India’s own fifth-generation stealth fighter jet, the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft – an initiative that aims to position the country among a select group of nations, including the US and China.

Currently, India maintains an edge over neighbour and rival Pakistan with a fleet of 36 French-made Rafale fighter aircraft. However, this advantage could be eroded if Pakistan successfully acquires Chinese-made stealth fighters, such as the J-31, which is designed to compete with the US-made F-35. Islamabad hinted earlier this year that such a purchase was in the works.

China already boasts about 250 J-20 stealth fighter planes, according to reports, with expectations it will increase that number significantly by the time India’s first fifth-generation prototype is slated to fly in 2027-28.

Despite a decade of efforts to bolster its defence-industrial base through the Make in India initiative and other programmes, the South Asian nation remains the world’s largest arms importer, accounting for 9.8 per cent of total global arms imports from 2019 to 2023, according to The Economic Times.

Still, the policy has boosted India’s defence exports and reduced its reliance on imports – yet it has also been blamed for causing delays in the supply of advanced weaponry.

“The emphasis on Make in India is something which is debatable,” Mehta said, adding that “it will take another two decades” to fully materialise, but “private industry has now come into defence production and that means it is also into aviation”.

The government had realised that relying on domestic production alone would be insufficient for maintaining deterrence, said Manoj Joshi, a distinguished fellow specialising in security and international relations at the Observer Research Foundation think tank.

Collaborations with US-based companies such as GE Aerospace, or French aerospace and defence firm Safran, for design and technology are now being considered for the fifth-generation fighter programme, he told This Week in Asia.

The Indian Air Force is set to take delivery of 16 Tejas LCA Mk-1A aircraft by March 2025 to replace its ageing Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 fighters.

The new aircraft will help bolster the air force’s depleting strength, especially as two squadrons of ageing MiG-21 fighters are slated for retirement in 2025, followed by two squadrons of British-made Jaguar aircraft, which will be phased out by 2030.

In April, the defence ministry issued a tender for 97 more LCA Mk-1As, and HAL recently signed an agreement with GE to produce 99 higher-powered F414 engines for the upgraded Tejas LCA Mk-2.

Yet HAL has faced significant delays in delivering GE’s F-404 engines for the Tejas LCA Mk-1A, which the company has attributed to supply-chain bottlenecks in the aerospace industry.

Analysts and industry insiders are calling for India to accelerate its efforts in developing advanced weapons technology.

As the country shifts away from its traditional reliance on Russian military equipment, the focus is now on technology transfers from Western partners, with an eye on managing costs and mitigating supply chain risks.

To this end, India’s Tata Group has partnered with US firms such as Lockheed Martin and Boeing to produce technical airlifts for the C-130J Super Hercules transport aircraft and fuselages for Apache attack helicopters.

However, Salil Gupte, president of Boeing India, said that such US-India collaboration must extend to larger projects.

“The days of asset light approach are from 10 years ago,” he told a US-India Strategic Partnership Forum session last week. “You have to be fully invested … in the long-term operational readiness. We are talking about the ability to develop an ecosystem of suppliers.”

Analysts agree that strengthening strategic cooperation between the US and India is crucial for achieving a peaceful and stable Indo-Pacific region that both seek to promote.

But delays in aircraft induction reflect a complacent attitude among some in Indian defence circles towards the potential for hostilities with China, Mehta said.

“We have the world’s third-largest military and fifth-largest economy, and yet we are investing less than 2 per cent of GDP in defence,” he said.

“With that kind of investment, we will be stuck at 31 squadrons for a long time to come unless we take steps to catch up.”

China’s pro-birth policies not yet enough to counter demographic crisis, expert warns

https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3282963/chinas-pro-birth-policies-not-yet-enough-counter-demographic-crisis-expert-warns?utm_source=rss_feed

If China’s fertility rate remains on its downward trajectory, for every newborn in the future, six people would die – a trend that threatens to intensify the nation’s demographic crisis, a demographer has cautioned.

“With the current half-hearted incentive policies, not only is it impossible to raise the fertility rate, but even maintaining it at 1.0 seems out of reach,” warned a recent report published by the YuWa Population Research Institute.

“Anti-marriage and anti-childbearing sentiments are intensifying, and the pro-birth policies aren’t even enough to counter this downward trend.”

China’s fertility rate dropped to 1.09 in 2022, according to an estimate by the China Population and Development Research Centre, while the total fertility rate in Shanghai, one of China’s wealthiest cities, dipped to 0.6 in 2023, according to the municipality.

The fertility rate refers to the average number of children born to each woman, while a replacement fertility rate of 2.1 children per woman is widely accepted as the necessary rate for a country’s population to remain constant.

Demographers have said it is possible that China’s fertility rate dropped below 1.0 in 2023, but China has not provided an official fertility rate for last year.

South Korea’s experience, where the fertility rate dropped from 1.05 in 2017 to 0.72 in 2023, suggests China could be following a similarly grim trajectory, according to the October 8 report authored by Huang Wenzheng, a long-time researcher of China’s demographic issues and also a non-resident senior fellow with the Centre for China & Globalisation.

China and South Korea have among the world’s lowest birth rates, dragged down by high child-rearing costs, intense societal pressures, educational competition, and unaffordable housing.

