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Brief Economics & Trade

US, China agree on trade term enforcement process

US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer told a committee in the House of Representatives that Beijing had conceded to a process by which US officials could monitor whether China was upholding the terms of any future trade agreement, the Financial Times reports. China will attend monthly meetings at the office director level to discuss and enforce […]

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Brief Economics & Trade Manufacturing

China factory activity declines for third straight month

The official manufacturing PMI, a key survey gauging the health of China’s industrial sector, gave further ground in February pointing to a sustained drag from weaker demand. The index dropped from 49.5 to 49.2 last month, the weakest in three years, and falling short of the Bloomberg median which predicted no change. The output sub-index […]

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Brief Economics & Trade Energy & Environment

China plans huge oil and gas industry shakeup

China plans to create a new state-owned company to manage the country’s entire long-distance oil and gas pipeline network, allowing its existing energy giants to focus on exploration, Reuters reports. The plan is set to be announced before the end of the year and would represent the largest reshuffle of China’s energy industry since 1998, when Beijing […]

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Brief Health Care Law & Regulation Tech, Media & Telecom

China releases new rules for DNA-editing practices

Beijing has drafted new rules for scientists using DNA-editing technology after a Chinese researcher announced the birth of the first gene-edited babies late last year, the Wall Street Journal reports. Labs will need permits from China’s state health ministry before conducting gene-editing procedures on humans, the rules stated, indicating large fines for any violators. Chinese […]

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Brief Politics & Society Tech, Media & Telecom

Merkel seeks no-spying agreement with China over Huawei

German Chancellor Angela Merkel hopes to reach an agreement with Beijing, promising that the two countries will not spy on one another so that Huawei will not have to be excluded from possibly building Germany’s 5G network, reports Reuters. “Merkel’s economic advisor Lars-Hendrik Roller was recently in China to negotiate about the agreement,” German weekly business […]