CiCM 12th-13th August 2023

NEWS IN CHINA

The Chinese Customs Department has expedited the customs clearance process for imported fresh products from other countries. Fresh products like fruits are prioritised through a convenient and smooth customs clearance at the airports. A pre arrival declaration form is submitted online by the importer and as soon as the cargo section is manually checked with all the necessary papers, the product is ready to leave the premises, thereby cutting all the time for receiving, reviewing and final approval of the application. In the second quarter of the year, Beijing Capital International Airport alone handled 230 million yuan worth of imports, counting a 140 percent increase from the first quarter. With the upgradation of consumption structure, the demand for imported products has skyrocketed. The RCEP agreement has also played a momentous role in giving major impetus to the expedited neighbourhood trade. RCEP has effectively reduced the tariff and improved the ease of doing business for traders involved mainly in the southeast and east Asian region. According to the data from China’s General Administration of Customs, China’s agricultural imports from ASEAN is 7.5 percent higher and fruit imports are staggering 24.1 percent higher from last year.
On 13 August, China launched a satellite into space from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center, Sichuan Province. The satellite named L-SAR4 01 was launched by a long March 3B carrier rocket at 1:26 a.m. and entered the orbit successfully. The satellite’s utilities lie in providing remote sensing information services. The Ministry of Disaster Management is the leading user of the high orbit satellite. The satellite is equipped with an L band synthetic aperture radar with medium spatial resolution, quick large scale observation. It is expected to provide data support for industries in case of emergency management, natural resources, ecological environment, water conservancy, meteorology, agriculture and earthquakes. Once the satellite is placed in orbit, it will enhance the ability to monitor large scale affected areas.
China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region is set to host the fourth China Eurasia Commodity and Trade Expo next week where representatives of 1,300 businesses from 40 countries will arrive. The Expos objective is to deepen the cooperation between Asia and Europe in the capital city Urumqi from August 17 to 21. Additionally the expo is also slated to hold a seminar on the development of industries and commerce along the Silk Road. This year’s Expo will hold a record 33 trade talks, panel discussions to promote greater trade, investment and cooperation. The expo is also supposed to provide an exclusive push to the Xinjiang region as a lucrative place for the neighbouring provinces and central Asian states. The 25 of the world’s top 509 companies are confirmed to visit the Expo. Previous Expos were held 2016, 2017 and 2021 drawing over 3700 businesses from all over the world.
Chinese authorities held a video conference on August 13 to deliberate on the heavy rains, geological disasters and impact caused by typhoons. The discussion led to some arrangements especially for areas of Tianjin, Liaoning, Chongqing and Shaanxi. The meeting was hosted by the Office of the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters and the Ministry of Emergency Management and it was joined by the China Meteorological Administration, the Ministry of Water Resources and the Ministry of Natural Resources. The parts of the northeast, northwest and southwest are forecasted to witness heavy rains. The Haihe River Basin continues to be under the shadow of floods. The meeting emphasised that affected areas should brace for more damage while working to beef up patrol, defence and emergency rescue forces, scientifically investigate and eliminate risks and speed up the restoration of embankments.
According to Shanghai based Shipowner’s Association, China has surpassed Greece to become the largest ship owning country(measured by gross tonnage). China’s ship owning fleet currently stands at a total tonnage of 249.2 million GT, that constitutes 15.9 percent of the market share amounting to 180 billion US Dollars. In comparison Greece’s ship owning fleet is of 249 GT, comprising a market share of 15.8 percent, valued almost 163 billion US dollars. Japan features as the distant third ranker with 181 million tonnage GT, followed by South Korea and the United States. Stephen Gordon, an analyst from Clarkson Research, highlighted that given China’s cargo scale, growing ship industry and financial sector, this should not come as a surprise.

SOCIAL MEDIA CHATTER IN CHINA

A video of a four year old girl playing with a large golden Burmese python has gone viral on social media: The girl is seen hugging and sleeping with the python. Zheng, the father of the girl, shot the video at an animal shelter in Fujian province. The father said that his daughter is fond of animals and he takes her to the animal shelter once a week where a friend of his works. Some social media users have called the father ignorant for ignoring the safety of her daughter. Zheng has called the scene very harmonious as the snake was tamed and did not pose any threat to humans. Another faction on social media applauded his efforts to support his daughter’s love for animals. One supportive social media user commented that only such children can grow up to be spiritual while another user commented that how come the father is so confident as no animal can be tamed completely. Dangerous animals kept as pets are uncommon but not unheard of in China and even in the past it has caused problems at times.

INDIA WATCH

According to China’s Ministry of Commerce, China’s trade with other RCEP countries grew by 7.9 percent, from last year to 11.8 trillion yuan, accounting to 30.7 per cent of the total foreign trade value. A report by the Peterson Institute on International Relations highlights that by not joining the RCEP, India could be looking at a GDP loss of INR 450 billion, in comparison to the possible gain of INR 4,450 billion gain by joining. India’s decision to not join RCEP was logical, given the fact that India has had free trade agreements with ASEAN since 2009 and with Japan and South Korea Since 2011 and 2009 respectively and these agreements have become more of a bane than boon as India continues to register trade deficits with these countries due to its non competitive industrial sector.
At this stage due to India’s inability to join, the RCEP has become more susceptible to Chinese dominance, leading this power excess to impact the geopolitics of Asia. As the strategic competitor to China, India must be ready to balance out China strategically as well as economically. Therefore, it is the need of the hour to develop an economy that is competitive in the world market and that would require a slew of measures like a calibrated trade policy, foreign investment, favouring interest rate and exchange rate in short a comprehensive industrial policy. Additionally, India can reach out to groupings such as BIMSTEC And African Union where it can compete in the local markets. Simultaneously, India can continue to sign more bilateral free trade agreements with favourable terms until it reaches the threshold of joining multilateral trade blocs.

Prepared By

Rahul Kheswa

Rahul Kheswa has recently completed his MA in East Asian Studies with a specialisation in China from the University of Delhi. For his BA, he majored in History and Political Science. During his MA, he learnt elementary Mandarin Chinese through elective course. Rahul’s research interest lies in Chinese society and continental philosophy.