Podcasts about chinese gdp

ASX 200 gives up gains to close down 3 points at 7759 as US futures turn down on Nvidia news. Banks as usual a safe place to be, the Big Bank Basket up to $252.55 (1.0%). WBC up 1.5% and MQG unchanged. Financials mixed, ZIP rising 16.2% on a very positive update and upgrades. REITS firmed with SCG up 1.2% and VCX up 0.5% whilst GMG fell 0.5%. Industrials were weaker, SGH down 1.5%, GYG fell 3.5% and FLT off 2.3%. Retail stocks eased back, LOV down 2.5% and AX1 off 6.3%. Tech fell, the All-Tech Index dropped 0.6% as WTC announced Richard White had a new role. Same as the old role really. XRO fell 1.2%. Resources were slipping again, iron ore miners fell, BHP down 1.2% with RIO off 2.7% and FMG falling 2.4%, Gold miners soared as quarterlies are pointing to the cash piling up, GMD up 8.4% and EVN kicking 1.3% higher again. Energy stocks under pressure, WDS down 2.3% and WHC falling 7.4% with uranium stocks once again on the nose, the fallout continues, PDN down 4.6% and BOE off 4.6%. In corporate news, BOQ up 5.5% on higher margins, SGR trading again unchanged as the rescue plan continues to play out. KAR up 1.6% after raising expenditure guidance. In economic news, Chinese GDP beat estimates. Locally building activity fell, the total number of dwelling units commenced fell 4.4% to 41,911 dwellings. Asian markets under pressure, Japan down 1.3%, HK off 2.3% and China off 0.7%. 10-year yields rose to 4.34%.Want to invest with Marcus Today? The Managed Strategy Portfolio is designed for investors seeking exposure to our strategy while we do the hard work for you.If you're looking for personal financial advice, our friends at Clime Investment Management can help. Their team of licensed advisers operates across most states, offering tailored financial planning services.  Why not sign up for a free trial? Gain access to expert insights, research, and analysis to become a better investor.

