Global growth narrative set to shift as pre-pandemic legacy issues resurface March 16, 2021 You may have missed what happened in the US and China over the past week but two major events took place in the world’s two largest economies that have the potential to directly impact us here in the UK. The first is the passage of President Biden’s $1.9trn stimulus bill in the US. The second [...]
Hong Kong electoral reforms prevent “dictatorship of the majority”, says pro-Beijing lawmaker March 6, 2021 Beijing’s proposal for Hong Kong electoral reforms could prevent “dictatorship of the majority,” a pro-Beijing Hong Kong lawmaker said, calling people who want one man one vote “politically immature.” China’s rubber-stamp parliament is deliberating plans to overhaul Hong Kong’s electoral system to ensure Beijing loyalists are in charge. Hong Kong representatives to China’s parliament, in [...]
China sets new growth target above six per cent March 5, 2021 Prime Minister Li Keqiang announced the new six per cent economic target today at the opening of this year’s National People’s Congress, and pledged to create more jobs in China’s cities. This marks a return to strong economic growth after China’s economy was hit by the Covid-19 pandemic last year. In 2020 the economy only [...]
FTSE 100 bounds ahead despite housebuilders taking a tax hit while US stocks soar February 10, 2021 FTSE 100 bounds ahead despite housebuilders taking a tax hit
Chinese consumer still ‘cautious’ despite impressive 6.5 per cent Q4 growth January 18, 2021 This morning’s economic numbers showed that the Chinese economy expanded by 6.5 per cent during Q4, with the last three months suggesting that economic activity had more or less returned to normal. Jeffrey Halley, a senior market analyst, Asia Pacific at OANDA, called China’s industrial production rise of 7.3 per cent “impressive.” “Made in [...]
The City View: Hong Kong activist Nathan Law January 17, 2021 In this latest edition of The City View podcast, Andy Silvester speaks to exiled Hong Kong activist Nathan Law. The youngest legislator ever elected in Asia and one of TIME Magazine’s 100 most influential people on the planet, Law has been a thorn in the side of Beijing ever since he emerged as a leader [...]
Nathan Law: I’m not entitled to lose hope in Hong Kong’s struggle January 17, 2021 City A.M. Editor Andy Silvester talks to Nathan Law, a pro-democracy activist from Hong Kong and one of TIME Magazine’s 100 most influential people on the planet – discussing the territory’s battle against repression, Beijing’s war on free expression and the need for a global solution to authoritarianism Nathan Law should not be in London [...]
Bigamy, corruption and £202m-worth of bribes: Chinese banker sentenced to death January 6, 2021 A disgraced Chinese banker has been handed the death sentence after he admitted to accepting more than £200m in bribes. Lai Xiaomin was also found guilty of bigamy after living “as man and wife long periods” outside of his marriage. Lai confessed to the crimes in an extraordinary TV interview with a state broadcaster before [...]
Asian consumers, boomerang businesses and M&A likely to shape 2021 January 6, 2021 It was some year. Anyone who took on the challenge of forecasting what would happen in 2020 more than likely saw it all swiftly swept aside – but, as they say, prediction is very difficult, especially when it’s about the future. Still, investing is a forward-looking profession and so we inevitably find ourselves thinking about [...]
EU and China sign investment pact after Merkel’s intervention December 30, 2020 The EU and China have concluded in principle negotiations on an investment deal, with Angela Merkel playing an “active role” in driving through the accord. The deal comes amid deep concerns about the Chinese government’s use of its economic clout to enmesh itself in western countries. A European Commission statement said the agreement is of [...]