BEIJING: China’s exports topped forecasts in November, buoyed by a boost from a tariff truce with the U.S. even as weak factory activity and vanishing returns from front-loading point to a challenging 2026. Outbound shipments from the world’s second-biggest economy grew 5.9% year-on-year, customs data showed on Monday, reversing from a 1.1% contraction a month…
A view of the NEO magnetic plant in Narva, a city in northeastern Estonia. A plant producing rare-earth magnets for Europe’s electric vehicle and wind-energy sectors. Xinhua News Agency | Xinhua News Agency | Getty Images NARVA, Estonia — Europe’s big bet to break China’s rare earths dominance starts on Russia’s doorstep. The continent’s largest…
French President Emmanuel Macron told Xi Jinping that France and China must overcome their “differences”, as the two leaders met in Beijing on Thursday. “Sometimes there are differences, but it is our responsibility to overcome them for the greater good,” Macron told Xi during the meeting. The Chinese leader echoed Macron, calling for “more stable”…
The main characteristic of international politics today is competition between the two major powers in the world – the US on the one hand and China on the other. Over the past four decades, China has risen quickly and today is a $ 19 trillion economy, closing in fast on the US which has a…
The Chinese Communist Party is putting the squeeze on Japan to punish its new Prime Minister for telling the truth. Asked in Parliament on Nov. 7, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi explained that an attack by Beijing on Taiwan could be “survival-threatening” for Japan, potentially triggering a military response. Cue the weekslong campaign of outrage and…
We have selected seven of the most interesting and important news stories covering US-China relations from the past few weeks. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Bankruptcies, suicides: US farmers detail cost of trade tensions illustration by Brian Wang High fuel costs, rising interest rates, falling crop…
A worker walks past molten steel at a steel factory in Huai’an, in China’s eastern Jiangsu province on July 22, 2025. – | Afp | Getty Images China’s factory activity edged higher in November but remained stuck in contraction for the eighth consecutive month, while services weakened as the boost from earlier holidays faded, according…
Chinese President Xi Jinping and the US President Donald Trump had a phone conversation on Taiwan and Ukraine issues on Monday, according to the official Chinese news agency Xinhua. The phone call came after a series of fast-changing geopolitics in recent weeks. China has seen an escalating row with Japan over Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s…
A highly anticipated animated crossover between a Chinese mythological hero and American pop culture icons will debut early next month, marking a significant collaborative release as bilateral tensions continue to ease. Many see My Ne Zha and Transformers – a 52-episode co-production between China’s CCTV Animation and US toy giant Hasbro – as the latest…
India earlier this month inaugurated a high-altitude airbase near its disputed border with China, prompting analysts to suggest that the development capped long-term efforts to upgrade infrastructure there rather than posing a threat to Beijing. According to reports from multiple media outlets, the Mudh-Nyoma Air Force Station is perched at a height of about 13,700…