Wu Bangguo, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, emphasized the NPC’s important role regarding China’s economic stimulus package. According to Mr. Wu, the NPC will closely supervise the implementation of major stimulus measures. Of China’s RMB 4 trillion stimulus package announced in November last year, RMB 1.18 trillion consist of central government spending. The NPC’s responsibility, so Mr. Wu, is to supervise the government’s stimulus spending and promote China’s steady and rapid economic development.
China is planning to steadily reduce export-related taxes to “zero” and increase financial support for the export sector, Commerce Minister Chen Deming told in an interview on Monday. China’s exports fell 17.5 percent and imports 43.1 percent year on year in January.
China started initial construction on a third west-east gas pipeline. The new pipeline will transport gas from Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan via Xinjiang to China’s eastern cities. The first west-east gas pipeline has been in operation since December 2004 and the second one is currently still under construction. State oil company China National Petroleum Corporation also mentioned plans for another gas pipeline linking China and Myanmar.
China’s strategic oil reserves have reached their storage capacity, a senior industry executive said on Monday. Strategic oil reserves, usually considered a national secret, have reached maximum capacity of China’s four onshore reserve bases. The industry executive further called for additional floating storage while oil prizes remain on their current low. Oil tankers could store additional strategic reserves until China has finished new storage facilities. As commodity prizes worldwide remain low, China last week announced a $10 billion budget increase for stockpiling resources.
A few months ago, I wrote about the early stages of the conflict in Ukraine through the lens of Sun Tzu’s The Art of War. While it appears likely that the war will carry on into the foreseeable future, enough time has passed for us to make an honest assessment of each side’s relative […]
The Ukrainian Army has made dramatic strides in the last few weeks. Ukraine’s tactical commanders have outfoxed their Russian counterparts, and by issuing a feint towards the south the UA has been able to earn substantial gains in the north of their country. The impact of these efforts have been compounded by the steady stream […]
In mid-May the Irish political party, Sinn Féin, won the plurality of seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly. Many American readers might not fully understand the significance of Sinn Féin’s political victory- but rest assured that subjects of the United Kingdom and a wide range of political movements the world over have heard the message […]
The first wave of the Russian offensive in Ukraine has fallen short of Russian autocrat Vladmir Putin’s ambitions. Most analysts deduced that Putin had hoped to achieve a decapitation strike of the Ukrainian government- taking Kiev and replacing Ukrainian President Vladimir Zolinski with a pro-Kremlin voice. Kiev has been threatened repeatedly through the course of […]
On the weekend of March 26th, the notorious MS-13 gang went on a massive killing spree in El Salvador which left more than 70 people dead by Sunday. Even for a country where powerful gangs hold massive sway, this recent tragedy stands out considering that it was the bloodiest day on record since the civil […]
