Sharp China Podcast

This episode of Sharp China is outside the paywall. Show Notes: On today’s show Andrew and Bill begin with a raft of news on Nvidia that came during the podcast’s vacation, including reports the company was summoned to meeting with the Cyberspace Administration of China, sources saying the same regulators have warned PRC companies against purchasing the H-20 chips, and news that the US is now gran...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com Show Notes: On today’s show Andrew and Bill begin with July’s Politburo meeting, including a date for the Fourth Plenum, more condemnations of “disorderly competition,” and signals that Party leadership remains confident despite the tumultuous year. From there: the U.S.-China meetings in Stockholm, the latest moves from Tru...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com Show Notes: On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with comments from Xi Jinping and renewed emphasis on building more rational marketplaces across key sectors in tech and beyond. Topics include: The implication that not every province has to participate in new growth areas, cadres parsing conflicting guidance from Beijing,...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com Show Notes: On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with reports that Nvidia will soon be allowed to again sell its H20 chips in China. Topics include: A win-win deal for Nvidia and the PRC, whether this is the beginning of more rollbacks of existing chip controls as the PRC exerts leverage with rare earth export controls, an...

This episode of Sharp China is outside the paywall. Show Notes: On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with a look at tensions between the PRC and the EU ahead of the EU-China summit later this month. Topics include: Reports concerning Wang Yi's comments to EU counterparts conveying Beijing's perspective on the Ukraine war, the PRC Foreign Ministry implores the EU to "rebalance its mindset" rather...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com Show Notes: On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with PRC perspectives on the past two weeks of attacks on Iran. Topics include: dispelling notions that U.S. involvement was welcomed by the PRC, why regional stability in the Middle East is stressed in every PRC statement, and how Iran and other PRC partners may view China'...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com Show Notes: On today’s show Andrew and Bill take stock of the US-China trade framework in the wake of last week’s negotiations in London. Topics include: US escalations that brought the PRC side back to the table, PRC rare earth leverage that forced a compromise but no additional export control concessions, and variables to...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com Show Notes: On today’s show Andrew and Bill begin with a call between President Trump and Xi, two days of meetings between the U.S. and China in London, and an apparent effort from both sides to de-escalate. Topics include: retracing steps of the past few weeks, clarity for the U.S. and others on the PRC’s leverage over rar...

This episode of Sharp China is outside the paywall. Show Notes: On today’s show Andrew and Bill begin with a series of escalatory policies from the U.S. and talk of a call between Xi Jinping and Donald Trump later this week. Topics include: The rare earth frustration on the American side, the PRC’s use of leverage, the potential downsides for the PRC as the rest of the world grapples with shortage...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com Show Notes: On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with reports that next year's five-year plan will double down on the Made in China 2025 strategy. Topics include: The legacy and successes of Made in China 2025, ferocious domestic competition in industries like electric vehicles, and an aspect of self-reliance that continue...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com Show Notes: On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with the Commerce Department's guidance on Ascend Chips, caustic responses to that policy on the PRC side, citations to the "Geneva Consensus," and the news the U.S. will be partnering with Saudi Arabia and the UAE on AI investments in a move that may limit PRC influence in...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com Sharp China: A 90-Day Pause, Big Tariff Reductions and What De-Escalation Might Mean for the U.S. and China Show Notes: On today's show Andrew and Bill gather on short notice with reactions to Monday's news of a deal between the U.S. and China to significantly reduce tariffs for ninety days, while establishing a formal dial...

This episode of Sharp China is outside the paywall. Show Notes: On today’s show Andrew and Bill begin with the news that the US and PRC are sending representatives to Switzerland to discuss trade talks this weekend. Topics include: Why expectations should be set low, the week of signs that the PRC was willing to engage, questions about cooperating on fentanyl, and the latest measures to loosen mon...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com Sharp China: ‘Protracted War’ and ‘Struggle’; The Looming Risks for the PRC; A Politburo Study Session on AI; Apple’s Attempt to Pivot Show Notes: On today’s show Andrew and Bill take stock of the trade war one month after “Liberation Day.” Topics include: Domestic messaging on “struggle” and external promises to never knee...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com Show Notes: On today’s show Andrew and Bill begin with Tuesday’s signals that the Trump administration may seek to deescalate its trade war, why Beijing may see it as confirmation that their patient approach is working, and questions about what’s next as the Trump messaging on trade changes by the day. From there: The PRC w...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com Show Notes: On today's show Andrew and Bill return to discuss the state of the trade war two weeks after “Liberation Day” and the imposition of a 145% tariff rate on PRC goods. Topics include: Reports of a Trump Admin strategy to isolate the PRC, daily talk of a deal with China from President Trump, himself, signals from th...

This episode of Sharp China is outside the paywall. Show Notes: On today's show Andrew and Bill return to discuss the intensification of the US-China trade war, including tariffs of 104% beginning on Wednesday, the PRC's options to respond, how companies like Apple could be squeezed, and why this represents the lowest point for US-China relations in a very long time. Then: Exploring EU opportuniti...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com Show Notes: On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with the China Development Forum, including China's messaging to foreign investors, revisiting the Mintz raids as five detained employees are finally released, no updates on a Xi-Trump meeting, and news in the EV space. From there: The US plans to revive shipbuilding capacit...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com Show Notes: On today’s show Andrew and Bill begin with Taiwanese President Lai Ching-Te designating the PRC a “foreign hostile force,” the initial response from the PRC and potential responses to come, rumors surrounding CMC vice chairman He Weidong, and an email wondering about the defense of Taiwan as a core American inte...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com Show Notes: On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with takeaways from the Two Sessions, including good news for tech companies as the push for new quality productive forces continues, the rhetoric surrounding domestic consumption alongside modest stimulus measures so far, the NDRC's plan to mobilize 1 billion yuan to suppor...

This episode of Sharp China is outside the paywall. Show Notes: On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with Trump raising tariffs on the PRC by 10%, the PRC's response, and the phone call Xi-Trump phone call that was rumored a month ago but still hasn't happened. Then: What to watch for during Two Sessions week, Xi has always supported private enterprises, a response from the Ministry of Foreign Af...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com Show Notes: On today's show Andrew and Bill begin by parsing the White House's memorandum on an America First Investment Policy, President Trump's recent appointees, the latest news from the Commerce Department and BIS, and a proposal for lifting controls on chips and tightening controls on chipmaking equipment. From there:...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com Show Notes: On today’s special crossover Sharp Tech/Sharp China episode, Ben Thompson and Bill Bishop discuss the private enterprise symposium and Xi Jinping's rapprochement with China's tech companies, and the connection between xAI and DeepSeek. Then, an extended debate on the chip ban, including its potential long-term c...

On today's show Andrew and Bill begin by talking through a first round of US tariffs on PRC goods and responses from the PRC earlier this week. Topics include: The fentanyl allegations that served as the predicate for these tariffs, Chinese responses that highlight points of leverage should trade tensions escalate, next steps in negotiations, and the end of the de minimis loophole. From there: Sec...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com Show Notes: On today’s show Andrew and Bill wish a Happy Lunar New Year to the audience and interrupt the holiday week in the PRC to share various reactions to a week of DeepSeek discussion in the U.S. Topics include: The DeepSeek origin story, OpenAI and distillation questions, DeepSeek’s future in China after Liang Wenfen...