China Experiences a Booming Underground Market in Surrogate Motherhood

Ian Johnson & Cao Li
New York Times
As in most countries, surrogacy is illegal in China. But a combination of rising infertility, a recent relaxation of the one-child-per-family policy and a cultural imperative to have children has given rise to a booming black market in surrogacy...

China Harasses U.S. Tech Companies

The New York Times Editorial Board
New York Times
China has opened what appear to be politically motivated antitrust investigations into American technology companies like Microsoft and Qualcomm. Foreign companies operating in the Communist country could be in for more intense harassment than ever...

Zhang Tiesheng: From Leftist Hero to Multimillionaire

Tania Branigan
Guardian
Zhang was 22 when he came to national attention in 1973, after he wrote to leaders excoriating the examination as a return to the capitalist model of education. Now 63, he is a major shareholder in the publicly-traded Wellhope Agri-Tech.

‘Transformers’ in China: The Hidden Cost of a $300 Million Hit

Kim Masters
Hollywood Reporter
The record $317 million that Paramount’s new Transformers grossed in China in 31 days is impressive, but the struggle the studio has endured to collect a mere 25 percent of that total shows that mining gold behind the Great Wall is a daunting task.

Caixin Media

07.31.14

Ex-Politburo Members Accused of ‘Serious Discipline Violations’ Always Face Courts

After much speculation, the axe has finally fallen on Zhou Yongkang, the former public security chief and member of the Politburo Standing Committee, indicating the Communist Party’s campaign against corruption will grant no exceptions to the...

The Chinese-African Honeymoon is Over

Eric Olander, Cobus van Staden & more
There is a growing sense among Africans and Chinese alike that their once heady romance is now entering a new, more pragmatic phase. Across Africa, people and politicians are becoming visibly more concerned about the surging trade deficits, massive...

Conversation

07.24.14

Alibaba: How Big a Deal Is It?

David Wolf & Duncan Clark
When Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba goes public some time after Labor Day it is expected be one the largest initial public offerings in history. This week, a story in The New York Times shed light on ties between Alibaba and the sons and grandsons...

Meat-Supplier’s CEO Apologizes for China Unit

LAURIE BURKITT and JACOB BUNGE
Wall Street Journal
OSI Group Inc., the Ilinois-based parent of the Shanghai operation under scrutiny, dispatched a team of its “global experts” to address the problems in China as its CEO vowed that the “completely unacceptable” missteps wouldn't happen again.

China’s Wanda Plans to Buy ‘One or Two Large International Entertainment Companies’

Abid Rahman
Hollywood Reporter
Amid consolidation chatter in the U.S., the owner of exhibition giant AMC says it plans to become a “real” multinational company and “intensify” its investment in the entertainment sector globally.

Five Held in China Food Scandal Probe, Including Head of Shanghai Husi Food

BRENDA GOH AND PAUL CARSTEN
Reuters
The five detained include the head of the company—Shanghai Husi Food Co Ltd, a unit of U.S.-based OSI Group LLC—and the firm’s quality manager, the police said in an online statement. It gave no other details.

China Food Scandal Spreads, Drags in Starbucks, Burger King and McNuggets in Japan

ADAM JOURDAN
Reuters
McDonald’s Corp and KFC’s parent Yum Brands Inc apologized to Chinese customers on Monday after it emerged that Shanghai Husi Food Co Ltd, a unit of U.S.-based OSI Group LLC, had supplied expired meat to the two chains.

Does Multimillion Dollar Chinese Investment Signal Detroit’s Rebirth?

Jonathan Kaiman
Guardian
With a weak US dollar, strong yuan and China’s own real estate market cooling after years of explosive growth, Detroit is an attractive—but high-risk—option for Chinese property developers.

China Imports Record Amount of Iranian Crude Oil

Wayne Ma
Wall Street Journal
The import increase comes as U.S. sanctions are loosened.

Media

07.21.14

Everybody Hates Rui

He may be widely reviled in his home country, but oh, what a resume: The son of an author and screenwriter; a graduate of the prestigious China Foreign Affairs University; a Yale World Fellow; and state-run China Central Television (CCTV)’s best-...

