
In a Fortnight

Low Fertility Trap Fears Cloud China’s Release of 2020 Census Data
The results of China’s seventh national census were released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on May 11, after more than a month’s delay. NBS commissioner and deputy leader of the State Council Leading Group for the Seventh National Population Census Ning Jizhe (宁吉喆)... MORE

Tianhe Launch Marks a Key Step in China’s Growing Space Ambitions
On April 29, a Long March 5B (长征五号B, Changzheng wuhao B) heavy rocket carrying the Tianhe 1 (天和一号) core module of China’s space station was successfully launched into low earth orbit from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site, Hainan Province (Xinhua, April 29). It marks the... MORE

Hong Kong Cracks Down on National Security Imperatives Amid Electoral Reforms
On April 15, Hong Kong celebrated National Security Education Day (NSE Day) for the first time in the special administrative region (HKSAR)’s history. The mainland has held a National Security Education Day on April 15 each year since the holiday was designated in a July... MORE

China Learning From Russia’s “Emerging Great Power” Global Media Tactics
Following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers observed that China has employed newly assertive tactics—including spreading widespread Russian-style disinformation—which suggested that “Beijing is increasingly seeking to shape the global information environment beyond its borders” (Alliance for Security Democracy, March 30, 2020). Chinese propaganda researchers... MORE

Semiconductor Scandal A Concerning Backdrop to Xi’s Pursuit of “Core Technologies”
Introduction China’s leadership has signaled the country’s dedication towards pursuing self-sufficiency in “core technologies“ including integrated circuits. During the Fifth Plenum last fall, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) reinforced its belief in innovation being the core driver of China’s continuing development and pursuing a high-tech... MORE

Directions Forward for Chinese Rare Earths After the Two Sessions
Following heightened U.S.-China tensions last year, the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) issued the “Draft Regulations on Rare Earth Management” (稀土管理条例(征求意见稿), xitu guanli tiaolie (zhengqiu yijian gao)) on January 15. The new regulations propose stricter management of China’s rare earths industry, including... MORE

China Moves Ahead on Digital Yuan Before 2022 Winter Olympics
Introduction With the People’s Republic of China (PRC) a frontrunner in the global race towards digital currency, the central bank People’s Bank of China (PBOC) has taken several steps this year to explore the international use of a digital yuan (e-CNY). Although there is no... MORE

Chinese Demographic Signals Bode Ill for Future Development
A new study published February 8 by the Ministry of Public Security of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) (MPS, 中华人民共和国公安部, zhonghua renmin gongheguo gongan bu) reported that there were 10.035 million registered births in 2020, down from 11.79 million in 2019. This represents a... MORE

Chinese COVID-19 Misinformation A Year Later
Introduction On January 28, members of an international team led by the World Health Organization (WHO) concluded fourteen days of quarantine and began field work in Wuhan, China for a mission aimed at investigating the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic. As of the time of... MORE

Winter Coal Shortages Reveal Chinese Energy Vulnerabilities
Introduction Amid the coldest winter recorded since 1966, provinces across the People’s Republic of China (PRC) struggled with the worst electrical blackouts seen in nearly a decade (OilPrice, January 8). More than a dozen cities across Zhejiang, Hunan, Jiangxi, Shaanxi, Inner Mongolia, and Guangdong provinces... MORE