China's Ministry of State Security (MSS) published a post on Tuesday, urging self-media operators to caution against blindly following trends that could compromise national security. It highlighted the example of some outdoor enthusiasts who share tips for "niche" photography locations on social media, boldly using "restricted areas" as a gimmick to draw attention, including sharing detailed routes to enter military restricted areas.
In recent years, some individuals previously employed in sensitive sectors such as Party and government bodies, national defense industries, and scientific research institutions have sought to attract online traffic and arouse netizens' curiosity about confidential fields by sharing their work experiences on public platforms, often imbued with a sense of mystery.
To garner attention, some have gone so far as to actively divulge state secrets, still bound by confidentiality obligations from past employers. Such actions, while potentially boosting online popularity, also risk drawing the attention of foreign intelligence agencies, according to the MSS.
The ministry referenced the newly revised law on guarding state secrets, noting that individuals privy to classified information are forbidden from disclosing any state secrets during the declassification period. Once this period concludes, they are expected to adhere to national confidentiality protocols and continue to uphold their duty to maintain the secrecy of known state secrets.
The MSS acknowledged that within legally and regulatorily permissible boundaries, sharing professional knowledge and workplace experiences could positively influence the target audience. However, those with access to state secrets are obligated to rigorously apply confidentiality laws, regulations, and institutional policies in public discourse, maintaining a steadfast commitment to confidential information.
Additionally, the MSS highlighted the issue of netizens, particularly outdoor enthusiasts, who utilize social media to disseminate guides to "niche" check-in spots, exploiting "restricted areas" as a lure for followers.
For instance, a blogger on Xiaohongshu, a platform akin to Instagram in China, published a post titled "What did I see after going through 'the forbidden area' in Central China's Wuhan," featuring photos of a young woman climbing over a fence marked "Military restricted area. Entry prohibited."
This act drew criticism from both military-affiliated media, such as the Junzhengping Studio, and Chinese netizens, who denounced the blatant disregard for national security and called for heightened public awareness regarding national defense.
Under the law on the protection of military installations, Chinese organizations and citizens bear the responsibility to safeguard military facilities, with any act disrupting the order of military restricted zones or jeopardizing the safety of military installations facing strict legal consequences.
The MSS emphasized that military areas and sensitive zones are not attractions for tourists. Misuse of such information by those with malicious intent could severely threaten national security.
Finally, the authority reminded that the internet is not beyond the reach of law, and self-media operators must shoulder the responsibility of upholding national security. They are urged not to compromise national security for the sake of online traffic, nor to venture into illegal or criminal activities.
The China Coast Guard (CCG) announced on Saturday that it had expelled three Philippine vessels which had illegally intruded into waters adjacent to Ren'ai Jiao (also known as Ren'ai Reef) in China's Nansha Islands, noting that the CCG remains on full alert to safeguard China's territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests.
Experts pointed out that Philippines' frequent illegal intrusions are testing China's limits but the country may have exhausted all its tricks. They urged the Philippines to adhere to commitments and stop provocation, which is the only way to resolve the South China Sea disputes.
Gan Yu, a spokesperson for CCG, said that the Philippines sent two coast guard vessels and one supply vessel to illegally enter the waters near Ren'ai Jiao on Saturday, in an attempt to supply its illegally grounded warship and transport construction materials, deliberately disrupting the peace and stability of the South China Sea.
Gan noted that despite multiple warnings and route controls from the Chinese side, the Philippine supply vessel forcibly intruded into waters adjacent to Ren'ai Jiao on Saturday, and the CCG lawfully and professionally implemented regulation, interception, and expulsion.
The Philippines' provocation came only 18 days after its last shipment, the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson warned the Philippines that those who play with fire will only bring shame upon themselves. "The CCG is on high alert at all times to resolutely defend national territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests," Gan noted.
Chinese Foreign Ministry also said on Saturday that the Nansha Islands, including Ren'ai Jiao, are China's inherent territory, which has been formed and established in the long historical process and is in accordance with international law. The Philippines side should immediately stop provocations, and avoid disrupting the peace and stability of the South China Sea.