Last year, China’s population dropped for the second year in a row, to 1.4097 billion people after a decline of 2.08 million. Only 9.02 million births were reported in China in 2023, representing the lowest total since records started in 1949.

National and local governments in China have rolled out a raft of pronatalist policies, including cash subsidies, extended maternity and paternity leave, tax breaks, and housing incentives for families with multiple children.

Hubei’s Jingzhou is among the latest cities to offer cash subsidies to families with multiple children, providing 6,000 yuan for a second child and 12,000 yuan for a third.

However, these measures have had a limited impact. Birth rates continue to decline as the subsidies are merely a drop in the bucket when it comes to the total cost of having children.

Many experts argue that the policies fail to address deeper issues, such as the high cost of living, insufficient childcare support and persistent gender inequality, which deter women from having more children.

A YuWa report last year estimated that the average cost of raising a child from birth to 17 years old in China was 485,000 yuan (US$68,160), while the cost of raising a child to college graduation was about 627,000 yuan.

The average urban worker in China earned 94,519 yuan a year in 2023, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

Getting Hongkongers to retire in mainland China isn’t the answer to poverty: experts

https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3283025/getting-hongkongers-retire-mainland-china-isnt-answer-poverty-experts?utm_source=rss_feed

Encouraging Hongkongers to retire across the border offers an alternative for some but cannot be the city’s solution to poverty, welfare experts and groups have said while calling for a blueprint with long-term strategies.

They also urged the government to spend money more effectively on poverty alleviation and supporting those in need amid the city’s surging expenditure on welfare.

The calls were made after Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu delivered his third policy address on Wednesday where he laid out plans to improve people’s livelihood, which experts said were lacking.

“The expenditure on welfare has been on the rise while the poverty issue has not been solved. That is because the money was not spent effectively,” Professor Paul Yip Siu-fai of the University of Hong Kong (HKU) said.

Lee highlighted in his policy address that more than HK$300 million (US$38.6 million) was spent on social welfare daily, topping the public expenditure of all policy portfolios.

Official statistics showed that the city set aside about HK$127 billion for social welfare in the 2024-25 financial year, which means about HK$350 million a day.

Such expenses have more than doubled over the past decade from about HK$58 billion in 2015-16, according to the data.

“We should not be proud of the increasing welfare expenses,” Yip, an associate dean of the faculty of social sciences, said.

He said that despite the rising expenditures, the circumstances of low-income families had worsened because of the impact of the economic slowdown on sectors such as the service industry that hit poor workers hard.

The academic urged authorities to review the effectiveness of the expenses on welfare policies and make better use of the funds.

In this year’s policy address, welfare policies encouraging elderly residents to settle in mainland China were laid out, including a three-year pilot scheme to subsidise those living in designated care homes in neighbouring Guangdong province.

The scheme, to be launched next year, will offer HK$5,000 a month to each of those receiving the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) allowance, with a quota of 1,000 in total.

Seven more care homes will be added to the Residential Care Services Scheme in Guangdong, raising the total number to 11 to offer places for seniors from Hong Kong.

Under the scheme, the government will also pay the part of medical bills uncovered by the urban-rural resident basic medical insurance, subject to a cap.

Another pilot scheme that allows elderly residents to use healthcare vouchers there will also be extended to all the mainland cities of the Greater Bay Area, a policy which links nine Guangdong cities, Hong Kong and Macau.

Nelson Chow Wing-sun, an emeritus professor at HKU’s department of social work and social administration, said the incentives signalled a trend of authorities encouraging retirees to live in the bay area’s mainland cities.

But he noted that such measures, with their limited quotas, would benefit those who had already settled across the border more but were not attractive enough to persuade others to uproot themselves.

“The Greater Bay Area is no longer just a concept but has already become a real choice for those retired,” he said. “But still, people have to give up a lot of things, such as public housing, to move and settle across the border.”

Chow urged the government to also look into supporting those who were willing to live in communities across the border rather than in care facilities and address their top concerns by subsidising them to buy local health insurance to cover medical expenses.

Social welfare lawmaker Tik Chi-yuen said that despite the alternative retirement option, driving older residents across the border was not going to solve the city’s poverty and elderly support issues.

“Most people still intend to remain in Hong Kong after they retire. The government cannot shirk its responsibility of offering care for them,” he said.

The legislator noted that most of the welfare measures in this year’s policy address simply involved the addition of quotas to existing schemes.

Among such measures is a 20 per cent increase in the number of vouchers for elderly people to pay for residential care to a total of 6,000.

Other policies include the expansion of the Strive and Rise Programme – a mentorship scheme targeting students from poor families – and the addition of three more community living rooms used by substandard housing households.

Sze Lai-shan, deputy director of NGO the Society for Community Organisation, said that even the scale of such expansion was limited, with many of those in need left without support.

Aside from rolling out or maintaining individual schemes, both Sze and Tik called on the government to formulate a blueprint with holistic, long-term strategies.

Tik said the blueprint should establish a clear definition of poverty, collect data on the poor population and set out targets on what should be achieved and when.

