All posts tagged trade

China Foreign Investment Falls as Japan Spat Threatens Trade

Foreign direct investment in China fell in August for the ninth time in 10 months and the government indicated a diplomatic spat with Japan will hurt trade, adding to restraints on economic growth.

Spending declined 1.4 percent from a year earlier to $8.33 billion, the ministry said in Beijing today. Shen Danyang, a ministry spokesman, said at a briefing that the dispute over islands claimed by Japan and China will “definitely” have a negative impact on trade, after protesters attacked Japanese cars and shops across China .

China’s economy may grow the least in 22 years this year as Europe’s debt crisis and slowing U.S. expansion crimp exports, and a property crackdown damps domestic demand. Further weakness may prompt the government to build on interest-rate cuts in June and July and accelerated investment approvals, with Premier Wen Jiabao saying last week that the nation has room for fiscal and monetary measures.

“The smaller inflow of foreign investments will exacerbate the nation’s current economic slowdown,” said Joy Yang, chief Greater China economist at Mirae Asset Securities (HK) Ltd., who formerly worked for the International Monetary Fund. China’s leaders, following a political transition set to begin this year, may take further steps to support growth including measures to boost domestic investment and consumption, Yang said.

 

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by byu2012 on September 22, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Asia, China, Investment, Japan
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Posted by byu2012 on September 22, 2012

http://theasiancenturyreport.com/2012/09/22/china-foreign-investment-falls-as-japan-spat-threatens-trade/

India, China meet to resolve trade matters, strengthen ties

India, China meet to resolve trade matters, strengthen tiesBeijing on Monday assured New Delhi of resolving the issue of trade highly lopsided in favour of China, by giving greater market access to India in information technology (IT), agriculture and pharmaceutical sectors.

At the ninth session of the joint group of India and China on economic relations, trade, science and technology here, Beijing, on the other hand raised the issue of increase in customs duty by New Delhi on imports of power equipment from that country.

 

The two fastest growing large economies in the world agreed to set up a joint working group to look into all trade related matters, including data collection, as well as investments. The two sides also decided to work on a five-year plan for economic co-operation.

In another development, nine memoranda of understanding (MoU) were signed between companies of the two countries entailing import intention of $189 million from India, at a function organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci) and China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products (CCCME). Besides, an MoU between Ficci and CCCME for joint cooperation was also inked.

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by gngn0 on August 27, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Asia, China, India, Trade
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Posted by gngn0 on August 27, 2012

http://theasiancenturyreport.com/2012/08/27/india-china-meet-to-resolve-trade-matters-strengthen-ties/

Foreign Investment Fading, China Expects Trade to Slow

BEIJING (Reuters) — China’s trade outlook for 2012 is worsening, weighed down especially by growing problems in Europe, the Commerce Ministry said on Thursday as it disclosed the longest run of falling growth in inward investment in the economy since the 2008-9 financial crisis.

The ministry singled out problems in the European Union —  China’s biggest overseas market — as the core difficulty for exporters. It published data showing foreign direct investment from Europe fell 2.7 percent year on year, to $4 billion, in the first seven months of 2012.

“Right now, the sharp drop of exports to E.U. countries is the biggest important factor weighing on  China’s export growth,” a ministry spokesman, Shen Danyang, said at a news conference.

“With the European debt crisis spreading and the global economy recovering at a slower than expected pace, we expect  China’s trade situation in the second half will become more severe and we are facing more pressure to meet the annual target for trade growth,” Mr. Shen added.

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by byu2012 on August 19, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Asia, Asian conferences, Business, China
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Posted by byu2012 on August 19, 2012

http://theasiancenturyreport.com/2012/08/19/foreign-investment-fading-china-expects-trade-to-slow/

China Blames Debt Crisis for Fall in Foreign Trade

The Ministry of Commerce in Beijing said foreign direct investment plunged 8.7pc in July to $7.58bn (£4.82bn). Meanwhile China’s export market ground to a mere 1pc expansion from last year, rather than its traditional double-digit growth.

Shen Danyang, spokesman for the ministry told a press conference: “July’s dramatic decline in the growth rate of foreign trade, especially in exports, was mainly attributed to the big fall in exports to the European Union.”

Mr Shen added: “A decline in exports to the EU had been predicted, but the escalation and further deterioration of the EU debt crisis, and plummeting demand from EU countries, were outside of expectations.”

The data is another pointer to a worrying slow-down in the powerhouse economy which could hamper the global recovery. Western governments, particularly in the eurozone, have banked their hopes on a China-led recovery, both through trade and bond-buying programmes

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by byu2012 on August 19, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Asia, Asian conferences, Business, China, Finance
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Posted by byu2012 on August 19, 2012

http://theasiancenturyreport.com/2012/08/19/china-blames-debt-crisis-for-fall-in-foreign-trade/

US-China Trade and the WTO: Unrealistic Expectations

One reads complaints about China trade and the WTO system every day in the U.S. These statements usually concern rule violations by China, limitations of the WTO, and the inability of the U.S. to enforce WTO law.