If the Philippines continues to act recklessly, China will take resolute measures to safeguard its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests. The Philippines will be responsible for all resulting consequences, Chinese Foreign Ministry said.
Experts reached by the Global Times on Saturday pointed out that the Philippines' frequent illegal intrusions are testing China's limits, and they also warned of the increasing likelihood of more frictions created by the country.
"The Philippines' illegal intrusions into the waters near Ren'ai Jiao are a form of consistent provocations by the country, aimed at testing China's bottom line on this matter and probing the US' response," Hu Bo, director of the South China Sea Strategic Situation Probing Initiative (SCSPI), told the Global Times.
"The Philippines may have exhausted all its tricks," Hu said on Saturday, adding that the possibility of a provocative escalation is not high. However, there may be more friction in the future as the Philippines shows no signs of stopping its provocations, the expert warned.
The Philippines has been frequently provoking tensions in the South China Sea recently by challenging China's sovereignty and maritime rights over the relevant islands and reefs. Some 34 Filipino personnel illegally landed on Tiexian Jiao (also known as Tiexian Reef) in the South China Sea on Thursday after ignoring warnings and dissuasion from the Chinese side, and the CCG's law enforcement personnel boarded the reef to investigate and handle the situation in accordance with the law.
According to the Associated Press, Philippine coast guard Commodore Jay Tarriela said at a news conference on Friday that the personnel landed on Tiexian Jiao were "marine scientists" conducting research.
Chinese experts said sending questionable "marine scientists" amid escalated tensions is hardly the way to solve the South China Sea dispute and only strengthens the impressions that the Philippines is actively trying to occupy the uninhabited reef and further provoke China.
According to the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC), the Parties undertake to exercise self-restraint in the conduct of activities that would complicate or escalate disputes and affect peace and stability, including refraining from action of inhabiting on the presently uninhabited islands, reefs, shoals, cays, and other features.
The Philippines' move violates the commitment in the DOC that all parties should not occupy uninhabited islands and reefs, which is the core of the declaration and a key factor in maintaining peace and stability in the South China Sea for the past two decades, Lei Xiaolu, a professor of law in China Institute of Boundary and Ocean Studies, Wuhan University, told the Global Times on Saturday.
The expert emphasized that China has indisputable sovereignty over the Nansha Islands, including Tiexian Jiao, and adjacent waters. "There is no international law that justifies a country conducting 'scientific research' on the territory of another sovereign nation," Lei said.
From last year onward, the Philippines has been engaging in increasingly provocative activities with the goal of illegally occupying some of China's reefs, and these aggressive behaviors are the primary cause of the escalating tensions in the South China Sea, analysts said. The Philippines should adhere to its commitments and stop provocation, which is the only way to resolve the South China Sea dispute, they said.
The planning of large-scale scientific facilities and basic research requires long-term perspective and more investment, said Wang Yifang, director of the Institute of High Energy Physics (IHEP) of Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), who is also a deputy to the 14th National People's Congress.
China has made remarkable achievements in the construction of large-scale scientific facilities after decades of development. If all projects planned in the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) are completed, China will have approximately 70 large scientific facilities, a number comparable to that of the US, Wang told the Global Times.
However, there is still a significant gap in terms of the investment scale for individual facility and the total investment scale compared to the US. Currently, China still lacks internationally leading specialized large scientific facilities, especially in the fields of particle physics, nuclear physics, and astronomy, he stressed.
"This puts us at a disadvantage compared to some other countries in certain areas, such as astronomical telescopes and particle accelerators. Therefore, I believe that in the future, we should focus on improving the quality of development rather than increasing the quantity of large scientific facilities in order to compete directly with advanced countries and strive to surpass them," Wang said.
"Without large scientific facilities, basic research would be just an idea on paper. We mustn't always be a recipient of knowledge, but should grow into a provider of knowledge and leader in global basic research," Wang said.
China has been paying more attention to strengthening basic research, as it is not only a cornerstone for achieving greater self-reliance and strength in science and technology, but the foundation for solving many bottleneck technologies. In the face of fierce international scientific and technological competition, Wang stressed that increasing funding for basic scientific research is a priority.