Today, Sam Cooper, founder of the news outlet The Bureau, guest hosts Christopher Meyer, a former U.S. official and China expert during the Bush One and Two Administrations. Meyer currently serves as the head of the U.S. Micronesia Council and founded Wide Fountain, a platform for in-depth geopolitical analysis.  In this the second of a two-part episode, Sam and Christopher discuss PRC strategic corruption and political warfare. So, let's get started.  Sam Cooper's The Bureau: https://www.thebureau.news/ Christopher Meyer's Wide Fountain platform: https://widefountain.substack.com/ --- One CA is a product of the civil affairs association a and brings in people who are current or former military, diplomats, development officers, and field agents to discuss their experiences on the ground with a partner nation's people and leadership. We aim to inspire anyone interested in working in the "last three feet" of U.S. foreign relations.  To contact the show, email us at CApodcasting@gmail.com  or look us up on the Civil Affairs Association website at www civilaffairsassoc.org --- Great news! Feedspot, the podcast industry ranking system rated One CA Podcast as one of the top 10 shows on foreign policy. Check it out at: https://podcast.feedspot.com/foreign_policy_podcasts/ --- Special thanks to Cozy Ambience for a sample of "February Cafe Jazz - Instrumental Bossa Nova Music for Work, Study and Relax - Background Music" retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmq8Ht-sNwQ --- Today, Sam Cooper, founder of the news outlet The Bureau, guest hosts Christopher Meyer, a former U.S. official and China expert during the Bush One and Two Administrations. Meyer currently serves as the head of the U.S. Micronesia Council and founded Wide Fountain, a platform for in-depth geopolitical analysis.  In this the first of a two-part episode, Sam and Christopher discuss PRC strategic corruption and political warfare. So, let's get started.  Sam Cooper's The Bureau: https://www.thebureau.news/ Christopher Meyer's Wide Fountain platform: https://widefountain.substack.com/ --- One CA is a product of the civil affairs association a and brings in people who are current or former military, diplomats, development officers, and field agents to discuss their experiences on the ground with a partner nation's people and leadership. We aim to inspire anyone interested in working in the "last three feet" of U.S. foreign relations.  To contact the show, email us at CApodcasting@gmail.com  or look us up on the Civil Affairs Association website at www civilaffairsassoc.org --- Special thanks to Cozy Ambience for a sample of "February Cafe Jazz - Instrumental Bossa Nova Music for Work, Study and Relax - Background Music" retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmq8Ht-sNwQ --- Transcript 00:00:01    Introduction Welcome to the One CA Podcast. This is your host, Jack Gaines. One CA is a product of the Civil Affairs Association and brings in people who are current or former military, diplomats, development officers, and field agents to discuss their experiences on ground with the partner nation's people and leadership. Our goal is to inspire anyone interested in working the last three feet of foreign relations. To contact the show, email us at capodcasting@gmail.com. or look us up on the Civil Affairs Association website at www.civilaffairsassoc.org. I'll have those in the show notes. Today we welcome Sam Cooper, founder of the news outlet The Bureau, as he interviews Christopher Meyer, a former U.S. 00:00:44    SAM COOPER official and China expert during the Bush I and II administrations. Meyer currently serves as the head of the U.S. Micronesia Council and is the founder of Wide Fountain. a platform for in -depth geopolitical analysis. This is the first of a two -part episode. Sam and Christopher discuss PRC strategic corruption and political warfare. So let's get started. 00:01:07    SAM COOPER Today I'm excited to introduce Chris Myers. Chris is a longtime China expert and former U .S. government diplomatic and economic issues officer, and he explains how military intelligence and influence networks embedded deeply with organized crime are a central feature of the global strategy employed by the families that really are running communist China. And when I say that, we're going to discuss your research on the family of Xi Jinping, the Xi family, and you call it the Yezi clique. But first, tell our viewers your background in getting into China and your career. 00:01:46    CHRISTOPHER MEYER Thank you very much, Sam. I started a keen interest in China when I was 16. And I read the history of the opium wars and I was outraged. And I decided I wanted a career to be involved in business and diplomacy between the U .S. and China. And then as an undergrad student, I did research on the special economic zones. This was in the early 80s and the special economic zones were just announced. And my research led me to see the geopolitical aspects. There were some. across from Macau, across from Hong Kong, and across from Taiwan. So I sort of had an eye to that. And then I did business. I was, for five years, I was with a Fortune 500 company. And I had the opportunity to do some business in Xiaomon. And I saw some things that set off alarm bells in my mind. And I kind of filed that. And I had some experiences that informed my research later. I worked in the government in Bush 1 and Bush 2. I was involved in Indo -Pacific affairs. really helping American companies do business in the region, and then became a consultant to part of the government that administered our territories in the Pacific. So I saw some things there that, again, set off alarm bells in my mind. And in 2016, I happened to cross an old colleague who kind of gave me some more information. And basically from 2016 until 2022, I conducted a lot of independent research. I decided I wanted to know exactly what was going on because proxies in the region seemed emboldened to take on the U .S. And they didn't have a government portfolio, but they acted like they did. And so my research sort of started in Micronesia. I had the great opportunity to come across your book. You totally informed. parts of what I was looking at and kind of put the spotlight on what happened in Canada. And I kind of worked the two sides to the middle and conducted most recently research that kind of takes us from Mao Zedong's death until the 90s. And I believe that there was a click. I call it the yes, she click. There were scores to settle. There were powerful families that were on the cusp of greatness or recognition for all their good work, and they were purged. And it led some individuals to become extremely militant in their conduct of political warfare against the U .S. So that sort of sets the table for what we might be talking about. 00:04:28    SAM COOPER Yeah. So to get into this, let's start with the Ye family. They're mysterious, but for experts, they're very clearly a clan that has tremendous kingmaking power in China. So maybe let's start with who they are and then bridge into how they connect with Xi's father. 00:04:46    CHRISTOPHER MEYER So the patriarch, Lie Jianying, was literally the kingmaker of Mao Zedong. He came from Guangdong province, and he was involved in the very earliest movements of the Communist Party in China. And he fled one of those, I think it was the Guangzhou uprising, with Zhou Enlai, and they escaped to Hong Kong. So Ye Jianying is one of the original revolutionaries in China, and he had the title of Marshal Ye. And when he crossed paths with Mao Zedong, he was actually the aide -de -camp to a very powerful Communist Party operator out of Beijing who had an army of tens of thousands. And he rolled up to Mao and his very small group of long marchers and said, follow us, we're going to Sichuan province. And Mao was like, no, I don't think that's a safe bet. The locals are going to tear you up. And Ye Jianying kind of heard a truth in Mao and he deserted this powerful general and with him brought the code books. So Mao gets Ye Jianying and the code books and he's able to communicate with the Comintern. And lo and behold, that general did get wiped out in Sichuan. He returned to Mao's base. With a few thousand troops from then, Mao became the most powerful leader in the communist ecosystem. So Ye Jianying had a very high regard for Mao. Mao called him the savior of the Communist Party and the Communist Revolution. And so fast forward it right through the revolution. Ye gets a very top position as the party secretary for Guangdong province, the largest and economically most powerful province in the country. And Mao wants to conduct his land reform in Guangdong, just as he does everywhere. And it's a violent thing where landowners are hunted down and put to death. Yeah, because he was a native Cantonese, understood that the landowners in Guangdong were not of the same ilk as those throughout China. They actually worked the lands. They had a very cooperative relationship with labor. And he tried to resist. But Mao forced Lin Biao into Guangdong. And Ye lost his government role. And if he hadn't been in the military, he would have been completely out of power. But because he had a military portfolio, he was able to stay on the peripheries. And he was actually part of the small group that brought down the Gang of Four and ended the Cultural Revolution. So Ye Jianying went through the Mao Zedong grinder, but he did it so early in the 50s that he was able to... maintain power and have it going forward. Another Long March hero was Xi Jinping's father, Xi Zhong Chun. And his claim to fame in the Communist Party was he maintained security over the area where Mao was camped in Yan 'an. And he was able to provide Mao and his group with enough security that they could camp there through a winter and survive. Not only that, but he negotiated and he conducted diplomacy with the tribesmen in the Northwest, in Qinghai, in Xinjiang, and in Tibet. And he was loved. And he got a lot of rebels and insurgents among these minority populations to join the Communist Party. And Mao gave him great profs for that and referred to him as one of the heroes of the Three Kingdoms period. brilliant statesman who was able to ingratiate with the minorities and make them part of the Chinese nation. Unfortunately, though, Xi Jinping's father, Xi Zhongchun, he was purged, but he was purged later. He was purged in 1962. And from Xi Jinping's age nine until he was 25, Xi Jinping's father was under arrest. Without trial, it was just the culture revolution. He was under arrest because his office published a book that was deemed not flattering to Mao Zedong. Basically, he was promoting some thought within the Communist Party that Mao didn't like. So Xi's father is in jail from 62 to 78. And because Ye Senior and Xi Zhongchun had a relationship, Ye Jianying kind of became a godfather of sorts for Xi Jinping. Xi was sent to work in the countryside and he escaped and he tried to get back to Beijing and it wasn't safe for him to be reunited with his family. And Ye intervened. And Ye made sure that Xi joined the Communist Party, even though these tragedies were all around him, and made sure that he got the semblance of an education, although he really never did. He was a guide for Xi Jinping throughout his younger years. in place of his father. 00:10:02    Sam Cooper Before we continue how those families dovetail together, can you describe in China's political economy, what is the power of Marshal Ye? 00:10:13    CHRISTOPHER MEYER So in the 50s, he was jettisoned out of the political arena. His main work was in the PLA. He was a marshal and he became minister of defense in China. And he was responsible for procurement. And to sort of give you a sense, when the Korean War started, the United Nations put a blockade on trade with China because they were arming the North Korean army. Marshal Yeh was responsible for making sure that supplies got to North Korea. And that was a big role that he fulfilled. And his sons kind of brought that along. So it's curious because Marshal Yeh was one of the most powerful stars in the communist lineup, but he was also a minority. He was from Guangdong and he was a Haka Chinese. So some people would say that Haka Chinese within China, there's a lid sometimes on their ability to move up. And so perhaps he was never considered for the echelon, but he did arise very high. But in some ways, and his sons adopted this even more so, they had to become very combative. in their political dealings. But no doubt about it, Marshal Yeh had a chance to handle huge volumes of military supplies, and there was an opportunity to skim and generate great wealth, which probably was the case. The way that Marshal Yeh fulfilled the supply chains for the North Korean army was through organized crime. And it just happened that two of The individuals, Henry Falk and Stanley Ho, were also Hakka Chinese. And they became the kingpins of organized crime in Hong Kong and Macau. Both of them are on record as saying they made their fortunes supplying the Korean War. 00:12:15    SAM COOPER Right. So people that read my book are very familiar with Stanley Ho, according to U .S. government intelligence. the absolute king of Chinese international mafia with connectivity to casinos, banking, political influence operations in Canada, triad leadership in Canada. So I think we've set the table for the 90s in Guangdong, Fujian. Xi Jinping is now starting to come on the scene politically there. The Ye family, who were partners essentially of Xi's father. had a little bit of a godfather eye on Xi's movements within the party. We can say that they're the power behind a throne that they want to see continue to rise. So can you take us into the 90s, the sort of Stanley Ho connectivity to Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and how that combines the Hong Kong tycoons slash triad leaders with the communist powers in Fujian? 00:13:21    CHRISTOPHER MEYER Yes. Mao passed away in 78. Deng Xiaoping came to power. And Deng was all about economic reform and catching up to the West. So in southern China, Fujian and Guangdong province, Deng looked to Ye Jenying and his sons. His sons were in their 30s now. And he also looked to Xi Zhongshan. Xi Zhongshan became party secretary for Guangdong province. in the early 80s. And Deng kind of put together this group. The Ye's and the Xi's were family friends. They celebrated Chinese holidays together. The Xi's were northern Chinese, but they kind of encamped in Guangdong province after a certain amount of time. And that's where Xi's father retired. But in Guangdong, the son of Ye, his name was Ye Xuanping. Basically, he was mayor of Guangzhou and the governor of Guangdong. And very quickly, he was referred to as the emperor of the south. So in the 80s, he was running Guangdong province. And he became so powerful that the CCP sought to have him step down. And he actually threatened to withhold tax to Beijing from the province of Guangdong unless they negotiated with him. He wanted a vice chair of the CPPCC, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Committee. And he wants to be a vice governor of the CPPCC. And he wanted to be allowed to maintain his power base in Guangdong. And this is a rare case where the CCP actually deferred to these wishes. Just to get him out of running the most powerful province in China, they said okay. So he goes over the CPPCC. And he takes with him the kingpins of organized crime in Hong Kong and Macau. Stanley Ho never had a position, but Henry Falk and the other top lieutenants in these organized crime entities all wound up on the CPPCC. And to give you a sense of like, what was some of the magic Stanley Ho had when he won the monopoly on gaming in Macau? He devised this VIP room concept where... He owned the casino, but the VIP rooms were run by basically triads and junkets, powerful friends from mainland China and triads. And the triads conducted all kinds of crime that the Vancouver model got in a very big dose. So it was racketeering and prostitution and all kinds of things, but also collections. So Stanley Ho didn't have to work on collections because his muscle did it for him. But the strongest of these triad operators wound up in the CPPCC, as long as they were effective in what they were doing for the government. And 14K is dominated by Hakka Chinese. Most of the most powerful triads have a very strong Hakka element to it. And I don't mean to suggest that this wonderful race of Chinese called Hakkas is all bad. Lee Kuan Yew, the premier of Singapore, was Hakka Chinese. phenomenal Chinese, but there were also some very nefarious and very effective in their criminal activities that were Haka Chinese. So the Ye's were in the middle of this. And Chinese language social media accounts in Hong Kong will talk about the Ye's dominance over these gaming operators in Macau. 00:17:07    SAM COOPER Let's get into that and explore that more. I just want to ask a side question. As I'm aware of a very important figure, in what we call the Hoag Commission in Canada. I'm just going to leave it at that. This is our inquiry into foreign interference that stemmed from my investigative reporting. And there is a politician at the center of that that my sources close to them said went off to a haka conference in China for weeks or something like that, you know, while being an elected politician in Canada. Knowing what you know, and I'm just coming out of the blue with this question, is there anything good for Canada that they could be doing on that trip? 00:17:45    CHRISTOPHER MEYER There could be a lot of normal cultural activity, but I'll say one thing, that the powers that are doing the kinds of things that I'm concerned with are definitely represented in those groups. There might be a wink and a nod and things look very normal on the surface, but there's no free lunch in China. Everybody has to pay the piper, and the piper is the communist party of China. 00:18:11    SAM COOPER So let me ask you this. Viewers of the Bureau know that I've pressed away in journalism in explaining that the United Front Work Department and international money laundering and organized crime are synonymous. They're one and the same. The CIA says the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference is really the core unit of the United Front. So what you're getting at... I think the Ye family, these power brokers that are behind Xi and his power in southern China, you're saying they essentially formed this United Front and organized crime compact as sort of a political tool, a smuggling tool, a military tool? 00:18:55    CHRISTOPHER MEYER Yes. And I want to say that the United Front was an early Communist Party creation. And the thing about the Communist Party... They infiltrated the Kuomintang. When the Kuomintang had more power and they were the power base in China, the communists used political warfare to infiltrate them and really become their undoing. And the United Front is basically one way to get all parts of society under the control of the CCP. So within the United Front, the CPPCC is sort of the big leagues. And all the other organizations are the feeder groups. So if you get in a small united front group and you deliver in a big way, you can get promoted all the way to this PCC. And Ong Lapsung is an example of that. So the whole idea of the united front is to harness and control all the resources from academia, the private sector. from all aspects of society and to make them work for the Communist Party. And I feel that any united front operation, and there's so many in Canada and the U .S., they should just be called assets of the Chinese government. That's one way for the Chinese to increase their headcount of diplomatic officers within any given country. 