Tag: China

China imposes sales restrictions on Micron as it escalates tech battle with Washington | CNN Business

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China has banned US chip maker Micron from selling to Chinese companies working on key infrastructure projects, in a major escalation of an ongoing battle between the world’s top two economies over access to crucial technology.

The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) announced the decision on Sunday, saying the US chip maker had failed to pass a cybersecurity review. The news came shortly after the close of the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Hiroshima, Japan, where leaders of major democracies spoke in one voice on their growing concerns over China.

“The review found that Micron’s products have relatively serious cybersecurity risks, which pose significant security risks to China’s critical information infrastructure supply chain and would affect national security,” the Chinese regulator said in a statement.

As a result, operators involved in domestic critical information infrastructure projects should stop purchasing products from Micron, it said.

Shares of Micron Technology

(MU) sank about 3% Monday. Its Asian rivals had finished the day higher. Shares of Chinese memory chip maker Ingenic Semiconductor jumped 2.8%. Shenzhen Techwinsemi Technology surged 6.3%. Toyou Feiji Electronics soared 14%. In Seoul, SK Hynix, one of the world’s largest memory chip makers, gained 0.9%, outperforming the South Korean market.

The Chinese regulator’s decision came seven weeks after it kicked off a cybersecurity review of Micron’s products, in apparent retaliation against sanctions imposed by Washington and its allies on China’s chip sector.

Micron is one of the largest memory chip makers in the United States. It derives more than 10% of its revenue from mainland China.

The company told CNN that it had received the regulator’s notice and was assessing its next steps.

“We look forward to continuing to engage in discussions with Chinese authorities,” it said in a statement.

Micron’s chief financial officer, Mark Murphy, said separately on Monday that the company was unclear what security concerns Beijing had. He said the company is evaluating what portion of its sales could be impacted.

“We are currently estimating a range of impact in the low single digits percent of our company total revenue at the low end and high single-digit percentage of total company revenue at the high end,” he said at a conference.

The US Commerce Department said it firmly opposed the restrictions that “have no basis in fact,” according to Reuters.

“This action, along with recent raids and targeting of other American firms, is inconsistent with [China’s] assertions that it is opening its markets and committed to a transparent regulatory framework,” it was quoted as saying.

The US State Department similarly said it has “very serious concerns” about the ban.

“The Department of Commerce is engaging directly with the PRC to make our view clear, and broadly, this action appears inconsistent with the PRC’s assertions that it is open for business and committed to a transparent regulatory framework,” US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said Monday.

On Sunday, China’s Foreign Ministry accused G7 leaders of “hindering international peace” and said the group needed to “reflect on its behavior and change course.”

In a landmark joint communique Saturday, G7 member countries had made the group’s most detailed articulation of a shared position on China to date — stressing the need to cooperate with the world’s second-largest economy, but also to counter its “malign practices” and “coercion.” in a landmark joint communique Saturday.

Since October 2022, Washington has imposed sweeping export curbs on advanced chips and chip-making equipment to China, in an attempt to cut off China’s access to critical technology for military purposes.

In March, Japan and the Netherlands, both key US allies, also announced restrictions on overseas sales of chip-making technology to countries including China. China has strongly criticized the restrictions, labeling them “discriminatory containment” directed at the country.

Chips are at the center of Beijing’s bid to become a tech superpower. China has its own chip manufacturers, but they supply mostly low- to mid-end processors used in home appliances and electric vehicles.

The semiconductor battle is part of a growing divide between the United States and China. In recent years, relations between the two have reached their lowest level in decades.

Tensions escalated this year after a suspected Chinese spy balloon was shot down by US fighter jets in February and Beijing continued to deepen its ties with Russia despite its continued invasion of Ukraine.

However, US President Joe Biden said on Sunday that he expected ties between the two countries to improve soon.

“I think you are gonna see that begin to thaw very shortly,” Biden told a news conference at the end of the Group of Seven summit in Japan.

He said he had agreed with Chinese President Xi Jinping in November to keep communications open, but that everything changed after a “silly balloon that was carrying two freight cars worth of spying equipment” was shot down.

“We are not looking to decouple from China,” he said. “We are looking to de-risk and diversify our relationship with China.”

— CNN’s Simone McCarthy, Jennifer Hansler and Saba Haroon contributed to this report

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April 12, 2021
China to clamp down on AirDrop and Bluetooth file sharing for national security reasons | CNN Business

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China’s cyberspace regulator plans to issue new rules clamping down on the use of wireless file sharing functions such as Bluetooth and Apple’s AirDrop on national security grounds.

The move comes after protesters in China used AirDrop during anti-government protests in October 2022 to share content, bypassing strict internet censorship. Weeks later, Apple moved to limit the use of the AirDrop function on devices in China.

The draft proposal was issued earlier this week by the Cyberspace Administration of China, the powerful internet watchdog that reports to a body headed by leader Xi Jinping.

The aim of the regulation is to “maintain national security and social public interests” by regulating the use of close-range wireless communication tools such as Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and other technologies, it said.

People must not publish or share “illegal or harmful” information on such networks and should report violations to the regulator. Those who create or support such networks should require users to provide their real names and other personal information.

The draft says service providers should conduct security assessments when launching any new apps or functions that are capable of “mobilizing the public” or enabling “public expression.”

The regulator is seeking public feedback on the proposed rules until July 6.

Other than AirDrop, Google’s Nearby Share allows users to transfer data between Android and Chrome OS devices via Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. Chinese phone makers Xiaomi, Vivo and Oppo also offer similar services.

Last year, international media, including The New York Times and Vice World News, reported that some residents in China were using AirDrop to spread leaflets and images echoing slogans used in a rare protest against Xi on October 13. On that day, shortly before Xi secured a precedent-breaking third term, two banners were hung on an overpass of a major thoroughfare in the northwest of Beijing, protesting against Xi’s zero-Covid policy and authoritarian rule.

And in 2019, AirDrop, which is effective only over short distances, was particularly popular among anti-government demonstrators in Hong Kong who regularly used the feature to drop colorful posters and artwork to subway passengers urging them to take part in protests.

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April 12, 2021
China-based hackers breached US government email accounts, Microsoft and White House say | CNN Politics

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China-based hackers have breached email accounts at two-dozen organizations, including some United States government agencies, in an apparent spying campaign aimed at acquiring sensitive information, according to statements from Microsoft and the White House late Tuesday.

The full scope of the hack is being investigated, but US officials and Microsoft have been quietly scrambling in recent weeks to assess the impact of the hack, which targeted unclassified email systems, and contain the fallout.

The federal agency where the Chinese hackers were first detected was the State Department, a person familiar with the matter told CNN. The State Department then reported the suspicious activity to Microsoft, the person said.

The Department of Commerce, which has sanctioned Chinese telecom firms, was also breached. The hackers accessed Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo’s email account, one source familiar with the investigation told CNN. The Washington Post first reported on the access of the secretary’s account.

The Chinese hackers were detected targeting a small number of federal agencies and just a handful of officials’ email accounts at each agency in a hack aimed at specific officials, multiple sources familiar with the investigation told CNN.

“Microsoft notified the (Commerce) Department of a compromise to Microsoft’s Office 365 system, and the Department took immediate action to respond,” a department spokesperson said in a statement on Wednesday.