According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, in 2022, the country's investment in basic research accounted for 6.57 percent of total research and development (R&D) spending, while the goal according to the 14th Five-Year Plan is 8 percent by 2025, which Wang said requires more efforts to realize.
Wang called for long-term perspective when planning research investment, looking ahead to the situation in 10, 15, or even 20 years.
Taking the construction of China's Circular Electron-Positron Collider (CEPC) as an example, we have to be clear that the construction period for the CEPC is 10 years. If we do not start now, China will lag behind others in this field in 10 years' time, Wang said.
A window to new physical world
The CEPC is a large international scientific facility proposed by the Chinese particle physics community in 2012. The project, to be hosted in China in a circular underground tunnel of approximately 100 kilometers in circumference, is a double-ring collider with electron and positron beams circulated in opposite directions in separate beam pipes, and the detectors are installed at two interaction points, according to the CAS.
The CEPC's "Technical Design Report" has gone through international review and was officially published in December, 2023. Being able to independently design such a large scientific facility demonstrates Chinese scientists' capabilities, according to Wang.
In the next step, the scientists will proceed with the engineering design and integrate the completed components, according to Wang. "We have completed the construction of a single prototype, and the next step is to figure out how to mass-produce individual products. In addition, we will continue to conduct in-depth research on some key technical details to ensure that our facility achieves optimal performance and cost-effectiveness."
It will take about three more years before the CEPC can begin actual construction, with the entire construction period lasting approximately 10 years, Wang noted.
The location for the CEPC has not yet been decided, according to Wang. "The ideal construction site should meet the following conditions: first, geological conditions, the CEPC should be built on intact and solid underground rock. Second, the construction site of the CEPC should consider factors such as transportation conditions, humanistic environment and educational environment, as the CEPC will serve as an international research base in the future, it should have an open environment that attracts talents from various countries and regions to work there," Wang explained.
The CEPC project will reportedly cost 36 billion yuan ($4.9 billion) and will have a circumference of 100 kilometers, with center-mass energy of up to 240 giga electron-volts, both setting a world record.
The goal of the CEPC is to build a high-luminosity Higgs factory. The existing standard model of physics is imperfect and has many inconsistencies, we need to find the fundamental reasons for them and Higgs is believed by global physicists to be the best window to find these loopholes, Wang explained.
In terms of controversies over the project, Wang responded that "in terms of science, I think we have made relevant issues very clear; in terms of techniques, we have proven through a large amount of experimental data, prototypes and the high-energy synchrotron radiation light source we are building in Huairou, that we have the ability to design and construct such a large scientific facility."
As to the cost, Wang stressed that CEPC is a facility to be used by the whole community of high-energy physics. There will be thousands of scientists working for decades. Considering this, the average investment per scientist per year would be far from being high. "Thousands of high-energy physicists are willing to invest all their energy, funds and time in a single facility, the average cost will not be higher than that of other research fields," he said. 'It relies on human intelligence to drive scientific progress'
In recent years, the rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies and products have created a stir around the world, especially after the release of the up-to-one-minute-long realistic videos created by the text-to-video AI generator Sora in early February.
According to OpenAI's explainer, Sora is capable of generating complex scenes with accurate details, including multiple characters, specific types of movements, themes and backgrounds. It understands not only what the user requests in the prompts, but also how these things exist in the physical world.
In fact, there has been a long-existing debate over whether AI can really understand - rather than imitate - physical laws and whether they can help discover new laws.
As a top physicist in China, Wang said it may be difficult for AI to break this barrier.
The most fundamental cornerstone of AI technology is the ability to predict the future to some extent through learning, but this so-called prediction is linear and based on existing knowledge. However, physics rules, especially new discoveries and concepts, are not simple extension of existing knowledge and data, Wang said.
After all it still requires scientific research and human intelligence to drive scientific progress, Wang said.
Shortly after the government of Papua New Guinea (PNG) announced that it was considering a potential security agreement with China, the US and Australia initiated a campaign to undermine this cooperation - the latest move in a series of ongoing efforts by the US and Australia to disrupt the partnership between China and South Pacific Island countries (PICs), experts said.