00:20:26    Close Thanks for listening. If you get a chance, please like and subscribe and rate the show on your favorite podcast platform. Also, if you're interested in coming on the show or hosting an episode, email us at capodcasting@gmail.com. I'll have the email and CA Association website in the show notes. And now, most importantly, to those currently out in the field working with a partner nation's people or leadership to forward U.S. relations, thank you all for what you're doing. your host. Stay tuned for more great episodes of One CA Podcast.   Episode 2 00:00:01    Introduction Welcome to the 1CA Podcast. This is your host, Jack Gaines. 1CA is a product of the Civil Affairs Association and brings in people who are current or former military, diplomats, development officers, and field agents to discuss their experiences on ground with the partner nation's people and leadership. Our goal is to inspire anyone interested in working the last three feet of foreign relations. To contact the show, email us at capodcasting@gmail.com. or look us up on the Civil Affairs Association website at www.civilaffairsassoc.org. I'll have those in the show notes. Today we welcome Sam Cooper, founder of the news outlet The Bureau, as he interviews Christopher Meyer, a former U .S. 00:00:44    Introduction official and China expert during the Bush 1 and 2 administrations. Meyer currently serves as the head of the U .S. Micronesia Council and is the founder of Wide Fountain. a platform for in -depth geopolitical analysis. This is the second of a two -part episode. Sam and Christopher discuss PRC strategic corruption and political warfare. So let's get started. 00:01:08    SAM COOPER I feel that any United Front operation, and there's so many in Canada and the U .S., they should just be called assets of the Chinese government. That's one way for the Chinese to increase their headcount of diplomatic officers within any given country. And they should be labeled that way and they should be treated that way. And they're conducting operations for China. So to get back to the Ye family, I just want to say very briefly, so Deng Xiaoping taps the older brother, Ye, and he's in the government and he has a nine, 10 -year run in Guangdong. The younger brother, his name is Ye Xuanning. He's the dangerous one. He's a real interesting cat. So, yeah. was in college during the Cultural Revolution. And just to give you an idea of the thin ice that you could be skating on in China, he graduated from college and he was thrown in jail. And he was thrown in jail because, you know, Mao wanted to send a signal to the Ye family, I'm in control here. You're not in control. He got out of jail and he had a job in a radio factory or something like that. And he must have been so distraught, he lost his arm in an accident. throwing boxes into a crusher and he lost his arm. So he became a calligrapher with his left hand. And if you know Chinese, like every time you write calligraphy, your hand is going across what you're writing. If you're left -handed, I don't know how he did it. I'm left -handed. And he became an accomplished calligrapher with his left hand. So it just gives you a sense of the spirit of this guy. He's not your normal. person. I think he was a genius. I think he was extremely hardworking. And one of his first positions, he was involved in a small United Front operation in Beijing. Then he became secretary for Kang Xian, who was sort of the head of the oil faction in China. And he was a very powerful individual. And then he found himself in Guangdong. And when his brother was appointed head of the province and the city of Guangzhou, He got into Espionade, and he became the spymaster for the PLA, working in the GDP. And he really had it. He sort of hit his stride there, and that's how he ended his career. The spymaster for the PLA. I think any other rival couldn't even hold a candle to him. He was totally gifted. And his brother and he were able to leverage all of their... contacts with organized crime because he used them in operations around the world. And I think he's the one who weaponized it to the point where, number one, organized crime figures were making money for the military, a lot of it. And number two, they were almost pre -trained in operations. They were bold. They would go anywhere and do anything. And Aung La Pseung is a good example of that. 00:04:11    CHRISTOPHER MEYER I was going to say, because not everyone knows these names like you and I do, but Enlap Sang, nominally a real estate developer from Macau. My Files, he's a huge international organized crime figure known for the so -called Clinton Gate or White House visits. He's the guy that got next to the Clinton White House or got inside, you know, maybe five to ten times. He ends up getting done, as they say, in a United Nations corruption case, which of course connects to a very important guy in Australia that successfully sued my colleague, John Garneau, and yet is at the top of Chinese organized crime funding Australian politics. He was involved in that FBI case. So to bring it back, what I've picked up in my book and in my repeated reporting efforts at the Bureau is these international Chinese businessmen in real estate and casinos, tech these days, they go around the world, they get next to our politicians, and that's their job. They're being tasked by whoever the Ye family spymaster of today is, is sending them abroad to do that. At some point, Xi Jinping comes into this and says it's okay. 00:05:30    SAM COOPER okay. And it's still evolving. I mean, I came on to this. When I read your book and I saw your story of Lai Changxin, I said, holy shit, I have to get into this. You see the level of danger that it brings to a country like Canada and North America. But I think that Ye Xuen Ning created the mechanism for the CCP to use and leverage organized crime to, 00:05:51    SAM COOPER mechanism for the CCP to use and leverage organized crime to, number one, fund military operations. and other things, and to extend influence operations. Like the United Front is all about influence operations. But if you introduce organized crime elements into parts of the United Front, you can weaponize it and you can get a lot more bang for your buck using these nefarious creatures that you're managing, you're controlling them. And I want to mention something. How does the CCP have control over organized crimes? So I want to say, In the late 90s, Macau No. 1 was about to be returned from Portuguese administration to Chinese. And 2, the kind of monopoly of the casinos license was coming up in 2002. And what happened was these triad operators were starting to push back against Stanley Ho. Stanley Ho's right -hand man was shot in the face in Victoria Park during this period. And the Portuguese sent an official to try to calm down the situation. And that individual was shot when he arrived. And the Communist Party kind of went in and took control. When the monopoly came up, Stanley Ho and his family, they got the coverage. But that's because he's completely loyal to the CCP. And so the CCP has so much leverage over these entities. Completely, he devised the strategy to integrate organized crime. And then he passed away in 2016. And then the institutional steps took place after that. They had to transfer from sort of a control of one man to the government running it. And you can see examples around 2016 of a lot of large -scale Chinese operations having disruption during this period. One of the reasons they were able to do this for so long was that Ye Xuanning was completely secretive. I mean, he managed these operations in a very keen and brilliant way, and he was never identified. Xi Jinping's role is interesting. Ye Xuanning told his brothers to help Xi Jinping. And you can kind of see like an increase in their efforts when Xi's father... He was in Beijing, and he had a very high role. He pulled a bureau standing committee, and he was sent down because of Tiananmen. He was on the reformer side, and he publicly admitted it. He was a very admirable individual, and he said he was supporting Hua Guofeng. So he faced early retirement in 1993, and the Ye brothers were so upset about this, and probably Xi too. They sort of doubled down on their efforts on behalf of this political warfare. It's almost as if they were pissed off at the Communist Party, but they took it out on North America. It's like they had to become more radical in what they were doing because in order to get power in China, you had to outflank Li Peng and the hardliners. So there's an interesting element there. 00:09:13    CHRISTOPHER MEYER You talk about this combination of military intelligence and organized crime. and political warfare and global influence operations. Trade is obviously involved. Explain what you mean by radicalization of that tool in operations. 00:09:31    SAM COOPER So there were about 10 operations in the 1990s that I believe were masterminded by the Yeshi Clay and primarily Yeshi Ning. The most outrageous, there was one and probably several. smuggling of military -grade machine guns into the U .S. from China. And one of the groups that was set up, helped finance the military, was the Poly Group. And the Poly Group, they were on the bill of lading for these. They were labeled as something else, but they came into the port of Oakland. And the interesting thing was the CEO of Poly Group, who was a princeling himself, was meeting in the White House and had his photo taken with President Clinton. At the time, these machine guns were on the water. That's bold. Yes. And when I ponder this, it's like I know how much the Chinese love photographs. That photo shown by Xi Jinping to all the cronies in Beijing would get him a lot of brownie points. And these machine guns were being distributed to gangs in the area. Street gangs in California. So this kind of thing, right? Right. And so that one was uncovered. But how many others slipped by? And there have been cases similar magnitude in Tennessee and Florida. 00:10:57    CHRISTOPHER MEYER Yeah, and this is where it gets into the leaked Sidewinder report that I touched on in the book. But yeah, that report refers to Pauley Group laundering 2 ,000 AK -47s into California. You're saying you believe that not only is Xi Jinping supported by this Ye family intelligence, who I have no problem believing are behind the United Front organized crime nexus. You're saying you think Xi Jinping is a mind involved in this kind of thing as well. 00:11:30    SAM COOPER Originally, as I was doing my research, I thought Xi was the mastermind. But as I did a deep dive to what his contemporaries said of him, The big knock on Xi was that he wasn't educated. Like age nine to age 25, his dad has been persecuted and locked up without trial. And he's forced to work in the countryside and he's not happy about it. I mean, he wasn't educated. And that's the biggest knock on Xi Jinping. And when you look at the history of Xi in Fujian, first of all, he goes to the Ministry of Defense and then doesn't do... anything of note there as a young man. But then he goes into Hebei province and he's working in Hebei province as a middle level provincial official. And he's not doing much. I mean, his big contribution was suggesting that they film a TV show in that province and kind of burned out. He wasn't favored by the Communist Party officials there. You know, he's brought to Fujian. Communist Party officials bounce around provinces and each time they have an increasing role. Well, he stays in Fujian for 17 years. And it's almost like he's being babysat by the Yehs. And I mean, the Yeh family compound was a two and a half hour drive from where she was in Fujian. And so I don't think he was the mastermind, but he was definitely the beneficiary. And I think that it was a long term project. And the Yeh brothers. put the pieces on the table to help promote Xi Jinping. And here's an interesting thing. In 1997, there was a big Central Party conclave, the 15th Central Party plenary meeting. And Ye wasn't even named as an alternate delegate. So you've got hundreds of delegates coming from all over the country. And he's a princeling. And he's been in provincial government for 12 years. And he's not even named. Somebody forced him onto the list of alternate delegates. There were 150. He was the 151st alternate delegate. He didn't receive one vote. He was pushed on. And I think somebody in the realm said, you know what? We're running all these operations and we're doing it so secretively. Nobody knows that this is for Xi Jinping. So they started gradually to kind of promote Xi as. the mastermind of this. And the years were okay with that. But Xi Jinping was on his way to becoming the leader of China by 2002. 00:14:08    CHRISTOPHER MEYER And I was over in Taiwan, invited by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs over a year ago with international journalists. And we had kind of a dinner talk where their political intelligence expert was going to talk about some of this Klan details and things like that. And they said, yeah, within the princelings, Xi Jinping was the least likely, the least talented to reach chairman. 00:14:37    CHRISTOPHER MEYER And so, OK, you know, I'm not the expert. If someone from Taiwan is telling me that, you're saying that. So if true, and you're saying the power behind the throne is this Ye family that boosts him. And they're the ones you're saying that are the masterminds of what I'm going to call modern political Chinese communist warfare using proxies, organized crime, dirty tycoons. So this is where we're going. 00:15:06    SAM COOPER Yep, this is where we're going. And let me just touch on a few of the operations in the 1990s, just to give you a sense for what was going on and the fact that the Chinese were never completely called out on the carpet for it. Just let them continue doing it. And one of the themes of my research is it's time to call the Chinese out. And to do that, you have to be very specific. I think there needs to be a large group of countries that has their research done and they call out Xi Jinping for this political warfare that absolutely is hyper -destructive. 00:15:41    CHRISTOPHER MEYER So you're saying this is an intelligence operation? Yeah. For the last 10 minutes or so, In direct relationship to this network you're talking about, the 90s, 2000, aggressive combination of international organized crime, Hong Kong tycoons, Macau tycoons, in Chinese military influence operations, also people smuggling, also drug smuggling, illegal migration and, you know, fentanyl. There is a basis that Chinese triads and Mexican cartels are working together on those things and that Canada is a, you could call it, if this is a company, the controlling minds of a lot of this are in Vancouver and Toronto. Canadian ports are very deeply infiltrated by China, along with some Iranian mafia and intelligence. It's a fact. So where do we go from there? I myself, as a Canadian, the good countries of the world need to get together to combat this approaching, if not already into early stages of the access of China, Iran, Russia, North Korea. We're at loggerheads and they're using Canada, I believe, unfortunately. 00:17:01    SAM COOPER Right. And I do believe that Yeshua Ning is a genius and he looked at North America and he wants to inflict pain on the U .S. When he set up these plans in the early 90s, the Chinese GDP was a fraction of the U .S. So he had a lot of ground to make up. And he chose Vancouver because the resources to combat his efforts were probably deemed to be significantly less than the resources in the U .S. So I feel that the attack on Canada, the Vancouver model. if you will, which spread right across to Toronto and then down into Queens and across to LA and permeates everything. I believe that the US and Canada should try to get on the same page about this and to the extent possible, Mexico as well. And then the UK and Australia haven't been unaffected by this. There should be a big effort to get on the same page with the West because this is a totalitarian regime doing its level best to take us out. 00:18:07    CHRISTOPHER MEYER The controlling mind, I'm saying, of the Mexican cartels, I think it's Chinese triads. That's the real power there. 00:18:15    SAM COOPER I think we're both in agreement. If you want to draw a word picture that says what this is, picture that there's a really bad actor and he's throwing a really illegal party and selling drugs and he's bringing it all in. And the U .S. is going after the people who own the land where all of this took place. You have to go after China. And I believe that China is making 98 % of the precursors for fentanyl, and then they're laundering the money. That's the other piece. They're laundering it. They're operating this massive money laundering operation for the cartels. So I say the gloves do come off, but I would love to see them come off in unison. And all of these, at least in North America, Mexico, Canada, and the U .S., we're all on the same page. And we speak with one voice. And I'll add to this. Xi Jinping has been as painful towards his own population as he has been externally and internationally. So he's inflicted pain on the Chinese and he's about to go down. I mean, he's got his wings clipped in the last few months and he may not be in power very long. There's some serious movement in China. 00:19:30    CHRISTOPHER MEYER You sound like my friend Harry Tsang, the ambassador for Taiwan and Ottawa. He's bearish on Xi Jinping in a big way. 00:19:38    SAM COOPER Yeah. Well, I think it's a good time for the West to approach China and say, look, we got off on the wrong foot. Let's reboot. And by the way, there's some reparations needed here. 70 ,000 people have been dying a year from this, and it's a Chinese operation. You know, the cartels are definitely part of it, but... I think there's good reason for the West to get on the same page. 00:20:02    CHRISTOPHER MEYER Absolutely. So we will end it there for a first great chat. And I think next time we'll get into the juicy story of Lai Cheng Zing, the bigot China's supposed most wanted. Or what was he? So I'll leave it at that and we'll pick it up next time. You have to say, 00:20:21    SAM COOPER have to say, I'm sitting there doing my research. I get your book. And all of a sudden, within 50 pages, the lights are going off because you wrote about Lai Changxin and it just completed some thoughts that I was mulling over. And yeah, we're going to have an interesting conversation about Lai Changxin. 00:20:40    CHRISTOPHER MEYER That touches my heart because I've always been a brother of the United States and I've felt so disheartened that bad people have gotten in between us and we have to stop that. And as you say, we need to get together on this. I've reached some good thinkers in the US and there's now things brewing. So let's keep it going. You got it. 00:21:01    Close Thanks for listening. If you get a chance, please like and subscribe and rate the show on your favorite podcast platform. Also, if you're interested in coming on the show or hosting an episode, email us at capodcasting@gmail.com. I'll have the email and CA Association website in the show notes. And now, most importantly, to those currently out in the field, working with a partner nation's people or leadership to forward U .S. relations. Thank you all for what you're doing. This is Jack, your host. Stay tuned for more great episodes, One CA Podcast.