“A daily expenditure of more than HK$300 million does not mean the job has been done, as Hong Kong is facing a widening wealth gap and a rapidly ageing population,” Tik said.

Beijing urges HSBC Group to keep backing mainland China and Hong Kong’s development push

https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3283029/beijing-urges-hsbc-group-keep-backing-mainland-china-and-hong-kongs-development-push?utm_source=rss_feed

Beijing’s point man on Hong Kong affairs has met chairman Mark Tucker in the nation’s capital, calling on the conglomerate to continue contributing to both the country’s development and the financial hub’s economy.

Xia Baolong, director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office (HKMAO), praised the company for its optimistic stance toward China and the city’s development, as he underscored Beijing’s support for maintaining Hong Kong’s “unique status and strengths” during the meeting on Friday.

“Xia emphasised it is China’s long-standing national policy to ensure the comprehensive, accurate and unswerving implementation of the ‘one country, two systems’ principle,” the office said in a statement issued on Friday.

“The central government will always fully support Hong Kong in maintaining its unique status and strengths, maintain a free, open and regularised business environment and create better conditions for enterprises from different countries and regions to develop in Hong Kong.”

In the meeting, which was also attended by HKMAO Executive Deputy Director Zhou Ji, Xia called on HSBC Group to continue to play to its strengths, actively participate in the country’s high-quality development and opening-up, and contribute to Hong Kong’s prosperity.

Peter Wong Tung-shun, non-executive chairman of the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, and David Liao, co-chief executive of HSBC Asia-Pacific, were among those in the delegation led by Tucker.

Last November, Xia also met with British-owned conglomerate Swire Group in Shenzhen, praising the group for its long-term presence in Hong Kong and support for the one country, two systems governing principle.

He similarly urged the company to contribute to the country’s development.

Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu at the time lauded Xia’s meeting with Swire, saying it would help improve understanding regarding policy directions and help to encourage investment.

China rituals to expel evil spirits, bad luck – beheading roosters, utilising boys’ urine

https://www.scmp.com/news/people-culture/article/3282454/china-rituals-expel-evil-spirits-bad-luck-beheading-roosters-utilising-boys-urine?utm_source=rss_feed

Since ancient times, many Chinese people have believed that illness and misfortune are often caused by bad luck.

The Post takes a closer look at the customs and practices that have developed in China to ward off evil spirits and protect against bad fortune.

Jumping over a fire is a traditional folk custom observed during the Lunar New Year.

Folklore has it that the crackling sound of a burning fire wards off evil spirits and bad luck.

The ritual begins by family elders setting fire to a bundle of straw at the entrance to a house. Men in the family then take turns jumping over the fire before stepping inside.

Infants are carried by adults as they leap and women jump in the opposite direction.

The custom persists in rural areas, such as southern China’s Guangdong and Fujian provinces, and northern China’s Qinghai and Gansu.

During Spring Festival, villagers carry a beautifully decorated sedan chair and leap over a bonfire to pray for peace and a good harvest.

For many, the rooster is considered an auspicious creature that connects the living and the dead.

In some parts of southern China, people believe that cutting off the bird’s head and tossing it over a roof can ward off evil spirits.

Sprinkling the rooster’s blood in the yard or smearing it on the walls is also believed to improve one’s fortune.

Roosters are often used at traditional funerals to guide the deceased’s soul. The custom dates back to the Han dynasty (206BC-220) when wooden roosters were buried with the dead.

The crowing of a rooster is also seen as a positive symbol.

The urine of young boys is believed to boost health and ward off evil spirits.

This comes from the notion that young boys embody masculine energy and boundless vitality.

The most valued urine is that of boys under 10, especially their first-morning wee before they turn one month old.

In southern China, eggs boiled in boys’ urine are a Ching Ming Festival delicacy. It is believed to prevent spring drowsiness and protect against summer heat.

However, some believed the practice may transfer illness, and sharing it could shorten the boy’s life.

These two are also believed to frighten evil spirits.

In feng shui or Chinese geomancy, salt purifies negative energy, while rice is believed to calm the spirit and strengthen the body.

When moving into a new home or in the case of illness, salt and rice are sprinkled in each corner of the room to expel bad luck.

Movie enthusiasts may have noticed that in many Hong Kong zombie films, glutinous rice is often used as a remedy for treating bites from ghosts or monsters.

At funerals in some rural areas, the deceased’s family scatters salt and rice around the grave to guide the spirit on its journey.

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China shocked to learn minor rust-belt official fled after ‘pocketing US$400 million’

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3282973/china-shocked-learn-minor-rust-belt-official-fled-after-pocketing-us400-million?utm_source=rss_feed

A former mid-level official from northeastern China has hit the headlines after allegedly amassing a fortune in illegal gains before leaving the country.

Li Chuanliang, deputy mayor of Jixi in Heilongjiang province during the early 2010s, is accused of having pocketed as much as 3.6 billion yuan (US$423 million) in bribes and embezzled public funds.

Details of the corruption charges against Li, 61, were only made public days ago, six years after he fled abroad, presumably to the United States.

Investigators had already found evidence of his wrongdoing, a Heilongjiang court that published details of the case on October 11 said.

Li’s illegal gains would be seized after the trial, which will be held after a six-month public notice period, according to the Mudanjiang City intermediate people’s court.

