Bloomberg: #China Forced to Keep Unprofitable Firms Alive to Save Jobs & Avoid Unrest
Saddled with the most loss-making industrial companies since 2001, Xi is trying to avoid mass layoffs. Protests rose 41% in the 4th Q from same period in 2023 www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...

My latest in the #China Leadership Monitor:

“Going Xianzhong Mode”: Can Local Governments Stop “Revenge Against Society” Attacks? #献忠 #献忠学 #枫桥经验

prcleader.org/post/going-x...

Alarming Eastmoney.com report on demographic trends in consumption in #China. CFPS data show the steepest decline in consumption 2018-2022 is in the 20-39 age group, & esp. in the group aged 20-24, with an average decline of 46.1 points. #躺平 谁是消费“领头羊”：人口周期改变消费模式" data.eastmoney.com/report/zw_ma...

From the always fantastic #chinadigitaltimes: "Different armies, same hole" "On March 1, a Hangzhou job fair saw 35,000 job seekers hoping to make contact w/830 potential employers, from state-owned enterprises to #Alibaba & #Hikvision;" but netizens in #China saw a tomb of terracotta warriors...

Reuters: #Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te pledged talks with the US about #Trump's chip concerns, & to invest more in & buy more from the US, while ramping up defence spending after Trump accused Taiwan of having taken away the chip industry from the US #台灣 https://buff.ly/3CRm4JB

Morning walk through the hauntingly beautiful and frozen Fellows Garden of Merton College today at -6C

#China's QQ originally reposted 熊太行's Netease comment, but then quickly 404'ed it as well.

#China's #DongJun at the security meeting

Possible sighting of #China's Defense Minister #DongJun (alleged by FT to be under investigation for possible corruption and/or other charges-- which the Foreign Ministry and other govt sources deny)