Today, Sam Cooper, founder of the news outlet The Bureau, guest hosts Christopher Meyer, a former U.S. official and China expert during the Bush One and Two Administrations. Meyer currently serves as the head of the U.S. Micronesia Council and founded Wide Fountain, a platform for in-depth geopolitical analysis.  In this the first of a two-part episode, Sam and Christopher discuss PRC strategic corruption and political warfare. So, let's get started.  Sam Cooper's The Bureau: https://www.thebureau.news/ Christopher Meyer's Wide Fountain platform: https://widefountain.substack.com/ --- One CA is a product of the civil affairs association a and brings in people who are current or former military, diplomats, development officers, and field agents to discuss their experiences on the ground with a partner nation's people and leadership. We aim to inspire anyone interested in working in the "last three feet" of U.S. foreign relations.  To contact the show, email us at CApodcasting@gmail.com  or look us up on the Civil Affairs Association website at www civilaffairsassoc.org --- Special thanks to Cozy Ambience for a sample of "February Cafe Jazz - Instrumental Bossa Nova Music for Work, Study and Relax - Background Music" retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmq8Ht-sNwQ --- Transcript 00:00:01    Introduction Welcome to the One CA Podcast. This is your host, Jack Gaines. One CA is a product of the Civil Affairs Association and brings in people who are current or former military, diplomats, development officers, and field agents to discuss their experiences on ground with the partner nation's people and leadership. Our goal is to inspire anyone interested in working the last three feet of foreign relations. To contact the show, email us at capodcasting@gmail.com. or look us up on the Civil Affairs Association website at www.civilaffairsassoc.org. I'll have those in the show notes. Today we welcome Sam Cooper, founder of the news outlet The Bureau, as he interviews Christopher Meyer, a former U.S. 00:00:44    SAM COOPER official and China expert during the Bush I and II administrations. Meyer currently serves as the head of the U.S. Micronesia Council and is the founder of Wide Fountain. a platform for in -depth geopolitical analysis. This is the first of a two -part episode. Sam and Christopher discuss PRC strategic corruption and political warfare. So let's get started. 00:01:07    SAM COOPER Today I'm excited to introduce Chris Myers. Chris is a longtime China expert and former U .S. government diplomatic and economic issues officer, and he explains how military intelligence and influence networks embedded deeply with organized crime are a central feature of the global strategy employed by the families that really are running communist China. And when I say that, we're going to discuss your research on the family of Xi Jinping, the Xi family, and you call it the Yezi clique. But first, tell our viewers your background in getting into China and your career. 00:01:46    CHRISTOPHER MEYER Thank you very much, Sam. I started a keen interest in China when I was 16. And I read the history of the opium wars and I was outraged. And I decided I wanted a career to be involved in business and diplomacy between the U .S. and China. And then as an undergrad student, I did research on the special economic zones. This was in the early 80s and the special economic zones were just announced. And my research led me to see the geopolitical aspects. There were some. across from Macau, across from Hong Kong, and across from Taiwan. So I sort of had an eye to that. And then I did business. I was, for five years, I was with a Fortune 500 company. And I had the opportunity to do some business in Xiaomon. And I saw some things that set off alarm bells in my mind. And I kind of filed that. And I had some experiences that informed my research later. I worked in the government in Bush 1 and Bush 2. I was involved in Indo -Pacific affairs. really helping American companies do business in the region, and then became a consultant to part of the government that administered our territories in the Pacific. So I saw some things there that, again, set off alarm bells in my mind. And in 2016, I happened to cross an old colleague who kind of gave me some more information. And basically from 2016 until 2022, I conducted a lot of independent research. I decided I wanted to know exactly what was going on because proxies in the region seemed emboldened to take on the U .S. And they didn't have a government portfolio, but they acted like they did. And so my research sort of started in Micronesia. I had the great opportunity to come across your book. You totally informed. parts of what I was looking at and kind of put the spotlight on what happened in Canada. And I kind of worked the two sides to the middle and conducted most recently research that kind of takes us from Mao Zedong's death until the 90s. And I believe that there was a click. I call it the yes, she click. There were scores to settle. There were powerful families that were on the cusp of greatness or recognition for all their good work, and they were purged. And it led some individuals to become extremely militant in their conduct of political warfare against the U .S. So that sort of sets the table for what we might be talking about. 00:04:28    SAM COOPER Yeah. So to get into this, let's start with the Ye family. They're mysterious, but for experts, they're very clearly a clan that has tremendous kingmaking power in China. So maybe let's start with who they are and then bridge into how they connect with Xi's father. 00:04:46    CHRISTOPHER MEYER So the patriarch, Lie Jianying, was literally the kingmaker of Mao Zedong. He came from Guangdong province, and he was involved in the very earliest movements of the Communist Party in China. And he fled one of those, I think it was the Guangzhou uprising, with Zhou Enlai, and they escaped to Hong Kong. So Ye Jianying is one of the original revolutionaries in China, and he had the title of Marshal Ye. And when he crossed paths with Mao Zedong, he was actually the aide -de -camp to a very powerful Communist Party operator out of Beijing who had an army of tens of thousands. And he rolled up to Mao and his very small group of long marchers and said, follow us, we're going to Sichuan province. And Mao was like, no, I don't think that's a safe bet. The locals are going to tear you up. And Ye Jianying kind of heard a truth in Mao and he deserted this powerful general and with him brought the code books. So Mao gets Ye Jianying and the code books and he's able to communicate with the Comintern. And lo and behold, that general did get wiped out in Sichuan. He returned to Mao's base. With a few thousand troops from then, Mao became the most powerful leader in the communist ecosystem. So Ye Jianying had a very high regard for Mao. Mao called him the savior of the Communist Party and the Communist Revolution. And so fast forward it right through the revolution. Ye gets a very top position as the party secretary for Guangdong province, the largest and economically most powerful province in the country. And Mao wants to conduct his land reform in Guangdong, just as he does everywhere. And it's a violent thing where landowners are hunted down and put to death. Yeah, because he was a native Cantonese, understood that the landowners in Guangdong were not of the same ilk as those throughout China. They actually worked the lands. They had a very cooperative relationship with labor. And he tried to resist. But Mao forced Lin Biao into Guangdong. And Ye lost his government role. And if he hadn't been in the military, he would have been completely out of power. But because he had a military portfolio, he was able to stay on the peripheries. And he was actually part of the small group that brought down the Gang of Four and ended the Cultural Revolution. So Ye Jianying went through the Mao Zedong grinder, but he did it so early in the 50s that he was able to... maintain power and have it going forward. Another Long March hero was Xi Jinping's father, Xi Zhong Chun. And his claim to fame in the Communist Party was he maintained security over the area where Mao was camped in Yan 'an. And he was able to provide Mao and his group with enough security that they could camp there through a winter and survive. Not only that, but he negotiated and he conducted diplomacy with the tribesmen in the Northwest, in Qinghai, in Xinjiang, and in Tibet. And he was loved. And he got a lot of rebels and insurgents among these minority populations to join the Communist Party. And Mao gave him great profs for that and referred to him as one of the heroes of the Three Kingdoms period. brilliant statesman who was able to ingratiate with the minorities and make them part of the Chinese nation. Unfortunately, though, Xi Jinping's father, Xi Zhongchun, he was purged, but he was purged later. He was purged in 1962. And from Xi Jinping's age nine until he was 25, Xi Jinping's father was under arrest. Without trial, it was just the culture revolution. He was under arrest because his office published a book that was deemed not flattering to Mao Zedong. Basically, he was promoting some thought within the Communist Party that Mao didn't like. So Xi's father is in jail from 62 to 78. And because Ye Senior and Xi Zhongchun had a relationship, Ye Jianying kind of became a godfather of sorts for Xi Jinping. Xi was sent to work in the countryside and he escaped and he tried to get back to Beijing and it wasn't safe for him to be reunited with his family. And Ye intervened. And Ye made sure that Xi joined the Communist Party, even though these tragedies were all around him, and made sure that he got the semblance of an education, although he really never did. He was a guide for Xi Jinping throughout his younger years. in place of his father. 00:10:02    Sam Cooper Before we continue how those families dovetail together, can you describe in China's political economy, what is the power of Marshal Ye? 00:10:13    CHRISTOPHER MEYER So in the 50s, he was jettisoned out of the political arena. His main work was in the PLA. He was a marshal and he became minister of defense in China. And he was responsible for procurement. And to sort of give you a sense, when the Korean War started, the United Nations put a blockade on trade with China because they were arming the North Korean army. Marshal Yeh was responsible for making sure that supplies got to North Korea. And that was a big role that he fulfilled. And his sons kind of brought that along. So it's curious because Marshal Yeh was one of the most powerful stars in the communist lineup, but he was also a minority. He was from Guangdong and he was a Haka Chinese. So some people would say that Haka Chinese within China, there's a lid sometimes on their ability to move up. And so perhaps he was never considered for the echelon, but he did arise very high. But in some ways, and his sons adopted this even more so, they had to become very combative. in their political dealings. But no doubt about it, Marshal Yeh had a chance to handle huge volumes of military supplies, and there was an opportunity to skim and generate great wealth, which probably was the case. The way that Marshal Yeh fulfilled the supply chains for the North Korean army was through organized crime. And it just happened that two of The individuals, Henry Falk and Stanley Ho, were also Hakka Chinese. And they became the kingpins of organized crime in Hong Kong and Macau. Both of them are on record as saying they made their fortunes supplying the Korean War. 00:12:15    SAM COOPER Right. So people that read my book are very familiar with Stanley Ho, according to U .S. government intelligence. the absolute king of Chinese international mafia with connectivity to casinos, banking, political influence operations in Canada, triad leadership in Canada. So I think we've set the table for the 90s in Guangdong, Fujian. Xi Jinping is now starting to come on the scene politically there. The Ye family, who were partners essentially of Xi's father. had a little bit of a godfather eye on Xi's movements within the party. We can say that they're the power behind a throne that they want to see continue to rise. So can you take us into the 90s, the sort of Stanley Ho connectivity to Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and how that combines the Hong Kong tycoons slash triad leaders with the communist powers in Fujian? 00:13:21    CHRISTOPHER MEYER Yes. Mao passed away in 78. Deng Xiaoping came to power. And Deng was all about economic reform and catching up to the West. So in southern China, Fujian and Guangdong province, Deng looked to Ye Jenying and his sons. His sons were in their 30s now. And he also looked to Xi Zhongshan. Xi Zhongshan became party secretary for Guangdong province. in the early 80s. And Deng kind of put together this group. The Ye's and the Xi's were family friends. They celebrated Chinese holidays together. The Xi's were northern Chinese, but they kind of encamped in Guangdong province after a certain amount of time. And that's where Xi's father retired. But in Guangdong, the son of Ye, his name was Ye Xuanping. Basically, he was mayor of Guangzhou and the governor of Guangdong. And very quickly, he was referred to as the emperor of the south. So in the 80s, he was running Guangdong province. And he became so powerful that the CCP sought to have him step down. And he actually threatened to withhold tax to Beijing from the province of Guangdong unless they negotiated with him. He wanted a vice chair of the CPPCC, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Committee. And he wants to be a vice governor of the CPPCC. And he wanted to be allowed to maintain his power base in Guangdong. And this is a rare case where the CCP actually deferred to these wishes. Just to get him out of running the most powerful province in China, they said okay. So he goes over the CPPCC. And he takes with him the kingpins of organized crime in Hong Kong and Macau. Stanley Ho never had a position, but Henry Falk and the other top lieutenants in these organized crime entities all wound up on the CPPCC. And to give you a sense of like, what was some of the magic Stanley Ho had when he won the monopoly on gaming in Macau? He devised this VIP room concept where... He owned the casino, but the VIP rooms were run by basically triads and junkets, powerful friends from mainland China and triads. And the triads conducted all kinds of crime that the Vancouver model got in a very big dose. So it was racketeering and prostitution and all kinds of things, but also collections. So Stanley Ho didn't have to work on collections because his muscle did it for him. But the strongest of these triad operators wound up in the CPPCC, as long as they were effective in what they were doing for the government. And 14K is dominated by Hakka Chinese. Most of the most powerful triads have a very strong Hakka element to it. And I don't mean to suggest that this wonderful race of Chinese called Hakkas is all bad. Lee Kuan Yew, the premier of Singapore, was Hakka Chinese. phenomenal Chinese, but there were also some very nefarious and very effective in their criminal activities that were Haka Chinese. So the Ye's were in the middle of this. And Chinese language social media accounts in Hong Kong will talk about the Ye's dominance over these gaming operators in Macau. 00:17:07    SAM COOPER Let's get into that and explore that more. I just want to ask a side question. As I'm aware of a very important figure, in what we call the Hoag Commission in Canada. I'm just going to leave it at that. This is our inquiry into foreign interference that stemmed from my investigative reporting. And there is a politician at the center of that that my sources close to them said went off to a haka conference in China for weeks or something like that, you know, while being an elected politician in Canada. Knowing what you know, and I'm just coming out of the blue with this question, is there anything good for Canada that they could be doing on that trip? 00:17:45    CHRISTOPHER MEYER There could be a lot of normal cultural activity, but I'll say one thing, that the powers that are doing the kinds of things that I'm concerned with are definitely represented in those groups. There might be a wink and a nod and things look very normal on the surface, but there's no free lunch in China. Everybody has to pay the piper, and the piper is the communist party of China. 00:18:11    SAM COOPER So let me ask you this. Viewers of the Bureau know that I've pressed away in journalism in explaining that the United Front Work Department and international money laundering and organized crime are synonymous. They're one and the same. The CIA says the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference is really the core unit of the United Front. So what you're getting at... I think the Ye family, these power brokers that are behind Xi and his power in southern China, you're saying they essentially formed this United Front and organized crime compact as sort of a political tool, a smuggling tool, a military tool? 00:18:55    CHRISTOPHER MEYER Yes. And I want to say that the United Front was an early Communist Party creation. And the thing about the Communist Party... They infiltrated the Kuomintang. When the Kuomintang had more power and they were the power base in China, the communists used political warfare to infiltrate them and really become their undoing. And the United Front is basically one way to get all parts of society under the control of the CCP. So within the United Front, the CPPCC is sort of the big leagues. And all the other organizations are the feeder groups. So if you get in a small united front group and you deliver in a big way, you can get promoted all the way to this PCC. And Ong Lapsung is an example of that. So the whole idea of the united front is to harness and control all the resources from academia, the private sector. from all aspects of society and to make them work for the Communist Party. And I feel that any united front operation, and there's so many in Canada and the U .S., they should just be called assets of the Chinese government. That's one way for the Chinese to increase their headcount of diplomatic officers within any given country. 00:20:26    Close Thanks for listening. If you get a chance, please like and subscribe and rate the show on your favorite podcast platform. Also, if you're interested in coming on the show or hosting an episode, email us at capodcasting@gmail.com. I'll have the email and CA Association website in the show notes. And now, most importantly, to those currently out in the field working with a partner nation's people or leadership to forward U.S. relations, thank you all for what you're doing. your host. Stay tuned for more great episodes of One CA Podcast.   Episode 2 00:00:01    Introduction Welcome to the 1CA Podcast. This is your host, Jack Gaines. 1CA is a product of the Civil Affairs Association and brings in people who are current or former military, diplomats, development officers, and field agents to discuss their experiences on ground with the partner nation's people and leadership. Our goal is to inspire anyone interested in working the last three feet of foreign relations. To contact the show, email us at capodcasting@gmail.com. or look us up on the Civil Affairs Association website at www.civilaffairsassoc.org. I'll have those in the show notes. Today we welcome Sam Cooper, founder of the news outlet The Bureau, as he interviews Christopher Meyer, a former U .S. 00:00:44    Introduction official and China expert during the Bush 1 and 2 administrations. Meyer currently serves as the head of the U .S. Micronesia Council and is the founder of Wide Fountain. a platform for in -depth geopolitical analysis. This is the second of a two -part episode. Sam and Christopher discuss PRC strategic corruption and political warfare. So let's get started. 00:01:08    SAM COOPER I feel that any United Front operation, and there's so many in Canada and the U .S., they should just be called assets of the Chinese government. That's one way for the Chinese to increase their headcount of diplomatic officers within any given country. And they should be labeled that way and they should be treated that way. And they're conducting operations for China. So to get back to the Ye family, I just want to say very briefly, so Deng Xiaoping taps the older brother, Ye, and he's in the government and he has a nine, 10 -year run in Guangdong. The younger brother, his name is Ye Xuanning. He's the dangerous one. He's a real interesting cat. So, yeah. was in college during the Cultural Revolution. And just to give you an idea of the thin ice that you could be skating on in China, he graduated from college and he was thrown in jail. And he was thrown in jail because, you know, Mao wanted to send a signal to the Ye family, I'm in control here. You're not in control. He got out of jail and he had a job in a radio factory or something like that. And he must have been so distraught, he lost his arm in an accident. throwing boxes into a crusher and he lost his arm. So he became a calligrapher with his left hand. And if you know Chinese, like every time you write calligraphy, your hand is going across what you're writing. If you're left -handed, I don't know how he did it. I'm left -handed. And he became an accomplished calligrapher with his left hand. So it just gives you a sense of the spirit of this guy. He's not your normal. person. I think he was a genius. I think he was extremely hardworking. And one of his first positions, he was involved in a small United Front operation in Beijing. Then he became secretary for Kang Xian, who was sort of the head of the oil faction in China. And he was a very powerful individual. And then he found himself in Guangdong. And when his brother was appointed head of the province and the city of Guangzhou, He got into Espionade, and he became the spymaster for the PLA, working in the GDP. And he really had it. He sort of hit his stride there, and that's how he ended his career. The spymaster for the PLA. I think any other rival couldn't even hold a candle to him. He was totally gifted. And his brother and he were able to leverage all of their... contacts with organized crime because he used them in operations around the world. And I think he's the one who weaponized it to the point where, number one, organized crime figures were making money for the military, a lot of it. And number two, they were almost pre -trained in operations. They were bold. They would go anywhere and do anything. And Aung La Pseung is a good example of that. 00:04:11    CHRISTOPHER MEYER I was going to say, because not everyone knows these names like you and I do, but Enlap Sang, nominally a real estate developer from Macau. My Files, he's a huge international organized crime figure known for the so -called Clinton Gate or White House visits. He's the guy that got next to the Clinton White House or got inside, you know, maybe five to ten times. He ends up getting done, as they say, in a United Nations corruption case, which of course connects to a very important guy in Australia that successfully sued my colleague, John Garneau, and yet is at the top of Chinese organized crime funding Australian politics. He was involved in that FBI case. So to bring it back, what I've picked up in my book and in my repeated reporting efforts at the Bureau is these international Chinese businessmen in real estate and casinos, tech these days, they go around the world, they get next to our politicians, and that's their job. They're being tasked by whoever the Ye family spymaster of today is, is sending them abroad to do that. At some point, Xi Jinping comes into this and says it's okay. 00:05:30    SAM COOPER okay. And it's still evolving. I mean, I came on to this. When I read your book and I saw your story of Lai Changxin, I said, holy shit, I have to get into this. You see the level of danger that it brings to a country like Canada and North America. But I think that Ye Xuen Ning created the mechanism for the CCP to use and leverage organized crime to, 00:05:51    SAM COOPER mechanism for the CCP to use and leverage organized crime to, number one, fund military operations. and other things, and to extend influence operations. Like the United Front is all about influence operations. But if you introduce organized crime elements into parts of the United Front, you can weaponize it and you can get a lot more bang for your buck using these nefarious creatures that you're managing, you're controlling them. And I want to mention something. How does the CCP have control over organized crimes? So I want to say, In the late 90s, Macau No. 1 was about to be returned from Portuguese administration to Chinese. And 2, the kind of monopoly of the casinos license was coming up in 2002. And what happened was these triad operators were starting to push back against Stanley Ho. Stanley Ho's right -hand man was shot in the face in Victoria Park during this period. And the Portuguese sent an official to try to calm down the situation. And that individual was shot when he arrived. And the Communist Party kind of went in and took control. When the monopoly came up, Stanley Ho and his family, they got the coverage. But that's because he's completely loyal to the CCP. And so the CCP has so much leverage over these entities. Completely, he devised the strategy to integrate organized crime. And then he passed away in 2016. And then the institutional steps took place after that. They had to transfer from sort of a control of one man to the government running it. And you can see examples around 2016 of a lot of large -scale Chinese operations having disruption during this period. One of the reasons they were able to do this for so long was that Ye Xuanning was completely secretive. I mean, he managed these operations in a very keen and brilliant way, and he was never identified. Xi Jinping's role is interesting. Ye Xuanning told his brothers to help Xi Jinping. And you can kind of see like an increase in their efforts when Xi's father... He was in Beijing, and he had a very high role. He pulled a bureau standing committee, and he was sent down because of Tiananmen. He was on the reformer side, and he publicly admitted it. He was a very admirable individual, and he said he was supporting Hua Guofeng. So he faced early retirement in 1993, and the Ye brothers were so upset about this, and probably Xi too. They sort of doubled down on their efforts on behalf of this political warfare. It's almost as if they were pissed off at the Communist Party, but they took it out on North America. It's like they had to become more radical in what they were doing because in order to get power in China, you had to outflank Li Peng and the hardliners. So there's an interesting element there. 00:09:13    CHRISTOPHER MEYER You talk about this combination of military intelligence and organized crime. and political warfare and global influence operations. Trade is obviously involved. Explain what you mean by radicalization of that tool in operations. 00:09:31    SAM COOPER So there were about 10 operations in the 1990s that I believe were masterminded by the Yeshi Clay and primarily Yeshi Ning. The most outrageous, there was one and probably several. smuggling of military -grade machine guns into the U .S. from China. And one of the groups that was set up, helped finance the military, was the Poly Group. And the Poly Group, they were on the bill of lading for these. They were labeled as something else, but they came into the port of Oakland. And the interesting thing was the CEO of Poly Group, who was a princeling himself, was meeting in the White House and had his photo taken with President Clinton. At the time, these machine guns were on the water. That's bold. Yes. And when I ponder this, it's like I know how much the Chinese love photographs. That photo shown by Xi Jinping to all the cronies in Beijing would get him a lot of brownie points. And these machine guns were being distributed to gangs in the area. Street gangs in California. So this kind of thing, right? Right. And so that one was uncovered. But how many others slipped by? And there have been cases similar magnitude in Tennessee and Florida. 00:10:57    CHRISTOPHER MEYER Yeah, and this is where it gets into the leaked Sidewinder report that I touched on in the book. But yeah, that report refers to Pauley Group laundering 2 ,000 AK -47s into California. You're saying you believe that not only is Xi Jinping supported by this Ye family intelligence, who I have no problem believing are behind the United Front organized crime nexus. You're saying you think Xi Jinping is a mind involved in this kind of thing as well. 00:11:30    SAM COOPER Originally, as I was doing my research, I thought Xi was the mastermind. But as I did a deep dive to what his contemporaries said of him, The big knock on Xi was that he wasn't educated. Like age nine to age 25, his dad has been persecuted and locked up without trial. And he's forced to work in the countryside and he's not happy about it. I mean, he wasn't educated. And that's the biggest knock on Xi Jinping. And when you look at the history of Xi in Fujian, first of all, he goes to the Ministry of Defense and then doesn't do... anything of note there as a young man. But then he goes into Hebei province and he's working in Hebei province as a middle level provincial official. And he's not doing much. I mean, his big contribution was suggesting that they film a TV show in that province and kind of burned out. He wasn't favored by the Communist Party officials there. You know, he's brought to Fujian. Communist Party officials bounce around provinces and each time they have an increasing role. Well, he stays in Fujian for 17 years. And it's almost like he's being babysat by the Yehs. And I mean, the Yeh family compound was a two and a half hour drive from where she was in Fujian. And so I don't think he was the mastermind, but he was definitely the beneficiary. And I think that it was a long term project. And the Yeh brothers. put the pieces on the table to help promote Xi Jinping. And here's an interesting thing. In 1997, there was a big Central Party conclave, the 15th Central Party plenary meeting. And Ye wasn't even named as an alternate delegate. So you've got hundreds of delegates coming from all over the country. And he's a princeling. And he's been in provincial government for 12 years. And he's not even named. Somebody forced him onto the list of alternate delegates. There were 150. He was the 151st alternate delegate. He didn't receive one vote. He was pushed on. And I think somebody in the realm said, you know what? We're running all these operations and we're doing it so secretively. Nobody knows that this is for Xi Jinping. So they started gradually to kind of promote Xi as. the mastermind of this. And the years were okay with that. But Xi Jinping was on his way to becoming the leader of China by 2002. 00:14:08    CHRISTOPHER MEYER And I was over in Taiwan, invited by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs over a year ago with international journalists. And we had kind of a dinner talk where their political intelligence expert was going to talk about some of this Klan details and things like that. And they said, yeah, within the princelings, Xi Jinping was the least likely, the least talented to reach chairman. 00:14:37    CHRISTOPHER MEYER And so, OK, you know, I'm not the expert. If someone from Taiwan is telling me that, you're saying that. So if true, and you're saying the power behind the throne is this Ye family that boosts him. And they're the ones you're saying that are the masterminds of what I'm going to call modern political Chinese communist warfare using proxies, organized crime, dirty tycoons. So this is where we're going. 00:15:06    SAM COOPER Yep, this is where we're going. And let me just touch on a few of the operations in the 1990s, just to give you a sense for what was going on and the fact that the Chinese were never completely called out on the carpet for it. Just let them continue doing it. And one of the themes of my research is it's time to call the Chinese out. And to do that, you have to be very specific. I think there needs to be a large group of countries that has their research done and they call out Xi Jinping for this political warfare that absolutely is hyper -destructive. 00:15:41    CHRISTOPHER MEYER So you're saying this is an intelligence operation? Yeah. For the last 10 minutes or so, In direct relationship to this network you're talking about, the 90s, 2000, aggressive combination of international organized crime, Hong Kong tycoons, Macau tycoons, in Chinese military influence operations, also people smuggling, also drug smuggling, illegal migration and, you know, fentanyl. There is a basis that Chinese triads and Mexican cartels are working together on those things and that Canada is a, you could call it, if this is a company, the controlling minds of a lot of this are in Vancouver and Toronto. Canadian ports are very deeply infiltrated by China, along with some Iranian mafia and intelligence. It's a fact. So where do we go from there? I myself, as a Canadian, the good countries of the world need to get together to combat this approaching, if not already into early stages of the access of China, Iran, Russia, North Korea. We're at loggerheads and they're using Canada, I believe, unfortunately. 00:17:01    SAM COOPER Right. And I do believe that Yeshua Ning is a genius and he looked at North America and he wants to inflict pain on the U .S. When he set up these plans in the early 90s, the Chinese GDP was a fraction of the U .S. So he had a lot of ground to make up. And he chose Vancouver because the resources to combat his efforts were probably deemed to be significantly less than the resources in the U .S. So I feel that the attack on Canada, the Vancouver model. if you will, which spread right across to Toronto and then down into Queens and across to LA and permeates everything. I believe that the US and Canada should try to get on the same page about this and to the extent possible, Mexico as well. And then the UK and Australia haven't been unaffected by this. There should be a big effort to get on the same page with the West because this is a totalitarian regime doing its level best to take us out. 00:18:07    CHRISTOPHER MEYER The controlling mind, I'm saying, of the Mexican cartels, I think it's Chinese triads. That's the real power there. 00:18:15    SAM COOPER I think we're both in agreement. If you want to draw a word picture that says what this is, picture that there's a really bad actor and he's throwing a really illegal party and selling drugs and he's bringing it all in. And the U .S. is going after the people who own the land where all of this took place. You have to go after China. And I believe that China is making 98 % of the precursors for fentanyl, and then they're laundering the money. That's the other piece. They're laundering it. They're operating this massive money laundering operation for the cartels. So I say the gloves do come off, but I would love to see them come off in unison. And all of these, at least in North America, Mexico, Canada, and the U .S., we're all on the same page. And we speak with one voice. And I'll add to this. Xi Jinping has been as painful towards his own population as he has been externally and internationally. So he's inflicted pain on the Chinese and he's about to go down. I mean, he's got his wings clipped in the last few months and he may not be in power very long. There's some serious movement in China. 00:19:30    CHRISTOPHER MEYER You sound like my friend Harry Tsang, the ambassador for Taiwan and Ottawa. He's bearish on Xi Jinping in a big way. 00:19:38    SAM COOPER Yeah. Well, I think it's a good time for the West to approach China and say, look, we got off on the wrong foot. Let's reboot. And by the way, there's some reparations needed here. 70 ,000 people have been dying a year from this, and it's a Chinese operation. You know, the cartels are definitely part of it, but... I think there's good reason for the West to get on the same page. 00:20:02    CHRISTOPHER MEYER Absolutely. So we will end it there for a first great chat. And I think next time we'll get into the juicy story of Lai Cheng Zing, the bigot China's supposed most wanted. Or what was he? So I'll leave it at that and we'll pick it up next time. You have to say, 00:20:21    SAM COOPER have to say, I'm sitting there doing my research. I get your book. And all of a sudden, within 50 pages, the lights are going off because you wrote about Lai Changxin and it just completed some thoughts that I was mulling over. And yeah, we're going to have an interesting conversation about Lai Changxin. 00:20:40    CHRISTOPHER MEYER That touches my heart because I've always been a brother of the United States and I've felt so disheartened that bad people have gotten in between us and we have to stop that. And as you say, we need to get together on this. I've reached some good thinkers in the US and there's now things brewing. So let's keep it going. You got it. 00:21:01    Close Thanks for listening. If you get a chance, please like and subscribe and rate the show on your favorite podcast platform. Also, if you're interested in coming on the show or hosting an episode, email us at capodcasting@gmail.com. I'll have the email and CA Association website in the show notes. And now, most importantly, to those currently out in the field, working with a partner nation's people or leadership to forward U .S. relations. Thank you all for what you're doing. This is Jack, your host. Stay tuned for more great episodes, One CA Podcast.