This vividly reflects US and Australian fears and concerns, driven by a Cold War mentality, toward China's pragmatic cooperation with countries in the South Pacific region. They still like to view PICs as their "sphere of influence" or "backyard," experts pointed out.
On January 29, 2024, Reuters reported that PNG Foreign Minister Justin Tkachenko said that the country was in early talks with China on a potential security deal. PNG was recently rocked by violent riots, posing significant security threats to people in the country, including many Chinese people doing business on the island.
However, two days after the Reuters report was published, Tkachenko had to reaffirm the country's close security ties with Australia and that the two countries signed a new security pact. On Monday, in an interview with the Sydney Morning Herald, US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Verma further pressed PNG to turn down China's offer of a potential security pact.
"We've seen that the Chinese commitment to defense or investment comes with a high cost. That's what we'd say to PNG," Verma claimed in the interview.
Yet, what Verma said to the media does not hold water.
"After witnessing the close and fruitful cooperation between China and South Pacific Island countries in recent years, the US and Australia have stepped up their efforts to undermine the cooperation. The move [to obstruct the China-PNG security cooperation] is just another example," Yang Honglian, a Fiji-based senior researcher with the Pacific Islands Research Center at Liaocheng University in Shandong, told the Global Times.
"These actions to disrupt normal cooperation between China and South Pacific Island countries manifest in various domains, including asserting diplomatic pressure, using economic aid competitions, and spreading false information or disinformation to smear China," Yang said. Stained records of US, Australia
If PNG's size as the largest one among South Pacific Island countries and its important geopolitical position are taken into consideration, its cooperation with China would undoubtedly be perceived as a "thorn in the side" by the US and Australia who don't pay any attention to the real benefits gained by South Pacific countries from cooperating with China, experts said.
In terms of the security cooperation between China and the PICs, as currently seen in the Solomon Islands and Fiji, they have significantly improved local police capabilities and crisis management. Notably, Fiji has achieved major successes in narcotics control following police training in China, showcasing the benefits of such cooperation, Yang said.
In addition to targeting the security cooperation, the US and Australia also like to smear cooperation under the framework of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) by accusing China of creating a so-called debt trap while in reality, most of the PICs' debt is largely held by Western countries.
A search on Western media outlets for China's cooperation with the PICs yielded numerous results, which mostly made false accusations against the China-aided projects. However, in the current media landscape with regard to the region, the Western media machine maintains an unshakeable position. "The media is a useful weapon for them to employ," Yang said.
Furthermore, in early 2023, when rumors surfaced about China Mobile's intention to acquire Digicel, a key telecommunications company in several PICs such as Fiji and Papua New Guinea, the Australian government swiftly intervened, injecting funds into Australia's Telstra enabling it to successfully acquire Digicel in order to "block China influence," according to a Nikkei Asia report.
Despite claims from the US and Australia in recent years that they would not pressure the PICs regarding their diplomatic relations, they expressed "disappointment" after Nauru's recent decision of restoring diplomatic relations with China. China and Nauru signed a joint communique in Beijing on January 24, 2024, on the resumption of diplomatic relations at the ambassadorial level.
However, as tensions between China and the US escalate, the US government is ramping up its public support for the island of Taiwan. In September 2019, Washington expressed opposition to the Solomon Islands and Kiribati shifting their diplomatic recognition to Beijing. In November of that year, the first joint business delegation of the US and the island of Taiwan visited Saint Lucia, a Caribbean partner of Taiwan.
"In fact, they like to use direct political intervention, which is one of the most common strategies," Yang said.
A prime example of such intervention is the Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands (RAMSI), led by Australia, which was aimed to prevent the collapse of the Solomon Islands government over a 14-year period, as well as the establishment of the Solomons International Assistance Force (SIAF) led by Australia in 2021. Under the so-called banner of offering aid, these organizations were meant to influence the decisions that the Solomon Islands government would make, according to Yang.
The US and Australia even take advantage of political loopholes in the island nations' elections to suppress governments that are willing to conduct cooperation with China and to support anti-China politicians, experts said.
With several PICs, including the Solomon Islands, facing elections in 2024, it is not ruled out that Australia and the US will seek to make troubles in these countries' relations with China, experts warned.