China's Rich Look Abroad as Home Prices Fall, Others Stay Put

Xiaoyi Shao and Koh Gui Qing
Reuters
"Smart money" checking the exit is a bad omen for any market, especially one considered frothy after a five-year record-breaking bull run, but analysts say there is no reason for alarm yet.

China Supplier Sold McDonald's, KFC Expired Meat

AP
Associated Press
McDonald's and KFC in China faced a new food safety scare after a Shanghai television station reported a supplier sold them expired beef and chicken.

Edelman, Rui Chenggang, and China PR

David Wolf
Silicon Hutong
Operating ethically is seen as naive at best, and culturally imperialist at worst (“how dare you impose your values on us!”).

Alibaba’s IPO Could Be a Bonanza for the Scions of Chinese Leaders

Michael Forsythe
New York Times
Firm didn't reveal deep political connections of its investment backers, Boyu Capital, Citic Capital Holdings and CDB Capital.

China's Support of Latin America 'Doesn't Come for Free'

Víctor M. Mijares
Deutsche Welle
After the BRICS summit and a visit to Brazil, China's President Xi Jinping is embarking on a tour of Argentina, Venezuela and Cuba in a bid to boost ties and gain clout in the region.

Anti-corruption Drive—Anchor away: A Famous Newsman is Detained

Economist
In the midst of an ongoing anti-corruption campaign popular, jet-setting China Central Television “Economic News” anchor Rui Changgang is questioned.

Alibaba Plans IPO for After Labor Day

Telis Demos
Wall Street Journal
 Chinese e-commerce giant plans robust 'roadshow' to pitch deal.

Conversation

07.17.14

How to Read China’s New Press Restrictions

David Schlesinger, Orville Schell & more
On June 30, China's State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film, and Television posted a statement on its website warning Chinese journalists not to share information with their counterparts in the foreign press corps. Most major...

Unprecedented: Chinese Company Beats Obama in Court

Wall Street Journal
In an unprecedented development on Tuesday,Chinese-owned Ralls Corp. proved the naysayers wrong, securing a court victory over the president that could shake up the way the U.S. reviews foreign acquisitions with national security concerns.

With Tensions Rising, Japanese Investment in China Plummets

Dexter Roberts
Businessweek
Another consequence of the worsening Sino-Japanese relations: Japanese investment into China dropped by nearly half in the first six month of 2014, according to a new report by China’s Ministry of Commerce.

China’s Campaign Against Corruption Is Huge. Will It Do Any Good?

Hannah Beech
Time
President Xi has netted more “tigers,” or top-level officials, than his predecessor Hu Jintao did during his entire decade in power.

Books

07.15.14

The Forbidden Game

Dan Washburn
In China, just because something is banned, doesn't mean it can't boom. Statistically, zero percent of the Chinese population plays golf, still known as the "rich man’s game" and considered taboo. Yet China is in the midst of a golf boom—hundreds of new courses have opened in the past decade, despite it being illegal for anyone to build them. Award-winning journalist Dan Washburn charts a vivid path through this contradictory country by following the lives of three men intimately involved in China's bizarre golf scene. We meet Zhou, a peasant turned golf pro who discovered the game when he won a job as a security guard at one of the new, exclusive clubs and who sees himself entering the emerging Chinese middle class as a result; Wang, a lychee farmer whose life is turned upside down when a massive, top-secret golf resort moves in next door to his tiny village; and Martin, a Western executive maneuvering through China’s byzantine and highly political business environment, ever watchful for Beijing's "golf police." The Forbidden Game is a rich and arresting portrait of the world’s newest superpower and three different paths to the new Chinese Dream. —Oneworld Publications {chop}

All Aboard: China’s Railway Dream

Carrie Gracie
BBC
At Asia’s biggest rail cargo base in Chengdu in south-west China, the cranes are hard at work, swinging containers from trucks onto a freight train. The containers are filled with computers, clothes, even cars.