During this time, his family and other “interested parties” in the case, such as those with claims on the confiscated assets, could decide whether to attend the trial, said the full-page notice in the People’s Court Daily, the official newspaper of the national judicial system.

Details of Li’s already frozen assets took up half the page.

China revised its Criminal Procedure Law in 2018 to allow trials in absentia. Earlier, the law could only recover the illegal earnings and other related assets of corrupt officials who had fled abroad, but could not hold a trial in the absence of the accused.

Li’s last official role was in 2016, as deputy mayor of Hegang – like Jixi, a third-tier city in Heilongjiang.

He was placed under investigation by public security authorities in 2020, with a warrant issued the same year, according to the court notice.

Details of Li’s illegal gains itemised in Friday’s notice included around 2.9 billion yuan embezzled in public property by leveraging his government positions and colluding with other government officials.

He is also accused to have gained around 49 million yuan by seeking benefits for others, misappropriated 110 million yuan in public funds, and registered a company with state funds to undertake construction projects related to 73 million yuan in illegal gains.

News of the case sparked an uproar on Chinese social media platform Weibo, with related topics garnering more than 22 million views.

Users pointed at the sheer scale of alleged corruption, comparing it to the most high-profile case in recent years, involving a top banker.

Lai Xiaomin, ex-chairman of state-controlled China Huarong Asset Management, was convicted of taking almost 1.8 billion yuan (US$277 million) in bribes, other forms of corruption and bigamy. He was executed for the crime in January 2021.

Many expressed disbelief and frustration over the riches amassed by corrupt fugitives compared to the struggles of most ordinary people, and questioned the authorities’ competency to handle such cases.

A Weibo user calling themselves Wanshui Lushang wrote: “The common people have endured [difficulties] for years, yet the endless stream of corrupt officials continues to shatter our perceptions.”

“The key issue is how [Li] managed to flee abroad five or six years before being caught? … Property ownership of common people is easy to locate for the real estate bureau – is it really that hard to trace those thousands of properties? Why were they allowed to escape?”

Guangtou Bangzhu, a finance blogger, commented on the need to get to the root of the matter: “This is jaw-dropping,” he said. “Figuring out how he managed to acquire so much money under such strict supervision is more important than confiscating his illegal earnings.”

Hundreds of senior officials have fallen from grace since Chinese President Xi Jinping launched his signature anti-corruption drive in 2013, vowing to go after both “tigers and flies”, or powerful officials and lowly bureaucrats. Xi has indicated repeatedly that there will be no let-up in the campaign.

The public found it particularly shocking that Li’s alleged crimes took place in Jixi, an economically backward city heavily reliant on coal production where the average annual income is just over 30,000 yuan.

Observers say this may precisely be why Li’s deeds went undetected, citing the lack of supervisory mechanisms in lower-tier cities.

“The more remote and underdeveloped the area, the more outdated the systems may be, leading to less regulation and greater corruption,” a Beijing-based political scientist said under the condition of anonymity as he was not authorised to speak to media.

“For big cities like Beijing or Shanghai, it is not easy to create a situation where a single official has unchecked power.”

Heilongjiang is one of three provinces in China’s rust-belt northeast, a formerly booming industrial region that fell into decay after economic reforms relegated it to the production sidelines.

The annual gross domestic product of Jixi was just 53 billion yuan in 2017, the year before Li fled abroad. His alleged illegal gains alone could account for 7 per cent of Jixi’s annual GDP.

Deng Yuwen, former deputy chief editor of Study Times, the official journal of the cadre-training Central Party School, said: “The lower you go in the hierarchy, the less effective the supervisory mechanisms become and the greed of minor officials is not just limited to this case in China.”

In a similar case, Li Jianping, former party secretary of an economic and technological development zone in Hohhot, the capital of Inner Mongolia, was accused of amassing more than 3 million yuan from 2006 to 2018. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to death by a regional court in August.

In Li Chuanliang’s case, authorities have so far seized and frozen 1,409 million yuan along with 1,021 properties, 27 plots of land, eight areas of forest land, 38 cars, 10 pieces of machinery, and shares in 18 companies, according to the court notice.

Zhang Chao, a Beijing-based lawyer who has worked on similar cases, said the logic behind Li’s profit-making in Jixi was not difficult to understand, given his unchecked power.

Li just needed the registered company to ensure that it did not appear to be directly linked to him, and used it to win bids for government projects, Zhang suggested. It would be easy for Li to manipulate the bidding process in a small city like Jixi, he added.

As for the long list of real estate holdings, Zhang said those appeared to be flats that his company had not sold yet. “Otherwise why would he need so many houses?”

‘Handsome’ China university students offer ‘royalty’ hiking escorts for tourists

https://www.scmp.com/news/people-culture/trending-china/article/3282444/handsome-china-university-students-offer-royalty-hiking-escorts-tourists?utm_source=rss_feed

A group of university students in eastern China offering a new mountain climbing companionship service has not only captured the hearts of customers but also delighted many internet observers.

An online influencer, known by her alias Shukesi, hired two tall and strong male university students to accompany her in climbing Mount Tai in Tai’an, Shandong province.

