Economy

China’s innovative drug developers are increasingly partnering with foreign companies to pitch their products overseas due to tighter profit margins in the domestic market. But this route, while lucrative, can also be precarious.

Despite the lifting of Covid-19 restrictions, the office vacancy rate in China’s capital Beijing has not recovered, and is set to increase. From considerations such as rental cost and traffic, internet companies are opting to move out of prime central locations. Lianhe Zaobao journalist Meng Dandan tells us more.

The world is concerned that the Chinese people are beginning to lose confidence in China’s future, dampening the prospects for sustainable development. Researcher Wei Da believes that there is little connection between this crisis of confidence and the cyclical boom and bust of the economy, but China’s severe economic problems are ultimately political problems.

EAI academic Chen Gang notes that although the Chinese authorities are against the Western notion of “de-risking”, it has itself taken steps to de-risk, with ASEAN overtaking Europe and the US as China’s largest trade partner. As major countries are gaining ground in their de-risking strategies, the global south is set to benefit.

Japanese academic Toshiya Tsugami notes that while China's economy is likely to fall into medium- to long-term stagnation, its outward investments and financing through the Belt and Road Initiative may not be immediately affected. However, other factors may have a ripple effect on China's ability to maintain the momentum of the BRI.

As China’s financial system remains plagued by trillions of dollars in local governments’ hidden debt, policy makers may need to take drastic measures to solve the problem.

Over the last two years, the Chinese property market suffered a downturn and this has had a knock-on effect on the country’s economy. In recent weeks, the government has loosened restrictions and rolled out policies to make it easier for the public to buy houses and to boost property sales. Is this a turning point for the Chinese property market? Will the government’s mantra that “houses are for living in, not speculation” take a back seat henceforth? Zaobao correspondent Yu Zeyuan reports.

While the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor launched at the recent G20 summit has been touted as a game changer, challenges lie in the way of implementing the plan while China’s ten-year-old BRI continues to be entrenched in global infrastructure networks. EAI senior research fellow Yu Hong shares his views.

Singapore Minister for Education and Minister-in-charge of the Public Service Chan Chun Sing gave the keynote address during the 9th Singapore-China Forum on Leadership in Beijing on 12 September 2023. Minister Chan noted the importance of taking stock and exchanging notes on how countries’ approaches to governance must evolve as both the internal and external environment change, and stressed that facing the new challenges of the modern world requires cohesive leaders who work well together, not only within the government and with the people, but also with businesses and globally with international partners. Here is the edited transcript of his speech.