Howard Schneider, who covers international economics for the Washington Post, went even further in an article yesterday, saying that even though the U.S. has won a lot of cases recently, the WTO system still doesn’t work. The article’s title, “At WTO, a growing U.S. record of wins against China, but a less than certain benefit,” sums up Schneider’s thesis. The U.S. has been chalking up quite a few wins against China these days at the WTO, but the gains are difficult to ascertain.

Before we get to specifics, my response is to question those expectations. Who said that WTO wins would directly translate to specific gains for U.S. companies? That may be true, but not necessarily. If that is what industry and government believe the system promises, then I’m not surprised at all the recent grousing.

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by byu2012 on August 19, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Asia, Business, China
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Posted by byu2012 on August 19, 2012

http://theasiancenturyreport.com/2012/08/19/us-china-trade-and-the-wto-unrealistic-expectations/

Benefits of China Trade or Votes of Top Exporter States?

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi

Democrats and Republicans don’t agree on much in this polarizing election year, but one exception is trade with China. Nearly every politician seems eager to claim on the stump that the scheming Asian giant is hurting U.S. living standards.

So it’s worth noting a new analysis by the U.S.-China Business Council that shows how America’s individual Congressional districts gain from trans-Pacific trade. The results show a striking dissonance between the anti-China rhetoric and business on Main Street.

Republicans such as Frank Wolf of Virginia, John Shimkus of Illinois and Joseph Pitts of Pennsylvania have all signed onto the latest legislative effort to punish Beijing for its alleged currency manipulation. But their districts’ goods exports to China have increased by 536%, 686% and 640%, respectively, over the past decade—much faster than exports to the rest of the world.

On the Democratic side, Jim McDermott of Washington, Nancy Pelosi of California and Louise Slaughter of New York also have co-sponsored currency legislation despite their districts’ booming China exports. Voters can check their own districts’ reality on the Council website and compare it to stump-speech rhetoric.

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by byu2012 on August 18, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Asia, Asian conferences, China
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Posted by byu2012 on August 18, 2012

http://theasiancenturyreport.com/2012/08/18/benefits-of-china-trade-or-votes-of-top-exporter-states/

Stock Markets Slump Worldwide Amid China and Japan Slowdown

LONDON/HONG KONG — World stock markets fell Monday after a slowdown in Japan’s growth gave investors another reason to worry about the health of the global economy.

Japan’s economy grew at a slower-than-expected annual rate of 1.4 percent in April-June as Europe’s debt crisis and the strong yen weighed on the country’s powerhouse export sector. That was a sharp drop from a revised 5.5 percent in the previous quarter. The news comes on top a slew of reports out of Asia that point to a region losing momentum.

On Friday, China released weaker-than-expected trade data. Export growth in July plunged to just 1 percent from the previous month’s 11.3 percent, well below forecasts of about 5 percent. Meanwhile, Hong Kong and Singapore, both Asian financial centers that are highly exposed to global trade, reported weak second-quarter growth. And India’s industrial output fell a worse-than-expected 1.8 percent in June amid a manufacturing and investment slump.

European stocks opened lower. Britain’s FTSE 100 lost 0.3 percent to 5,826.91. Germany’s DAX lost 0.1 percent to 6,935.06 while France’s CAC-40 lost 0.3 percent to 3,426.26. Wall Street futures signaled a lower opening. Dow Jones Industrial Futures fell 0.2 percent to 13,148 and S&P 500 futures shed 0.3 percent to 1,398.70.

Asian stock markets closed mostly lower. Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell marginally to close at 8,885.15, with traders taking Japan’s growth figures in stride.

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by stekunan on August 13, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Asia, Asian conferences, Finance, Japan, Market, Stock
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Posted by stekunan on August 13, 2012

http://theasiancenturyreport.com/2012/08/13/stock-markets-slump-worldwide-amid-china-and-japan-slowdown/

China Outlook Gloomy

MONTREAL – The latest survey of China’s purchasing managers, an early gauge of changing economic conditions, indicated a weakening of domestic demand, adding to concern of a slowdown throughout Asia, although data from South Korea and Singapore looks more positive.

The HSBC/Markit flash PMI, which comes out ahead of the government’s data. was reported at a lower than expected 48.1, the fifth consecutive month under the neutral 50 level, and down from 49.6 February.

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by stekunan on August 7, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Asia, Business, China, Industry, Market
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Posted by stekunan on August 7, 2012

http://theasiancenturyreport.com/2012/08/07/china-outlook-gloomy/

China Offers $20 Billion in Loans to Africa

WSJ

China pledged billions in new aid to Africa and said its companies doing business there would act responsibly, as the country seeks smooth relations with the resource-rich continent despite emerging trade and social tensions.

China will offer $20 billion in loans to African countries to develop infrastructure, agriculture, manufacturing and small and midsize enterprises, Chinese President Hu Jintao said Thursday during a gathering of African leaders in Beijing. That figure is double what China committed in 2009.

Chinese officials also stressed deepening economic ties with Africa, a major source of China’s oil, metals and other commodities. Mr. Hu said trade between China and Africa doubled in the past six years and totaled $166.3 billion in 2011, while its direct investment there has reached $15 billion.

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by Admin on July 19, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Asia, Business, Energy
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Posted by Admin on July 19, 2012

http://theasiancenturyreport.com/2012/07/19/china-offers-20-billion-in-loans-to-africa/

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