The spokesperson did not immediately reply to a request for comment on the targeting of Raimondo’s email account.

The hackers targeted email accounts at the House of Representatives, but it was unclear who was targeted and if the breach attempts were successful, two sources familiar with the matter told CNN.

The breaches add to what is already one of the steepest cybersecurity challenges facing the Biden administration: limiting the ability of Beijing’s formidable hacking teams to access US government and corporate secrets.

“Last month, US government safeguards identified an intrusion in Microsoft’s cloud security, which affected unclassified systems,” National Security Council spokesperson Adam Hodge said in a statement to CNN.

“Officials immediately contacted Microsoft to find the source and vulnerability in their cloud service,” Hodge said. “We continue to hold the procurement providers of the US Government to a high security threshold.”

The State Department “detected anomalous activity, took immediate steps to secure our systems, and will continue to closely monitor and quickly respond to any further activity,” a department spokesperson said on Wednesday.

US Capitol Police declined to comment, referring CNN to the FBI.

Hodge did not identify who was behind the hack, but Microsoft executives said in a blog post that the hackers were based in China and focused on espionage.

In response to the Microsoft and White House statements, the Chinese foreign ministry on Wednesday accused Washington of conducting its own hacking operations.

US officials have consistently labeled China as the most advanced of US adversaries in cyberspace, a domain that has repeatedly been a source of bilateral tension in recent years. The FBI has said Beijing has a larger hacking program than all other governments combined.

China has routinely denied the allegations.

The hacking began in mid-May, when the China-based hackers used a stolen sign-in key to burrow their way into email accounts, according to Microsoft. The tech giant has since blocked the hackers from accessing customer emails using that technique, Microsoft said late Tuesday.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited China in mid-June, but it was not immediately clear if the cyber-espionage campaign was connected to that high-stakes visit.

Some US officials credited the State Department with investing in more cyber-defense capabilities, allowing the agency to detect the suspicious activity earlier than in past advanced hacks.

The number of US organizations, public or private, impacted by the hacking campaign is in the “single digits,” a senior US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency official told reporters on Wednesday.

“This appears to have been a very targeted, surgical campaign,” the official said.

This story has been updated with additional information.

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April 12, 2021
Top US general says increased partnership between Iran, Russia, and China will make them ‘problematic’ for ‘years to come’ | CNN Politics

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Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley told lawmakers Wednesday that China, Russia, and Iran would be a problem for the US “for many years to come” as the three are working more closely together.

Speaking before the House Armed Services Committee alongside Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, Milley said Russia and China are “getting closer together.”

“I wouldn’t call it a true full alliance in the real meaning of that word, but we are seeing them moving closer together, and that’s troublesome,” Milley said. “And then … Iran is the third. So those three countries together are going to be problematic for many years to come I think, especially Russia and China because of their capability.”

While the US has made clear for years now that the three countries are focuses of the military – particularly China and Russia – tensions with all three have been on the rise in recent months and even weeks.

The US continues to help fund Ukraine’s defense against Russia’s invasion, which Milley said Wednesday “in and of itself is a war crime.” Tensions with China rose recently following a suspected Chinese spy balloon’s travel over the continental US. It was ultimately shot down by the US military off the eastern coast of the country; Chinese Minister of National Defense Wei Fenghe refused to take a call with Austin regarding the incident.

And just last week, the US launched retaliatory strikes against Iran-backed groups in Syria, after a suspected Iranian drone struck a facility housing US personnel, killing an American contractor and injuring five service members. Following the US strike, additional rocket and drone attacks were carried out targeting US and coalition personnel in Syria.

Milley warned during a hearing on Tuesday that Iran could “produce enough fissile material for a nuclear weapon in less than two weeks,” and ultimately create a nuclear weapon within “several months thereafter.”

“The United States military has developed multiple options for our national leadership to consider if or when Iran decides to develop a nuclear weapon,” he said.

But he added Wednesday that China and Russia specifically have “the means to threaten our interests and our way of life,” and mark the first time that the US is “facing two major nuclear powers.”

And while Milley also said Wednesday that China’s nuclear capabilities are “not matched” with those of the US, he added that they are still significant.

“We are probably not going to be able to do anything to stop, slow down, disrupt, interdict, or destroy the Chinese nuclear development program that they have projected out over the next 10 to 20 years,” Milley said. “They’re going to do that in accordance with their own plan. And there’s very little leverage, I think, that we can do externally to prevent that from happening.”

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April 12, 2021
Alibaba unveils its ChatGPT-style service | CNN Business

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Alibaba showed off its answer to the ChatGPT craze on Tuesday, demonstrating new software that it plans to eventually roll out across all its platforms.

The Chinese tech giant unveiled Tongyi Qianwen, a large language model that will be embedded in its Tmall Genie smart speakers and workplace messaging platform DingTalk. It was trained on vast troves of data in order to generate compelling responses to users’ prompts.

The technology will initially be integrated into those two products and eventually added to all Alibaba

(BABA) applications, from e-commerce to mapping services, according to the company.

Group CEO Daniel Zhang, who also oversees Alibaba’s cloud division, presented the new AI-powered service at a conference in Beijing, where the company demonstrated how it will allow users to transcribe meeting notes, craft business pitches and tell children’s stories.

The company has opened up Tongyi Qianwen — which roughly translates as “seeking truth by asking a thousand questions” — to enterprise customers for testing before making it available to more users.

“We are at a technological watershed moment, driven by generative AI and cloud computing,” Zhang said.

Generative AI refers to the technology that underpins platforms like ChatGPT. The service has exploded in popularity in recent months, and Chinese tech companies have been racing to release their own versions, prompting some critics to predict that the trend will add fuel to an existing US-China rivalry in emerging technologies.

Alibaba, which has a large cloud computing business, will also allow clients of that division to use the new technology to build their own customized large language models, the firm said in a statement.

The debut comes after that of Baidu

(BIDU), which launched its own ChatGPT-style service last month. During a similar presentation, Baidu

(BIDU) showed how its chatbot, called ERNIE, could generate a company newsletter, come up with a corporate slogan and solve a math riddle.

On Monday, SenseTime, one of China’s most prominent AI companies, launched a suite of new services, including a chatbot called SenseChat.

China will be setting rules to govern the operation of such services. In draft guidelines issued Tuesday to solicit public feedback, the country’s cyberspace regulator said generative AI services would be required to undergo security reviews before they can operate.

Service providers will also be required to verify users’ real identities. In addition, they must provide information about the scale and type of data they use, their basic algorithms and other technical information.

Alibaba’s shares in Hong Kong ticked up 1.6% following its demonstration.

The company announced last month that it planned to split its business into six units. Most of those units, including its cloud services business that oversees AI projects, will be authorized to raise capital and pursue public listings.

— Juliana Liu contributed to this report.

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April 12, 2021
Biden will ‘at some point’ meet with China’s Xi Jinping, top White House official says | CNN Politics

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President Joe Biden will “at some point” meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping, according to White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan, as the two countries work to reset normal relations amid what has been an extremely tumultuous and tense year in the relationship.