Strategic anxiety
The trend of interference is gradually intensifying as Western countries have come to realize that China's growing influence provides new options to the PICs facing difficulties. These options have forced the US and Australia to increase their aid and financial expenditure, and to invest more effort in the region, which has long been neglected by the US and Australia in the past.
Whether it is China's projects, security cooperation, or establishing diplomatic relations with Nauru, they have all been seen as "direct threats" to the so-called security interests of the US and Australia. However, the US and Australia have fallen into a self-generated "strategic anxiety" toward China, and have excessively militarized the PICs, experts pointed out.
For example, the US has signed the Compacts of Free Association with the Federated States of Micronesia, Palau, and the Marshall Islands, providing long-term economic assistance to the three countries in exchange for military deployment, military exercises, and weapons testing. The US seeks to use these countries as pawns to contain China beyond the "first island chain," and even militarize countries like Palau.
John Queripel, an Australian historian and author, told the Global Times in an exclusive interview that apart from Australia, the US also simply regards the PICs as "belonging" to them.
"Chinese interests in the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Kiribati, and Papua New Guinea, among others, have suddenly spurred a renewal of interests from both Australia and the US, who previously had left the region as a backwater for years," he said.
"The connections which the Solomon Islands in particular developed with China almost caused an apoplectic fit in Australia. Much of it was paternalistic, alleging that the 'naive' Solomon Islanders were being 'manipulated' by China. That type of attitude is precisely the problem that Australia has had with the Pacific," Queripel said. Reciprocal cooperation with China
China and the PICs have enjoyed long-lasting friendly exchanges. Since the establishment of diplomatic ties in the 1970s, China and the PICs have continued to expand exchanges and cooperation in more than 20 areas, including trade, investment, ocean affairs, environmental protection, disaster prevention and mitigation, poverty alleviation, healthcare, education, tourism, culture, and sports, and all at the sub-national level, according to China's Foreign Ministry.
For the PICs, China has provided economic and technical assistance with no political strings attached, implemented more than 100 aid projects, delivered more than 200 batches of in-kind assistance, and trained about 10,000 talents in various fields. China has dispatched 600 medical professionals to the region, benefiting more than 260,000 local residents, said China's Foreign Ministry.
For countries like the Solomon Islands and other similar PICs, it would be "very stupid" not to increase cooperation with China and seize the development opportunities it offers, Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare told the Global Times while visiting China in July 2023.
"China is our good friend, and it can help us achieve these development goals," Sogavare concluded.
Queripel told the Global Times that China is setting in place a win-win model through the BRI, the BRICS, and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. However, the model is inconceivable in the eyes of some Western politicians and media outlets.
"The Western economic model has been, [and] still is, based on sucking up profits from around the world, impoverishing nations by taking those profits and materials back to the colonial powers… China itself knows that well from its 'century of humiliation,'" Queripel said.
Yang noted that the PICs are increasingly advocating for non-aligned and independent foreign policies, avoiding exclusive alignment with either Western powers or China to protect their sovereignty and agency.
"This cautious stance reflects a desire to prevent their region from becoming a geopolitical battleground, prioritizing national control and economic security over military alliances," he said.
In response, both Western countries and China should engage with these countries on equal footing, respecting their autonomy and right to development. Strengthening cultural, educational, and people-to-people ties can foster mutual understanding and support the creation of sustainable, long-term relationships that benefit all parties involved, Yang noted.
The China-donated Integrated Center for Technological Training (CINFOTEC) Huambo, a vocational skills training center, was officially inaugurated in Central Angola's Huambo on January 12, and is expected to boost Angola's industrial and high-end technology development, the Global Times learned from the state-owned Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) on Tuesday.
Angolan President João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço cut the ribbon to mark the official launch of the project at the inauguration ceremony amid applause and public anticipation from thousands of local residents gathered at the site.
At the ceremony, Teresa Dias, Minister of Public Administration, Labor, and Social Security, thanked the Chinese government for its support in the creation of talent in the country and said the inauguration of the center will contribute to the improvement of training quality and help bridge the large gap in the specialization of cutting-edge technology in Angola.
She expressed her expectation that the center would create more opportunities for the development of manufacturing, mining, agriculture, and communication industries in Angola.
