186 Archives | Week In China

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WiC 186 (May 22, 2013)

Economy, Talking Point Li Keqiang will steer China’s economy for a decade. Is he…

Most of us can recall a pivotal decision that altered the course of our lives. For Li Keqiang, one choice stands out in particular. In 1982 the ...

Four wheel thrive

Auto Industry Land Rover’s China sales are good news for Tata Motors

In December last year, Ratan Tata sat down with the Financial Times for a cup of chai. Over the next few minutes, the outgoing head of Tata Group, ...

China Consumer Online backlash as Apple is bashed by CCTV

John F Kennedy once said that consumers “include us all” but that our “views are often not heard”. The former US president’s words must have ...

Banking & Finance China’s housing provident fund scheme is a mess

When Zhu Rongji, then Shanghai’s mayor, visited Singapore for the first time in 1990, the idea of copying its Central Provident Fund was very much on ...

In the firing line

Economy Anti-corruption drive hits fine porcelain sales

The city of Jingdezhen in Jiangxi province has an important place in the history of Chinese porcelain. During the Song Dynasty local craftsmen ...

Agriculture As carcasses float down the Huangpu, one pork entrepreneur is on…

Thousands of dead pigs floating down a river might not seem like a laughing matter. At last count, at least 14,000 carcasses have drifted down the ...

Banking & Finance Central banker keeps job; but CSRC chief goes to Shandong

Recent photos of Zhou Xiaochuan suggest something unusual about him. Unlike the rest of China’s leadership elite, he seems to have forsaken his quota ...

The man behind China’s stock exchange

Who’s Hu Wei Wenyuan

Wei Wenyuan was once the most high-profile person at China’s stock exchange – he was the official who struck the historic opening gong for the ...

Internet & Tech TuJia takes a US web idea to the next level

To see how popular home-rental listing sites have become, look no further than website Airbnb. The online room-rental service is now reckoned to be ...

Mao’s least favourite writer

Entertainment Louis Cha’s politically-punchy kung-fu novel gets screened on Chinese TV

One thing that Mao Zedong and Chiang Kai-shek had in common was a mutual dislike for Louis Cha. Cha’s kung-fu novels were banned in China until 1984, ...

Must try harder

Sport Why the Chinese want to master ‘English olive ball’

Twickenham, the Stade de France, Murrayfield and in the future perhaps Zengcheng too? According to the People’s Daily, officials in this ...

Planet China It is customary for commuters to give up their seats to…

It is customary for commuters to give up their seats to a pregnant woman. According to the Beijing News, a local woman named Zhang decided to take ...

Red light for the red light district

Cartoons Red light for the red light district

The pop duo Right Said Fred once crooned “I’m too sexy for this shirt… too sexy for Milan, New York and Japan”. The same boast cannot be said ...

Bums (not) on seats

And Finally Biopic of Party hero sets new record: zero attendance in Nanjing…

You could call it ‘the battle of the two Lei’s’. In early March a trilogy of films celebrating the life of Communist Party icon Lei Feng faced ...