Beijing, China | AFP | China’s president Xi Jinping has called for the Communist Party to exert greater ideological control over universities, state media reported Friday, amid a broad crackdown on academic freedom and dissent in the world’s second-largest economy. Institutes of higher education must “serve the rule of the …
Read More »Media – China should build more nuclear arms to prepare for Trump
Beijing, China | AFP | China should “significantly” increase military spending and build more nuclear weapons as a response to US President-elect Donald Trump, an editorial in the nationalistic Global Times newspaper said Thursday. China should “build more strategic nuclear arms and accelerate the deployment of the DF-41 intercontinental ballistic …
Read More »Chinese firm scraps German tech deal after US block
Beijing, China | AFP | A Chinese company has scrapped plans to purchase German semiconductor equipment maker Aixtron after US President Obama blocked the deal, the company said Thursday. The Chinese government-backed Grand Chip Investment said its offer could no longer be fulfilled after Washington rejected the inclusion of Aixtron’s …
Read More »Nude selfies used as collateral for Chinese loans
Beijing, China | AFP | Hundreds of photos and videos of naked women used as collateral for loans on a Chinese online lending service have leaked onto the web, highlighting regulatory problems in the fast-growing peer-to-peer marketplace. A 10-gigabyte file posted on the internet exposed the personal details of more …
Read More »MH370 relatives in Madagascar to hunt for clues
Antananarivo, Madagascar | AFP | Relatives of missing MH370 passengers launched their own campaign to search for crash debris in Madagascar on Monday, hoping to solve the mystery of how the plane disappeared in 2014. Families from Malaysia, China and France gathered in the capital Antananarivo as frustration grows over …
Read More »Trump upends US foreign policy with Taiwan call
New York, United States | AFP | US President-elect Donald Trump broke with decades of foreign policy to speak with the president of Taiwan, prompting Beijing Saturday to accuse Taipei of a ploy but saying the move would not affect US-China ties. It was not immediately clear whether Trump’s telephone …
Read More »China puts brakes on overseas spending spree
Beijing, China | AFP | Beijing is tightening screening on Chinese companies’ overseas investments, according to the government and reports, after a record-setting shopping spree raised concerns of capital flight and reckless spending. Authorities will “combine facilitating foreign investment with guarding against investment risks” by scrutinising proposed deals, said a …
Read More »Chinese company ordered to refund sh1.8b bogus UNRA payment
A Chinese contractor Chongqing International was on Thursday ordered by Uganda’s Parliament to refund sh1.8bn that was paid out under a bogus claim. The chairperson of parliament’s Committee on Commissions, State Authorities and State Enterprises (COSASE) Katuntu ordered that the contractor refund the money by close of business November 29th …
Read More »South African police nab Chinese man with 18 rhino horns
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | South African police Thursday said they had arrested a Hong Kong-bound Chinese man found with 18 rhino horns hidden in his luggage. He was detained on Wednesday at Johannesburg’s OR Tambo International Airport after an anonymous tip-off. “The 28-year-old male, who was in transit …
Read More »China’s Suning to pay $650m for Premier League TV rights
Shanghai, China | AFP | A Chinese conglomerate has won the rights to broadcast the English Premier League in China for three years, it said Friday, with reports putting the deal’s value at $650 million. The contract would represent a huge uplift on the previous contract as Chinese money pours …
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