In China’s Wake

U.S. shipbuilding sends an SOS.

Good evening. Here’s your eye-popping stat of the week: Just one Chinese shipyard near Shanghai has more capacity than all of America’s shipyards combined.?Our cover story this week looks at recent efforts to revitalize American shipbuilding, the challenges and legislation involved, and the implications for a potential conflict between the U.S. and China. Elsewhere, we have infographics showing how a Chinese company helped Russia get its hands on German drone engines; an interview with Ken Wilcox , the former chief executive of Silicon Valley Bank, about his experience trying to build a bank in China; a reported piece on Intel’s recent China woes ; and an op-ed on why betting on a weakened China is a bad idea.

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SOS

There is growing panic in Washington that the U.S. can no longer produce ships. China’s shipbuilding capability, meanwhile, is exploding. Can an all-hands-on-deck strategy help the U.S. catch up? Brent Crane reports .

The Big Picture: How German Drone Engines Landed in Russian Hands via China

Fujian Delong Aviation Technology acquired a family-owned German enginemaker. Now, as Noah Berman shows in this week’s infographics , its subsidiary is selling drone engines to Russia.

A Q&A with Ken Wilcox

For the ten years up to 2010, Ken Wilcox was chief executive of Silicon Valley Bank and one of the key drivers of its strategy of lending to the tech sector.?SVB’s collapse?in 2023 made international headlines, but in his new book,?The China Business Conundrum,?Wilcox tells the tale of the period after he stepped down as CEO and went to lead the bank’s efforts to expand in China. SVB invested over $100 million to form a joint venture with Shanghai Pudong Development Bank. In this interview with Andrew Peaple , Wilcox talks about the frustrations of trying to expand in China, the role of the ‘secret team’, and why his efforts were doomed to fall short.

Intel Gets Caught Up in the U.S.-China Rivalry

Criticism from a body with close ties to China’s top tech regulator signals increased scrutiny of the American chipmaker. Yi Liu reports .

Peak Confusion: Why Betting on a Weakened China is a Bad Idea

Misdiagnosing China’s economic health and military potential could have serious consequences for American policy making, argue Bailey Marsheck and Raphael Piliero in this week’s op-ed.

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