Trade

Thorsten Benner of the Global Public Policy Institute (GPPi) in Berlin points out that unlike former Chancellor Merkel, current German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has invested a lot of time into building closer connections with Asian partners. This fits in with his worldview of multiple emerging global powers, and the need to foster resilience, diversification and “de-risking” in achieving economic security vis-a-vis China.

China’s semiconductor industry has been dealt with multiple hurdles in the past year, with the latest roadblock coming from the US’s ban on chip export to China in October. Manufacturers, executives and technical experts now face the difficult decision of staying in this growing sector in China or in the US. Will China find a way around this new restriction?

China has great motivation to achieve its China Dream of catching up with and surpassing the US. Not only would this wipe away its century of humiliation but also prove the superiority of socialism. However, its actions could make achieving its dream that much harder.

With China’s economy already facing drags from consumer spending and the real estate sector, the slowdown in goods exports poses a significant problem as they make up a sizeable share of the country's GDP. Will Beijing reconsider some of the policies such as its zero-Covid policy, tech sector crackdown, and restrictions on real estate?

Cambodian commentator Sokvy Rim explains why recent Chinese immigrants in Cambodia are viewed with suspicion and even some dislike despite major Chinese investment flows in Cambodia and related economic benefits.

The belief that immigrants would ruin the employment market is unfounded, says economics professor Li Jingkui. With bold and ambitious entrepreneurial spirits, immigrants are more likely to be “job creators”, rather than “job takers”, while the resulting increase in demand for goods and services even supports economic growth.

Academic Naoise McDonagh asserts that a key question posed by China’s rise is whether the liberal international order can remain rules-based, when its second largest member is a socialist market economy operating on different rules that it increasingly seeks to apply externally.

While there are risks involved in pursuing deeper cooperation with Taiwan beyond trade and economics, ASEAN should not shy away from exploring possibilities even while abiding by the "one China" policy. This is where greater trade cooperation and city-to-city linkages could come in.

Japanese academic Mitsugi Endo gives his assessment of the recent Eighth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD8) in Tunisia. While it was announced that Japan's public and private sectors combined would make investments in Africa amounting to US$30 billion over the next three years, the impact of great power politics in Africa, including by players such as China and Russia, may have an impact on Japan's future engagement with the continent.