Chinese Banks Halt Experimental Yuan-Remittance Program

LingLing Wei
Wall Street Journal
China’s major banks have halted an experimental program, sanctioned by the country’s central bank, that helped citizens transfer large sums overseas despite government capital controls, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

GSK China’s Private-Eyes Indicted in Shanghai for Illegal Probe

Xinhua
Peter William Humphrey, a 58-year-old Brit, and his wife Yu Ying Zeng, a 61-year old American, were arrested last August. Theirs is the first indictment Chinese prosecutors have announced on foreigners for illegal investigation.

China Looking to Play Larger Role in Funding Brazil’s Infrastructure

Paulo Trevisani and Rogerio Jelmayer
Wall Street Journal
Chinese officials are expected to announce investments in Brazil's transportation, energy and food sectors.

21st Century Fox to Sell Its Stake in China’s Bona Film Group

Clifford Coonan
Hollywood Reporter
Investment group Fosun raises its stake as Bona CEO Yu Dong buys the Fox stake, saying the move would not affect ongoing co-productions, including "Bride Wars."

China Requires 30% of State Cars Use Alternative Energy

Alexandra Ho
Bloomberg
China is mandating that electric cars make up at least 30 percent of government vehicle purchases by 2016, the latest measure to fight pollution and cut energy use after exempting the autos from a purchase tax.

How Will Cyber Spying Impact U.S., China Relations?

Bloomberg
Bloomberg
Asia Society Senior Fellow Jamie Metzl discusses cyber spying and U.S., China relations and the re-militarization of Japan on “Bloomberg Surveillance.”

Watchdog Alleges Child Labor at Samsung Supplier Plant

Yun-Hee Kim
Wall Street Journal
A China Labor Watch reports alleges that one of Samsung's suppliers in China employs and underpays and undertrains children. Samsung says it is investigating the claims.

China Labels iPhone a Security Threat

Eva Dou
Wall Street Journal
 Report cites researchers who say tracking app could expose 'state secrets.'

China Touts $14.4 Billion in Foreign Aid, Half of Which Went to Africa

James T. Areddy
Wall Street Journal
Instead of focusing on support for pricey, high-profile infrastructure that is often a lightning rod for foreign critics who say it’s less necessary than basic on-the-ground needs, the report highlighted China’s spending on comparatively smaller-...

Conversation

07.09.14

The U.S. and China Are At the Table: What’s At Stake?

William Adams & Zha Daojiong
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Treasury Secretary Jack Lew are in Beijing this week for the sixth session of the high level bilateral diplomatic exchange known as the Strategic and Economic Dialogue. We asked contributors what's likely...

County-Level E-Commerce: Next Driver of China’s Online Shopping

Chen Zulong
Huxiu
From 2003 to 2013, the number of county-level e-commerce merchants grew from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands, and to millions.

U.S. Pushes China to Give Ground on Technology Trade Deal

Krista Hughes
Reuters
The United States on Monday urged China to give ground on a deal to eliminate duties on billions of dollars of technology products and said it would use talks in Beijing later this week to push to restart negotiations.

Alibaba Founder’s Recent Deals Raise Flags

Juro Osawa
Wall Street Journal
Some investments by Jack Ma and partners were made on behalf of Alibaba or funded by a loan from the company.

China Says Consensus Reached on $100 Billion BRICS Bank

Reuters
The five BRICS nations have reached a broad consensus on their $100 billion development bank though some differences remain, a senior Chinese diplomat said ahead of a summit in Brazil next week.

Two Studies of Modern China: ‘Age of Ambition’ & ‘The New Emperors’

Isabel Hilton
Guardian
Evan Osnos examines a changing China through gentle reportage, while Kerry Brown provides illuminating forensic analysis of its vicious power struggles

Media

07.02.14

The Mogul Takes Manhattan

Lunch at Central Park's Loeb Boathouse is an elegant affair, popular among well-heeled tourists and alumni networking associations for its lakeside view and excellent service. But on Wednesday, June 25, the restaurant hosted hundreds of...

Conversation

07.01.14

The Debate Over Confucius Institutes PART II

Gregory B. Lee, Michael Hill & more
Last week, ChinaFile published a discussion on the debate over Confucius Institutes–Chinese language and culture programs affiliated with China’s Ministry of Education—and their role on university campuses. The topic, and several of the...

