In the White House, there are no fact-checkers. That is why things were bound to go wrong when Donald Trump took the podium in Davos yesterday.
“China makes almost all the wind turbines in the world, and yet I haven’t been able to find a single wind farm in China,” he said, tossing his head confidently.
“The Chinese are very smart. They make them and sell them for a fortune. They sell them to the stupid people who buy them, but they don’t use them themselves … They just put them up to show people what they could look like, but they don’t spin, they don’t do anything.”
What nonsense.
China is not only the world’s largest producer of wind turbines; it is also the world’s largest consumer of wind power. The biggest manufacturer, Goldwind, employs more than 11,000 people in China and abroad. Around 3,000 of them work in research and development. Several other producers are close behind, and competition is fierce.
torsdag 22. januar 2026
What to know about Greenland’s role in nuclear defense and Trump’s ‘Golden Dome’
In a hypothetical nuclear war involving Russia, China and the United States, the island of Greenland would be in the middle of Armageddon.
The strategic importance of the Arctic territory — under the flight paths that nuclear-armed missiles from China and Russia could take on their way to incinerating targets in the United States, and vice versa — is one of the reasons U.S. President Donald Trump has cited in his disruptive campaign to wrest control of Greenland from Denmark, alarming Greenlanders and longtime allies in Europe alike.
Trump has argued that U.S. ownership of Greenland is vital for his “Golden Dome” — a multibillion dollar missile defense system that he says will be operational before his term ends in 2029.
The strategic importance of the Arctic territory — under the flight paths that nuclear-armed missiles from China and Russia could take on their way to incinerating targets in the United States, and vice versa — is one of the reasons U.S. President Donald Trump has cited in his disruptive campaign to wrest control of Greenland from Denmark, alarming Greenlanders and longtime allies in Europe alike.
Trump has argued that U.S. ownership of Greenland is vital for his “Golden Dome” — a multibillion dollar missile defense system that he says will be operational before his term ends in 2029.
Man who assassinated former Japan leader Abe with homemade gun sentenced to life in prison
The man who killed Japan’s ex-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe with a homemade gun was sentenced to life in prison on Wednesday, public broadcaster NHK reported. The ruling concludes a trial over an assassination that shocked Japan – where gun violence is rare – and put the spotlight on an influential religious sect.
Tetsuya Yamagami shot Abe in broad daylight with a gun he fashioned at home, while the former leader was giving a campaign speech on a street in the western city of Nara in 2022. Abe had stepped down as prime minister in 2020 over health reasons. But he was still politically active and wielded enormous influence as Japan’s longest-serving premier.
Tetsuya Yamagami shot Abe in broad daylight with a gun he fashioned at home, while the former leader was giving a campaign speech on a street in the western city of Nara in 2022. Abe had stepped down as prime minister in 2020 over health reasons. But he was still politically active and wielded enormous influence as Japan’s longest-serving premier.
China meets initial soybean purchase goal, but Trump’s shifting trade policy could disrupt deal
China has fulfilled its initial commitment to buy 12 million metric tons of soybeans from the U.S., but it’s not clear if the trade agreement announced in October can withstand President Donald Trump’s ever-shifting trade policy as American farmers are still dealing with high production costs.
Earlier this month, Trump said he would impose 25% tariffs on any country that buys from Iran, which would include China. Then last weekend he threatened to impose 10% tariffs on eight of America’s closest allies in Europe if they continue to oppose his efforts to acquire Greenland.
So the administration’s trade policy continues to change quickly, and Iowa State University agricultural economist Chad Hart said that could undermine the trade agreement with China and jeopardize the commitment by the world’s largest soybean buyer to purchase 25 million metric tons of American soybeans in each of the next three years.
Earlier this month, Trump said he would impose 25% tariffs on any country that buys from Iran, which would include China. Then last weekend he threatened to impose 10% tariffs on eight of America’s closest allies in Europe if they continue to oppose his efforts to acquire Greenland.
So the administration’s trade policy continues to change quickly, and Iowa State University agricultural economist Chad Hart said that could undermine the trade agreement with China and jeopardize the commitment by the world’s largest soybean buyer to purchase 25 million metric tons of American soybeans in each of the next three years.
China stays resilient in first year of Trump 2.0
Days before US President Donald Trump marked his first year back in the White House on Tuesday, China released a series of economic data showing signs of resilience against trade pressure from the United States.
The world's second-largest economy reported 5% economic growth for 2025 on Monday, meeting the government's annual target. Data released last week also showed a record trade surplus of nearly $1.2 trillion for the year. Analysts say the surplus, driven by dumping exports on non-US markets, indicates that Chinese products remain globally competitive on price and that Beijing has managed to cushion the blow of Trump's trade policies.
