China's gross domestic product (GDP) expanded 8.1 percent year-on-year to $18 trillion in 2021, data released by the National Bureau of Statistics revealed on Monday.

US electric vehicle (EV) company Tesla has reportedly signed a contract with an Australian company to import graphite, a key component for EV batteries, from southern African country Mozambique. Yet, such a normal business deal to seek raw material supply from a suitable provider was interpreted by some Western media outlets as a move to “reduce reliance on Chinese supply chains”.

The experience of various countries, as well as India's history since independence, show that protectionist policies are always a double-edged sword for a country's industrial development. Moreover, even the US is emphasizing the principle of reciprocity and it is a question of how many countries would be willing to give unequal opening treatments to India.

The massive eruption of an underwater volcano off Tonga, which triggered tsunami waves to hit the Pacific island nation and other locations in the Pacific, has become a focus of global headlines.

As American businesses and consumers grapple with growing supply disruptions and skyrocketing inflation amid the Omicron wave, US media outlets and institutions are busy engaged in a new round of blame, vilifying China's “dynamic zero Covid case” strategy.

China on Monday announced its GDP grew by 8.1 percent in 2021, the fastest pace in nearly a decade and arguably one of the fastest growths among major economies. The stronger-than-expected figures could not have come at a better time, as many in the country and abroad are painting a rather gloomy outlook for the world's second-largest economy amid multiple headwinds, most notably the spread of the Omicron variant.

After a meeting between Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi and visiting Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian in Wuxi city, East China's Jiangsu Province, the two sides jointly announced the launch of the implementation of a 25-year comprehensive cooperation plan, according to a summary of the meeting published on Saturday on the Chinese Foreign Ministry website.

Throughout 2021, US President Joe Biden and Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell insisted that consumer price rises were only “transitory”, and inflation would fade away in the face of more federal spending, key of which was Biden's slated $1.8 trillion 'Build Back Better' initiative. It turned out they were very wrong.

The sheer size of China's foreign trade, the largest for a single country, is indicative of the world's economic tectonic shift across the Pacific Ocean from the east rim to the west.

Chinese tech startups attracted record high investments in 2021 despite China enhanced regulations on its tech industry, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, noting that China remains popular as an investment destination.

India appears to be showing a sense of unusual urgency in expanding its trade network these days, in contrast to its long-held protectionist stance. However, India must understand clearly that any attempt to exclude China, the world's second-largest economy and biggest trading nation, will seriously hamper its quest for influence in global trade.

An official from Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region on Thursday issued a stern warning to US retail giant Walmart Inc's Sam's Club over its egregious act of removing Xinjiang products from the shelves without a valid reason.

One thing that is as stubborn and mutable as the novel coronavirus is doomsayers of the Chinese economy. Their “China collapse theory” has been repeatedly struck down by the rapid rise of the Chinese economy through ups and downs over the years, but it keeps coming back in various forms – just like how the virus keeps coming back with new variants.

The US Chamber of Commerce has called on the US government to come up with "a cohesive strategy about how we are confronting China on regulatory practices and human rights abuses, and at the same time that we're able to compete to sell into that marketplace, and to cooperate on issues like sustainability," Reuters reported on Tuesday, citing Suzanne Clark, president of the group.

Economic cooperation between China and Sri Lanka has made headlines lately, after Sri Lanka asked for China's help on its debt restructuring. A spokesperson for China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said earlier this week that China will continue to provide assistance to Sri Lanka's economic and social development to the best of its capacity, when commenting on the issue of "Sri Lanka's debt restructuring."

Citing risks of debt default in certain African countries, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday that China has "signaled a more cautious approach" and applied "the brakes to Africa lending." In what looks more like an opinion piece than a news article, the outlet also repeated the "debt trap" vilification against China, claiming that "Chinese lending is essentially predatory."

Lithuania's Economy Minister Ausrine Armonaite said on Tuesday that the island of Taiwan has strengthened its financial commitment to Lithuania by launching a $1 billion credit fund for joint investment projects between the two parties.

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said on Monday that the US and India are expected to move forward on a series of initiatives in 2022, including fighting the COVID-19 and climate change, promoting the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QUAD), expanding trade and investment, and cooperating on new and emerging technologies.

The China-Canada economic relationship remains on rocky ground with many obstacles emerging in 2022, dashing the hope of many for improving bilateral ties following the safe return of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou in late September last year.

US Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has vowed to continue exerting pressure on China and demand China to impalement the phase one trade agreement between China and the US, according to Reuters.

