Chen Jing

The seemingly unending lockdown in Shanghai has taken a toll on investor confidence, leading to some entrepreneurs and companies talking about leaving the city. Zaobao’s Shanghai correspondent Chen Jing surveys the short-term reactions and long-term outlook of China's top financial city.

Zaobao correspondent Chen Jing speaks with Singaporeans who are based in Shanghai to find out how the resurgence of Covid-19 cases has impacted them. While some have gone through great pains to escape the locked down city, others have stayed behind, sharing the hardship — and joys — with the local community.

A recent false rumour of an impending lockdown in Shanghai led to panic buying and disorder not usually seen in Shanghai, a well-run city that follows the rules. But it is not so much that people can’t tell fact from fiction, but that recent U-turns by the officials have led people to start relying on the grapevine. What should the authorities do to win back the people’s trust?

More than half a year after an infectious diseases expert was shot down for proposing living with the virus, Chinese epidemiologist Zeng Guang has cautiously signalled that perhaps it is time for China to transition away from its dynamic zero-Covid policy. Zaobao correspondent Chen Jing reports that Chinese netizens are showing their support for this, voicing their frustration with the prolonged restrictions, while official statistics show a struggling recovery in domestic consumption. Will the benefits of China’s dynamic zero-Covid continue to outweigh its costs?

The viral posts of a woman chained by the neck in Feng county, Jiangsu province, have ignited public outcry. It is not just the plight of the mother of eight that has enraged netizens, but also the abhorrent handling of the case by local authorities and communities. Zaobao correspondent Chen Jing uncovers the hidden layers of injustice, gender imbalance and messy governance the incident has brought to light.

The “double reduction” policy was launched last year to ease students’ workload and pricing guidelines were introduced to prevent service providers from charging exorbitant prices. Not only has this caused many tutoring institutions to close down, but parents fear that they will now have nowhere to turn to for quality lessons that their child still needs for the rat race. Zaobao correspondent Chen Jing reports.

The US’s recently enacted Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act prohibits the import of Xinjiang-produced goods, leaving US companies in a bind. In response, Walmart and Tesla have taken different approaches. While Sam’s Club under Walmart removed Xinjiang products, drawing the ire of Chinese consumers, Tesla gained cheers for opening a new showroom in Urumqi. Will US companies be forced to choose sides? Zaobao correspondent Chen Jing looks into the matter.

New regulations announced by the Chinese authorities seem to have made it more complicated for Chinese companies to get listed overseas, even though the variable interest entity (VIE) structure is still in play. Given the added obstacles ahead, will Chinese companies still want to go through the trouble of seeking overseas listings? Zaobao correspondent Chen Jing reports.

Despite having a head start in being established as a special economic zone (SEZ), Xiamen’s economy lags behind other cities in Fujian province such as Quanzhou and Fuzhou. Coupled with disproportionately high property prices, Xiamen is not doing as well as other places like Pudong New Area and Shenzhen either, which started their development spurt later but have overtaken Xiamen. Zaobao correspondent Chen Jing looks at how Xiamen can turn things around.