Hong Kongers have recently found a nearby spending destination in mainland China: Shenzhen. Since the summer vacation, a steady wave of tourists from Hong Kong has crossed the border to visit the various shopping spots in the mainland Chinese city. Lianhe Zaobao journalist Daryl Lim shares his findings from interviews in Shenzhen.
Economy
Society
Urban villages are a historical product of Shenzhen’s urbanisation process. Today, local governments may have good intentions in implementing “centralised leasing” (统租) and upgrading work, but existing tenants may feel they are being shortchanged. Daryl Lim looks into the matter.
Society
Young people are becoming the biggest consumers of gold in China, from jewellery to beads. They see it as a form of investment and savings, amid uncertainty about the economy. Zaobao journalist Daryl Lim looks into the trend.
Politics
While Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko visited Beijing seeking a reassurance of support soon after Wagner head Yevgeny Progozhin’s attempted coup, China seems to be adopting a wait-and-see attitude.
Economy
Shenzhen’s Qianhai is a relatively new business district that the Chinese government wants to develop. However, there has been comparatively little pull so far, given that general facilities are lacking and the supportive policies for foreign companies are no different from those in other areas in Shenzhen. However, some business people Zaobao talked to are upbeat about its future.
Society
China’s ride-hailing market has seen exponential growth this year, which some attribute to the recovery of economic activity. However, others believe that the increase in ride-hailing drivers reflects increased unemployment. Lianhe Zaobao journalist Daryl Lim looks into the potential oversaturation and different factors impacting the market.
Politics
The long-awaited face-to-face meeting between US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping finally took place this week on the sidelines of the G20 summit. While both sides expectedly reiterated their stance on key issues such as climate change, North Korea and the Russia-Ukraine war, the Taiwan issue continues to be the highlight, with Xi marking it as the “first red line’’ that must not be crossed. Zaobao journalists Miao Zong-Han and Daryl Lim tell us more.
Economy
In this fourth instalment of a seven-part Lianhe Zaobao-Business Times series on China and ASEAN, we look at the role of Chinese investors in the rise, fall and recovery of Cambodia’s Sihanoukville province.
Society
Cambodia is one of Southeast Asia’s fastest growing economies, but it has also become a hotbed of Chinese telecoms and online scams targeted at mainland Chinese in recent years. Most of the scam rings based in Sihanoukville recruit mainland Chinese, but have also started to bring in Chinese from Southeast Asia and Taiwan. Once duped into joining their firms, these workers are trapped and forced to work as online scammers. Lianhe Zaobao journalist Daryl Lim visited Sihanoukville in May to get a better picture.