US chipmaker Intel has moved to delete a paragraph regarding Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region from an annual letter to suppliers, which sparked widespread anger among the Chinese public and prompted at least one partner, pop singer Wang Junkai, to sever ties with the company.

Danny Alexander, a former chief secretary to the UK Treasury and currently a vice president for policy and strategy at the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), sparked a new wave of criticism of the UK's membership at the multilateral lender, when he reportedly talked about how the bank paved a way for "Europe and China to cooperate, by investing in building projects globally," and offered a "message of hope."

During a meeting with Chinese State Councilor and Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi in Colombo on Sunday, Sri Lanka's President Gotabaya Rajapaksa asked China to restructure its debt repayments as part of an effort to help the South Asian country navigate its worsening financial situation, according to a statement from the president's office.

The US is stepping up efforts to tie the EU to its anti-China chariot after EU member Lithuania fell victim to the US' global campaign to push countries to use the Taiwan question to confront China.

Some Western organizations are again rooting for India's economy, predicting it will overtake Germany and Japan to become the world's third largest economy by 2030. The IHS Markit said in a report last week that India's nominal GDP, now measured at $2.7 trillion, may surge to $8.4 trillion within nine years.

Concerns, genuine or otherwise, were already growing over the downward pressure of the Chinese economy in 2022, then a new severe wave of COVID-19 infections in several major cities, including the spread of the more transmissible Omicron variant, sparked a new wave of concern for the world's second-largest economy.

In spite of the continuous waves from the COVID-19 pandemic, many still maintain high expectations on the Indian economy as one latest report estimates that the country is likely to surpass Japan to become the second largest economy in Asia-Pacific region by 2030 and the third largest in the world.

The unrest in Kazakhstan has attracted global attention over recent days. While the situation was reportedly largely brought under control by local authorities over the weekend, the worst violence in this Central Asian state in the past three decades has still triggered concern over the potential impact on China's economic and trade cooperation with Kazakhstan.

Everyone knows free trade enhances productivity and creates wealth. With the 15-member RCEP (Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership) coming into force at the beginning of 2022, the world's largest free trade area is born that will bring heightened certainty to open, fair, inclusive and rules-based multinational trade and investment to all the signatories. In sharp contrast to the US government's penchant for imposing trade tariffs and unilateral economic sanctions against other countries, RCEP is likely to make Asia the "center of gravity" for global commerce and prosperity.

While it is a widely-accepted trend for internet giants to face growing regulatory scrutiny around the world, it is strange that some Western media outlets continue to believe that China's efforts to regulate its internet economy will harm Chinese economy.

Jim Cramer, the famed financial commentator on the US business news network CNBC who usually has plenty of recommendations for stock picks even during periods of financial crisis (He once said Bear Stearns was in good shape right before it imploded in 2008), appears to be running out of recommendations when it comes Chinese stocks.

Just a day after Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda publicly acknowledged that it was a mistake to allow the island of Taiwan to open a so-called representative office in Vilnius, the Baltic nation on Wednesday reportedly blocked a railway contract with a China-owned company, doubling down on its provocation against China.

The US' flagship electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla launched a showroom recently in China's northwestern Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, a normal move for an auto business because residents in that region are becoming increasingly affluent now and many aspire to purchase a car. However, some political figures, trade groups and organizations in the US have gone too far in criticizing and condemning Tesla for “alienating the policy of the Biden administration” and “taking the side of Beijing”.

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda has publicly acknowledged that it was a mistake to allow a "Taiwan representative office" in its capital Vilnius, which is in direct violation of the one-China principle.

At a time when the US has witnessed 1 million coronavirus cases in a single day, it is ironic to see political-risk consulting firm Eurasia Group claim that the potential "failure" of China's zero-COVID policy poses the biggest global risk in 2022.

The global shortage of semiconductors has been sustained for over a year, with no ending in sight. Industrial reports revealed recently that delivery time for chips increased again in December 2021, dampening the outlook of related industries that relate to nearly all segments of the global economy.

For any foreign company that has deep ties in the Chinese market, it should not be hard to recognize the lies about Xinjiang and the political motives within the US to spread them. What they need is the wisdom and courage to stand up to such hysterical nonsense.

The Pakistan-China business and investment forum kicked off on Monday in Islamabad, gathering companies from both countries with an aim to increase Chinese investment in Pakistan.

As a new American legislation puts multinational companies in a dilemma when it comes to their Xinjiang-related businesses, one of the countermeasures China could take is to increase the region's economic attractiveness to foreign companies to gradually put this debate to rest.

