[Xi Jinping delivers a short speech at Xi’an Jiaotong University on 22 April, 2020: WATCH HERE]

The final weeks of April were an important time for the Xi Jinping-led leadership as it sought to finally—yet carefully—get China’s economy back on track a...

[People's Bank of China Governor Yi Gang]

Over the last two years, I’ve written pieces for this blog about how debt accumulation and slowing consumption are affecting China’s GDP. Ten years ago, to counteract the 2007-2008 Global Financial Crisis, Chi...

As Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) spreads throughout the globe, rumors and misinformation regarding the illness are keeping pace with the spread of the virus itself. In early March, the Chinese Foreign Ministry (MFA) joined the rumor mill when i...

This two-part series analyzes past, present, and future trends in China’s resource-backed loans. Part I looked at why China made frequent use of this tool in the 2000s and early 2010s and why it has since diminished in stature. This installment (Part...

This two-part series analyzes past, present, and future trends in China’s resource-backed loans. This installment (Part I) looks at why China made frequent use of this tool in the 2000s and early 2010s and why it has since diminished in stature. Part...

[A translated excerpt from a propaganda cartoon published by China’s anti-corruption body featuring party cadres questioning emergency responders. Source: CCDI Wechat Account]

“To control the epidemic, the national disciplinary inspection and supervis...

During the Politburo’s 40th Collective Study Session in April 2017, President Xi delivered a speech on strengthening the Party’s leadership over financial affairs, particularly over the financial mechanisms used to stimulate economic growth. In respo...

In this two-part series, I examine the story behind China’s potential future military basing in Cambodia. Part I focused on how China used economic tools to win over the Cambodian leadership and drew conclusions about the intersection of China’s econ...

In this two-part series, I examine the story behind China’s potential future military basing in Cambodia.  Part I focuses on China’s use of economic tools to win over the Cambodian leadership and draws conclusions about the intersection of China’s ec...

Last year, I wrote a feature explaining why China’s GDP numbers were cause for worry. At the time, the US-China trade war was just a possibility, and the English-language dialogue surrounding China was largely cautious about discussing the nation’s e...