Curator / Politics Today / World Affairs / Asia / China /
October 30, 2008
China
The Financial Crisis: Parallels To The 1930s [VIDEO] · Henry Farrell of George Washington University and Daniel Drezner of Tufts University discuss the parallels between the current financial crisis and that of the 1930s as well as examine the role of China in a global economic recovery. (bloggingheads.tv)
Brown: China, Gulf States Should Help IMF · U.K. Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Tuesday China and the Persian Gulf states should substantially increase their conributions to the International Monetary Fund 's $250 billion emergency reserve to help nations struggling with the financial crisis. (Bloomberg)
Asian Markets Rebound, Hang Seng Climbs 14.4% · Asian stocks staged a surprise rally Tuesday led by the Hang Seng which climbed 14.4%, its biggest daily gain since February 1998. Japan's Nikkei 225 index also gained 6.4% after the Japanese government instituted a ban on naked short selling of stocks.(FT)
Dixon/Hadas: How to Control a Currency Panic [OPINION] · Edward Hadas and Hugo Dixon of Breakingviews.com argue that China, Japan, the United States and Britain should immediately rally world governments to defend target exchange rates or risk a complete breakdown in the global trade system. (NYT)
China To Lend $25B To Russian Firms Hit By Credit Crisis · China is reportedly in talks to extend up to $25 billion to Russian oil companies hit by the credit crisis in exchange for access to 300 million tonnes of Russian oil over the next 20 years. (Reuters)
Citic Pacific Shares Fall 55% Amid Forex Losses · Citic Pacific lost 55% of its market value Tuesday after disclosing a board-level executive made unauthorized trades that could cost the firm $2 billion. The Chairman's daughter was removed from her post in the finance department to mitigate damages. (WSJ)
CITIC Pacific Faces $2 Billion In Forex Losses · CITIC Pacific, the Hong Kong-listed arm of China International Trust and Investment, disclosed Monday it faces losses of $1.89 billion after an executive made risky bets against the U.S. dollar. CITIC will provide the firm with a $1.5 billion standby loan facility to strengthen its liquidity. (FT)
Beijing Tells CIC To Steer Clear Of Wall Street · China's Vice Premier Wang Qishan has reportedly advised the country's sovereign wealth fund, China Investment Corp., not to invest in Wall Street financial institutions until fund management can decipher their complex balance sheets. (Sydney Morning Herald)
Credit Crisis Jeopardizes China Fund · China’s $200 billion sovereign wealth fund reportedly might have $5.4 billion frozen in the failed Reserve Primary Fund, a $62 billion U.S. money market account whose net asset value dropped below $1 in September. (FT)
Paulson Defends G-7 Communique · The Group of Seven issued a communique on the first day of their meetings in Washington, DC. It promised to take "decisive action and use all available tools" without specifying what they are beyond supporting the Financial Stability Forum's recommendations. (WSJ)
Taiwan Official Apologizes For China SARS Claim · Taiwan's top national security official was forced to apologize after suggesting that China spread the SARS virus six years ago as a part of a biological warfare campaign. (The Age)
China Protests U.S.-Taiwan $6.43B Arms Sale · The Bush administration agreed to sell $6.43 billion worth of weapons to Taiwan, drawing a sharp rebuke from Beijing and prompting it to cancel a series of military and diplomatic contacts with the United States. (WSJ)
China To Allow Short Selling Trial · The China Securities Regulatory Commission said Sunday that it will allow select securities firms to engage in margin lending and short selling on a trial basis. The decision runs counter to recent short-selling bans in the U.S. and Europe. (WSJ)
China Retains Car Limits Started During Olympics · China is making permanent some of the car restrictions it imposed during the Olympics to limit air pollution. The government is taking 30% of the cars in Beijing off the road, and motorists in other cities will need to stop driving one day a week based on their license plates. (WaPo)
China Tapping Skype Text Messages · The Chinese government is actively tracking and archiving text messages transmitted using Tom-Skype, a joint venture between Skype and a Chinese wireless operator, according to a Canadian computer security and human rights group. (NYT)