The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) that came into effect on January 1 includes China, Japan, and South Korea into the same free trade framework for the first time.

Whether tensions will see clear and continuous easing requires further observation, but it is certain that an improved bilateral relation is mutually beneficial and would be in line with India's tough recovery, especially when the South Asian economy has been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Amid new changes seen across the global and domestic pandemic situation, maintaining a zero-COVID policy while still ensuring normal economic activity is likely to be the most crucial challenge facing the Chinese economy this year.

It is always difficult to predict the economic development trends at the beginning of a new year, especially as the Omicron, Delta and other mutations of the coronavirus combine to throw many countries into disarray. Also, the geopolitical uncertainty resulting from the US government's desperation to impede the growth of China, Russia and other economies is unlikely to abate soon, which will create more divisions in the world and possibly make the prospects for the global economy even bleaker.

Over the past two weeks or so, several foreign companies have become mired in controversy in the Chinese market. Following US chip firm Intel, supermarket operator Sam's Club and German carmaker Mercedes-Benz, US entertainment giant Disney has been on the receiving end of a local backlash.

With the China-Laos railway officially put into use, the Laotian people are now expecting more visitors after the country reopens its borders to fully vaccinated tourists in January 2022. Holding a sour-grapes mentality, Western media outlets, again, took the chance to hype up the baseless “debt trap” stories.

As the China-US phase one trade agreement is set to mark two years in force next month, there are many questions about the progress of the deal amid the COVID-19 pandemic. But if there were any issues with the implementation process, it is the US side who should accept the blame, given the country's worst response to the public health crisis, severe economic and logistical woes and refusal to give up protectionist trade policies.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Monday inaugurated a new ferronickel plant invested by a Chinese company in southeast Sulawesi province. In addition to creating local jobs, and boosting taxation and foreign exchange reserves, the $2.7 billion project will largely improve the resource-rich country's status in the global value chain.

The eighth round of talks between six major countries and Iran on reviving the 2015 nuclear accord, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), resumed in Vienna on Monday.

Spanish multinational telecom company Telefónica has bought in 5G network equipment from Swedish manufacturer Ericsson to replace some of the Huawei gear, according to Reuters.

It is a bleak winter for Europe mired in a seemingly endless energy crisis, with gas prices in Europe surging six-fold now. Last week, the European benchmark, the Dutch gas price on the ICE futures exchange, hit a record high.

British consultancy Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) predicted in its annual report on Sunday that China will overtake the US as the world's top economy in 2030, two years later than its previous forecast one year ago.

China on Monday renewed its foreign investment negative lists, shortening the lists five years in a row. Among major changes, restrictions on foreign ownership in passenger car manufacturing are now removed.

China's e-commerce giant Alibaba group experienced its “darkest” year in 2021, as it faced a series of uncertainties including tightened government oversight at home, geopolitical tensions from Washington and US securities authorities' consistent suppression of Chinese public companies.

If India were to choose an ally, it would be China first and foremost, not the US, as this is in line with the laws of economic development under globalization, and the needs of the two peoples' interests.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison had an unexpected Christmas "present" by joining TikTok, a popular Chinese-owned social media platform that he harshly criticized only a year ago.

Facing a myriad of uncertainties from the unabated global spread of coronavirus and the US-induced geopolitical tensions, China is ramping up efforts to ensure its juggernaut economy sail through churning high seas in early 2022. Internal investment and foreign trade will undoubtedly take the lead in propelling the country's continuous growth and prosperity.

One of the vital roles of any sensible government is to expand the horizon for its businesses, but sensible, these days, does not come close to describing the US government, which has evidently set out on an unprecedented mission to ruin US businesses' prospects in the Chinese market.

With Christmas just around the corner, US retailers are still preparing for last-minute holiday shopping rush, after disappointing shopping traffic and sales numbers during the “Super Saturday,” which is usually one of the busiest shopping days of the year in the US.

US chip giant Intel on Thursday said that it “deeply apologizes” for the trouble caused to its “respected Chinese customers, partners and the public,” saying its letter requesting all suppliers to ban the use of products and labor from Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region sparked “many questions and concerns among our cherished Chinese partners, and we deeply regret it.”

That is not to suggest that there might be actions against Intel for undermining China's interests but we certainly hope that Intel and other global businesses will respect the Chinese market and Chinese consumers as they would in any other country. Otherwise, they should be prepared for intense scrutiny and anger from the Chinese public coming their way.

