AmCham Shanghai Weekly News Curation

POLICY

• US climate envoy John Podesta is visiting China this week to discuss issues in the energy transition, an area ripe for collaboration between the world’s two biggest greenhouse gas emitters. More
• Michael Chase, the US deputy assistant secretary of defense for China, Taiwan and Mongolia, is confirmed to attend China’s top security forum in Beijing next week. More
• The Shanghai government released a set of measures on Tuesday to boost the city’s livestream e-commerce sales to RMB￥600 billion by 2026. More
• The Shanghai government updated its consumer goods trade-in and equipment renewal scheme this week. More
• Though media outlets are touting China’s summer travel boom and its 70% year-over-year jump in inbound visitors, the government continues to ramp up its tourism efforts. More
• In response to Canada’s announcement last week of 100% tariffs on EVs and 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum imported from China, China said it would launch an anti-discrimination investigation. More

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

• After UBS downgraded its forecast for China’s 2024 GDP growth last week, several other investment banks have followed suit. More
• The Caixin manufacturing purchasing managers index (PMI) saw a slight 0.6-point upswing in August to 50.4, indicating slim growth in the manufacturing sector. More
• Caixin’s New Economy Index, which tracks the contribution of 10 emerging industries to China’s economy, dropped 1.2 points between July and August as the labor input hit its lowest reading in nine years of data. More
• Cash-strapped local governments across China are selling state-owned assets in an attempt to secure new streams of revenue as pressure to address soaring debt levels and dwindling funds mount. More

ANALYSIS

• Ryan Hass of the Brookings Institution has an essay warning that American policy should not focus on the “peak China” theory. More
• The Financial Times has an op-ed this week describing the potential consequences of a long-term antimony shortage on global supply chains. More