Sharp China Podcast

Show Notes: On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with takeaways from the Two Sessions, including the work report from Premier Li Qiang, what to make of the 5% GDP growth target for 2024, the cancellation of Li's press conference, Xi Jinping’s visit to the Jiangsu breakout session and his message on new productive forces and economic development, and the evolution of the Two Sessions in recent yea...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com On today’s show Andrew and Bill begin with an overview of the CPPCC, the NPC and what to expect as the Two Sessions begin this weekend. Topics include: Xi’s recent absence from public view, the resignation of Qin Gang as an NPC delegate, Li Shangfu’s removal from the party CMC’s official website, Li Qiang’s first work repor...

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 recent meetings between US officials and PRC counterparts in Munich and Vienna, including complaints from both PRC Director of the CCP Central Foreign Affairs Commission and Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Minister of Public Security Wang Xiaohong that the U.S. has harasse...

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 another week of volatility in and around the PRC markets, including a crash on Monday, stabilization as the week unfolded, reports of a meeting between Xi and regulators, and changes at the CSRC. Then: For the first time in 17 years Mexico has supplanted China as the bi...

This episode of Sharp China is free for everyone. Show Notes: On today’s show Andrew and Bill begin with reactions to the revival of Article 23 and thoughts on the landscape in Hong Kong as its laws continue to converge with the mainland. Then: A step back for the stock markets after last week’s stabilization efforts, another politburo meeting comes and goes without any announcement of a plenum, a...

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 an expanding list of sensitive sites around China at which Tesla vehicles have been deemed a security risk. With the PRC electric vehicle industry expanding every year, what does the future look like for Elon Musk and Tesla in China? And as PRC auto manufacturing outpac...

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 last weekend’s election in Taiwan, where William Lai and the DPP retained their hold on the presidency but lost a majority in the legislature. Topics include: The reactions from China and around the world, continued questions about a timeline for “reunification”, Hong K...

This episode of Sharp China is free for everyone. Show notes: On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with a note about this weekend’s elections in Taiwan before turning back to the upheaval in the PLA. Topics include: Bloomberg's reporting on a US intelligence assessment, realism on PRC capabilities, the history of PLA corruption, and recent reporting about China's nuclear ambitions. From there: Re...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com On today’s show Andrew and Bill talk through questions and key areas to watch during the year to come in China. First: A look at the economy a year after the end of dynamic zero covid, including a Bloomberg report on the real estate market and household wealth, MSS warnings about discourse traps, and a corruption crackdown...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with thoughts on the readout from the Central Economic Work Conference, including the emphasis on "progress" alongside stability, high-quality development and high-level security, PRC attempts at brand management,  and where infrastructure investment might be going. From there: More wat...

This episode of Sharp China is free for everyone. Show notes: On today’s show Andrew and Bill begin by parsing the claims contained in a controversial piece from Politico, including thoughts on the spectrum of rumors surrounding this year’s disappearing cabinet members, the smaller-than-ever circle of true insiders in Xi’s China, and certain details of present-day CPC politics and that are beyond...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with a new generation of foreign influencers said to be assisting in Xi's campaign to “tell China's story well” and an update on Wolf Warrior diplomacy as 2023 draws to a close. Then: Q&A with the Sinocism chat, including a request for tangible signs of fentanyl progress, regional gover...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com Show notes: On today's show Andrew and Bill look back at a week of news from San Francisco. Topics include: A "tactical stabilization" in the US-China relationship, world leaders comparing cars, concessions from the US and a PRC commitment on fentanyl, whether China would prefer Biden or Trump in 2024, and what else was ach...

Show notes: After one year of Sharp Tech and Sharp China, a summit with Ben Thompson, Bill Bishop and Andrew Sharp to discuss podcasting, the chip ban, the US-China relationship and beyond. To read the full transcript, click here . We recorded this podcast the afternoon of the Xi-Biden meeting on November 15. Andrew and I will record a separate podcast early next week in which we will discuss that...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with Xi Jinping’s trip to San Francisco and a likely meeting with President Biden next week. Topics include: A planned dinner with business leaders, why the PRC hasn’t yet confirmed the trip, modest goals for both sides, more ambitious concessions China and the US may seek. From there:...

This episode of Sharp China is free for everyone. Show notes: On today’s show Bill and Andrew begin with the passing of Li Keqiang, the grief that swept China over the weekend, and the various party protocols that were set in motion to control the mourning process this week. From there: Another Politburo meeting comes and goes with no news about a third plenum to devise new economic policy, the mo...

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 latest confrontation between the PRC and the Philippines in the South China Sea, clarity as to PRC maritime tactics that look increasingly like an undeclared blockade, and questions about when and how the US might get involved. From there: Qin Gang and Li Shangfu ar...

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 long-awaited updates to the Biden Administration’s export controls on chips. Topics include: Bad news for Nvidia and good news for PRC semi companies, initial responses from PRC leadership, and follow-up thoughts on the strategic calculus of the U.S. From there: Imp...

This episode of Sharp China is free for everyone. Show notes: On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with a meeting between Xi Jinping and a congressional delegation led by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, the latest indication that Xi and the PRC are working toward a trip to APEC in November and a likely meeting with President Biden. From there: Reports of updates to the semiconductor export...

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 correction to last week’s episode and the latest bizarre twist in the Qin Gang saga. Then: A closer look at the recent clashes between the PLA and the Philippines in the South China Sea, this week’s news at the Scarborough Shoal, the Filipino media strategy under Pres...

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 this week's Wall Street Journal reporting on Foreign Minister Qin Gang. As sources in Beijing relay allegations of an affair and a lovechild eligible for a US passport, plenty of questions remain. How could those details have gone undetected before Xi departed from prot...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com On today’s show Andrew and Bill begin with Xi Jinping's visit to Heilongjiang during the G-20 Summit, President Biden's comments on containment and the likelihood of a Taiwan invasion, and why news that Wang Yi will skip the UN General Assembly next week does not necessarily tell us anything about Xi's plans for APEC in Nov...

Show notes: On today’s show Andrew and Bill begin with the news that Xi Jinping will skip this weekend’s G-20 summit in India, a Ministry of State Security warning that the United States has work to do before any Biden-Xi summit later this year, and the ongoing questions surrounding the recent MSS foray into social media and US-China directives. Then: The international media learns more about Huaw...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com On today’s show Andrew and Bill begin with the release of treated water from the Fukushima nuclear power facility and the response from PRC authorities, media and consumers. With a ban of an imports of all aquatic products from Japan and additional boycotts proliferating, what measures might be next? And with the IAEA and m...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com Show notes: On today's show Bill and Andrew begin with an unexplained absence for Xi Jinping in Johannesburg before turning to the multi-faceted problems facing Beijing policymakers as the PRC economy continues to sputter. Topics include: Why a giant stimulus package remains unlikely, whether Xi is the right leader to manag...