The entire experience was filmed, and the video was shared on the social media platform Bilibili, amassing half a million views at the time of writing.

As one of the most renowned mountains in the country, Mount Tai rises over 1,500 metres and features about 7,000 steps. Many tourists groan in exhaustion and suffer from aching legs after making their way to the summit.

In the viral clip, Shukesi travelled by train to Tai’an. Upon her arrival, she was greeted with open arms by one of her climbing companions, who held a red banner emblazoned with the welcoming Chinese characters, “Welcome Shukesi to visit Mount Tai”.

At the foot of the mountain, her other companion revealed a bag of provisions they had prepared, including bottled water, snacks, face masks, sunglasses, and a cap.

One of the companions carried Shukesi’s bag on his back, allowing her to hike without any burdens. Whenever she felt thirsty, a bottle of water – already unscrewed – was promptly handed to her.

As she began to sweat, her climbing companions offered her tissues at just the right moments. They even provided chewing gum, which they fed to her because her hands were occupied with walking poles.

“Your Majesty, please enjoy a taste,” one companion said as he offered her a slice of watermelon.

The influencer noted that the companions provided abundant “emotional support” to motivate her during the climb, offering encouragement such as, “You are so strong!” and “Your Majesty, feel free to take a break if you’re tired. It’s totally fine.”

Upon reaching the summit, the student companions presented a durian, which they opened effortlessly – without any tools – before handing it to her to enjoy.

“Their service is incredibly attentive!” Shukesi remarked in her video. “I highly recommend everyone planning to climb Mount Tai to hire these university student companions.”

The influencer did not disclose the cost of hiring the two companions, but an advertisement trending online indicates that student companionship for climbing costs 350 yuan (US$50) during the day and 450 yuan at night.

“We are fourth-year students from Shandong Agricultural University. Our team consists of 50 students, both male and female, and we have climbed Mount Tai an average of 40 times,” the advertisement states.

“We excel at taking photos for you, carrying your bags, and providing emotional support. We are well-versed in the climbing routines,” the ad continues.

The influencer’s experience garnered numerous responses on mainland social media.

“I’m interested in this service which is reasonably priced. The cost is definitely worthwhile,” one commenter noted.

Another added: “It feels so good to be treated like royalty, accompanied by two handsome escorts, haha!”

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In US vs Chinese soft power, guess how children are voting?

https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3281354/us-vs-chinese-soft-power-guess-how-children-are-voting?utm_source=rss_feed

My preteen nephew’s fingers are racing ahead of his linguistic engine as he valiantly tries to give me a step-by-step Rubik’s Cube tutorial in Mandarin, but after the third or fourth ranhou (“and then”), his voice trails off. His little brother can’t bear listening any more and blurts out, “Why can’t you tell her in English?”

He can’t, he gently explains as I bite back laughter, because the aunt “doesn’t really understand English”.

That would be poor old me, the self-appointed guardian of Chinese heritage who has made a point of speaking Mandarin, never ever English, to the children in my family in the hope that they won’t lose Chinese as a first language, and thus easy access to a cultural universe. Yet, mine sometimes feels like a lost cause.

For the boys and many others of their generation, day care is a fact of life. When children have socialised in English, the lingua franca in multiracial Singapore, for as long as they have been able to speak sentences, it quickly becomes the language they feel at home in, and which they will watch YouTube, Netflix and television in when they are actually home. And once some of them get sucked into that anglophone rabbit hole of toddlers’ shows from preschool brands and animated series from toy companies, it’s seemingly only a question of time before they emerge as Disney-loving, Marvel superhero-worshipping, Halloween-celebrating fans of American pop culture.

Thus, even in a traditionally Cantonese and Mandarin-speaking family like mine, the children stick to English among themselves and with their parents. Chinese recedes into the background, less mother than grandmother tongue; it is spoken to be polite to older people, including me, if they can look away from Captain Underpants, Ninjago, Young Sheldon or whatever it is they are glued to on Netflix through the television, tablet or phone.

The adults have tried to intervene with doses of sinophone content, from Chinese animated titles to Japanese cartoons dubbed into Mandarin. The children prefer Japanese animation to Chinese, however, and have worked out how to stream anime series in English.

I’m left wondering if among the younger generation, Chinese soft power stands much of a chance against the United States cultural-industrial complex.

American pop culture wasn’t as ubiquitous one generation ago, when my brothers and I were growing up. Sure, we were familiar with Sesame Street, Scooby-Doo, Superman and such. But our playmates were as likely to be found in superhero capes as in bath towels which we pretended were the flowing robes of swordsmen and swordswomen as we floated across the living room atop swivel chairs and brandished rulers, recapturing what we could of the flair of mid-air duels glimpsed in the small-screen versions of martial arts novels airing beyond our bedtime.

In the 1980s, China was just parting the bamboo curtain and wasn’t a country we were about to travel to. But the fantastical, historical Middle Kingdom conjured up in the wuxia genre – in print, on screen, in song – was the collective dream world of many Chinese-speaking people everywhere.