Chen Feng, charge d'affaires at the Chinese Embassy in Angola, said the Chinese government has always supported capacity building in Africa. In 2023, China proposed three initiatives to assist in Africa's modernization process, including the Plan for China-Africa Cooperation on Talent Development.
The completion of the center will help more Angolan youth realize their dreams and provide stronger talent support for Angola's independent and sustainable development, she said. "Over the last 10 to 15 years, China has proven to be Angola's biggest commercial and political partner, with the partnership yielding fruits in various segments, and professional training and employment have been prioritized in these last years," Secretary of State for Labor and Social Security Pedro Filipe said in an interview with the Xinhua News Agency.
At present, Angola has established cooperation projects with a number of Chinese enterprises to provide internship and training opportunities for Angolan youth.
Geraldo Pambasange, the director of CINFOTEC Huambo, said the center will train 2,400 students annually in its first phase, with the first class scheduled to start on January 15.
The project, which was designed and project-managed by the AVIC, covers an area of more than 20,000 square meters. It includes 30 laboratories, and six workshops for robotics, machining, computer science, measurement, and automotive repair. The construction of the project began on June 24, 2021, and it was completed on October 31, 2023.
This project is another high-quality result of Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) cooperation, which will further promote the development of China-Angola relations and deepen the friendship between the two peoples.
BMW is in the spotlight after "abnormal noises" were heard in the transmission shaft of some of its recent deliveries, sparking safety concerns and discussion on social media platforms in China on Friday.
The issue was highlighted at the consumer rights gala on Friday that coincided with World Consumer Rights Day. The 3.15 Gala, an annual show produced by China Central Television (CCTV), focuses on the protection of consumers' rights. It revealed the issue after interviewing owners of the BMW 530Li.
A car owner surnamed Li told CCTV that there was a sound like metal friction coming from the bottom of his BMW car, like the sound of coins falling to the ground.
The noise was a concern for Li. After he went to a local BMW 4S store for help, a member of staff at the store suggested that he replace the drive shaft, which would be a significant repair, especially for a new car.
Li tried to reach BMW customer service and was told to wait for progress on the issue or a reply from the 4S store regarding the problem.
Li is not alone. Some other owners of the BMW 530Li also filed complaints regarding similar issues.
The news jumped to the top of the search list on Sina Weibo with more than 54 million views as of press time on Friday.
In response, BMW said on its official Sina Weibo account on Friday it had previously conducted technical inspections and confirmed that this issue will not affect driving safety and can be solved through maintenance.
The company said that it will bear all related maintenance costs and will carry out further technical reviews and in-depth analysis so that it can give consumers more satisfactory answers.
China's top anti-graft authorities have launched an investigation into Li Jiping, a former vice president of China Development Bank (CDB), for suspected severe violations of disciplines and law. The move marks the latest in a series of efforts by China to tackle corruption in its financial system.
According to a statement released on Wednesday by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) and the National Supervisory Commission, Li Jiping is currently under disciplinary review and supervision investigation. Li, who started his tenure at CDB in March 1994 and served as vice president from September 2008 to January 2016, is being investigated eight years after his retirement.
Li's investigation follows that of two other former vice presidents of CDB. Wang Yongsheng was probed in July 2023 and arrested on January 11 on suspicion of accepting bribes. Similarly, another CDB vice president, Zhou Qingyu, was investigated in May 2023 and arrested on December 14 for suspected bribery and using influence to accept bribes.
These investigations underscore China's commitment to deepening its fight against corruption across various sectors, with a particular focus on the financial system. A communiqué issued by the CCDI on January 10 highlighted the significance of the anti-corruption campaign within the financial sector.
On February 22, Pan Gongsheng, the governor of the People's Bank of China, the central bank, emphasized the complex and grave situation in the financial sector's fight against corruption. He called for a rigorous investigation into corruption within the financial sector.
The China Development Bank, established in 1994, is a major state-owned financing institution tasked with supporting China's economic growth in crucial industries and underdeveloped areas. With direct oversight from the State Council, CDB boasts total assets of 18.2 trillion yuan ($2.5 trillion) as of the end of 2022 and employs over 10,000 workers. This investigation into one of its former high-ranking officials signifies a continued and serious approach to eradicating corruption in China's financial system.
