China news roundup / Nachrichten 2026-01-04/05

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bossel4 days ago7 min read

"“Attributed export via intermediaries” refers to the transfer of nominal export attribution – not ownership of goods – through intermediary firms. In practice, it reflects agency-based export activity shaped by local performance incentives.
In some regions, local governments provide fiscal rewards tied to reported export volumes. These incentives, often administered through commerce departments, can range from a few cents to several tens of cents per dollar exported. In response, some trading companies, particularly export agents, purchase export documentation from firms in other regions, typically small producers or firms lacking export tax rebate eligibility.
[...] “Empty container exports” represent a more extreme and less common phenomenon. In these cases, shipping containers are declared as exported and imported without carrying actual cargo, sometimes cycling repeatedly through export-import processes. Each declaration generates recorded trade value despite the absence of physical goods.
Because both mechanisms are inherently opaque, it’s impossible to know how much these practices inflate China’s official trade data. Chinese researchers and industry analysts typically estimate that data amplification from such practices may account for roughly 4-7 percent of reported export value.
[...] Again, this range remains deeply uncertain. Yet even conservative estimates suggest that, at trillion-dollar surplus levels, the absolute magnitude of potential distortion warrants attention. This is not to suggest that China’s trade data is fabricated, but to provide an important analytical caveat to record-setting figures.
[...] China’s record surplus should be interpreted with nuance. It is neither purely a reflection of market competitiveness nor primarily the result of statistical manipulation. Instead, it reflects the interaction of structural advantages and internal governance incentives."

--- Conclusion: Don't trust any numbers coming from China.

China Buys Two-Thirds of Pledged US Soybeans as 2025 Closes

"China has bought at least 8 million tons of US soybeans this year, according to people familiar with the matter, putting the world’s top importer on track to meet a pledge it made two months ago as part of an apparent trade truce with Washington.
[...] The White House said immediately after talks between President Donald Trump and Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping that China had pledged to buy at least 12 million tons of US soybeans by the end of this year. US officials later clarified the deadline was in fact the end of February."

--- Quite a Chinese way of doing things by the Trump administration. First you cut an agreement with a deadline, then you see that the deadline will not be met, and then you redefine the deadline. So easy.

Trump orders Chinese-controlled firm to unwind chip asset deal, citing national security risks

"The Global Times, a Chinese government mouthpiece, citing an expert, said the divestment order “reflects Washington’s anxiety over technology competition with China” as it was made without a convincing rationale."

--- Emperor Xi is not convinced? What a surprise.

"The officials said that a week before the first attacks on Chinese workers, there had been a verbal dispute between employees of gold companies on both sides of the river.
"The [Afghan side] wanted to divert the flow of the Panj River to their direction, as the land where they mine gold was flooded, but the Tajik side said they could not do this, as their own gold mining land on the bank would be flooded," one of the officials said, who asked to remain anonymous to avoid reprisals for speaking to the media.
Shohin SM, the mining company where the slain Chinese workers were employed, is a joint Tajik-Chinese firm that was founded in 2020 and has been active on the banks of the Panj River since 2023.
Whether the mining operations are part of the motivations behind the attack are unclear, but a Chinese national was also killed and five others were injured in the same area in November 2024."

--- So, this may not have been a terrorist attack after all. Maybe it was just a clash of two mining companies. And I would not be too surprised if both of them were Chinese, actually. Will we ever know?

US strike on Venezuela to embolden China's territorial claims, Taiwan attack unlikely, analysts say

"Chinese President Xi Jinping's considerations about Taiwan and his timeline are separate from the situation in Latin America, influenced more by China's domestic situation than by U.S. actions"

--- You don't say.

"Still, analysts said, President Donald Trump's audacious attack on Saturday, capturing Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, hands China an unexpected opportunity that Beijing will likely use in the near term to amplify criticism of Washington and bolster its own standing on the international stage."

--- Yawn...

US capture of Maduro tests limits of China's diplomatic push

""The sovereignty and security of all countries should be fully protected under international law," Wang added
[...] Xi on Monday urged all countries to abide by international law and the UN principles. He said major powers should set an example"

--- Just like China completely ignores ... err ... complies with international law in the South China Sea.

China tells UN Elon Musk’s satellites pose ‘safety and security’ risk

"“With the rapid expansion of commercial space activities, the unchecked proliferation of commercial satellite constellations by a certain country, in the absence of effective regulation, has given rise to pronounced safety and security challenges,” a Chinese representative said at an informal UN Security Council event.
[...] Meanwhile, Chinese projects, including the Quianfan broadband network, plans to launch their own internet satellite megaconstellations rivalling SpaceX.
The Shanghai state-backed project aims to mass produce and launch over 15,000 satellites by 2030 to provide global broadband coverage."

--- If a private company from a certain country does it, it's bad. But if a certain other country does it, it's fine, no problem at all.

China and South Korea pledge to bolster ties as regional tensions rise

--- China Uncensored featured the usual weekend news variety again:

--- China Uncensored: "China Has ALREADY Quietly Invaded the US"

--- DW News: "China sharply criticizes US toppling of Maduro"

"Peking versucht den US-Einsatz aber politisch für sich zu nutzen - stellt sich beispielsweise als Hüter des Völkerrechts und regelbasierter Ordnung dar."

--- Internationales Recht mit chinesischen Charakteristiken. So wie in Tibet oder im südchinesischen Meer

"Einige Beobachter befürchten, dass Chinas Führung mit ähnlicher Rechtfertigung wie US-Präsident Donald Trump einen Militäreinsatz gegen Taiwan starten könnte."

--- Quark. Die KPCh braucht keine derartige Begründung.