My father, concerned that my brothers and I wouldn’t have enough exposure to English to master it, had us memorising fairy tales at kindergarten age. By his logic, if students in dynastic China had to learn the Four Books and Five Classics by heart to know the ins and outs of the Chinese language, the least we could do as students of a foreign language was to recite a dozen English storybooks.

While Chinese was practically in the water we drank, my parents didn’t think we would pick it up by osmosis either. Instead, my father regaled us with the adventures of the bungling Buddhist pilgrim Tripitaka and his demon-fighting disciples Monkey, Pigsy and Sandy, ad-libbing his way through our comic-strip box set of , the most child-friendly of the four great Chinese novels.

My mother read us fables adapted from Chinese philosophical teachings, including the story of the old man who dares try to move mountains, confident that his descendants will finish what he started; the fable of the fool who fails to buy shoes in person because he forgot his foot measurement; and the story of the monkeys which don’t realise three plus four is the same as four plus three.

This last one, from Taoist philosopher Chuang Tzu, remains a personal touchstone: a reminder not to be caught up in false pursuits of numbers. Yet I’m not sure these stories would speak to today’s Netflix-addled children.

My baby brother, the father of the two boys, is sanguine about their acquisition of language and culture though. So long as they have a basic command of Chinese, he reckons, their roots are always waiting to be discovered.

For now, I draw comfort from the preteen’s enthusiasm for the traditional food we serve for Lunar New Year, especially , the fish salad that originated as an everyday dish in my grandparents’ native Pearl River Delta in southern China but has since evolved into a festive must-have in Singapore. Year in, year out, my mother insists on hand-cutting colourful mountains of radish, carrot, turnip and so forth for this salad, to preserve the crunch and juice of all these vegetables, even though such back-breaking work grows harder with age.

This year, my nephew dropped by and made things a little easier, quietly helping my mother and me out in the kitchen before the extended family gathered and tossed the salad on a massive plate – wielding a thicket of chopsticks, stirring sugar into lime juice, mixing in fish, peanut oil, then other ingredients step by step, as passed down from my late grandmother.

China’s EV makers jostle for pole position, tempting buyers with cutting-edge tech, luxury

https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3282939/chinas-ev-makers-jostle-pole-position-tempting-buyers-cutting-edge-tech-luxury?utm_source=rss_feed

In the second instalment of a three-part series on China’s electric vehicles, Daniel Ren and Yujie Xue look at the key technologies of major Chinese EV assemblers battling for supremacy in the world’s largest and fastest-growing automotive market. Click for the first part.

China’s electric vehicle (EV) makers are “an existential threat” to America’s car industry, according to Ford Motor CEO Jim Farley, whose company invented the world’s first automotive assembly line more than a century ago.

Chinese carmakers are offering slick digital features, artificial intelligence (AI) and other technology that is “unlike anything available in the US”, and they use a low-cost supply base to undercut competitors on price, Farley told Ford’s board member John Thornton, after a visit to China in May, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal.

Banking on heavy investment and generous government subsidies for consumers to switch to EVs, leading players like BYD, Li Auto, Nio and Xpeng, as well as newcomers telecommunications equipment giant Huawei Technologies and smartphone maker Xiaomi, have displayed their prowess, delighting drivers with state-of-the-art technology.

Chinese EVs have proven to be superior to global leader Tesla in terms of battery performance, digital features, interior build quality, and information and communication technology. Most models feature large multimedia screens, voice-activated control systems that not only connect to smartphones, but can also be used to operate home appliances.

Li Auto’s cars come with refrigerators and plush sofas, elevating passenger comfort and adding another dimension to the notion of luxury vehicles.

Still, Chinese EVs may have to play catch-up with Tesla in autonomous driving technology. The US carmaker’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) software, due to be deployed on the mainland next year, is the front-runner in the self-driving car race.

Nearly all Chinese assemblers have equipped their cars with preliminary autonomous driving systems, but drivers are still required to remain fully alert so that they can intervene under any circumstances.

From making rechargeable dry cells and batteries for mobile phones, BYD has grown to become the world’s largest EV maker after nearly three decades of fine-tuning its operations making EVs.

The Shenzhen-based company controls the entire EV battery supply chain, from minerals and raw materials to finished battery packs, giving it an overwhelming advantage in costs, profit margins and deliveries.

The company’s blade battery packs, arranged in an array to increase energy density and resistance to overheating, make its cars popular with customers concerned about range anxiety.

Its DM plug-in hybrid technology gives some of its compact models, such as the Qin L and the Seal 06, a range of up to 2,100km. The batteries used in the basic versions offer a driving range of up to 800km.

BYD has developed other technologies as well. Its DiSus body control system keeps passengers firmly in place during high-speed cornering and prevents the vehicle from rolling over. Cars under its luxury brand, Yangwang, use four wheel-mounted motors to rotate and crab-walk sideways.

Wang Chuanfu, founder and chairman, envisions making BYD’s EVs “super mobile phones on wheels” through investments in digital and autonomous driving technologies.

BYD sold 2.75 million units in the year’s first nine months, an increase of 32.1 per cent from a year earlier.

BYD’s budget Seagull hatchback starts from less than 70,000 yuan (US$9,850) and go up to 1 million yuan for the top-end Yangwang model.