APAC stocks were mixed in mostly rangebound trade after the uninspiring handover from Wall St and despite encouraging Chinese GDP and activity data.Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp were choppy with only mild support seen after GDP, Industrial Production & Retail Sales beat expectations with China's economy growing 5.4% Y/Y (exp. 5.0%) in Q4 and by 5.0% (exp. 4.9%) for 2024.DXY lacked conviction following the headwinds from a dovish Fed Waller; USD/JPY initially languished at its lowest in nearly a month; Antipodeans saw a muted reaction to Chinese data.Israel agreed to the Gaza hostage deal and the cabinet is to meet on Friday, according to Israeli media; Israeli National Security Minister Ben-Gvir said he will resign from the government if the Gaza ceasefire deal is approved.European equity futures indicate a flat cash market open with Euro Stoxx 50 futures U/C after the cash market closed with gains of 1.5% on Thursday.Looking ahead, highlights include US Industrial Production, CBO Budget and Economic Outlook, Comments from ECB's Cipollone, Earnings from SLB, Fastenal, Truist, State Street & Citizens.Read the full report covering Equities, Forex, Fixed Income, Commodites and more on Newsquawk

Group Chief Economist Neil Shearing calls in from Singapore to The Weekly Briefing from Capital Economics to talk about what's known and unknown about Donald Trump's policy agenda just days before he is sworn in again. He discusses the tone set by Trump's first inaugural address, what we've learned from recent confirmation hearings and the inflation impact of a gradual rise in tariffs. Neil also talks about why our China Activity Proxy is telling a different story from official Chinese GDP data and explains why the UK has so much potential in the AI revolution.Also on the show, fresh from his team being named most accurate forecaster of major global stock indices by LSEG Data & Analytics for a second straight year, Chief Markets Economist John Higgins talks about why we expect 2025 to be another strong year for US equities. Analysis and events referenced in this episode:CAP: Weaker fiscal support behind growth slowdownhttps://www.capitaleconomics.com/publications/china-activity-monitor/cap-weaker-fiscal-support-behind-growth-slowdownUS continues to lead the way on our AI indexhttps://www.capitaleconomics.com/publications/global-economics-update/us-continues-lead-way-our-ai-indexUS Drop-In: Inauguration Day special – Knowns and unknowns around Trump's second termhttps://www.capitaleconomics.com/events/us-drop-inauguration-day-special-knowns-and-unknowns-around-trumps-second-termWhy we expect the S&P 500 to thrive in 2025https://www.capitaleconomics.com/publications/equities-focus/why-we-expect-sp-500-thrive-2025

 ASX 200 dropped 17 points to 8310 ( -0.2%) finishing the week up 16 points for the week. Sums is up. Banks sold off after the huge run yesterday, CBA down % and NAB down % with the Big Bank Basket at $253.29 (-1.3%). Other financials flat, MQG down 0.1% and ZIP falling 1.0%. Insurers flat. REITs eased back, GMG solid but SCG off 0.8%.  Industrials were firm but idle, WES up 0.5% and COL up 0.8% on a broker upgrade. Utilities better with tech down, WTC off 0.8% and the All-Tech Index flat. Retail was patchy, PMV up another 1.6% and CTD pushing up another 1.7%. LOV up 7.7% on a broker upgrade. In resources, FMG pushed up 1.8% with MIN up 2.9% on China data and iron ore prices. RIO fell 0.7% as the Glencore discussions were ‘poo pooed'. Gold miners were pushing slightly higher, GMD up 1.8% and GOR up 1.7%. Lithium stocks were firmer as LTR roared ahead again up 9.5%. PLS up 2.1% too. Energy stocks slightly positive, STO up 0.6% and PDN up 1.9%. In corporate news, IFL got a 460c bid from CC Capital, AVJ opened its books to Ho Bee, LYC dropped 0.9% on quarterly and ABB swooned 5% on CEO news and then rallied 5.5%. TLX added 3.1% on EU approvals. In economic news, nothing locally, but Chinese GDP came in spot on as expected. Asian markets, Japan down 0.6%, HK up 0.2% and CSI up 0.5%. 10 year yields solid at 4.49% Why not sign up for a free trial? Get access to expert market insights and manage your investments with confidence. Ready to invest in yourself? Join the Marcus Today community.

AJ Bell investment analyst Daniel Coatsworth talked with Proactive's Stephen Gunnion about the FTSE 100 reaching a new high and the key factors driving it. Coatsworth highlighted three major drivers behind the gains: the weaker pound, ongoing merger activity in the mining sector, and Chinese GDP figures supporting commodity demand. He explained that the weaker pound benefits FTSE 100 companies, as many earn in dollars, which increases the value of their earnings when converted to pounds. The discussion also touched on potential mergers in the mining sector, including past talks between Rio Tinto and Glencore, and the broader implications for market activity. Coatsworth also provided insights into the challenges and opportunities ahead for the FTSE in 2025, including the impact of Donald Trump's return to the White House, cost pressures on UK companies, and the resilience of defensive sectors like utilities and tobacco. Coatsworth described the mining sector as "addicted to M&A," and suggested that further activity could bolster the market. He also noted, "While today's record high is significant, the FTSE remains a laggard compared to US markets." For more insights from market analysts and updates on global economic trends, visit Proactive's YouTube channel. Don't forget to like this video, subscribe to our channel, and enable notifications for future updates. #FTSE100 #StockMarketNews #InvestmentInsights #AJBell #MiningSector #WeakerPound #GlobalEconomy #ChineseGDP #MarketTrends #ProactiveInvestors #2025MarketOutlook #MergersAndAcquisitions

The S&P 500 slipped Thursday, ending a three-day winning streak, as big tech shares pulled back.The broad market index slid 0.21% to 5,937.34. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.89% to 19,338.29. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 68.42 points, or 0.16%, to 43,153.13.Apple shares were down 4%, posting their worst day since Aug. 5. Tesla tumbled more than 3%. Nvidia slid nearly 2%, and Alphabet lost around 1%.SPI up 11 - RIO and Glencore no longer in talks about a merger - Chinese GDP at 1pm.COMMODITIESGold climbs to over one-month high on weaker yields after US data.Oil settles lower on expected halt to Houthi shipping attacks.Copper hits five-week peak on China stimulus hopes.Iron ore hits four-week high on lower shipments, softer dollar.Mideast oil prices jump on robust China, India demand post-sanctions.Why not sign up for a free trial? Get access to expert market insights and manage your investments with confidence. Ready to invest in yourself? Join the Marcus Today community. 

ASX 200 closed down 73 points at 8264 (0.9%). A weak end to a good week. Resources under pressure again with the Big Three suffering despite iron ore better in Singapore. BHP off 2.2% and FMG slipping 1.9%. Lithium still in struggle street, PLS down 0.4% and MIN off 2.9%. Gold miners were a little mixed despite bullion rises, NEM up 0.8% but GMD down 0.9%. Oil and gas slid, WDS off 1.3% and uranium stocks saw profit taking after big rises yesterday, BOE down 3.0% and PDN off 4.1%. Industrials were also weaker, WES off 1.3% and tech down with WTC falling again, down 3.6% with XRO slipping 0.5%. The All-Tech Index fell %. REITs slid on higher bond yields. GMG down 2.3% and SCG down 1.9%. Banks steady again, CBA up 0.6% and the Big Bank Basket steady at $246.03 (+0.22%). In corporate news, FLT crashed landed down 20.4% on a trading update that was seen as vague. TLX rose 4.6% after announcing it would have another go at a US Nasdaq listing.  Nothing on the economic front locally, Chinese GDP came in at 4.6% slightly better than expected.  10-year yields higher at 4.32%.Why not sign up for a free trial? Get access to expert market insights and manage your investments with confidence. Ready to invest in yourself? Join the Marcus Today community. 

ASX rallied 38 points to 8260 (0.5%) just a few points shy of a record close. Banks and resources in favour as US bank reports revive optimism, CBA up 0.9% and ANZ up 1.6% with the Big Bank Basket up $236.36 (+0.9%). MQG rallied 0.7% with insurers and other financials doing well, QBE up 1.1% and GQG up 0.4%. REITs a little weaker, GMG off 0.1% with healthcare doing well, CSL up 1.2% and RMD up 1.1%. Industrials mixed, WTC off 0.3% with the All-Tech Index down 0.3%. TPG fell 4.1% after selling its fibre business to Vocus for $5.25bn. Travel stocks twitched lower following a WEB downgrade and a 35.6% fall.  FLT dropped 1.7% with CTD falling 3.7%. Retailers mixed. In resources, a better-than-expected Chinese market and a higher Iron ore price helped with BHP up 0.9% and FMG up 2.8%. Gold miners doing well, EVN up 2.8% and BGL kicking 4.4%. Lithium unmoved, PLS flat, oil and gas slipped, WDS down 2.1% and uranium stocks slightly firmer. In corporate news, SEK launched a bid for XF1, APX returned having raised $50m to trade % higher. In economic news, Goldman Sachs has upped Chinese GDP. Trade numbers yet to drop in China. Asian market mixed and volatile, China up 2.0% and HK up 0.2% with Japan closed for a holiday.Why not sign up for a free trial? Get access to expert market insights and manage your investments with confidence. Ready to invest in yourself? Join the Marcus Today community. 

Kia ora,Welcome to Wednesday's Economy Watch where we follow the economic events and trends that affect Aotearoa/New Zealand.I'm David Chaston and this is the international edition from Interest.co.nz.Today we lead with news of some major emergency moves in China to reinvigorate their economy.But first, there was a good GDT Pulse auction result earlier this morning, although the reverse of what the futures markets had signaled. There was no gain in SMP prices, holding its recent higher levels. But the important WMP price rose +2.8% from the full auction a week ago and back to levels of a year ago.This is a good backdrop to this morning's Fonterra 2023/24 results announcement.The expansion of American retail sales at physical stores rose +4.1% last week from the same week a year ago. That is good but a slowing from the gains since August. A year ago they were rising +3.6%.But the widely-watched Conference Board consumer sentiment survey for September has brought a hesitation, slipping to the lower end of the narrow range it has been in for the past two years. Worries about job security seems to be a key factor here, although we probably shouldn't make too much of a range-bound shift.Election jitters have hit the Richmond Fed's factory survey covering the mid-Atlantic states, all "battle-ground states" where uncertainty of the outcomes is pronounced.There was a very well supported US Treasury 2 year bond auction today, delivering a median yield of 3.47%. That is down from 3.83% at the equivalent event a month ago. In both more than US$100 bln in bids went unsatisfied.And ratings agency Moody's has warned that a downgrade for the US Federal Government is a live possibility unless it tackles its growing deficits. This comes a year after it placed the AAA rating on 'negative outlook'. Clearly it is watching this with some unease.Across the Pacific, Japan's business activity continues to rise, largely based on a service sector that is now expanding at its fastest pace since April. Factory activity isn't expanding however, according to this PMI survey.Taiwanese export orders rose +9.1% in August from the same month a year ago, to a nine month high.In China, "a leading Chinese economist" and politician has called for Beijing to launch a ¥10 tln stimulus package (NZ$2.2 tln) equivalent to 8% of Chinese GDP, to tide their economy over through the rest of 2024, as credit growth and domestic demand remain drained of energy. The economist calling for this is Liu Shijin, deputy-director of the China Development Research Fund and deputy-chair of the economics committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC). He has been echoed by Yu Yongding.Responding to the plea for a jolt, the Governor of the Chinese central bank said in a rare briefing that they will cut their reserve requirement ratio by 50 bps, and likely match that again before the end of 2024. Together, these will add ¥2 tln 2024 liquidity. .He also said that the seven-day repo rate will be reduced by 20 basis points to 1.5%. And there will be a -30 bps drop in their medium term lending facility. Mortgage rates will be dropped by -50 bps and the minimum deposit on a home purchase will be dropped to 15%. They did not specify exactly when these changes will go into effect however. More here.Although these measures have more than a whiff of panic surrounding them, clearly President Xi has given his officials a rocket to act quickly to turn around an economy stuck in a rut. And equity markets responded with their own rocket.And so did some components of the commodities market; copper, for example. We may see more commodity action today. But we should also keep in mind the program announced yesterday is very much less than what its own experts are calling for.Yesterday, the RBA's policy review kept its rates unchanged in the face of higher than target inflation levels. It has been four years since they have had a rate cut. But inflation remains above target and is proving persistent so their room to move is limited.The UST 10yr yield is now at just on 3.73% and down -2 bps from yesterday. The price of gold will start today at US$2650/oz and up +US$32 from yesterday to yet another new all-time high.Oil prices have risen +US$1 to US$71.50/bbl in the US while the international Brent price is now just on US$75/bbl.The Kiwi dollar starts today at 63.3 USc and up +½c from this time yesterday and its highest of the year and back to where it ended in 2023. Against the Aussie we are up +40 bps at 92 AUc. Against the euro we are up +30 bps at 56.7 euro cents. That all means our TWI-5 starts today at 70.6, and up +40 bps from yesterday and a three month high.The bitcoin price starts today at US$63,216 and little-changed from this time yesterday. Volatility over the past 24 hours has been low at just under +/- 1.0%.You can find links to the articles mentioned today in our show notes.You can get more news affecting the economy in New Zealand from interest.co.nz.Kia ora. I'm David Chaston. And we will do this again tomorrow.