Billionaire South African Family Sells Wine to China Rich

Dylan Griffiths
Bloomberg
When 45 alumni of Tsinghua University, the alma mater of China’s last two leaders, stopped for lunch at La Motte vineyard in South Africa two years ago, they ordered 1.5 million rand ($141,000) of wine to take away.

Caixin Media

07.01.14

China Pulling the Plug on Foreign Mainframes

E-commerce companies and banks in China are scrapping hardware and uninstalling software for mainframe servers made by American suppliers in favor of homegrown brands said to be safe, advanced, and a lot less expensive.The movement has taken special...

They’re Dying at Their Desks in China as Epidemic of Stress Proves Fatal

Shai Oster
Bloomberg
China is facing an epidemic of overwork, to hear the state-controlled press and Chinese social media tell it.

‘Transformers’ Breaks Box-Office Records in China

Julie Makinen
Los Angeles Times
“Transformers: Age of Extinction” broke multiple box-office records in mainland China in its first weekend of release and appears to be en route to displacing “Avatar” as the top-grossing film ever on the mainland.

China Tries To Establish Foothold In Zambia, Tanzania

Howard French, Renee Montagne, and...
NPR
Howard French, author of China's Second Continent, talks to Steve Inskeep about why some African countries are of particular interest to Chinese leaders.

Undercover Sex Tape Deepens GSK’s China Scandal

Harriet Dennys
Telegraph
GlaxoSmithKline has confirmed the existence of a sex tape featuring Mark Reilly, the former manager at the centre of the company's corruption investigation.

Environment

06.27.14

Germany’s Renewables Paradox a Warning Sign for China

from chinadialogue
From the hay field behind his house, Gunter Jurischka points out the solar panels glittering from the town’s rooftops and the towering wind turbines spinning lazily on the horizon.Thanks to Germany’s now famous Energiewende (or “energy transition”)...

Hundreds of NYC’s Homeless Were Duped by a Chinese Millionaire Today

Olivia Becker
Vice News
A Chinese millionaire treated 250 homeless New Yorkers to a feast and karaoke rendition of “We Are the World” in Central Park today, but pretty much everyone left the event totally totally disappointed.

Caixin Media

06.24.14

Top Political Advisor Investigated for Graft

A vice chairman of the country's top political advisory body is being investigated for "serious violations of discipline," the Communist Party's anti-graft fighter says.The Central Discipline Inspection Commission (CDIC) did not...

China is Building Phoenix Towers, the World’s Tallest Twin Skyscrapers

News.com.au
Chinese builders have ambitious designs on erecting the world’s tallest skyscraper, soaring more than more 3,000 feet into the heavens.

Australia Says China Free Trade Deal Likely by End of Year

Michael Martina
Reuters
China and Australia, which have been trying to set up a bilateral free trade agreement for years, are determined to sign a deal by the end of this year, Australia's trade chief said on Tuesday after talks with Chinese leaders.

China's Legendary ‘Crazy Yang’ Oil Trader Dies

Chen Aizhu
Reuters
Legendary Chinese oil trader “Crazy Yang” Qinglong, who started China's oil business with Iran in the 1990s and was renowned as a hard-drinker who bear-hugged Iranian officials, has died, said company officials and former acquaintances.

China Charges Former Senior Official with Graft

Ben Blanchard
Reuters
China formally charged Liu Tienan, former deputy head of its top planning agency with corruption, paving the way for his trial as the government pursues a high-profile campaign to root out graft.

Paramount Rushes for Beijing ‘Transformers’ Premiere Amid Dispute

Julie Makinen
Los Angeles Times
The studio was hit by claims of a product-placement deal gone sour.

China’s Henan Province Creating Jobs in US Hinterlands

Associated Press
Henan's Golden Dragon Precise Copper Tube Group opened a plant that will employ more than 300 in a county known less for job opportunities than for lakes filled with bass, pine forests rich with wild turkey and boar.

Zhang Lei has Lunch with the FT

Henny Sender
Financial Times
The billionaire Chinese financier was among the first to see the potential in homegrown internet companies. He talks about a career that began when he rented out comics at the age of seven.