“We will, I hope, soon see American officials engaging at senior levels with their Chinese counterparts over the coming months to continue that work. And then, at some point, we will see President Biden and President Xi come back together again,” Sullivan told CNN’s Fareed Zakaria in an interview on “GPS” that aired Sunday.

“There is nothing inconsistent with, on the one hand, competing vigorously in important domains on economics and technology, and also ensuring that that competition does not veer into conflict or confrontation. That is the firm conviction of President Biden,” Sullivan added.

Sullivan’s remarks come as relations between the world’s two biggest economies remain strained.

China’s defense minister on Sunday accused the United States and its allies of trying to destabilize the Indo-Pacific region – just hours after the US had accused a Chinese warship of cutting in front of an American vessel that was taking part in a joint exercise with the Canadian navy in the Taiwan Strait, forcing the American vessel to slow down to avoid a collision. The incident marked the second time in two weeks that Chinese military personnel have engaged in aggressive maneuvers in the vicinity of US military personnel near China’s border. A Chinese fighter jet conducted an “unnecessarily aggressive maneuver” during an intercept of a US spy plane in international airspace over the South China Sea last week, the US military said Tuesday.

Tensions between Washington and Beijing soared in February after a suspected Chinese spy balloon flew over the continental US and was subsequently shot down by the American military.

The incident prompted US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to postpone a planned trip to Beijing. While the trip has not yet been rescheduled, the State Department announced Saturday that the assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs is traveling to China this week “to discuss key issues in the bilateral relationship.”

China’s foreign minister, Qin Gang said in May that a “series of erroneous words and deeds” by the United States had placed relations between the two superpowers on “cold ice,” but stabilizing ties was a “top priority.”

Amid the US efforts to reengage with China, Sullivan met with top Chinese official Wang Yi in Vienna last month in one of the highest-level engagements between US and Chinese officials since the spy balloon incident.

There is a desire, Sullivan said, to “put a floor under the relationship” in order to more responsibly manage the competition between them.

“There are a number of different elements to that. But one of the key ones is that as we have intense competition, we also have intense diplomacy,” he said.

Biden, as recently as mid-May, projected optimism that he would eventually meet with his Chinese counterpart “whether it’s soon or not.” The two leaders last met in November at the G20 summit in Bali, Indonesia, for a three-hour conversation that Biden afterward described as “open and candid.”

Meanwhile, Sullivan also told Zakaria that the US believes the highly anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive will result in Kyiv taking back “strategically significant territory.”

“Exactly how much, in what places, that will be up to developments on the ground as the Ukrainians get this counteroffensive underway,” Sullivan said. “But we believe that the Ukrainians will meet with success in this counteroffensive.”

Asked if this meant he expected some form of negotiations by the end of this year, Sullivan wouldn’t provide any sort of timetable but said that developments on the battlefield will have a “major impact” on any future negotiation.

“But what I will say is this: President Zelensky himself has said that this war will end ultimately through diplomacy,” Sullivan said.

The Ukrainian military has been spotted moving military hardware toward the front lines of its conflict with Russia and carrying out attacks against Russian targets that could facilitate an offensive, including recent strikes in the Russian-occupied southern port city of Berdiansk.

A senior US official confirmed to CNN in May that Ukraine had begun conducting “shaping” operations in advance of a counteroffensive against Russian forces. Shaping involves striking targets such as weapons depots, command centers and armor and artillery systems to prepare the battlefield for advancing forces.

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April 12, 2021
Nvidia says US curbs on AI chip sales to China would cause ‘permanent loss of opportunities’ | CNN Business

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Nvidia warned Wednesday that if the United States imposes new restrictions on the export of AI chips to China, it would result in a “permanent loss of opportunities” for US industry.

The company’s chief financial officer, Colette Kress, said she didn’t anticipate any “immediate material impact” but tighter curbs would impact earnings in the future.

US officials plan to tighten export curbs announced in October to restrict the sale of some artificial-intelligence chips to China, according to multiple media reports, including the Wall Street Journal and Financial Times. Washington has ramped up efforts to cut China off from key technologies that can support its military.

The US Department of Commerce has not replied to a CNN request for comment.

The rules, as reported, could make it harder for companies like Nvidia

(NVDA) to sell advanced chips to China. Fueled by a boom in demand for its AI chips, the company briefly hit a market capitalization of $1 trillion in late May.

“We are aware of reports that the US Department of Commerce is considering further controls that may restrict exports of our A800 and H800 products to China,” Kress told an investment conference.

“Over the long-term, restrictions prohibiting the sale of our datacenter GPUs to China, if implemented, would result in a permanent loss of opportunities for US industry to compete and lead in one of the world’s largest markets and impact on our future business and financial results,” she said.

GPUs refer to graphics processing units, which are chips or electronic circuits capable of rendering graphics for display on electronic devices.

“Given the strength of demand for our products worldwide, we do not anticipate that such additional restrictions, if adopted, would have an immediate material impact on our financial results. We do not anticipate any immediate material impact on our financial results,” Kress added.

Last October, the Biden administration unveiled a sweeping set of export controls that ban Chinese companies from buying advanced chips and chip-making equipment without a license.

The new move is aimed in part at Nvidia’s A800 chip, which the US-based company created following the introduction of last year’s curbs in order to continue to sell to China, Bloomberg reported.

China is a key market for Nvidia. Revenues from mainland China and Hong Kong accounted for 22% of the company’s revenue last year, according to its financial statements.

On Wednesday, shares of Nvidia slumped as much as 3.2%, before recouping some of the losses. It ended down 1.8%. Chinese AI stocks suffered much heavier losses.

Inspur Electronic Information Industry fell by 10%, the maximum allowed, on Wednesday in Shenzhen. It dropped again by 5.3% on Thursday. Chengdu Information Technology of Chinese Academy of Sciences slid 12% on Wednesday. Baidu

(BIDU), which is developing a rival to ChatGPT, sank 4.4% on Thursday in Hong Kong.

“The US could ruin China’s AI party,” Jefferies analyst said in a research note. Local chipsets do not have Nvidia’s GPU ecosystem, thus every update may require reworking, resulting in lower efficiency and higher costs.

The Biden administration’s chip curbs would be “much more effective” in limiting China’s advances in military power driven by AI than rules restricting US investment in China’s tech sector, the analysts added.

China has strongly criticized US restrictions on tech exports, saying earlier this year that it “firmly opposes” such measures.

In May, Beijing banned Chinese operators of critical information infrastructure from buying products from Micron Technology

(MU), in apparent retaliation against sanctions imposed by Washington and its allies on the country’s chip sector.

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April 12, 2021
China just played a trump card in the chip war. Are more export curbs coming? | CNN Business

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A trade war between China and the United States over the future of semiconductors is escalating.

Beijing hit back Monday by playing a trump card: It imposed export controls on two strategic raw materials, gallium and germanium, that are critical to the global chipmaking industry.

“We see this as China’s second, and much bigger, counter measure to the tech war, and likely a response to the potential US tightening of [its] AI chip ban,” said Jefferies analysts. Sanctioning one of America’s biggest memory chipmakers, Micron Technology

(MU), in May was the first, they said.

Here’s what you need to know about gallium and germanium, how they could play into the chip war and whether more countermeasures could be coming.

Last October, the Biden administration unveiled a set of export controls banning Chinese companies from buying advanced chips and chip-making equipment without a license.

