Economy

Joe Biden holds up a silicon wafer during a virtual meeting with CEOs to discuss supply chain issues at the White House on Apr. 12: redefining the word "infrastructure" is critical.
Opinion

Biden's chip 'arms race' with China will add to global uncertainty

$50 billion plan will diversify production but complicate supply chains

17 April 2021
The global shortage of semiconductors has made the fierce competition in the tech industry even more cutthroat.
Business Spotlight

How the chip shortage got so bad -- and why it's so hard to fix

Surging demand and political tension play havoc with global supply chains

16 April 2021
U.S Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, left, and Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen. Washington is set to label Taiwan as a currency manipulator in an upcoming report. (Source photos by AP and Reuters) 
Currencies

US set to brand Taiwan as currency manipulator even as ties warm

Despite trade and tech tensions, China is expected to be spared from list

15 April 2021
Births in Hong Kong fell by more than half year-on-year in January.
Society

Birthrates tumble worldwide, clouding post-pandemic prospects

Maintaining growth and social safety nets face challenge if declines persist

11 April 2021
JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon dissected China's strengths and weaknesses in his annual letter to shareholders published Wednesday. 
US-China tensions

China lacks clear path to global dominance: JPMorgan's Dimon

Wall Street CEO talks of great power competition with US in annual letter

8 April 2021
The IMF now sees the U.S. economy growing 6.4% in 2021, up from 5.1% in January, while China is forecast to grow 8.4%. (Nikkei montage/AP)
Economy

China and US to power 6% global growth in 2021, IMF says

Vaccines and fiscal aid brighten outlook but worldwide recovery speeds diverge

6 April 2021
Containers are stacked up at the port in Long Beach, California.
Transportation

Freight rates spike as Asian cargo ships jam US West Coast ports

Container shortage grows as ports struggle to handle import surge

3 April 2021
President Joe Biden's administration is conducting a broad review of U.S. policy toward China, including trade. (Photo courtesy of the White House)
Interview

Can Biden return the US to TPP? Does it matter? 2 experts explain

Cutler urges digital and medical deals with Asia; Scissors says trade pacts 'overrated'

1 April 2021
A Myanmar national who said he recently fled to India shows a Myanmar kyat banknote at an undisclosed location in India's northeastern state of Mizoramon March 15.
Myanmar Crisis

US broadens Myanmar sanctions beyond military with trade move

Washington threatens junta with removal of preferential tariffs after weekend bloodbath

31 March 2021
Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President Robert Kaplan expects 6.5% growth in the U.S. economy this year.
Interview

Dallas Fed chief calls for interest rate 'action' when benchmarks met

'Meaningful improvement in mobility and engagement' will be barometer, Robert Kaplan says

31 March 2021
Yang Jiechi, right, studied for two years in the U.K. in the early 1970s and Wang Yi was a visiting scholar at Georgetown University for six months in the late 1990s.
Opinion

Education ties show the real state of US-China relations

Anchorage fireworks aside, closed-door meetings proved constructive

30 March 2021
A manufacturer works at an assembly line of Vingroup's Vsmart phone in Hai Phong, Vietnam. 
Economy

Vietnam Q1 GDP grows 4.5% on rising exports to US

Smartphones and PCs lead growth as companies continue to move from China

29 March 2021
According to UNESCO and the International Telecommunication Union, 40% of students globally whose schools were closed due to COVID-19 do not have access to the internet.
28 March 2021
Uyghur demonstrators in Istanbul protest China's treatment of Uyghurs in Xinjiang on International Women's Day this month.
International relations

China-EU investment deal caught in Xinjiang sanctions crossfire

European Parliament head says Chinese tit-for-tat response will have 'consequences'

24 March 2021
The global semiconductor crunch provides a catalyst aiding U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer as he pushes legislation allocating $100 billion to outcompete China in critical technology.
US-China tensions

US Congress pushes $100bn research blitz to outcompete China

Beijing's challenge drives Washington to take greater hand in industrial policy

23 March 2021
U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai was sworn into office on March 18.
Trade

USTR talks WTO, China and climate in calls with counterparts

New trade chief Katherine Tai also makes racial equity part of discussion

23 March 2021
Last week came the admission from U.S. Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell that many saw as inevitable: America is officially trapped below zero interest rates, along with the Bank of Japan.
Opinion

The Fed officially joins Bank of Japan in liquidity trap

Quantitative easing has lessons that even Japan has failed to learn

22 March 2021
Prices for goods traded by companies are on the rise, with prices in the U.S., France, Germany and Russia topping pre-pandemic levels. (Source photo by Reuters)
Datawatch

Recovery in China pushes up global wholesale prices

Tighter natural resource supplies stoke US inflation fears

21 March 2021
Katherine Tai bumps limbs with Republican Sen. Mike Crapo and committee chairman Democrat Ron Wyden after the Senate Finance committee hearing to examine her nomination to be United States Trade Representative on Feb. 25. 
Trade war

Biden trade chief Katherine Tai wins unanimous Senate confirmation

A rare 98-0 vote shows bipartisan support for veteran Asian-American lawyer

18 March 2021
A U.S. Navy helicopter pilot presents a teddy bear to a baby during Operation Tomodachi on Mar. 22, 2011: the way the U.S. stepped up to help Japan brought humanity to life.
Opinion

A decade later, 3/11 disaster a testament to US-Japan alliance

Unprecedented time of crisis brought humanity to life

11 March 2021
Joe Biden holds a semiconductor chip during his remarks prior to signing an executive order on Feb. 24: Biden is likely to push forward with an evermore Chinese-style industrial policy.
Opinion

Biden set to double down on China tech denial

Beijing must prepare for harsher semiconductor rules

10 March 2021
Yuan and dollar banknotes: we have to look at the fundamentals underpinning trend economic growth.
Opinion

Will the yuan rise to match China's growing economic power?

Once in place, the dominant international currency is not easily challenged

6 March 2021
People in the Pudong district of Shanghai on March 5, the day the National People's Congress opened. China has set a growth target of more than 6% for 2021.
China People's Congress

Bold target puts China's GDP just 25% shy of US in 2025

Road map signals America will meet its economic match soon

6 March 2021
In Thursday's market sell-off, Nasdaq wiped out all of its year-to-date gains and ended down 9.7% from its record closing high on Feb. 12.
Markets

Nasdaq wipes out 2021 gains after dovish Powell comments

Fed chair disappoints investors worried about rising longer-term rates

5 March 2021
Joe Biden holds a semiconductor chip during his remarks before signing an executive order on the economy on Feb. 24: Biden, wisely, seeks to put the U.S. back in the tech race.
Opinion

Biden is the rival China's Xi has been fearing all along

US gets ready to compete again by rebuilding economic muscle

4 March 2021