The Beijing-based carmaker is betting on its extended-range battery technology, pitching it as a solution to the challenges of inadequate charging infrastructure and other constraints.

Extended-range EVs are essentially plug-in hybrids that use a small internal-combustion engine to generate additional power to charge the battery when needed. The technology gives all Li Auto’s models a driving range of more than 1,000km.

The company, Tesla’s nearest rival on the mainland in terms of sales, has equipped its cars with a four-wheel-drive ­system, as well as 15.7-inch entertainment screens in the front and rear, elements that appeal to middle-class consumers who want digital connectivity at all times.

Its vehicles have earned a reputation as mobile homes because they come with refrigerators and sofas, catering to the demands of wealthy Chinese families.

The company delivered 341,812 vehicles from January to September, a 40 per cent increase from a year earlier.

Li Auto mainly builds SUVs, with prices from 250,000 yuan for the L6 to 440,000 yuan for the L9.

The Shanghai-based carmaker pioneered battery-swapping technology to address range anxiety.

It is aggressively expanding its network of swapping stations across the mainland. This year it plans to build 900 more stations to add to its 2,500-plus outlets, which will allow drivers to get back on the road within minutes of exchanging a spent battery module for a fully charged one.

The upgraded swapping station shortens the time by 20 per cent to two and a half minutes. Most of these stations automatically navigate a car into the proper position.

Nio has signed agreements with carmakers like Geely and FAW Group to promote its battery-swapping technology. Under the deal, the partners will develop a unified battery technology standard, produce EVs that can be charged as well as swapped, and build a recharging service station ecosystem.

Nio was one of the first globally to equip EVs with a digital cockpit boasting augmented reality and virtual reality technologies. In December 2021, Nio launched its PanoCinema in-car entertainment system with huge screens, which was touted as a game changer at the time.

The company also makes smartphones fitted with an AI-powered chatbot. The world’s first companion device for vehicles can initiate self-parking, unlock cars with the press of a button even when powered off, and transition a video call from the phone to the car’s screen and speakers.

The latest phone Nio launched this year comes with Nomi GPT, an AI-powered voice assistant, which also allows owners to connect the phone to in-car cameras for live video streaming.

The carmaker reported a 35.7 per cent year-on-year sales growth in the first three quarters of the year, with deliveries hitting 149,281 units.

Nio’s price range spans from 200,000 yuan to 600,000 yuan.

Guangzhou-headquartered Xpeng is China’s leader in autonomous driving technology.

The company’s advanced driver assistance ­system, which comes standard with its EVs, can recognise traffic lights, turn, change lanes and overtake vehicles.

The Xpeng Navigation Guided Pilot (X NGP) has been tested in nearly all mainland cities, making it the first mainland carmaker to launch a semi-autonomous driving system nationwide.

Founder and CEO He Xiaopeng said in May that Xpeng could make autonomous driving technology affordable to middle- and low-income consumers as it strives to bring costs down.

In August, the company launched the M03, the first model under its new mass-market brand Mona. Priced from 119,800 yuan (US$16,947), the car is equipped with an advanced driving assistance system and has a minimum range of 515km.

AeroHT, an affiliate of Xpeng that develops flying cars, is expected to start delivering a drone priced at around US$200,000 at the end of next year.

In March, the start-up announced its AeroHT Voyager X2 had completed a low-altitude flight in the central business district of Guangzhou. Three months later, the flying car took off from Beijing Daxing International Airport for its first flight in the capital.

The company delivered 98,561 EVs from January to September, an increase of 21 per cent from a year earlier.

Xpeng’s budget models under its Mona brand are priced as low as 119,800 yuan, while its premium P7 starts from 209,900 yuan.

Founded by Huawei and Seres in 2021, the Chongqing-based carmaker has emerged as a strong contender in the premium EV segment, boasting of smart technology such as 4D imaging radar, autonomous driving platform, intelligent thermal management, lidar and 5G connectivity.

Huawei, the world’s largest provider of 5G telecommunications equipment, provides the connectivity and infrastructure necessary for the vehicles to link to the internet, and to each other. Huawei’s HarmonyOS operating system allows the car’s infotainment system to provide drivers “the same smooth experience” as its smartphones.

In 2023, Huawei launched its own self-driving platform, known as advanced driving system 2.0, powered by the in-house MDC 610 chipset. Aito vehicles can navigate the streets automatically, but require drivers’ intervention in most cases.

Deliveries in the first nine months of 2024 jumped 364 per cent year on year to 316,713 units.

Aito, which currently only makes SUVs, sells the M5 from 249,800 yuan, while the basic edition of M9 is priced at 469,800 yuan.

Xiaomi’s first model, the SU7, offers owners a superfast charging experience. Designed and built by the smartphone giant, the car is an example of how Chinese tech companies are extending their digital prowess to car-making.

The models built using the 400-volt charging system have a range of 350km after 15 minutes of charging, and as much as 510km through the 800-volt ultra-fast system.

The SU7 comes with a 4.6-litre refrigerator and a 56-inch heads-up display. It also supports wireless Apple CarPlay and iPad connectivity.

It had sold 69,790 cars as of end-September since deliveries began in April.

Xiaomi’s SU7 is priced from 215,900 yuan to 299,900 yuan.