China's consumer price index (CPI), the main gauge of inflation, rose by 0.7 percent in February year-on-year, confirming a clear signal trend toward rising domestic demand across China's economy which delivered imports growth in the first two months of 2024.
China's CPI rose by 0.7 percent in February year-on-year and rose 1 percent month-on-month, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Saturday. The upward trend of prices month-on-month in China since December 2023 has shown further signs of strengthening.
China's producer price index (PPI), which measures costs for goods at the factory gate, fell by 2.7 percent year-on-year in February, data from NBS showed Saturday.
The three-month continuous rise in consumption prices month-on-month confirms a signal of the recovery of domestic demand across the Chinese economy that was reflected in China's increase in imports in the first two months of 2024. The country's overall economic performance in the first quarter may exceed expectations, according to one expert.
China's dollar-denominated imports in January and February increased by 3.5 percent year-on-year, marking two consecutive months of growth, according to General Administration of Customs of China released data on Thursday.
The strong year-on-year and month-on-month price increases in February suggest that consumption in China has indeed returned to normal levels, even after excluding seasonal factors which include the traditional consumption surge during the Spring Festival holidays, Tian Yun, an economist based in Beijing, told the Global Times on Saturday.
In the face of a continuous price rebound in January and February, we have reason to have higher expectations for China's domestic consumption indicators in January and February as well, Tian added.
The 14th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), China's top political advisory body, kicked off its second session on Monday, marking the start of the annual two sessions. The second session of the 14th National People's Congress (NPC), the country's top legislature, is set to open on Tuesday.
This year's political gatherings carry extra weight for the Chinese economy, as 2024 will be a crucial year for the realization of the goals and tasks of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25), and the new government is set to submit its Government Work Report to the NPC annual session for deliberation for the first time.
The session usually reviews past achievements and sets development targets for the current year and beyond.
At a time when mainstream Western media outlets are flooded with reports of China grappling with various difficulties - deflation, a property crisis, mounting debt burdens and a foreign capital exodus - the two sessions will serve as a crucial window for the world to observe the country's economic development and understand its policy direction for the year ahead, which Western media outlets said investors are watching closely for signals of a "bazooka-like stimulus."
It's not unusual to see Western media outlets run bearish reports badmouthing the Chinese economy around the major political event every year. For instance, a report published by the Financial Times on February 27, 2023, was headlined "The implications of China's mid-income trap," while CNN ran an article entitled "China's economy had a surprisingly good start to the year, but it may not last" in March 2022.
Yet, China still accomplished its 2023 GDP growth target despite downward pressure and challenges, and the underlying trends of a rebound in the economy and long-term growth remain unchanged. Such economic fundamentals further prove that the ill-intentioned "China collapse" theory cannot withstand the test of time.
Why have Western predictions about a hard landing for the Chinese economy never come true? The key lies in the inability to understand that China's economic development has its own rhythm and policy direction, which will not be influenced by Western hype. The reason why the two sessions are of great importance to China's economy is not only because of the GDP target issued during the meetings, but also because of the policy direction set for achieving stable economic development in the year ahead.
There is no denying that China's GDP target has been the focus of world attention, which is not surprising given its huge economic size and important implications for the global economy. The Chinese government has always stressed the importance of the quality of economic development, rather than just the growth rate, but GDP, as a major measure of a country's economic strength, is still one of the most important economic metrics in China.
It is true that China's economic growth has slowed in recent years amid unprecedented and complicated domestic and external market challenges. This is mainly because the economy is undergoing a period of adjustment and transformation. Despite the difficulties and downward pressure, China is still on a solid footing and its GDP growth rate remains relatively fast among the world's major economies.
If anything, China's consistent economic performance over the years is the best proof that it has the ability to transform its economy while maintaining growth momentum.
During China's two sessions, much attention is often paid to the country's GDP growth target. However, it is crucial to look beyond mere numbers and understand the implications of new policies and measures to be implemented by the Chinese government to address economic challenges. Because the policy direction not only promises positive influence on China's economic prospects, but also presents opportunities in the country's future development.