Chips are vital for everything from smartphones and self-driving cars to advanced computing and weapons manufacturing. US officials have talked about the move as a measure to protect national security interests.

But it didn’t stop there. For the curbs to be effective, Washington needed other key suppliers, located in the Netherlands and Japan, to join. They did.

China eventually retaliated. In April, it launched a cybersecurity probe into Micron before banning the company from selling to Chinese companies working on key infrastructure projects. On Monday, Beijing announced the restrictions on gallium and germanium.

Gallium is a soft, silvery metal and is easy to cut with a knife. It’s commonly used to produce compounds that are key materials in semiconductors and light-emitting diodes.

Germanium is a hard, grayish-white and brittle metalloid that is used in the production of optical fibers that can transmit light and electronic data.

The export controls have drawn comparisons with China’s reported attempts in early 2021 to restrict exports of rare earths, a group of 17 elements for which China controls more than half of the global supply.

Gallium and germanium do not belong to this group of minerals. Like rare earths, they can be expensive to mine or produce.

This is because they are usually formed as a byproduct of mining more common metals, primarily aluminum, zinc and copper, and processed in countries that produce them.

China is the world’s leading producer of both gallium and germanium, according to the US Geological Survey. The country accounted for 98% of the global production of gallium, and 68% of the refinery production of germanium.

“The economies of scale in China’s extensive and increasingly integrated mining and processing operations, along with state subsidies, have allowed it to export processed minerals at a cost that operators elsewhere can’t match, perpetuating the country’s market dominance for many critical commodities,” analysts from Eurasia Group said on Tuesday.

Shares of Chinese producers of the two raw materials surged by 10% on Tuesday.

Beyond China, Australian rare earths producers also advanced, as investors expected Beijing might extend export curbs to that group of strategically important minerals. Lynas Rare Earths

(LYSCF) rose 1.5%.

The United States is dependent on China for these the two critical elements. It imported more than 50% of the gallium and germanium it used in 2021 from the country, the US Geological Survey showed.

Eurasia Group analysts described China’s export controls as a “warning shot.”

“It is a shot across the bow intended to remind countries including the United States, Japan, and the Netherlands that China has retaliatory options and to thereby deter them from imposing further restrictions on Chinese access to high-end chips and tools,” Eurasia Group said in a research note.

Chinese authorities may also intend to use its control over these niche metals as a possible bargaining chip in discussions with US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who is scheduled to visit Beijing later this week.

Jefferies analysts said the timing of the announcement was unlikely to be a casual decision.

“It gives the US at least two days to digest and come up with a well-considered response,” they said.

However, the move is not considered “a death blow” to the United States and its allies.

China may be the industry leader, but there are alternative producers, as well as available substitutes for both minerals, the Eurasia Group analysts pointed out.

The United States also imports a fifth of its gallium from the United Kingdom and Germany and buys more than 30% of its germanium from Belgium and Germany.

That’s definitely possible, a former senior Chinese official has warned.

The curbs announced this week are “just the start,” Wei Jianguo, a former deputy commerce minister, told the official China Daily on Wednesday, adding China has more tools in its arsenal with which to retaliate.

“If the high-tech restrictions on China become tougher in the future, China’s countermeasures will also escalate,” he was quoted as saying.

Analysts believe this too. Rare earths, which are not difficult to find but are complicated to process, are also critical in making semiconductors, and could be the next target.

“If this action doesn’t change the US-China dynamics, more rare earth export controls should be expected,” Jefferies analysts said.

However, analysts from Eurasia Group warned that restricting exports is a “double-edged sword.”

Past attempts by China to leverage its dominance in rare earths have reduced availability and raised prices. Higher prices have spurred greater competition by making mining and processing ventures outside of China more cost-competitive, they said.

China cut its rare earths export quota in 2010 amid tensions with the United States.

That resulted in greater efforts by companies outside of the country to produce the metals. US data showed that China’s global market share dropped from 97% in 2010 to about 60% in 2019.

“Imposing export restrictions risks reducing market dominance,” the Eurasia Group analysts said.

CNN’s Hanna Ziady and Xiaofei Xu contributed to reporting.

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April 12, 2021
Chinese star banker Bao Fan detained by country’s top anti-graft body, state media says | CNN Business

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One of China’s top tech bankers, who went missing in February, has been in the custody of the country’s top anti-graft watchdog since his disappearance and has had his detention extended, according to a state media report.

The Economic Observer, a well regarded financial publication, reported that Bao Fan — founder and CEO of Hong Kong-listed China Renaissance, a boutique investment bank -— was taken away on February 7 by officials from the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) in an investigation into suspected corporate bribery.

It said, citing an unnamed source, that his detention was extended on May 7 for three months.

The mysterious disappearance of Bao has sent a chill through financial markets and China’s tech sector. Shares in China Renaissance had plunged more than 20% until they were suspended from trading in early April. The company also delayed the release of its annual results, because its auditors were unable to reach Bao.

China Renaissance, which was responsible for a string of major Chinese tech deals since it was founded in 2005, didn’t immediately respond to a CNN request for comment.

The CCDI is the top anti-graft body of the ruling Communist Party and is responsible for investigating corruption.

China Renaissance had previously revealed only that Bao was “cooperating in an investigation” being carried out by certain authorities in the country. But it gave no other details.

Bao is known as a veteran dealmaker who worked closely with top tech companies in China. He helped broker the 2015 merger between two of the country’s leading food delivery services, Meituan and Dianping. Today, the combined company’s “super app” platform is ubiquitous in China.

His February disappearance coincided with a sweeping anti-corruption crackdown launched by the ruling Communist Party into the financial sector, which has ensnared more than a dozen senior executives at China’s biggest financial institutions.

Analysts believe the crackdown is a new wave of leader Xi Jinping’s existing anti-graft campaign, through which he is believed to be further consolidating his power amid domestic and external challenges.

The specific agencies handling Bao’s case include the CCDI’s international cooperation bureau and Beijing’s municipal anti-graft authorities, the Economic Observer said.

Bao’s detention was related to another case involving Cong Lin, a former executive at his company, who had previously worked for China’s largest state owned bank for more than two decades, the newspaper added.

Cong Lin, who became president of China Renaissance in July 2020, had previously served in a variety of executive roles at the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, according to public company records.

Cong has been detained by anti-corruption authorities since September for matters related to his tenure at ICBC Financial Leasing, the Economic Observer said. The details of Cong’s detention were previously reported by several Chinese media outlets.

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April 12, 2021
Jack Ma makes rare public appearance in China | CNN Business

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Jack Ma, the billionaire founder of Alibaba

(BABA) and once one of China’s most prominent entrepreneurs, has made a rare public appearance in the country.

Ma visited the city of Hangzhou and was seen meeting with students and teachers at the Alibaba-funded Yungu School.

“Jack Ma came to Yungu School and discussed the future of education with the campus directors,” the school said on its WeChat account Monday, adding that the purpose of Ma’s visit was to discuss “the challenges and opportunities” that “new technological change brings to education.”

Ma, who has a fortune of nearly $33 billion, has kept a very low profile since the Chinese government began a fierce crackdown on the tech sector more than two years ago.