"[The Trump administration] may have entered the office thinking that they could use their economic leverage to push China in certain policy directions," said Amanda Hsiao, a China studies director at the Eurasia Group consultancy.
"In fact, Beijing has its own pieces of leverage that match Washington's as well."
The world's second-largest economy reported 5% economic growth for 2025 on Monday, meeting the government's annual target. Data released last week also showed a record trade surplus of nearly $1.2 trillion for the year. Analysts say the surplus, driven by dumping exports on non-US markets, indicates that Chinese products remain globally competitive on price and that Beijing has managed to cushion the blow of Trump's trade policies.
"[The Trump administration] may have entered the office thinking that they could use their economic leverage to push China in certain policy directions," said Amanda Hsiao, a China studies director at the Eurasia Group consultancy.
"In fact, Beijing has its own pieces of leverage that match Washington's as well."
South Korea’s former leader jailed for 23 years in martial law case
South Korean court ruled Wednesday that the ill-fated imposition of martial law by the then President Yoon Suk Yeol constituted an act of rebellion, as it sentenced his prime minister to 23 years in prison for his involvement.
Ex-Prime Minister Han Duck-soo became the first Yoon administration official convicted of rebellion charges in relation to the martial law imposition in December 2024. The verdict is expected to set the stage for upcoming rulings involving Yoon and his other associates, who also face rebellion charges.
Han, who was appointed by Yoon, served as one of the three caretaker leaders during the martial law crisis that led to Yoon’s impeachment and eventually his removal from office.
Ex-Prime Minister Han Duck-soo became the first Yoon administration official convicted of rebellion charges in relation to the martial law imposition in December 2024. The verdict is expected to set the stage for upcoming rulings involving Yoon and his other associates, who also face rebellion charges.
Han, who was appointed by Yoon, served as one of the three caretaker leaders during the martial law crisis that led to Yoon’s impeachment and eventually his removal from office.
Carney’s China trip shows energy is Canada’s gateway to Asia
Canada has a lot to gain in Asia. From his attendance at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in October 2025 to his recent visit in Beijing, Prime Minister Mark Carney’s diplomatic trips to Asia show that Canada has both an interest and a need to enter the huge Asian market.
The Indo-Pacific region is now the world’s main economic engine, contributing up to 60% of global growth. While Japan and South Korea recorded growth rates of between 1% to 2% for 2025, China is maintaining a growth rate of 4.2%, India of 6.6% and the ASEAN nations (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste and Vietnam) are growing at a rate of 4.3%.
The Indo-Pacific region is now the world’s main economic engine, contributing up to 60% of global growth. While Japan and South Korea recorded growth rates of between 1% to 2% for 2025, China is maintaining a growth rate of 4.2%, India of 6.6% and the ASEAN nations (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste and Vietnam) are growing at a rate of 4.3%.
Hong Kong: Organizers of Tiananmen vigil put on trial
Three former leaders of a disbanded group that organized vigils marking Beijing's 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown on pro-democracy protests went on trial in Hong Kong on Thursday, half a decade after their 2021 detention.
The annual memorial event was once legal in China-ruled Hong Kong, and celebrated as a symbol of the relative freedom there. But it was stamped out in the aftermath of the COVID pandemic using a new national security law imposed from Beijing.
Police guarded the West Kowloon Magistrates' Court on Thursday amid considerable public and press interest in the case. Lee Cheuk-yan, 68, Albert Ho, 74, and Chow Hang-tung, 40, are three former leaders of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China.
The annual memorial event was once legal in China-ruled Hong Kong, and celebrated as a symbol of the relative freedom there. But it was stamped out in the aftermath of the COVID pandemic using a new national security law imposed from Beijing.
Police guarded the West Kowloon Magistrates' Court on Thursday amid considerable public and press interest in the case. Lee Cheuk-yan, 68, Albert Ho, 74, and Chow Hang-tung, 40, are three former leaders of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China.
As Trump sows division, China says it’s the calm, dependable leader the world needs
As US President Donald Trump primed his arrival in Davos by sowing discord with allies – ramping up threats to take control of Greenland, vowing to levy tariffs on opponents of that bid, and leaking private messages from European leaders – Beijing took the cue to position itself as an alternative global leader.
And there’s a growing audience willing to listen.
Hours after Trump’s broadside, Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng took the stage at the annual Alpine meet to insist that Beijing “has consistently acted on the vision of a community with a shared future and remained steadfast in supporting multilateralism and free trade.”
And there’s a growing audience willing to listen.
