Tag - china

 
 

CHINA

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer speaks with reporters at the White House in Washington last month.
BUSINESS / Tech
May 23, 2026
U.S. weighs chip tariffs to spur domestic growth, trade chief says
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer stressed the importance of using import duties to bring chip production back to the U.S.
Since ‌December, Chinese ‌exports of rare earth minerals like dysprosium, terbium and yttrium oxide, as ​well as specialty metal gallium, to Japan have stopped except for a few tiny shipments of yttrium, Chinese customs data shows.
JAPAN
May 23, 2026
China squeezes Japan over rare earths in repeat of 2010 showdown
The halt to exports ⁠began shortly after a diplomatic row over Taiwan erupted in November.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping speak during a visit to Zhongnanhai, the compound that houses China’s leadership, in Beijing on May 15.  
COMMENTARY / World
May 22, 2026
Scoring the Trump-Xi heavyweight bout in Beijing
U.S.-China rivalry increasingly resembles a third iteration of the “Great Game” — following the 19th-century British-Russian contest and the U.S.-Soviet Cold War.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping hold talks during a visit to Zhongnanhai, the compound that houses China's leadership, in Beijing on May 15.
COMMENTARY / World
May 22, 2026
What Xi Jinping knows that Donald Trump doesn’t
Prior to the summit, expectations were low: Trump was weakened by inflation and declining popularity while seeking China’s help on Iran.
The U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson leads Japanese destroyers JS Ashigara (left) and JS Samidare during a transit of the Philippine Sea on April 26, 2017. Tokyo fears growing uncertainty as rivalry between Washington and Beijing deepens.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 21, 2026
Japan caught in the U.S.-China geoeconomic crossfire
For Japan, this creates a precarious environment. More than 80% of its energy imports — and much of its trade — passes through waters around Taiwan and the South China Sea.
The Strait of Hormuz crisis is exposing a new era of geopolitical coercion in which access to critical trade routes is selectively controlled, deepening economic insecurity in Asia and accelerating doubts about the reliability of the U.S.-led global order.
COMMENTARY / World
May 21, 2026
How China and U.S. navigate the Strait of Hormuz stranglehold
The Strait of Hormuz has evolved into a laboratory for a new form of geopolitical coercion where access itself becomes currency.
Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te speaks at a news conference on the second anniversary of him taking office, at the presidential building in Taipei on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 21, 2026
Trump says he’ll speak to Taiwan leader, calling democratic island a ‘problem’
U.S. President Donald Trump said he would speak to Taiwanese leader Lai Ching-te — a move that would break with years of diplomatic precedent.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump arrive at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on May 14. Pool / via REUTERS
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 21, 2026
Why the Trump-Xi summit ended in an impasse
Given Xi’s reluctance to address Trump’s Iran concerns, he should be unsurprised that the U.S. has not fully endorsed his new framework for U.S.-China relations.
If Chinese President Xi Jinping visits North Korea, as has been reported, it would be his first trip to the reclusive country in seven years.
ASIA PACIFIC
May 21, 2026
Xi may visit North Korea as early as next week, Yonhap says
If it takes place, the visit would be Chinese President Xi Jinping’s first trip to North Korea in seven years as the two countries move to bolster bilateral ties.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping greets U.S. President Donald Trump during an event at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on May 14.
COMMENTARY / World
May 21, 2026
China’s messaging is as important as its policy
That gap between public understanding of what China is doing and why and the reality of Beijing’s policy speaks to a broader failure that deserves more attention.
An office building in Shanghai developed by Mori Building where two Japanese nationals and a Chinese citizen were attacked Tuesday
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 21, 2026
Mori Building employees wounded in Shanghai restaurant attack
Local police have not disclosed what triggered the attack, which harmed two Japanese nationals and a Chinese citizen.
Russian President Vladimir Putin inspects an honor guard during a welcoming ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
May 21, 2026
Putin leaves Beijing with little progress on key gas pipeline
Russia has been trying for years to reach a deal on the Power of Siberia 2 link that would more than double its current gas exports to China.
Japan Tourism Agency chief Shigeki Murata has emphasized that the government will work on implementing "strategic promotions to attract visitors from more countries and regions."
JAPAN
May 20, 2026
Visitors to Japan down 5.5% in April
Visitors from eight Middle East nations dropped 21.4% to 22,300, reflecting flight cancellations and reductions.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin take part in a welcome ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
May 20, 2026
Xi and Putin unite in criticism of U.S. on nuclear and security issues
At a summit, the leaders stressed the closeness of the Russia-China ties that they sealed in 2022 with the signing of a strategic partnership treaty.
Group of 20 leaders hold a working lunch at the group’s summit in Osaka in June 2019. Japan is facing growing economic and geopolitical challenges as globalization gives way to a more fragmented world. 
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 20, 2026
Japan’s challenge in a world moving beyond old alliances
The emerging world order is likely to be more fragmented, more competitive and more uncertain.
Shipping containers are stacked while semitrucks are parked at Yangshan Port outside Shanghai on May 7.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 20, 2026
U.S. indicts seven Chinese over shipping container conspiracy
The indicted companies manufacture about 95% of the world’s standard dry shipping containers, and the alleged scheme impacted some $35 billion in commerce, officials said.
Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te delivers an address on the second anniversary of his taking office at the Presidential Office in Taipei on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 20, 2026
If they spoke, Taiwan president would tell Trump China was undermining stability
A conversation between the two ​presidents has not taken place since Washington shifted diplomatic recognition to Beijing from Taipei in 1979.
Chinese-made vehicles including BYD cars wait to be transshipped for export at a port in Suzhou, in China's eastern Jiangsu province on April 27.
BUSINESS / Tech
May 20, 2026
How BYD gets an edge from ships that brave war, outrun storms
Born out of necessity in 2022, the Chinese company’s fleet of vessels is able to ferry abroad about 300,000 cars worth billions of dollars a year.
Prison guards escort Chinese nationals suspected of running scam centers to a prison after their arrest in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on May 9. A surge in arrests of suspected foreign scammers in Sri Lanka has authorities concerned that the island is fast becoming a hub for online crime.
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
May 20, 2026
Crackdown in Southeast Asia pushes scam networks to Sri Lanka
Since the start of the year, police have arrested more than 1,000 foreign nationals, mainly from China, Vietnam and India, for alleged involvement in cybercrime.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he believes China will accept prior U.S. tariff rates being restored through new Section 301 duties as long as they don't go higher.
WORLD
May 20, 2026
U.S. not in a hurry to extend China trade truce, Bessent says
The U.S.-China truce negotiated over several months last year averted a total collapse of trade between the world’s two largest economies.

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