One of the most dramatic opening salvos of the offensive came in November 2020, when Ant Group — a financial affiliate of Alibaba also founded by Ma — was forced to pull its $37 billion IPO at the last minute. That intervention by regulators followed a speech from Ma in which he criticized China’s banks and financial regulators.

In recent years, Ma has reportedly spent time in Japan, home to his friend and Alibaba investor, SoftBank CEO Masa Son, and in Hong Kong.

In a statement to CNN about the trip, the Jack Ma Foundation said the Alibaba founder “travels very often in China and overseas.”

“Mr. Ma travels very often in China and overseas. He has been in Hangzhou recently. He paid a visit to Hangzhou Yungu School today and had a chat with teachers there on education,” a spokesperson said.

In recent months, Beijing has signaled that its onslaught on the internet industry may be coming to an end. As the economy struggles to pick up speed after years of Covid lockdowns and a real estate crash, the ruling Communist Party needs the private sector to boost jobs and growth.

New Premier Li Qiang has adopted a softer tone towards businesses since taking office, in what many see as an attempt to bolster China’s economic recovery. Investors have rushed back in.

But the outlook for the sector remains uncertain. Confidence took a knock last month when Bao Fan, the CEO and chairman of Beijing-based China Renaissance, disappeared without explanation. Ten days later, the investment bank and private equity firm said he was cooperating in an investigation by Chinese authorities.

Bao is a veteran deal maker in Chinese tech — he helped to broker the 2015 merger between two of the country’s leading food delivery services, Meituan and Dianping. His team has also invested in Chinese electric vehicle makers Nio

(NIO) and Li Auto, and helped Baidu

(BIDU) and JD.com

(JD) complete listings in Hong Kong.

And while Beijing may have dialed back on its overt pressure, it has been quietly tightening its grip on household names, including Alibaba, by acquiring so-called “golden shares” that allow government officials to be directly involved in their businesses, including having a say in the content they provide to hundreds of millions of people.

The future of Ant Group remains unclear. Ma relinquished control of the company in January as part of a shakeup of its shareholding structure. His voting rights have fallen to about 6% from more than 50% prior to the restructure.

In a statement, Ant said the move would make the company’s shareholder structure “more transparent and diversified,” but would not result in any change to the economic interests of any shareholders.

Ant said its 10 major shareholders, including Ma, had agreed to no longer act in concert when exercising their voting rights, and would only vote independently, and thus no shareholder would have “sole or joint control over Ant Group.”

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April 12, 2021
China is Expanding Its Presence in Latin America’s Energy and Strategic Minerals Industries

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The Asian power is making a big push to acquire assets in wind and solar power, plus vital electric transmission and distribution networks; China has committed billions of dollars to lithium projects in Latin America, a region possessing more than half the world’s reserves of this strategic metal

LA JOLLA, Calif., February 10, 2021 (Newswire.com)
–
China is broadening its presence in Latin America’s energy and strategic minerals sectors, posing challenges to the regional countries themselves as well as to the United States, according to a new white paper published by the Institute of the Americas (IOA), an independent, nonpartisan organization based in La Jolla, California, that focuses on inter-American affairs.

In recent years, the Asian superpower has sharply increased its takeovers of major projects in electric power transmission and distribution, renewable energy and lithium, even as its other investments in the energy sector have declined. For example, in 2020 Chinese M&A deals in Latin American energy sectors surged, reaching $7.7 billion, or a quarter of all Chinese acquisitions worldwide, the study said.

Between 2000-2019, China made investments and loans of more than $58 billion in regional energy sectors, with most going to oil and natural gas projects, followed by renewable energy.

From acquisitions of Mexico’s largest private renewable energy firm and clean energy projects in Colombia to takeovers of major electric transmission and distribution companies in Brazil and Chile, the report unpacks this new and less well-known facet of China’s economic and financial connections in Latin America. China is furnishing countries across Latin America and the Caribbean with some of the world’s most advanced technology in solar and wind power systems at highly competitive prices, thus gaining an edge on other international competitors.

The new IOA report, entitled “China Stakes Its Claim in Latin American Energy: What It Means for the Region, the U.S. and Beijing,” also raises questions regarding the real debt Latin American and Caribbean nations owe China. Since most details of Chinese financial arrangements with regional countries are undisclosed, some researchers believe that total debt is much higher than levels reported by the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and other organizations.

While Chinese financing of energy projects provides Latin American countries with long-term loans, investments and new technology, it also has generated controversies and protests over stipulations that projects exclusively use Chinese equipment and labor, unequal treatment of local workers, environmental damage, mistreatment of indigenous peoples and foreign control of essential industries.

In Chile, for example, after China´s government-owned State Grid Corp. paid $3 billion to take over a major share of the country’s electric power distribution system, legislators proposed banning acquisitions of strategic assets by foreign, state-owned companies.

In Ecuador, Chinese oil companies operating in part of the Amazon rainforest have been the target of protests by indigenous groups, like the Sápara and Kichwa, who charged that the companies are damaging the Amazon and circumventing Ecuadorean laws. To reduce China’s influence, Ecuador signed an agreement with the U.S. International Development Finance Corp. that would help pay off its China debt and obtain new development loans.

China also has aggressively pursued new Latin American investments in lithium, a strategic mineral necessary for lithium-ion batteries used in cell phones, electric vehicles and the military/aerospace industries. China’s Tianqi Lithium committed $4.1 billion to buy a 24% stake in a Chilean company, SQM, that holds an important share of international lithium reserves. China has other major investments in Bolivia, Argentina and Chile. These three countries – plus Peru – possess more than half the world’s known lithium resources.

And in Argentina, Chinese investments in hydroelectric dam projects drew the ire of Argentine business groups due to mandates that only Chinese materials and support systems be used.

The Biden administration has an opportunity to reinvigorate U.S. relations with Latin America and the Caribbean. By using its own international financial and aid agencies, working with multilateral development banks, and with U.S. companies, it can assist regional governments to attract new, private-sector investments and credits for their priority projects – especially in clean energy, infrastructure and strategic minerals like lithium.

As it did recently with Ecuador, the U.S. can help Latin American and Caribbean governments pay down Chinese debt and secure new sources of financing from a good neighbor more closely aligned with regional goals, such as care of the environment, good governance and use of local labor and manufactured goods in development projects.

The Institute of the Americas will present key report highlights on Thursday, Feb. 11, 2021, at 9 a.m. PST as part of its Hemisphere in Transition Webinar Series. The virtual session will be re-broadcast on UC-TV. To register, visit: https://www.iamericas.org/events/report-launch-event-china-latin-american-energy-region-us-beijing/

Link to full report in English

About the Institute of the Americas:

Established in 1981, the Institute of the Americas (IOA) is an independent, nonpartisan Inter-American institution devoted to encouraging social and economic reform in the Americas, broadening communication and strengthening political and economic relations between Latin America, the Caribbean, the United States and Canada. Since 1992, the Institute’s Energy & Sustainability program has played a crucial thought-leadership role in shaping policy discourse and informing policymakers and investors on the most important trends in the energy sector.