Hours after Trump’s broadside, Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng took the stage at the annual Alpine meet to insist that Beijing “has consistently acted on the vision of a community with a shared future and remained steadfast in supporting multilateralism and free trade.”
Can China rely on domestic oil after Iran, Venezuela shocks?
China gets up to a fifth of its imported oil from Iran and another 4 to 5% from Venezuela, often through clandestine channels to skirt United States sanctions — or at least it did before recent disruptions. US President Donald Trump's move earlier this month to unseat Venezuela’s longtime leader, Nicolas Maduro, redirect its oil to the US and impose 25% tariffs on Iran-linked trade has raised serious questions about energy security in the world's second-largest economy.
Oil prices briefly spiked on fears that China’s discounted Iranian supplies could be hit, while experts warned that US seizures of Venezuela-linked oil tankers may further constrict flows.
Oil prices briefly spiked on fears that China’s discounted Iranian supplies could be hit, while experts warned that US seizures of Venezuela-linked oil tankers may further constrict flows.
mandag 19. januar 2026
Greenland crisis is Asia’s crisis, too
Asia should pay close attention to what markets are signaling on the Greenland crisis. Distance offers no protection in a global system where trade, capital and confidence remain tightly interlinked. Moves this week across asset classes show investors are treating this episode as more than a political sideshow. Gold hitting record highs alongside falling global equities reflects a judgment call by markets.
Investors don’t reposition portfolios simply because of headlines. They do so when intent appears credible and consequences appear acceptable. Capital shifts when escalation sits within the realm of probability.
Asia faces direct exposure because its economic model remains closely tied to conditions in the US and Europe. History shows that when confidence weakens across those economies, the effects travel quickly through trade volumes, earnings and investment decisions across the region. Asia doesn’t need to sit at the center of a dispute to absorb impact.
Investors don’t reposition portfolios simply because of headlines. They do so when intent appears credible and consequences appear acceptable. Capital shifts when escalation sits within the realm of probability.
Asia faces direct exposure because its economic model remains closely tied to conditions in the US and Europe. History shows that when confidence weakens across those economies, the effects travel quickly through trade volumes, earnings and investment decisions across the region. Asia doesn’t need to sit at the center of a dispute to absorb impact.
Torbjørn Færøvik: Persia - Echoes of a Golden Age
After four hours of wandering through the National Museum in Tehran, Rostam and I each ordered a bowl of meat soup.
“Rostam,” I said as I began to glimpse the bottom of my bowl, “when did Iran have its golden age?”
“Two thousand five hundred years ago,” he replied without hesitation.
We were both full—sated by the impressions from the museum and by the rich soup the Iranians call ābgusht. As a guide, Rostam knew the National Museum well, but for me it was a new experience. We could easily have spent several more days in its imposing halls, but new adventures awaited us.
China’s record surplus makes a mockery of Trump’s tariffs
The numbers are in, and they paint a picture that defies the conventional wisdom of Washington’s trade hawks. In 2025, China’s trade surplus surged to a record high of US$1.2 trillion. In December alone, the surplus reached $114 billion, driven by a higher-than-expected 6.6% growth in exports and 5.7% growth in imports.
The trade surplus refers to the amount by which Chinese exports outnumber its imports. And far from being strangled by external pressure – in particular from the US under Donald Trump – China’s export engine is running hotter than ever. This creates a paradox for the ordinary observer. For several years, the narrative has been that the US is locked in a divisive trade war with China. This has brought sweeping tariffs intended to decouple the two economies and reduce American reliance on Chinese manufacturing.
Wrangling following Trump’s liberation day tariff announcement on April 2 2025 was apparently settled in November. This left the average tariff imposed on Chinese goods being imported to the US at 47%, down from 145%.
The trade surplus refers to the amount by which Chinese exports outnumber its imports. And far from being strangled by external pressure – in particular from the US under Donald Trump – China’s export engine is running hotter than ever. This creates a paradox for the ordinary observer. For several years, the narrative has been that the US is locked in a divisive trade war with China. This has brought sweeping tariffs intended to decouple the two economies and reduce American reliance on Chinese manufacturing.
Wrangling following Trump’s liberation day tariff announcement on April 2 2025 was apparently settled in November. This left the average tariff imposed on Chinese goods being imported to the US at 47%, down from 145%.
Japan prime minister Takaichi to dissolve parliament Friday and call national election
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Monday called a snap general election with a vow to suspend an 8% food levy for two years, echoing proposals by her rivals despite the potential strain on the country’salready precarious finances. A consumption tax cut that many opposition parties have also proposed would create a huge hole in state revenue at a time when concern over Japan’s fiscal health is pushing up bond yields to multi-decade highs.