Where is China today? Will its rise continue to benefit the vast majority of its population? Or is Xi Jinping's increasingly repressive government committing one of the biggest blunders of modern history? This is the final episode in the China-trilogy, the product of hours of conversations I've had with ChinaTalk's Jordan Schneider and MIT professor Yasheng Huang. In part 1, we discussed the deep currents of Chinese history, shaping the country's destiny from its early technological lead to its more recent decline and stagnation. In part 2, we discussed China during and after Mao, trying our best to explain the Chinese economic miracle. In this final episode, we discuss questions about China's present and future, guided by lessons from its recent past. We touch upon issues such as: The causes and consequences of Xi Jinping's rise Why both Chinese leaders and Western observers misunderstand China's miracle – and why this matters for the future Why China is on course towards a sudden eruption of political chaos As always, we finish with my guest's reflections on humanity. LINKS You can read my essays and get the On Humans newsletter at ⁠OnHumans.Substack.com⁠. Are you a long-term listener? Feeling generous today? Join the wonderful group of my patrons at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon.com/OnHumans⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠! For other episodes on economic history, see my series on the ⁠⁠⁠⁠Birth of Modern Prosperity⁠⁠⁠⁠, with Daron Acemoglu, Oded Galor, Brad DeLong, and Branko Milanovic. MENTIONS Scholars Gordon Tullock | Joseph Torigian CCP figures Hua Guofeng 华国锋 | "Gang of Four" 四人幫 | Deng Xiaoping 邓小平 | Zhao Ziyang 赵紫阳 | 习近平 China's history | Xi Jinping | Chinese miracle | China's political leadership | Xi Jinping reforms | Hu Jintao policies | China leadership generations | Chinese Communist Party | Deng Xiaoping reforms | Chinese economy | China's political control | Chinese corruption | Rural poverty in China | China's environmental policies | China economic inequality | Chinese rural income | Chinese political system | China's globalized economy | Chinese private sector | China geopolitical tensions | China-West relations | Chinese GDP growth | CCP succession | Xi Jinping succession | Autocracy in China | China's term limits | China's leadership transitions | Vietnam-China war | China's authoritarianism | Chinese economic growth | Xi Jinping's leadership style | Chinese politics and reforms | China's environmental issues | China's green policies | Urban-rural gap

U.S. CPI was lower than expected, (-0.1% MoM, 3.0% YoY), while U.S. PPI came in higher than expected (U.S. June producer prices rise 2.6% Y/Y; EST. +2.3%).Chinese CPI was on the cusp of deflation again (CPI +0.2% YoY, PPI -0.8% YoY) and Chinese GDP and retail sales were weaker than expected (Q2 GDP 4.7% y/y estimated +5.1%).James and Harry dive into Chinese New Homes Index data which shows new home prices falling 4.5% YoY in June 2024, the most in 9 years. This data comes despite Beijing attempting to mitigate the impact of a prolonged property downturn and weak economic recovery.Off the back of Donald Trump's attempted assassination on the weekend, Harry discusses the impact the event is having and will have on U.S. swing states and why the event caused a Bitcoin rally.James Brodie's chart of the week is Gold, which is rallying and approaching $2,430.The key data releases this week are:Monday 15 July – Fed Chair Powell to speakTuesday 16 July – U.S. June retail salesThursday 18 July – Philly Fed manufacturing data

This week on the SB Talks Podcast CEO Vincent O'Neill is joined by CIO Nick Ryder as they discuss the latest economic developments shaping global markets. Vin and Nick examine the recent pullback in equity markets and the outlook for equities going forward. March's CPI numbers are in, and they have exceeded market expectations, prompting speculation about the trajectory of inflation and monetary policy. The pair discuss the IMF's upgraded World Economic Outlook, highlighting growth projections and regional disparities, focussing on US and European economies. Lastly, they analyse China's Q1 GDP data, examining the role of government investment versus consumer sentiment in driving economic performance.   Music provided by: Autumn Trumpet Background Corporate by LesFM | https://lesfm.net/ Music promoted by https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/ Creative Commons CC BY 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Heng Koon How, Head of Markets Strategy, UOB, weights in with Sean Cheong on how the latest Fed comments, Chinese GDP numbers and escalating tensions in the Middle East could impact Singapore markets. Presented by Sean Cheong Edited by Emaad AkhtarSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chinese GDP data comes in better than expected for the first quarter by a wide margin but monthly figures are softer, painting a mixed picture for the world's second-largest economy. In the U.S., the major indices are in the red while yields spike. The greenback also hits a five-month high as very strong retail sales numbers dampens rate cut expectations even further. In Asia there are 2 per cent declines across equities. Investors are braced for potential policy intervention in Japan to shore up the yen. In autos news, Tesla is set to cut 10 per cent of its workforce as the EV maker struggles with waning consumer interest in the sector.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The S&P 500 posted its largest two-day decline in more than a year with the index down 2.6% since Friday.APAC stocks were lower amid concerns related to a potential 'imminent' response by Israel against Iran, while markets also digested mixed data from China.Better-than-expected Chinese GDP for Q1 was negated by disappointing Industrial Production and Retail Sales data.European equity futures indicate a negative open with the Euro Stoxx 50 future -1.2% after the cash market closed up 0.6% on Monday.DXY has gained a firmer footing on a 106 handle, EUR/USD moved closer to the 106 mark, antipodeans lag.Looking ahead, highlights include German Wholesale Price Index, ZEW, UK Jobs, Canadian & NZ CPI, Fed's Daly, Jefferson, Williams, Barkin, Powell, ECB's Rehn, BoE's Bailey, Lombardelli & BoC's Macklem, IMF WEO, Fed Discount Rate Minutes, Supply from Netherlands & UK, Earnings from LVMH, United Health, UAL, Bank of America & Morgan Stanley.Read the full report covering Equities, Forex, Fixed Income, Commodites and more on Newsquawk

Sanisha Pakirisamy from Momentum Investments considers trade and shipping route disruptions, inflation, geopolitical tensions and Chinese GDP going forward.

ASX fell 12 points at 7724 (-0.2%). Some weakness in a few sectors weighed. Banks eased back with the Big Bank Basket down to $206.08 (-0.8%). CBA leading the loss, off 1.0%. MQG slipped 0.3%, and GQG fell 1.8%, with REITs down a tad. Industrials weaker across the board, looking a little tired after reporting season. ‘Old Skool Platform' stocks dropped, with REA off 2.0% and CAR down 1.8%. Tech eased, with the All-Tech Index off 0.3% and supermarkets down. WES off 1.8%, and COL and WOW falling too. Ex-dividends weighing.  In resource stocks, iron ore miners perked up on Chinese stimulus hopes (again), BHP up 0.9% and FMG bouncing 1.9%. Lithium stocks pummelled as the rally ended abruptly. PLS dropped 7.0%, and MIN off 3.6%. Lithium in China fell, and Tesla ran into sellers in US. Gold miners in demand as bullion hit records. NST up 3.0%, and NEM up 5.5%, playing some catch-up.  Oil and gas stocks slipped, with WDS down 0.8%. In corporate news, MPL and NHF rose on premium increase news, HLS was a star performer as the CEO stepped down up 14.7%, and in economic news, the current account returned to a surplus, beating forecasts. GDP tomorrow. Asian markets sank on Chinese GDP news, HK off 2.2% and China up 0.2%, with Japan still at all-time highs up 0.6%. 10Y yields falling to 4.1%. Dow Futures down 68 points. NASDAQ Futures down 61 points. Why not sign up for a free trial? Get access to expert market insights and manage your investments with confidence.Ready to invest in yourself? Join the Marcus Today community.

Could the incoming Year of the Dragon bring more luck for China's struggling economy? Ahead of Chinese New Year, the nation's economy is still feeling the negative impact left over from the Covid-19 pandemic. Chinese GDP grew by 5.2 percent last year, according to official statistics- a reflection that confidence hasn't yet returned. NZ Herald business editor at large Liam Dann explains what this downturn means for New Zealand's economy.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Could the incoming Year of the Dragon bring more luck for China's struggling economy? Ahead of Chinese New Year, the nation's economy is still feeling the negative impact left over from the Covid-19 pandemic. Chinese GDP grew by 5.2 percent last year, according to official statistics- a reflection that confidence hasn't yet returned. NZ Herald business editor at large Liam Dann explains what this downturn means for New Zealand's economy.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of JSE Direct, Simon Brown discusses various market topics, including the bleak outlook of the Hang Seng Index due to Chinese GDP results. Positive news for Grindrod with the Maputo Port Development Company's impressive performance. The rise in uranium prices driven by increasing demand for nuclear power plants, he found two US listed ETFs benefiing from this trend. [caption id="attachment_40966" align="aligncenter" width="849"] Spot uranium price[/caption] The approval of 11 Bitcoin ETFs by the SEC. When does the JSE get a crypto ETF? Do elections matter for markets? Upcoming elections in 2024 across 70 countries. Simon explores the question of whether elections truly matter for investors, emphasising historical examples where market reactions were short-term and highlighting the importance of focusing on long-term investment strategies amid political volatility.

APAC stocks were mostly pressured after the recent upside in yields, while participants also digested mixed Chinese GDP and activity data.Chinese GDP YY (Q4) 5.2% vs. Exp. 5.3% (Prev. 4.9%), IP YY (Dec) 6.8% vs. Exp. 6.6% (Prev. 6.6%), Retail Sales YY (Dec) 7.4% vs. Exp. 8.0% (Prev. 10.1%).European equity futures are indicative of a lower open with Euro Stoxx 50 future -0.9% after the cash market closed down 0.2% on Tuesday.DXY hovers above the 103.50 mark, JPY remains heavily pressured, Cable lingers around the 1.26 mark ahead of inflation metrics.Looking ahead, highlights include UK CPI, EZ HICP (Final), US Import Prices, Retail Sales, Industrial Production, Japanese Machinery Orders, Fed Beige Book, comments from ECB's Knot & Lagarde, Fed's Williams, Barr & Bowman, Supply from Germany, UK & US, Earnings from Pearson, US Bancorp & Citizen Financial Group.Read the full report covering Equities, Forex, Fixed Income, Commodites and more on Newsquawk

Comments from the US Fed sets off fears over interest rate cuts; artificial intelligence to get a risk-based approach by the Federal government; Chinese GDP meets its 5% growth target; school fees & activity costs continue to get worse; tips & tricks to get your budget back into order; Qantas sees its reputation tumble; and Carl Capolingua joins us for the Market Wrap.   Host: Deborah Knight Executive Producer: Tom Storey Technical Producer: Declan Helmore Publisher: Nine RadioSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

ASX 200 falls another 22 points today to 7393 (0.3%) to a four-week low as banks start to slip. Late rally helping slightly. The Big Bank Basket dropped to $191.54 (0.4%). CBA leading the fall down 0.6% with WBC off 0.7%. MQG lost 0.6% though insurers better on higher yields. 10-year yields back to 4.20%. REITs slid too, GMG off 0.1% and SCG down 1.0%. Healthcare a little higher CSL up 0.4% and RMD up 1.1%. Industrials held relatively firm, supermarkets still under a little pressure, WOW down 0.1% and COL off 0.1% too. Tech slightly better and utilities bouncing off bottom, Retail stocks on the nose, LOV down 2.2%, PMV down 1.7% and SUL down another 2.3%. JBH lost 2.5%. In resources, the Three Amigos held firm, gold miners were smashed as EVN disappointed the true believers, Red Lake turned into the Red Wedding and the stock collapsed 17.3% on production numbers. The rest of the sector fell in sympathy. AUD bullion prices hardly changed but NST down 4.4% and NEM lost 5.1%. Lithium stocks depressed, PLS down 1.9% and S32 headed south by 3.5%. Oil and gas in trouble, WDS down 1.4% and STO off 0.7%. In corporate news, TLC has a new chair, WA1 raising money at 1000c. On the economic front, Chinese GDP grew at 5.2% last year. National Australia Bank now expects the Reserve Bank to remain on hold until November, before the central bank starts cutting from the current cash rate of 4.35%. Meanwhile in Asia, everyone is bearish China and down she went again, off 0.7% and HK down 2.8%. Japan unchanged. Why not sign up for a free trial? Get access to expert insights and research and become a better investor.Make life simple. Invest with Marcus Today.