The Institute continues to serve as an honest broker between public and private sectors across Latin America, helping to forge a constructive dialogue on the issue of clean energy transitions and emerging economic opportunities derived from renewable energy deployment. The Institute is supported by corporate and individual donors who participate in its conferences, workshops and multi-year projects and programs. Funding is also provided by the generous support of foundations and U.S. government agencies.

For more information, contact Cecilia Aguillon, Director of the Energy Transition Initiative, Institute of the Americas: caguillon@iamericas.org; (619) 800-0103

###

Source: Institute of the Americas

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February 10, 2021
Escalating Calls to Investigate Foreign Interference in Maldives 2018 Election

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Press Release
–

updated: Dec 27, 2019

MALE, Maldives, December 23, 2019 (Newswire.com)
–
The following is an open letter from the Progressive Party of Maldives, the country’s opposition political party.

Speaker of the Parliament, Mohamed Nasheed’s public statement acknowledging foreign interference in the 2018 presidential elections is alarming and a first in Maldivian politics. Nasheed’s remarks on Saturday, 14 December 2019 are proof the elections have not been free and fair, and did not reflect the will of the Maldivian people. The statement by Nasheed, who is also the leader of the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), of possible efforts by the opposition to collude with foreign governments to jeopardize the sovereignty of the country is deeply concerning and warrants an immediate investigation.

Nasheed stated that at the time “no one thought that we would win the 2018 elections” and that the opposition had “no chance”. He also explicitly made it clear that the then opposition “made unreasonable demands” from the government of India to “create a small window” prior to the elections, and that “Indian officials and Indian diplomats were at it”. He praised the government of India saying that “Indian diplomats were very clever” and that “they did a whole sort of other things which brought us the elections”.

SOURCE: https://www.facebook.com/IndiaToday/videos/2481723618748346

Nasheed’s statement indicates the Maldivian electoral system has been compromised by foreign powers threatening our democratic institutions. His remarks are an unprecedented confession in the political arena even though the risk of foreign interference in elections is a growing international phenomenon and governments across the globe are taking measures to counter it. Maldivian citizens are in no way acceptive of foreign involvement in our political system that violates our sovereignty. We are shocked and dismayed by Nasheed’s statements and repeat our calls on the government of Maldives and urge the Prosecutor General to initiate an investigation into the operations by foreign officials to meddle in the 2018 elections.

An independent inquiry into the widespread allegations of voter fraud and foreign interference in the 2018 elections is paramount to ensure the legitimacy of the government. It is an obligation owed to the people of Maldives to prevent such blatant attacks on our democracy in the future.

Maldives has successfully conducted two free and fair elections in 2008 and 2013 despite the limited resources and logistical challenges. The public admission by the ruling MDP’s leader of colluding with foreign governments tout court undermines public faith in democracy and warrants criminal investigation without delay.

Media Contact: Heena Waleed, +960-777-7601

Source: Progressive Party of Maldives

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December 23, 2019
Lenovo Connect Assists AIWAYS U5 in Completing the Longest Test Drive With Global Connectivity Services

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Press Release
–

updated: Sep 12, 2019

BEIJING, September 12, 2019 (Newswire.com)
–
AIWAYS has announced the successful completion of EV prototype test journey in Frankfurt, Germany. It is a 14,231-mile journey across Asia and Europe from Xi’an, China, since it marks the start of the historically significant Silk Road trading route between the East and the West that took 53 days.

As a partner of AIWAYS, Lenovo Connect provided great connectivity services in AIWAYS’s drive test journey and even to all AIWAYS products worldwide. Since March 2019, Lenovo Connect started to offer AIWAYS Automotive Grading SIM cards, CMP (Connectivity Management Platform) platform and e-Call service in succession. So AIWAYS could enjoy many valuable services, including abundant global communication resources, stable APN network scheme, professional operation support and more.

At present, Lenovo Connect is actively developing 5G software-defined network and fusion communication device, edge computing and super-computing device, cloud storage device and platform to promote the smart applications in network communications infrastructure, IoV, driverless vehicles and so on. Next, Lenovo Connect will focus on initiating the overall solution based on the connectivity platform, which covers the vehicle terminal, mobile terminal, supervision terminal, operation-end, data center, SP/CP, etc.

Furthermore, Lenovo Connect will continue to work closely with AIWAYS to provide users a safe, stable and smart driving experience, and jointly promote the development and landing of smart IoV industry.

About Lenovo Connect

Lenovo Connect is a subsidiary of Lenovo and is committed to becoming the world’s leading AIOT service provider. Lenovo Connect pools global network operators, hardware manufacturers, platform developers, system integrators and service providers to create an ICBAG enabling system integrating IoT, Cloud, Big Data, AI and Global Service. Lenovo Connect will converge global connectivity and service resources to empower the smart connectivity of all things.

For more information, please visit: https://www.lenovoconnect.com/en/solution/car

Or contact Ted Ji: jihe@lenovoconnect.com

Source: Lenovo Connect

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September 11, 2019
2018 Maintains the Skyscraper Construction Momentum of the Previous Decade

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Press Release
–

updated: Dec 12, 2018

CHICAGO, December 12, 2018 (Newswire.com)
–
The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) has released its annual report, the “2018 Tall Building Year in Review,” part of the Tall Buildings in Numbers data analysis series. The report shows that 143 buildings of 200 meters’ height or greater were completed in 2018, including 18 “supertall” buildings of at least 300 meters’ height, a new record. The total number of supertall buildings worldwide is now 144. In 2013, there were 76 buildings 300 meters or higher worldwide; in 2000, only 26. The 528-meter Citic Tower in Beijing was the tallest building completed in 2018.

China has maintained its reign as the most prolific country when it comes to the construction of tall buildings, with 88 completions in 2018, for 61.5 percent of the total. This is a record for China, exceeds last year’s figure by eight, and represents an even greater proportion of the global total than the 2017 figure of 54.4 percent. China’s previous record was set in 2016, with 86 buildings of 200 meters or higher. Second place was again held by the United States, with 13 completions, up from 10 in 2017. And once again, outdoing its own record from last year, Shenzhen, China, recorded 14 completions, making this the third year in a row in which the city accounted for the world’s largest number of 200-meter-plus completions, and comprising nearly 10 percent of the global total.

Given the rate of urbanization seen in the world – and that we must build the equivalent of a new city of 1 million people every week to accommodate this growth – it is not surprising that the pace of tall building construction continues.

Antony Wood, CTBUH Chief Executive Officer

“Given the rate of urbanization seen in the world – and that we must build the equivalent of a new city of 1 million people every week to accommodate this growth – it is not surprising that the pace of tall building construction continues,” said CTBUH Chief Executive Officer Antony Wood.

Other dominant characteristics of the 200-meter-plus set included the office function (42 percent), and concrete as the main structural material (62.9 percent). The average height of 200-meter-plus buildings completed in 2018 was 247 meters, a slight increase over the 244-meter figure for 2017. The average height of the World’s 100 Tallest Buildings grew to 381 meters.

CTBUH examines buildings 200 meters and higher due to the completeness of available data for buildings in this category.

View the full interactive report on The Skyscraper Center.

Media Contact
Jason Gabel
Email: press@ctbuh.org
Phone: 1 (312) 283-5769

Source: Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH)

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December 12, 2018
Hamilton Crawford – China Economy Beats Predictions

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Hamilton Crawford comments as China experiences impressive growth in imports and exports in spite of predictions of an economic slowdown.