Japan levies an 8% consumption tax on food and a 10% levy on other goods and services, helping to fund rising social welfare costs among a rapidly aging population.
Japan levies an 8% consumption tax on food and a 10% levy on other goods and services, helping to fund rising social welfare costs among a rapidly aging population.
China’s population falls again as births drop to lowest rate since 1949 communist revolution
How do you persuade a population to have more babies after generations of limiting families to just one?
A decade after ending China’s longtime one-child policy, the country’s authorities are pushing a range of ideas and policies to try to encourage more births — tactics that range from cash subsidies to taxing condoms to eliminating a tax on matchmakers and day care centers.The efforts haven’t paid off yet. At least, that’s what population figures released Monday show for what is now the world’s second-most populous nation. China’s population of 1.4 billion continued to shrink, marking the fourth straight year of decrease, new government statistics show. The total population in 2025 stood at 1.404 billion, which was 3 million less than the previous year.
A decade after ending China’s longtime one-child policy, the country’s authorities are pushing a range of ideas and policies to try to encourage more births — tactics that range from cash subsidies to taxing condoms to eliminating a tax on matchmakers and day care centers.The efforts haven’t paid off yet. At least, that’s what population figures released Monday show for what is now the world’s second-most populous nation. China’s population of 1.4 billion continued to shrink, marking the fourth straight year of decrease, new government statistics show. The total population in 2025 stood at 1.404 billion, which was 3 million less than the previous year.
Canada’s leader leaves China pronouncing success, but Trump lurks in the background
Canadian leader Mark Carney met China’s Xi Jinping this week. The two statesmen talked. Fractured relationships began to heal. And a third man, though he wasn’t in the room, nevertheless made his presence clearly known: Donald Trump.
The American president — his policies, his approaches to international relations, his freewheeling and provocative statements about Canada — helped inform meetings 8,000 miles (13,000 kilometers) away between two nations working to reestablish ties stalled for nearly a decade as they grapple with the same challenge: wondering what Washington might do next.
Canada’s reengagement with China, its second-largest trading partner behind the U.S., is unfolding in keeping with a term Chinese media have loved this past week — “strategic autonomy.” Essentially, it means that a nation like Canada, so intertwined with the United States for so long as unswerving allies, needs other pillars to hold up its international foundations given recent speed bumps in the Washington-Ottawa relationship.
The American president — his policies, his approaches to international relations, his freewheeling and provocative statements about Canada — helped inform meetings 8,000 miles (13,000 kilometers) away between two nations working to reestablish ties stalled for nearly a decade as they grapple with the same challenge: wondering what Washington might do next.
Canada’s reengagement with China, its second-largest trading partner behind the U.S., is unfolding in keeping with a term Chinese media have loved this past week — “strategic autonomy.” Essentially, it means that a nation like Canada, so intertwined with the United States for so long as unswerving allies, needs other pillars to hold up its international foundations given recent speed bumps in the Washington-Ottawa relationship.
Vietnam party meeting opens with leadership and economic growth on the line
Vietnam’s most important political conclave began Monday, as the ruling Communist Party convened to decide the country’s leadership and broad policy course for the next five years. A total of 1,586 delegates from across Vietnam gathered in the capital, Hanoi, for the National Congress, the party’s highest decision-making body, which meets every five years to elect its top leadership and set priorities shaping the country’s political and economic direction.
Delegates will elect about 200 members to the party’s Central Committee, which in turn appoints 17 to 19 members to the powerful Politburo in a tightly choreographed process.
Delegates will elect about 200 members to the party’s Central Committee, which in turn appoints 17 to 19 members to the powerful Politburo in a tightly choreographed process.
søndag 18. januar 2026
Opponents protest against China’s planned UK ‘mega embassy’ as decision deadline loons
Britain’s main opposition leader joined a protest Saturday against China’s planned new embassy in London, days before a deadline for the government to approve or block the project. Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch urged the Labour government to reject the plans, saying the Chinese government had “harassed and sanctioned” members of Parliament and “abused British nationals connected to China.”
“We know that we have to stand up to the abuses of China. And what worries me is that we have a government right now that seems to be scared of China,” she told hundreds of demonstrators who gathered at the site, chanting “no China mega embassy.”
Politicians from several opposition parties addressed the rally.
“We know that we have to stand up to the abuses of China. And what worries me is that we have a government right now that seems to be scared of China,” she told hundreds of demonstrators who gathered at the site, chanting “no China mega embassy.”
Politicians from several opposition parties addressed the rally.
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