The premium EV unit of Geely Auto has developed an in-house battery, which it claims has the world’s fastest charging capability.

The lithium-ion-phosphate battery, supported by an 800-volt charging system, gives its 7X SUV a range of 400km after only 10.5 minutes of charging.

Zeekr builds its cars based on the open-source sustainable experience architecture platform launched by Geely in 2020. The versatile platform supports the production of a range of vehicles, from passenger cars and SUVs to vans and lorries.

Zeekr currently makes only pure EVs, but it announced in August that hybrid models would be developed and launched in the second half of 2025.

The carmaker delivered 142,873 units in the year’s first nine months, an increase of 81 per cent from a year earlier.

Zeekr’s cars range from 209,900 yuan to 329,000 yuan.

Backed by Chinese search engine giant Baidu, Jiyue has set its sights on Tesla’s Model 3 with the 07 sedan.

It features a high level of autonomy, provided customers pay 29,900 yuan for the company’s autonomous driving software known as Apollo 2.0.

The advanced driver assistance system was developed by Baidu’s Project Apollo, one of the world’s largest and most diver­sified open-source self-driving ­alliances established in 2017.

Apollo can handle most driving ­situations independently, ­matching the level 4 autonomous standard set by SAE International, a US-based association, according to Jiyue.

The 01 sedan starts at 209,900 yuan and goes all the way to 309,900 yuan.

Wary of China, US ranks Japan ‘first’ among Aukus partners: State Department No 2 official

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3283016/wary-china-us-ranks-japan-first-among-aukus-partners-state-department-no-2-official?utm_source=rss_feed

The US considers Japan “first” among Aukus partners as it keeps a wary eye on China following meetings in Tokyo this week, America’s No 2 diplomat revealed on Friday.

US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, fresh from a trip to the island nation, said the two allies were in “very close ” talks about Tokyo working with the security pact comprising the US, Britain and Australia on projects tied to advanced capabilities.

Washington’s alignment and engagement with the Indo-Pacific region in relation to China and North Korea have “broadened and deepened”, Campbell added, as he called for Japan’s supply-chain support amid an intensifying tech battle with Beijing.

Speaking at an event hosted by the Washington-based Centre for Strategic and International Studies, Campbell stated that at some point “Japan would be a potential partner” in civil society or think tanks in the Aukus alliance’s partnership network.

“Those have to do with certain kinds of undersea capabilities, cyber-related initiatives,” he added, mentioning “a variety of opportunities” loomed.

“We are in very close, constant interaction with Japanese colleagues about the way forward. No fundamental decisions have been made,” Campbell said of Aukus. “All three countries … recognise that there will come a time that we will look very favourably at partners, and frankly, Japan is first on that list as we go forward.”

The US in 2021 launched the Aukus alliance to help Australia acquire nuclear-powered submarines, eager to counter China’s military clout in the region.

As such, it actively seeks key technological support from regional allies like Japan. But there has been reported resistance in Tokyo over concerns of being associated with a nuclear pact, owing to the country’s fraught military history.

Campbell’s remarks on the US-Japan alliance came amid ongoing tensions between the US and China and as President Joe Biden winds down his presidency.

Next month’s election to succeed him pitting US Vice-President Kamala Harris against Donald Trump, Biden’s predecessor in the Oval Office, has cast uncertainty over the future of Sino-American relations.

In recent months, the Biden administration has ramped up tech measures meant to confront Beijing, such as export controls targeting China’s AI and quantum computing.

Campbell described advanced technologies as forming the “core” of US-Japan cooperation in the future. He urged Tokyo to go beyond its traditional security dealings with Washington and focus on technology.

“Technology is at the centre of what we do and what we seek to do,” the veteran envoy said. “Supply-chain support integration between the United States and Japan is essential.”

Tokyo is a global leader in semiconductor equipment manufacturing and shares many of Washington’s concerns about Beijing, which controls about 60 per cent of critical minerals production worldwide.

Japan has joined the US in imposing export controls on China, taking up broader efforts to cut off the world’s second-largest economy from a technology supply chain that the allies fear could bolster the People’s Liberation Army.

The US and Japan earlier this week closed ranks with South Korea on another matter of mutual concern: Beijing’s claims over most of the South China Sea.

Campbell, meeting with his Japanese and South Korean counterparts in Seoul on Wednesday, joined a statement of opposition to “unlawful maritime claims in the South China Sea” – an apparent reference to China.

Last year, the US, Japan and South Korea expanded security ties at an unprecedented summit in Camp David, Maryland. The three have steadily increased joint military drills in response to military actions by China and North Korea in the Indo-Pacific.

Beijing has repeatedly criticised Washington’s coalition building, describing it as “bloc confrontation” and arguing it destabilises regional peace.

Tokyo looks poised to stand firm. Shigeru Ishiba, who on October 1 succeeded Fumio Kishida as Japan’s leader, has called for the creation of an “Asian version of Nato”. Beijing denounced the proposal, urging Japan to “stop hyping up the China threat”.

China-Japan relations have long been strained over the island nation’s wartime crimes against civilians on the mainland committed between 1937 and 1945 as well as the two countries’ competing sovereignty claims over the East China Sea.