Press Release
–

updated: Oct 17, 2017

Shanghai, China, October 17, 2017 (Newswire.com)
–
China’s import and export growth increased last month, indicating that the world’s second-largest economy is still growing at a robust pace in spite of predictions of an eventual slowdown.

According to the data released by Shanghai, China based Hamilton Crawford, there are also strong signs of further improvement in the worldwide economy with business activity and demand increasing significantly this year in both the US and Europe.

The positive readings will be well received by Beijing as it prepares for its Communist Party Congress which is to be held next week. It is anticipated that President Xi Jinping will solidify his power and reveal his government’s most pressing political and economic agendas for the next five years.

Imports grew by 18.7 percent last month from a year earlier, surpassing analysts’ expectations of a 13.5 percent increase and accelerating from 13.3 percent in the month before.

Hamilton Crawford analysts stated that this gain was stronger than even the most optimistic predictions.

Exports in September increased by 8.1 percent, lower than expectations of 8.8 percent but still the greatest increase in three months and 2.6 percent more than that of the month before.

Yet again, China’s imports were powered by industrial products as a construction boom lasting 12 months shows no indications of slowing. Factory activity remains strong, increasing demand for materials such as copper and steel.

Elevated commodity prices significantly enhanced the strength of the bounce, but volumes increased, too, indicating a firm underlying demand.

The General Administration of Customs stated that China’s foreign trade will probably expand at a double-digit pace in 2017 if current conditions persist.

Contact Info
Elite News-CN, Jingmi Rd, Chaoyang Qu, Beijing Shi, China
info@elite-news-cn.com

Source: Hamilton Crawford

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October 16, 2017
IIMMLA Starts Expansion Into Chinese Market in 2019

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Press Release
–

updated: Aug 22, 2017

St. Petersburg, Russian Federation, August 22, 2017 (Newswire.com)
–
IMMLA will start expanding its presence in the Chinese market during 2019. This resolution was carried considering strong demand and incredible opportunities of Chinese supply chains being the source of IMMLA’s breakthrough growth.

Previously, IMMLA planned to enter the Chinese market in 2021.

The Chinese market is very challenging in view of available investment potential and foreign trade volumes. We’re launching the Chinese version of our website in order to focus on generating resources and developing representation on the Chinese market.

Kirill Tulenev, IMMLA CEO

At the current moment, IMMLA negotiates with various Chinese partners concerning their participation as advisers and sharing expertise referring to service development. Also, our team attracts the Chinese community for supporting projects and disseminating information about IMMLA in China.

IMMLA’s strategy for the Chinese market will be announced in White Paper ver. 2.0 scheduled for publishing in the first half of September 2017. Research made by IMMLA analysts showed that opportunities of the Chinese market are wider than expected. It may considerably increase total investments raised during ICO.

IMMLA starts its Chinese campaign by launching the Chinese version of its website on 20 August, 2017.

“The Chinese market is very challenging in view of available investment potential and foreign trade volumes. We’re launching the Chinese version of our website in order to focus on generating resources and developing representation on Chinese market”, IMMLA CEO Kirill Tulenev said.

IMMLA is a consortium of leading logistics services and IT companies including SBSolutions, Formag Forwarding and experts from Hellman Worldwide Logistics.

IMMLA’s mission is to ensure safe and convenient interaction between the cargo owner and the transporter on all stages of the transportation process based on Ethereum blockchain and smart-contracts. The new technology will allow to drastically minimize the problem of trust, information barriers and legal issues.

More details about the project can be found in White Paper and IMMLA social media pages –Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, and Medium as well as in a specialized thread on Bitcointalk.org forum and on our channel on Telegram.

Source: IMMLA

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August 22, 2017
National Geographic Learning Invited to Attend OESIS-CERNET Beijing Conference

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Press Release
–

updated: Mar 29, 2017

Beijing, China, March 29, 2017 (Newswire.com)
–
National Geographic Learning (NGL), a part of Cengage and a leading educational publisher of school, higher education, English Language Teaching, library and reference materials, was invited to attend and speak in OESIS-CERNET Beijing Conference, which is co-hosted by Online Education Symposium for Independent School (OESIS), a dynamic network of over 550 independent schools and over 2,500 leading education innovators in US, and the state-owned education group under China Education & Research Network, which runs the first nationwide education and research computer network in China funded by the MOE. There are some 400 educators, school principals and academia from international schools, English Language Teaching (ELT) institutes and ELT/ESL solution providers attended the conference which is one of the largest professional events in teaching innovation in K12 sector.

Michael Cahill, Regional Director of National Geographic Learning was invited to speak in the conference. He shared the important role that textbook plays in the transformation of ELT to a student-centered learning experience. Nowadays, ELT encounters significant changes in the internet-reshaped society, where students’ acquiring of knowledge has been boosted and diversified by internet and digital tools. Pedagogy-wise, learning knowledge through language is progressively replacing the concept and practice of learning language for language only. That is the reason why NGL series textbooks, such as Our World, Pathways, Edge, Life become widely-adopted in China’s ELT institutes and international schools.

NGL series are committed with the idea that brings the world to the classroom and the classroom to life via the rich resources of National Geographic, in terms of impressive images, audios/videos and prestigious content providers and authors. These are what we differentiate with other textbooks, and why we have so many student fans. We believe that picture tells story, and story makes learning exciting. NG series could not only broaden students’ eyesight and knowledge, but also cultivate them to be a truly global citizen by understanding the world in more angles.

Michael Cahill, Regional Director

“NGL series are committed with the idea that brings the world to the classroom and the classroom to life via the rich resources of National Geographic, in terms of impressive images, audios/videos and prestigious content providers and authors. These are what we differentiate with other textbooks, and why we have so many student fans. We believe that picture tells story, and story makes learning exciting. NG series could not only broaden students’ eyesight and knowledge, but also cultivate them to be a truly global citizen by understanding the world in more angles.” said Michael in the speech.

In the 2-days conference, Michael also meets Mr. Zhu Yidong, President of CERNET education, the exclusive distributor of Pathways, NGL’s most famous series in China. Both parties exchanged their views on the existing cooperation projects and how to better facilitate teachers use the series and maximize its effectiveness in 2017.

“We’re pleased to have CERNET as our exclusive partner for the distribution of Pathways again. Our cooperation now turns to be a success which started some 9 years ago, CERNET’s insight of China education market and its close relationship with China’s public school system are the great assets. And we’re looking forward to bring exciting learning experience to more Chinese students with the help of CERNET in the oncoming 2017.” said Alison Wang, China regional manager of NGL.

About National Geographic Learning

National Geographic Learning, a part of Cengage, is a leading educational publisher of school, higher education, English Language Teaching, library and reference materials. At National Geographic Learning, we believe that an engaged and motivated learner will be a successful one, and we design our materials to motivate. We believe that learning can be exciting, inspiring, and transformational.