Mario Rosenstock is a comedian and impressionist, and creator of TodayFM's Gift Grub. ***** Here's something about the Chinese economy. China's ‘investment' in real estate makes Ireland's property obsession seem breezy and carefree. Just before our crash, 12 per cent of our economy was house-building. Even if Chinese GDP figures are true, then their reliance […]

Chinese GDP in the third quarter beats expectations growing 4.9%, raising hopes that Beijing can still manage to attain its full year growth target. In the U.S., the 2-year Treasury yield hits a 17-year high on better-than-expected consumer numbers. However, BofA CEO Brian Moynihan tells our colleagues stateside that he believes consumer activity is still being hampered by high interest rates. Hundreds are believed dead after a blast at a Gaza hospital, just hours before President Biden is due to arrive in Tel Aviv. We hear from Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry who says that Israel's actions over the past week may have violated international humanitarian laws. In Washington, the search for a new House speaker stalls again as Republican Jim Jordan falls short of winning the role by 17 votes. A second ballot is due later today. And in retail news, sportswear giant Adidas cuts its full year loss forecast and hikes guidance on the strong sale of its remaining Yeezy shoe inventory. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

APAC stocks traded mixed following a similar performance on Wall St while the region also digested the latest Chinese GDP and activity data which topped forecasts.The latest geopolitical headlines included news of a strike on a hospital in Gaza which saw both sides point the blame at each other.European equity futures are indicative of a slightly softer open with the Euro Stoxx 50 future -0.2% after the cash market closed up 0.1% yesterday.DXY is steady on the 106 level, EUR/USD remains sub-1.0600, Cable sits below 1.22 ahead of inflation metrics.Looking ahead, highlights include UK CPI, EZ HICP (Final), US Building Permits/Housing Starts, ECB's Lagarde & Elderson, Fed's Williams, Waller, Bowman, Harker & Cook, Supply from Germany & USEarnings from ASML, Segro, Barratt Developments, Whitbread, Deutsche Boerse, Netflix, Tesla, Morgan Stanley & Abbott.Read the full report covering Equities, Forex, Fixed Income, Commodites and more on Newsquawk

US Treasury bonds sold off again overnight, pushing the 10-year yield to 4.91%, its highest level since 2007. Oil rose 2% on a drop in US inventories. Chinese GDP was stronger than expected. In our bonus deep-dive interview, ANZ's Head of G3 Economics Brian Martin explains why Treasury yields are rising, even though the Fed appears to have paused rate hikes. Before accessing this podcast, please read the disclaimer at https://www.anz.com/institutional/five-in-five-podcast/

17 Oct 2023. Jeanne Walters of Emirates NBD gives us an insight into Chinese GDP, why everyone is watching it so closely but also what it means for the rest of the world. We also find out the latest on inflation, which New Zealand saw falling to a two year low. Natalia Sycheva of Integra Seven talks tech talent in Dubai in relation to a first-of-its-kind report they've put out with Wamda. Frederick Marris from Zoom explains how the need for the platform hasn't dyed down and Virtuzone's John Casey shed light on their new initiative that's helping smaller businesses in the UAE. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nick Kunze from Sanlam Private Wealth on US banking results and the risk on trade in oil and gold. David Rees from Schroders talks global economics as they cut Chinese GDP for next year and expect no US recession. Citadel's Bianca Botes on a Brics currency and how the collection of countries would be better served as a trade block.

European bourses are trading with modest gains in the wake of the late gains on Wall Street yesterday and the upbeat APAC session overnight.Dollar is depressed ahead of US CPI data after brief bounces post-PPI and FOMC minutes. Euro retains 1.0600+ status vs Buck. Yen is still drawn to 149.00 against Greenback.Debt futures fade after another strong rally to fresh cycle peaks for Bunds and Gilts.Chinese GDP growth might slow in Q3 to above 4.0% Y/Y from 6.3% growth in Q2 but is expected to improve after Q3, according to Securities Daily.Looking ahead, highlights include US Core CPI, Earnings, IJC & Cleveland Fed CPI, ECB & Banxico Minutes, Speeches from ECB's Panetta, Fed's Bostic, Logan & Collins, Supply from US, Earnings from Walgreens Read the full report covering Equities, Forex, Fixed Income, Commodites and more on Newsquawk

Switzerland has outlined a series of measures to combat money laundering and increase transparency in its huge financial sector. They include a register of those who ultimately benefit from trusts and companies - Switzerland is the only European country that doesn't have one. One of China's biggest property development firms, Country Garden, has reported half year losses of six-point-seven billion dollars. The announcement increases concerns about the troubled property sector, which accounts for more than a quarter of Chinese GDP. Burger King must face a lawsuit that alleges it makes its Whopper burger appear larger on its menus than it is in reality, a US judge has ruled.

Oil slides more than 1% as Chinese GDP dents demand hopeshttps://www.reuters.com/business/energy/oil-slips-after-libya-resumes-output-china-data-eyed-2023-07-17- GDP grew 6.3% year-on-year in the 2nd quarter, compared with analyst forecasts of 7.3%- what analysts were forecasting such high growth?- slow correction where expectations come back down to realityChina's June industrial output rises 4.4%, retail sales up 3.1%https://finance.yahoo.com/news/chinas-june-industrial-output-rises-020809002.html- China's industrial output grew 4.4% in June from a year earlier, unexpectedly accelerating from 3.5% seen in May- Retail sales grew 3.1% in June, slowing from a 12.7% jump in May. Analysts had expected growth of 3.2%.- Are the kind of okay numbers from China signals that the Chinese economy is actually much worse?Chinese Oil Demand Doesn't Make Sensehttps://www.wsj.com/articles/chinese-oil-demand-doesnt-make-sense-cbc02a44- "Either China's economy will accelerate rapidly in the second half—a prospect that currently looks unlikely—or oil demand will revert to more regular patterns, dragging global consumption and, potentially, prices down with it." *** Really???***- Could there be a mismatch between petroleum imports quotas and what they actually need.- "China doesn't regularly publish petroleum inventory data as the U.S. does, so it is difficult to say for sure how much diesel might be sitting in storage somewhere."Oil Bulls are Getting it All Wrong, Wall Street Veteran Warnshttps://finance.yahoo.com/news/oil-bulls-getting-wrong-wall-101242402.html- “The bulls got it all wrong,” said Ed Morse, the bank's veteran head of commodities research. “The world is still waiting for a real Chinese recovery, Europe is in recession and we still don't know if the US will have a hard landing.”- Citi's call for oil's summer average was $83/barrel. More realistic that the $97/barrel calls. But it's still off from $78...Japan to Propose Global Natural Gas Reserve to Avoid Shortageshttps://finance.yahoo.com/news/japan-propose-global-natural-gas-040004888.html- Can see why indiv countries would want to do this, but will global natural gas supplies be helpful the same way global oil reserves are when natural gas isn't traded like oil is?- Also, higher nat gas prices make Permian wells more valuable- Regional natural gas storage frameworks make much more senseDirty and Sludgy Oil Runs Hot in Asia as Saudis Cut Supply Backhttps://finance.yahoo.com/news/dirty-sludgy-oil-runs-hot-051227587.html- Less light oil on the market from Saudi Arabia and UAE has made buyers look for heavy, sour crudes- Urals price is now up close to price cap price- Was this intentional by Saudis? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit energyweek.substack.com

APAC stocks began the week subdued as participants digested mixed economic growth and activity data from China.Chinese GDP was firmer than expected QQ but disappointed YY, while Industrial Production topped estimates and Retail Sales missed.European equity futures are indicative of a lower open with the Euro Stoxx 50 -0.5% after the cash market closed up by 0.2% on Friday.DXY is contained just below the 100 mark, EUR/USD has maintained 1.12 status, antipodeans slightly lag peers.Crude futures were on the back foot with early headwinds from the resumption of production at Libya's largest oil field.Looking ahead, highlights include US NY Fed Manufacturing, Speeches from ECB's Lagarde, Lane & Elderson, Earnings from Richemont & Charles Schwab.Read the full report covering Equities, Forex, Fixed Income, Commodites and more on Newsquawk

Inflation data will continue to dominate the economic agenda in the coming week, although the spotlight will probably fall on Chinese GDP figures as well as US retail sales. The countries reporting CPI numbers include Canada, New Zealand, Japan and the United Kingdom. With inflation seemingly coming under control in America, investors will be on the lookout for any divergence in other countries' progress. However, sentiment will likely be shaped by growth indicators from the world's two largest economies as both desperately try to avoid a recession.Risk Warning: Our services involve a significant risk and can result in the loss of your invested capital. *T&Cs apply.Please consider our Risk Disclosure: https://www.xm.com/goto/risk/enRisk warning is correct at the time of publication and may change. Please check our Risk Disclosure for an up to date risk warningReceive your daily market and forex news analysis directly from experienced forex and market news analysts! Tune in here to stay updated on a daily basis: https://www.xm.com/weekly-forex-review-and-outlookIn-depth forex news analysis on all major currencies, such as EUR/USD, USD/JPY, GBP/USD, USD/CHF, USD/CAD, AUD/USD.

Kia ora,Welcome to Monday's Economy Watch where we follow the economic events and trends that affect Aotearoa/New Zealand.I'm David Chaston and this is the international edition from Interest.co.nz.And today we lead with news events in Russia are something of a gawkish sideline for us. It is China we should be watching.But first this week, in the US the spotlight will be on the Fed's big bank stress test results out Thursday, NZT. There will also be data released on May personal income and spending, as well as the PCE price indexes. Additionally, we will be following durable goods orders this week, and among other things May's new and pending home sales.Elsewhere, CPI inflation data for Canada, the EU, Germany, Italy, France, and Spain are all due. And in China, the official factory and services PMIs will be released on Friday, while locally we get both consumer and business confidence data, also on Friday.In Western financial markets, Greed trumps Fear at the moment. Investors seem bullish, even if equity markets took a bit of a reversal last week.Over the weekend in the US the first of their PMIs for June has become available and it told the tale of slowing growth, but a continuing expansion nonetheless. The factory sector is still contracting however and at a faster clip than in May. But their service sector is still expanding although that too is at a slower pace than for May even if it is still a good moderate expansion. New order growth eased, but was still the second-fastest in just over a year, while the pace of job creation slipped to its slowest since January.Perhaps we should also note that China isn't the only place where commercial property is in trouble. The rise and rise of interest rates along with growing vacancy rates is depressing the value of retail and office buildings globally. A value-quake is close.Internationally, there does seem to be a thaw in US-Chinese relations. Blinken broke the ice, and now Janet Yellen has been meeting senior Chinese leaders. Both are announcing broader cooperation deals. It is a good time for the NZ Prime Minister to visit. China's economic stumbles are making them more open to trying to build back trade with Western nations. It is very early days and it may only be tactical rather than strategic, but it seems both parties are willing to see what they can make of a thaw.China needs a thaw. On Friday, yet another large real estate developer, Central China Real Estate Limited, told the stock exchange that it could not pay interest on a bond even after the grace period. They are not the only one this week, also CIFI Holdings. It has been estimated that total Chinese developer debt is 12% of Chinese GDP which is a huge burden. This type of news is driving down their whole equity markets. Only a big redirection can weight against such drags.The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index of Hong Kong-listed Chinese companies gauge slumped more than -6% last week, its steepest weekly drop since March. The CSI 300 Index of mainland shares fell -2.5% through Wednesday before markets closed for holidays. The yuan also fell to the weakest since November, with analysts bracing for more declines.And around the world, China is having to face up to its aggressive funding of third-world infrastructure projects gone-wrong with a growing list of debt writeoffs.China might have been on the long Dragon Boat Festival break, but in northern China it is no fun at present. A temperature of over 41oC was recorded in Beijing late last week, its second highest on record (the highest was in July 1999). And it is expected to hit those same highs again at the end of this coming week. And it is not just Beijing being hit. The same heatwave is sweeping across vast areas of northern China. Officials are being exhorted to save farmland.Maybe that was a reason travel spending during the holiday fell short of pre-Covid levels, but the shortfall does underscore the slowdown in consumption.In Japan, the June PMI story is similar to the US except perhaps things are still running higher/better there.Japanese inflation ran at 3.2% in May, now the 14th straight month it has been over the Bank of Japan's 2% target. But there was no change in May from April, leading to suggestions it might be topping out. But the yen slid anyway.Singapore's CPI inflation rate dipped to 5.1% in May from 5.7% in April. The April-to-May pace was running lower than the annual levels. Food and energy prices are keeping it up, services are lower than the average.In Europe, their flash PMIs also record a contracting factory sector and an expanding services sector, but they are underperforming both the US and Japan.The Australian factory sector is still contracting too. But the retreat was less so in June than in the prior two months amid improvements in supply conditions. However, new orders are still retreating which isn't a good sign. And their services sector is no longer expanding, even if it is yet to contract.Local observers are starting to see more cracks opening up in the Australian economy. Apparently AirBNB reservations are sliding, the number of home builders going bust is rising, and about half of small businesses are concerned about their financial future, according to a survey there by Xero. It isn't helping that the RBA's official cash rate at 4.1% is lagging most other central banks by at least 100 bps and that is keeping the Aussie dollar weak and importing inflation.There is much talk that RBA Governor Lowe is about to be replaced in July. It is hard to know if that will turn confidence around or push more instability. Certainly, Lowe's defenders are now out saying now would be a bad time to make a change.The UST 10yr yield will start today still at 3.74% and unchanged for the week. The price of gold will start today at US$1920/oz, but down -US$37/oz or -1.9% for the week.And oil prices are staying low although +50 USc firmer from Saturday to now be just over US$69.50/bbl in the US. The international Brent price is now just on US$74.50/bbl. That is a -US$2.50 drop for the week.The Kiwi dollar starts today at 61.4 USc and unchanged from Saturday. But that is a full -1c lower than this time last week. Against the Aussie we are firm at 92.1 AUc and up more than +1c in a week. Against the euro we have changed little at 56.4 euro cents. That means the TWI-5 is still just on 69.8, also little-changed, but down a minor -20 bps for the week.The bitcoin price has eased from this time Saturday and now is at US$30,536 with rise dip of -1.4%. It actually didn't close on any day at NZ$50,000, falling fractionally short. Volatility over the past 24 hours has been low at just under +/- 1.0%.You can find links to the articles mentioned today in our show notes.You can get more news affecting the economy in New Zealand from interest.co.nz.Kia ora. I'm David Chaston. And we will do this again tomorrow.

Welcome back to the Weekly News show. On this episode we discuss three news stories in International Trade that have been trending over the past week. China's Big Troubles: Its Days As Global Go-To Manufacturer May Be Coming To An End.  We discuss how the Chinese GDP has dropped to an all time low in more than a generation.  Is it time for supply chains to break out the pre-pandemic playbook? Taking a look at the post-pandemic strategy for companies in working with their supply chains.  Is it time to pull out some ideas that we have not seen since before the pandemic? Nearshoring is the new reality in international trade, says head of global free zones body.  We discuss different ideas behind working with your team in developing strategies to bring manufacturing closer to home.   Enjoy the show. Host: Annik Sobing: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annik-sobing-mba-b226251a2/  Host: Andy Shiles: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andyshiles/  Host/Producer: Lalo Solorzano: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lalosolorzano/  Co-Producer: Mara Marquez: https://app.milanote.com/1M8bFD1P9F3c6G/mara?p=qFiiiJVFV2z Contact SimplyTrade@GlobalTrainingCenter.com or message @SimplyTradePod for: Advertising and sponsoring on Simply Trade Requests to be on the show as guest Suggest any topics you would like to hear about Simply Trade is not a law firm or an advisor. The topics and discussions conducted by Simply Trade hosts and guests should not be considered and is not intended to substitute legal advice. You should seek appropriate counsel for your own situation. These conversations and information are directed towards listeners in the United States for informational, educational, and entertainment purposes only and should not be In substitute for legal advice. No listener or viewer of this podcast should act or refrain from acting on the basis of information on this podcast without first seeking legal advice from counsel. Information on this podcast may not be up to date depending on the time of publishing and the time of viewership. The content of this posting is provided as is, no representations are made that the content is error free. The views expressed in or through this podcast are those are the individual speakers not those of their respective employers or Global Training Center as a whole. All liability with respect to actions taken or not taken based on the contents of this podcast are hereby expressly disclaimed.

