How sport could shape Xi Jinping’s next five-year China plan June 25, 2025 It doesn’t feel like that long ago when the world was captivated by 2,008 drummers from China opening the Beijing Olympic Games in perfect harmony. But that was a different China in a different era, and the Sleeping Dragon has been in something of a comatose state since due to a number of factors including [...]
Chinese ‘super-embassy’ by Tower of London nears approval June 22, 2025 A Chinese mega-embassy near the Tower of London is set to be approved by ministers within weeks. The Planning Inspectorate, which decides on major infrastructure projects, has given the scheme the go-ahead in a report sent to Angela Rayner just under a fortnight ago, the Sunday Times reported. It is expected to be formally approved [...]
End in sight for US-China trade war with ‘framework’ announced in London June 11, 2025 The US and China have agreed on a “framework” by which to implement a trade truce after two days of “marathon negotiations” in London. Details from the framework agreed on Tuesday have yet to be released, but US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnik said it put “meat on the bones” of the Geneva deal, which lowered [...]
Gold tops euro to become central banks’ second favourite reserve asset June 11, 2025 Central banks now hold more gold than euros in the face of global trade tensions and volatile markets, according to a report produced by the European Central Bank (ECB), making it the world’s second largest reserve asset after the US dollar. Purchases of gold were twice as high in 2024 as the average seen over [...]
China and US announce 90-day pause on tariffs May 12, 2025 China and the US have watered down tit-for-tat tariffs in a landmark 90-day pause that represents a de-escalation of their ongoing trade war. Both countries had imposed tariffs of over 100 per cent on one another in the fallout to President Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ at the beginning of April, causing the UN to suggest that [...]
China escalates fiery trade war with Trump with 125 per cent tariffs April 11, 2025 China has hit back at President Donald Trump as it announced further tariffs of 125 per cent on US goods in further signs that a full-blown trade war could still worsen. The US president refused to offer China a three-month reprieve from tariffs after it quickly retaliated against Trump following Liberation Day. The Chinese finance [...]
Trump threatens 100 per cent tariffs on China April 7, 2025 President Donald Trump has threatened to slap additional 50 per cent tariffs on China if it doesn’t withdraw its retaliatory measures, pushing the possible level of tariffs it faces on exports to the US to over 100 per cent. In a post on Truth Social, the US president said retaliatory Chinese tariffs on US imports [...]
China strikes back on Trump tariffs as Mexico and Canada get reprieve February 4, 2025 The response came just hours after Trump imposed 10 tariffs on all goods coming from China.
Taiwan: The technology of freedom January 15, 2025 This week, Tom Tudgendhat spoke at the Taiwan Institute for National Defence and Security Research. Here he makes an impassioned case for the island’s outward-facing, innovative economic model – and argues it is an essential partner for the West Visiting Taipei, a city striving at the forefront of innovation, even as it upholds Chinese traditions and [...]
Rachel Reeves to raise Ukraine and Hong Kong human rights on China trip January 11, 2025 Rachel Reeves is expected to raise Russia’s war in Ukraine and issues of human rights in Hong Kong during her trip to China. The Chancellor is visiting Beijing for the first UK-China economic and financial dialogue since 2019, with Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey and top financial services figures. Ministers are insisting the trip [...]