Source: National Geographic Learning

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March 29, 2017
Haining, the Hollywood of China’s Green Lotus Leaf Movie Culture & Production Co. Ltd Announces LA Reception June 6th

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Haining’s Green Lotus Leaf Movie Culture & Production Co. Ltd Sets Hollywood, Haining East West Collaboration Celebration June 6th in Los Angeles

Press Release
–

updated: Nov 7, 2022

Hollywood, CA, May 30, 2016 (Newswire.com)
–
The Hollywood, Haining reception and celebration has been set for June 6th in Los Angeles drawing Hollywood celebrities, filmmakers, politicians and businesses eager to expand globally with the explosively growing film production friendly capital of Haining, China.

The Vice Mayor of Haining and China (Zhejiang) International Film Cooperation Experimental Zone of Haining City extends a goodwill invitation to those wishing to explore doing business with rising production capital Haining, China’s fastest growing film production center.

“Haining City has the best film production incentives and tax credits in all of China” says George Yeh Yang.

George Yeh Yang, Haining City economic adviser

Haining City has been dubbed the Hollywood of China for its explosive growth in movie making. Decision makers, production liaisons and fixers from the regional film-making hot spot Haining welcome the Hollywood community for a cultural exchange extending the Asian Heritage Month celebration established by President Obama.

Haining’s over 270 production companies generated 400 million in revenue in 2015 with this figure projected to double shortly says Haining City economic adviser George Yeh Yang, keynote speaker of the June 6th Los Angeles gala. “I will be on hand to answer questions directly about film funding, technology project funding, and production partnerships in Haining. “Haining City has the best film production incentives and tax credits in all of China” says George Yeh Yang.

The Hollywood community is invited to expand with the rapid growth film market and production center Haining. George Yeh Yang, the Haining City Advisor, will be on hand to discuss doing business in the production friendly and budget accommodating locale on the coast of China an hour by train from the further inland city of Shanghai. Haining City is already known as the center for the largest leather and fur shopping outlets in China and all of Asia. Located on the Yangtze River Delta by the Qiantang River, Haining literally means calming of the waves.

All those interested in doing business with the rapidly growing production friendly center Haining are invited. Please RSVP with your proposal on joint collaboration. All proposals and collaborative pitches are welcome to be forwarded to Booking@RCPRLA.com.

Sponsorship packets are available to those wishing to expand their brand globally to this growing market beginning at $5,000 and open to discussion. For information on collaborating with the 400 million dollar industry please RSVP to Booking@RCPRLA.com

About the June 6th Haining Delegation & Luncheon

Scheduled to attend the June 6th gala are: Hu Yanzi, Vice Mayor of Haining City, Yin Jianwei, Deputy Director, Haining Service Industry Development Bureau, XuJianming, Director of Haining Bureau of Finance (Local Taxation Authority) and Director of Haining State owned Assets Administration Commission, Du Yingchi, Town Mayor of the People’s Government of Xucun Town, Haining City, ZhuangYuchang, Assistant Director of Haining China’s Leather Market Administrative Committee, RenYoufa, Board Chairman of Haining China Leather Market Co, Ltd., George Yeh Yang, Economic Adviser of Haining City and the CEO of Green Lotus Leaf Movie Culture & Production Co. Ltd.

Haining is the International Experimental District of Film and Television Industry in China (authorized by the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television of the People’s Republic of China.)

About Green Lotus Leaf Movie Culture & Production Co. Ltd 浙江青荷叶影视文化有限公司（海宁市）

“Green Lotus Leaf Movie Culture and Production Co. Ltd is very proud to be selected from among the almost 300 entertainment companies in Haining City to become the official entertainment company to accompany leaders of Haining City to explore, and visit Hollywood and Los Angeles. GLL works hard to bring the best and most exclusive entertainment and movies to audiences in China and worldwide. Green Lotus Leaf Movie Culture and Production Co. Ltd invites and is open to entertainment and film co-production and collaboration with US companies and worldwide” says George Yeh Yang President and CEO of Green Lotus Leaf Productions.

Mr. George Yeh Yang is the economic adviser for Haining City and CEO of Green Lotus Leaf Movie Culture and Production Co. Ltd of Haining City, Zhejiang Province. “We are very proud to help both Haining City and the Green Lotus Leaf Culture and Production Co. Ltd grow, developing into major influencers in China’s entertainment Industry and worldwide” says George Yeh Yang in a statement from Haining City.

With China co-productions the 80 million budgeted “Tetris,” Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson’s “Skyscraper” and “The Great Wall” starring Matt Damon in the works, George Yeh Yang also promises an official announcement on an upcoming 3-D animated Chinese feature film which has been government approved for release without limitations to all of China as well as over 100 Countries around the world during the June 6th Los Angeles event.

Source: Green Lotus Leaf Movie Culture & Production Co. Ltd

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May 30, 2016
ChinaHoneymoonTour.com Partners With Weddingvibe for a China Honeymoon Giveaway

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China Honeymoon Tour (powered by GuideWeTravel) Announces Honeymoon Giveaway worth around $2000 USD. In partnership with weddingvibegiveaways.com China Honeymoon Tour are offering couples around the world the chance to win a dream honeymoon in China.

Press Release
–

Feb 5, 2016

Beijing, China, February 5, 2016 (Newswire.com)
–
Last week China Honeymoon Tour a focused brand of GuideWeTravel partnered with WeddingVibe.com; to offer their users – engaged couples, a unique opportunity to win a stunning honeymoon in China worth almost $2000 USD.

A spokesperson from Weddingvibe.com said:

We are so excited to be teaming up with ChinaHoneymoonTour.com and GuideWeTravel.com to offer our engaged couples an opportunity of a lifetime to win a Honeymoon in Amazing China! We offer many different fun wedding giveaways at WeddingVibe.com, but we have never offered such a unique honeymoon experience!

Adam Anderson, Sales

“We are so excited to be teaming up with ChinaHoneymoonTour.com and GuideWeTravel.com to offer our engaged couples an opportunity of a lifetime to win a Honeymoon in Amazing China! We offer many different fun wedding giveaways at WeddingVibe.com, but we have never offered such a unique honeymoon experience!”

Entry is a simple click to enter format. Register at www.weddingvibegiveaways.com and enter the China Honeymoon Giveaway listed under Giveaways for a chance to win. The winning couple will be chosen at random on 2nd May and will be announced on the WeddingVibe, China Honeymoon Tour and GuideWeTravel Social sites. The winners will be contacted directly and planning can begin for their incredible honeymoon courtesy of China Honeymoon Tour.

The Honeymoon prize is an inclusive 5 day trip in Beijing, China. It includes:

Visits to some of Beijings‘ top attractions such as The Forbidden City. Romantic activities such as rickshaw rides through the ancient Hutong neighborhoods and a glass of bubbly by the lake. Evenings will be filled with excitement at a stunning kung fu show, or relaxed ,simply enjoying some great food. The winning couple will stay in a top ranked boutique hotel in the city center. They will also have the ability to extend and add to the honeymoon package to create their dream trip.

China Honeymoon Tour hope to promote China as a top honeymoon destination in 2016. They have multiple romantic trips for couples. They offer many extra thoughtful touches that turn an incredible trip into an unforgettable honeymoon, such as:

– Photographer on The Great Wall

– Flowers on arrival

– High tech camera use

– Special photo album and video

Honeymoons in China are the next big thing in romance. Find out more at www.chinahoneymoon.com or on their social media pages @chinahoneymoon

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February 5, 2016