What we're seeing is that this is not translating into strong warning signs of a rebound in inflation, notes Jeffrey Kleintop. He discusses how futures higher Tuesday as earnings season continues. He talks about how Chinese GDP for 1Q23 came in at 4.5% versus an estimated $4.0%. He then goes over Spain CPI versus Euro CPI, and dissects European inflation data. He highlights what European inflation data means for the U.S. economy. He then goes over high quality, "short duration" stocks investors should keep an eye on. Tune in to find out more about the stock market today.

Chinese GDP grows by 4.5 per cent in the first quarter – faster than expected – following the lifting of strict Covid restrictions back in December. Manufacturing and retail have also show strong signs of rebounding. In the U.S., financial groups Charles Schwab, State Street and M&T witness combined deposit outflows of almost $60bn as investors flee to seek out higher returns. Apple announces it is launching its own higher-yield account. Asian indices are down but Wall Street remains buoyant ahead of further key bank earnings due later today. French President Emmanuel Macron uses a prime time TV address to the nation to defend his controversial pension reforms. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

European bourses are firmer across the board and were resilient to softer than expected ZEW numbers with earnings in full-focus.Stateside, futures are in the green with the NQ outperforming a touch as yields ease off highs while the broader focus is firmly on upcoming bank earnings.DXY pulls back below 102.00 with the AUD, after hawkish RBA minutes, leading broad USD-induced downside.USTs and EGBs feature a modest upward skew while Gilts lag after UK wage data and associated hawkish movement in BoE pricing.Crude benchmarks are subdued despite the downbeat USD, firmer tilt to stocks and Chinese GDP data, metals in contrast are underpinned.Looking ahead, highlights include US Housing Starts/Building Permits, Canadian CPI, Fed Discount Rate Minutes, Speech from Fed's Bowman. Earnings from United Airlines, JNJ, Netflix, Goldman Sachs & Bank of America.Read the full report covering Equities, Forex, Fixed Income, Commodites and more on Newsquawk

Kia ora,Welcome to Monday's Economy Watch where we follow the economic events and trends that affect Aotearoa/New Zealand.I'm David Chaston and this is the international edition from Interest.co.nz.And today we lead with news this is a week where we get a fuller set of global inflation data, including from the UK, Japan, Canada, South Africa, Malaysia, and New Zealand on Thursday. We will also get Chinese GDP growth data for Q1-2023, industrial production and retail sales for March on Tuesday. And there is a dairy auction due on Wednesday.But first up today, China's new home prices rose in March from February at the fastest pace in 21 months, official data showed on Saturday, suggesting the market is out of the doldrums amid a flurry of support policies, but there is uncertainty on the strength of the momentum. New home prices in March edged up +0.5% month-on-month after a +0.3% rise in February, marking the fastest pace since June 2021 and the third consecutive monthly rise. But they are still lower on a year-on-year basis although only by -0.8%.Internationally, it is becoming clear that China's Belt & Road Initiative - a giant infrastructure system tying global facilities to China - is in deep trouble. Chinese lending to these projects has been slashed and it has become “a road and belt to nowhere.” Over 60 developing countries today face a debt crisis brought on by overborrowing for these Chinese-promoted projects during the heady 2010s. In 2022, 60% of Chinese overseas loans went to distressed borrowers, up from 5% in 2010. Many cannot repay.Separately late Friday, Singapore surprised analysts with an unexpectedly weak Q1-2023 GDP result, down -0.7% from the prior quarter. Actually the Q4-2022 result showed virtually no growth, so they are knocking on the door of 'recession'. Their year-on-year +2.1% rise in 2022 crashed to just +0.1% in Q1-2023 from Q1-2022.Meanwhile, the central bank of Singapore has been reported as asking financial institutions to keep quiet the flood of money coming in from wealthy Chinese.But the biggest weekend news is that American retail sales fell in March from February to be just +2.9% higher than year ago levels and far less than inflation's bite. It was a result that surprised analysts who expected a -0.4% month-on-month fall when they got -1.0%.However other American indicators weren't so negative. Industrial production rose +0.4% in March from February to be +0.5% higher than year ago levels. This data is 'real' without inflation.And consumer sentiment, as measured in the widely-watched University of Michigan survey rose too. That shift wasn't expected, but it was in both views of current conditions and expected future conditions. However, Americans apparently think inflation will rise (contrary to most other data that shows it falling).Meanwhile, the leakage from deposits at US bank accounts, which fell sharply from the start of March (-US$400 bln or -2.3%) are stabilising in the April updates. But that masks big shifts from smaller banks to the majors, who are now reporting bumper profits. And too, big funds like Blackrock. During this time the Federal Reserve stepped in with more market support, suspending its tightening. Although over this past week, it has resumed the drawdown. One consequence of the banking turmoil is that regional American banks are now offering much higher interest rates to attract back depositors.In Canada, their real estate industry is talking 'green shoots' as they enter their Spring selling season. After declining for 12 consecutive months, their national home price index rose +0.2% to C$709,000 (NZ$855,000) from February to March. Their market suffers from an unusually low number of listings available. But their much higher interest rates will make it challenging to build any sort of meaningful recovery.The OECD is pointing out that that global labour markets remain very tight in developed countries. In February, the unemployment rate remained at its record low in the OECD (4.8%) and this is despite the Euro area still much higher (6.6%). The unemployment rate was stable or decreased in more than 70% of OECD countries, but close to its lowest level in only seven countries, including Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. The UST 10yr yield starts today at 3.52%, and very little change. The price of gold is at US$2004/oz and down -US$1 from Saturday. A week ago it was at US$2008/oz, so actually very little net change.And oil prices are at up +50 USc and just over US$82.50/bbl in the US. The international Brent price is just over US$86/bbl. But a week ago these prices were US$2 lower so the net move up since then has been +2.5%.The Kiwi dollar has stayed down against the USD and still at 62.1 USc. Against the Aussie we are have remained to 92.6 AUc. Against the euro we are still at 56.5 euro cents. That means the TWI-5 is at 69.8, unchanged since Saturday and still its lowest in almost six months.The bitcoin price is again little-changed, still at US$30,331 and that's six straight days at this level. But a week ago it was at US$27,924 so it has been a major +8.6% move up from then. Volatility over the past 24 hours has remained very low at +/- 0.4%.You can find links to the articles mentioned today in our show notes.You can get more news affecting the economy in New Zealand from interest.co.nz.Kia ora. I'm David Chaston and we'll do this again tomorrow.

 ASX 200 fell hard down 57 points to 7308 (0.8%) after US falls and another day ahead of Powell testimony. Few sectors or stocks escaped today after the Fed spooking, Banks eased with CBA down 0.5% and WBC down 1.2%. The Big Bank Basket fell to $174.30 (-0.7%). MQG gave back some recent gains falling 1.1%, money managers held up better than expected. Insurers mixed. IAG and QBE slightly better. REITs slipped a little but held relatively firm, industrials mixed with WOW down 0.6% and COL off 0.3% with DMP falling another 3.8%. Tech flat with CPU up 1.4% and XRO down 1.2%. The All-Tech index only slightly easier. Healthcare mixed with RHC off 0.5% and COH up 1.1%. Resources once again the problem. A killer combo of a lower AUD, lower Chinese GDP target and falling commodity prices are hurting. WDS fell 7.2% after going ex-dividend. BHP and RIO down slightly ahead of dividends tomorrow. Gold miners crashed despite AUD Bullion unchanged, NCM down 3.3% and NST off 2.8% with EVN cratering 4.2%. Lithium on the nose, PLS down 1.4%, LTR off 2.1% and CXO falling 3.5%. Base metals also under pressure, S32 down 2.2%. On the corporate front, NCZ board threw in the towel and recommended the offer, QAN hit a three year high on an ACCC report, NXL fell hard as the Ex CEO appealed the recent decision and MSB resubmitted its application to the FDA and CAR in a trading halt as it buys another 40% of Brazilian website. On the economic front, RBA head teller went all warm and fuzzy and talked empathy on rates and the pause. Asian markets struck down on Powell comments. HK falling hard. 10-year yields remarkably steady considering. Why not sign up for a free trial? Get access to expert insights and research and become a better investor.

 ASX 200 closed up 45 points at 7329 (0.6%) as once again we saw the market bifurcate. Banks the machine again pushing ahead with the Big Bank Basket up to $174.37 (1.1%) with CBA and NAB leading the charge. MQG also doing well up 2.4% with fund managers in demand after  GQG FUM numbers sending the stock up 1.4%. Insurers a little better QBE down 0.8% as it went ex div. Industrials firmed as tech kicked again, WTC up 0.1% and XRO kicking hard for the surface up 3.8% with the All-Tech Index up %. Staples better, WOW up 1.3% with WES rallying 2.4%. Healthcare also good with bond yields coming off helping the REITs too. GMG up 2.1% and SGP 1.6% better. But once again the resources under a little pressure after Chinese GDP target fell short of expectations. BHP eked out a 0.1% rise with FMG in trouble down 2.5% and lithium stocks under pressure in places although LTR continuing to push ahead, up 5.5%. Rare earths in trouble following Musk comments last week and doubts over LYC WA plans, the stock falling 4.5%. Coal stocks on the nose too as Chinese coal miners ramp up production, WHC down a big 2.1% and SMR collapsing 4.4%. Gold miners down with NCM off 0.7% and NST falling 0.8% with oil and gas stocks easing back too, WDS down 1.5% and STO down 0.8%. In corporate news, BVS launched a company saving hail Mary capital raising. SGM sold its stake in LMS energy, CXO rallied 6.3% on a resource upgrade and MFG rose 2.3% after FUM once again fell. Nothing on the economic docket today ahead of the RBA meeting tomorrow. Asian markets slightly mixed with 10-year yields falling hard to 3.74%. Why not sign up for a free trial? Get access to expert insights and research and become a better investor.

APAC stocks traded mixed in which most bourses lacked firm direction in the absence of a lead from the US.Chinese GDP, Industrial Production and Retail Sales figures all topped estimates.European equity futures are indicative of a softer open with the Euro Stoxx 50 -0.2% after the cash market closed up 0.2% yesterday.DXY is steady on a 102 handle, EUR/USD maintains 1.08 status, JPY narrowly lags G10 FX whilst antipodeans lead.Highlights include UK Unemployment, German ZEW, Canadian CPI, Speeches from Fed's Williams, ECB's Centeno & Chinese Vice Premier Liu, Supply from UK & Germany, Earnings from Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley & United Airlines.Read the full report covering Equities, Forex, Fixed Income, Commodites and more on Newsquawk

ASX 200 closes down 2 points to 7386 (0.03%) in tight trading ahead of US reopening tonight and more results to come. Resources suffering today after iron ore stocks came under some pressure on Chinese moves. BHP failed to hold all-time highs falling 1.3% with RIO reporting quarterly today down 1.2% and FMG off 1.3%. Gold miners were in profit taking mode after the big run, NCM down 1.8% and NST off 1.5% as some brokers moved to negative recommendations. Lithium stocks remain under some pressure as did base metal stocks, S32 down 2.9% and IGO off 0.9%. Energy stocks mixed, oil stocks better led by WDS up 0.2% but coal not such a merry old soul after all, WHC off 2.3%. Banks gave up some early gains and were the swing in the market with the Big Bank Basket unchanged at $187.95 . Insurers slightly better but fund managers gave up yesterday's gains. MQG down 0.4%. Defensive industrials firmed, CSL up 1.3% and RMD rallying 1.7%. WOW COL and EDV all having a good day as bargain hunters around. Tech stocks eased, XRO down 2.3% and WTC down 1.0%. The All-Tech Index down 0.7%. In corporate news, JBH showed that retail is not dead, following SUL yesterday. DTL rose 4.3% on an earnings update and HUB fell 4.5% on a $4.4m impairment. On the economic front, Chinese GDP came in slightly better than expected. Still not great though and shows stimulus is needed post CV19. Asian markets mixed Japan down 1.2%, China off 0.2% and HK down 1%. 10-year yields 3.60%. Why not sign up for a free trial? Get access to expert insights and research and become a better investor.

ASX 200 closes up 103 points to 6779 (+1.5%). Big jump straight out of the blocks but off highs as Chinese GDP and politics sends HK down 5% and US futures give up Sunday night gains. Volume remains on the modest side, Banks shining ahead of the results later this week and to come, the Big Bank Basket now at $181.57 (+0.9%). CBA doing well up 1.2% and MQG finding some support up 2.4%. Insurers gained with IAG up 2.1% and QBE rallying 0.5%. Industrials were firm but somewhat underwhelming. TLS rose 0.5%, WOW up 1.2% and WES up 2.1%. Healthcare better, CSL up 2.1%, RMD up 1.9% and FPH up 2.4%. Tech stocks rose 2.7% with XRO up 3.5% and NXT up 3.1%. Resources were the driving force today with BHP up 2.6% being nearly 15 points of index gains. RIO up 1.2%, FMG rallying 2.5% and even gold miners gaining ground as the USD falls. NCM up 2.9% and NST up 5.0%. EVN a stand out up 7.7%. Lithium and battery tech stocks once again in favour, PLS up 6.1% on another sales result and AKE rising 1.8%. CXO rose 1.8% and LPM up 7.3%. Oil and gas were mixed, STO down 0.1% and WDS up 0.4% with coal stocks in demand, WHC up 3.4%. NHC ex-dividend today. In corporate news, S32 fell 1.9% on a disappointing quarterly and OZL dropped 1.2% on a similar underwhelming report and BHP was steadfast in only paying 2500c for the company. VUL rose 13.4% on good pilot plant news in Germany and NMT rose 10.5% on environmental permitting. On the economic front, RBA assistant Clarke talked rates and demand, and the private sector contracted for the first time in nine months in October. Asian markets stumbled lower on GDP numbers from China finally dropping and around 3.9%. 10-year yields 4.15%. Dow Futures up 19 points. Why not sign up for a free trial? Get access to expert insights and research and become a better investor.

Turkish interest rates, U.K. bond yields, Chinese GDP data (or lack thereof?) ... Our indicators this week bring us around the globe in just 10 minutes. Strap on those seatbelts!For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

China is the second largest economy in the world, and they're cutting rates and providing more economic stimulus even as the Fed and other central banks are hiking rates, says Jeffrey Kleintop. He discusses the health of the Chinese economy by looking at the Chinese GDP. He also talks about how inflation is impacting China, as well as how China-Taiwan tensions could impact markets. Tune in to find out more.

Chinese GDP grew as expected in the second quarter. June data releases showed stronger industrial production, albeit with the auto sector lagging. Critically, domestic retail sales did reasonably well - as the world economy switches to having fun, other countries will spend more on domestic services which will likely slow China's export growth.