CiCM 14th February 2025

NEWS IN CHINA

China-Japan Joint Venture Unveiled in Shanghai: Kobelco-Baosteel Automotive Aluminum Rolled Products Co., Ltd was officially launched in Shanghai on Thursday. The company which is a Sino-Japanese joint venture, specializes in automotive aluminium sheets and the launch of the venture also signifies strengthened collaboration between the two countries in the automotive material sector. The company is jointly established by China’s Baoshan Iron and Steel Co,.Ltd (Baosteel) along with Japan’s Kobe Steel and has a registered capital of nearly 1 billion Yuan. The company will play a crucial role in meeting China’s increasing demand for automotive aluminum sheets which is expected to grow from 442,000 tonnes in 2024 to 657,000 tonnes by 2027. The company stated that it aims to use Baosteel and Kobe Steel’s technological expertise and manufacturing efficiency to enhance the supply of high-end automotive aluminum sheets. In addition, Tesla has established its new mega factory in Shanghai and Toyota has also announced plans to build an EV manufacturing plant in the city, making Shanghai an upcoming hub for foreign investments in the Chinese automobile sector.

China Intensifies Efforts to Tackle Telecom Frauds: Chinese authorities are focussing on advancing efforts to tackle telecom frauds while recovering financial losses and addressing the crime by targeting its underlying causes. According to official data, more than 67,000 individuals were convicted for telecom fraud charges between January and November 2024. Additionally, in 2024, a national campaign resulted in the repatriation of more than 40,000 individuals who were alleged to be involved in a cross-border telecom fraud operation in Northern Myanmar. Du Xueyi, head of the Supreme People's Procuratorate division on economic crimes stated that telecom frauds remain a severe and complex issue as cases originating abroad have grown despite intensified crackdown. He noted that some criminals have established industrial parks and science technology zones to recruit people, thereby leading telecom frauds to evolve into a cross border, organized crime. He pointed out that authorities have issued guidelines on telecom fraud to simplify case-handling procedures and have also implemented measures to raise public awareness and maintain a healthy business environment. China has also intensified domestic enforcement as well as international cooperation in the fight against telecom fraud.

China Leads the Global Green Trade in 2024: China’s growth in global green trade in 2024, significantly contributed to climate change mitigation and the low-carbon transition, said Lyu Daliang, department director at the General Administration of Customs. The country saw a surge in green product exports, with wind turbine exports rising by over 70 percent and photovoltaic (PV) product exports exceeding 200 billion yuan ($27.38 billion) for the fourth consecutive year. Lithium battery exports also reached record highs. Companies like Arctech Solar, specializing in solar trackers, expanded operations and generated 9 billion yuan in sales revenue. The rapid growth of China's green exports is driven by increasing global demand for renewable energy and China’s dominance in wind and solar technology. Green transport exports also expanded, with electric locomotive exports increasing for five consecutive years and electric vehicle exports surpassing 2 million units in 2024. China’s clean energy advancements have significantly reduced the cost of wind and PV power worldwide, with wind power costs dropping by over 60 percent and PV power by more than 80 percent in the past decade. Cities like Ningbo and Nanjing have introduced policies to promote green trade, while new carbon labeling initiatives facilitate Chinese firms' overseas expansion. The Ministry of Commerce has implemented policies to accelerate the green transition in foreign trade, ensuring China’s continued leadership in the global green economy.

ByteDance and Baidu Introduce New AI-related Features: ByteDance has introduced UltraMem, a new AI model architecture that reduces inference costs by up to 83 percent while increasing speed by 2 to 6 times compared to traditional Mixture-of-Experts (MoE) models. This innovation enhances the efficiency and performance of large language models. The announcement comes after DeepSeek’s release of its cost-efficient AI model R1. Meanwhile, Baidu has announced that its AI chatbot, Ernie Bot, will be available for free starting April 1 on both desktop and mobile platforms, with upgraded technology and lower costs. Additionally, Baidu is launching an advanced search function, also free from April 1. This feature includes improved reasoning capabilities, tool integration, and multimodal support, allowing it to perform multiple tasks with specialised expert responses.

Hainan to Initiate Survey of 32 Uninhabited Islands: In 2025, Hainan Province will conduct a survey on 32 uninhabited islands and their surrounding waters to enhance the management of marine and island resources. The survey will establish a directory and coastline database, while also advancing the delineation of protection zones in the Beibu Gulf, according to the Department of Natural Resources and Planning of Hainan Province. Hainan aims to introduce market-based rules for transferring uninhabited islands, optimizing resource allocation to maximize both ecological and economic value. This follows a successful 2024, during which the province launched 174 new sea and island projects, covering 54,700 mu. The total usage fees for marine and island resources surpassed 1 billion yuan for the first time. Moving forward, Hainan plans to improve maritime resource management in support of the Hainan Free Trade Port’s development. The focus will shift from low-efficiency to high-efficiency utilization of sea resources, ensuring sustainable and strategic growth.

SOCIAL MEDIA CHATTER

Young Girl’s Creative Prank Captivates Netizens: The parents of the young girl, who is from Yangzhou in Jiangsu province, shared a video on a major social media platform that captures a young girl trying to avoid studying by making a dummy sit on the chair, while she hid nearby and played. In the video, a dummy dressed in a yellow cotton jacket wearing a hat sits upright on a chair in the bedroom, as if it were a real person, while the daughter plays nearby. The girl's mother grew suspicious when she noticed an unusual silence, as her daughter was typically very lively and outgoing. When the mother tried to confront her daughter she was shocked to see the dummy made out of clothes. The video of the girl amused Chinese netizens who praised her intelligence and creativity. One user joked that the kid should be sent to the army for training in stealth and disguise, while another user playfully mentioned that this is the technique of appearing in two places at once, calling the kid a genius. Young kids in China are often burdened with intense pressure and competitiveness surrounding college entrance exams which leads to added homework burden on students. .

INDIA WATCH

Chinese Media Analyses PM Modi’s Visit to the US: An article in “The Paper” reported on Prime Minister Modi’s visit to the United States and the evolving India-US relationship with the Trump Administration coming to power. Xinhua news agency reported Trump’s statement at the press conference that India has high trade barriers and that the United States should achieve tariff parity with India, while PM Modi emphasized on goodwill by inviting Trump to visit India again. Liu Zongyi, director at the Shanghai Institute for International Studies stated that immigration and trade were some of the important topics of this visit, but the most important one was the Indo-Pacific strategy as India hopes United States’ continued support for the strategy and form a strategic containment of China. The article highlights that Trump’s second term is more uncertain for India with the administration launching a reciprocal tariff policy against all countries, and India with a trade surplus, is going to be highly affected. The article argues that despite Indian officials being optimistic about the India-US relationship, there have also been several nervous moments, such as when Modi was not invited to Trump’s inauguration. The article highlights that many of the points of consensus reached by Modi during the visit have not yet turned into agreements, especially the transaction of the US F-35 fighter jets. Moreover, the article also argues that India’s goodwill in military purchases, repatriation of immigrants, fuel orders, etc. have still not assured Trump about India’s intentions. The article concludes with a caution that India may continue to concede to US demands which can affect India-China relations.

Prepared By

Ruchir Ketkar

Ruchir Ketkar is a First year student pursuing Masters in Diplomacy, Law and Business at OP Jindal Global University. After completing graduation in Political science, he found his interest in International Relations and Global Affairs. With a keen inclination towards security and conflict studies, he has also authored several articles and research papers. He also tries to keep himself updated with the happenings around the world and tries to analyse them using his perspective and understanding.