Lithuania may still be banking on support from the US in the face of economic woes, but Washington could only pay lip service for Vilnius' requests following the latter's pathetic participation in political game in which the Baltic nation is nothing more than a US pawn.

The Indian government's efforts to woo international companies to relocate their production to the South Asian country, amid the US' political maneuver to split the global industrial chain and the COVID-19 pandemic's interruption to global supply chain, have recently encountered more roadblocks.

Both the success of Amazon and Tesla in China demonstrate the success of China's reform and opening-up as well as the improvement of its business environment. When the world was hit hard by blow of COVID-19 pandemic and economic recession which led to plummet cross-border direct investment, China was the only economy recording actual FDI growth.

It is no secret that the US has become increasingly paranoid about anything related to China. The latest case in point is China's digitalization efforts in the global shipping industry.

Australia's resources and energy exports are expected to reach a new high of AU$379 billion ($272 billion) during the current fiscal year, Australia's Minister for Resources and Water Keith Pitt said on Monday. In the context of deteriorating China-Australia relations, this estimate has prompted some Western media outlets to claim China's “economic coercion” has backfired.

Some Western media outlets have been hyping up China's “economic coercion” against Lithuania over the latter's provocative actions on the Taiwan question, prompting concerns among some European companies that their exports to China that contain Lithuanian components may face trouble entering the country.

China welcomes and appreciates South Pacific island country Samoa's recent accession to the Joint Statement of China-Pacific Island Countries Foreign Ministers' Meeting held on October 21. China stands ready to work together with Samoa and other island nations to strengthen dialogue, exchange and cooperation across all sectors, China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Friday.

While it is commendable that the UK has made progress in expanding its "circle of friends" for economic and trade cooperation, the potential trade benefits are limited compared with its need to boost a domestic economy that has been seriously hit by both Brexit and the pandemic.

The world has yet to see a light at the end of the tunnel, although the coronavirus pandemic has ravaged our globe for almost two years. Now, the new Omicron variant is spreading twice as fast as the highly infectious Delta mutant, and scientists say even vaccinated people cannot evade Omicron and risk sickness and hospitalization. It is almost certain the pandemic's onslaught will continue in 2022.

Though it is understandable for any manufacturer to shore up competitiveness or diversify supply sources, it is of great significance to point out that the "counter China" initiative, as some media and politicians have portrayed, is wrong and pursuing development by decoupling with the sector's leading player would not be a wise choice for India, obviously.

US President Joe Biden on Wednesday signed two new executive orders imposing sanctions on 25 entities and individuals allegedly involved in drug trafficking, among which four Chinese chemical companies and one Chinese citizen appeared on the sanction list for supplying chemicals used to make fentanyl.

US President Joe Biden's exclusive summit for democracy, which was even skipped by some of the US' allies, prompted a rare global discussion of what real democracy is and whether the US can still represent democracy. The questions wouldn't draw much dispute just a few years ago as the US was proclaimed to be the "beacon of democracy." But what the world has witnessed over the past several years is the rapid decay of American democracy.

The UK said it views China and Russia as strategic rivals in the developments of some major technologies such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing and microprocessor design, and it would push back at what it casts as attempts by Russia and China to establish national sovereignty over the communications arteries and emerging technologies, according to Reuters.

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) recently reached cooperation with Chinese smartphone maker OPPO's Indian branch, sparking wide controversy in the country as voices questioning that the deal releases mixed signals against the backdrop of India banning hundreds of Chinese apps.

Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid on Tuesday announced that the Taliban have resumed work with China on the Aynak Copper Mine project, the world's second-largest copper mine, according to Russian news agency Sputnik.

The recently inaugurated metro line in Hanoi, Vietnam has now officially entered service after a two-week free trial operation. The fact that a smaller number of riders was recorded, compared with the trial period, is a chance Western media outlets could not miss to "question" any project where China or Chinese firms participate.

While there are no short of tough voices against China in Europe recently, reports about constructive progress in China-EU economic and trade cooperation continue to flow in, an interesting contrast reflecting that pragmatism is driving bilateral ties.

A report from the Harvard Kennedy School last week predicted that China is poised to overtake the US in core 21st century technologies, including AI, 5G and semiconductor within the next decade.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, after attending the G7 Foreign and Development Ministers' Meeting in the UK, is now on a four-day trip to Southeast Asia against a backdrop of Biden's so-called commitment to "elevating US-ASEAN engagement to unprecedented levels."

With the US attempting to ring-fence Chinese telecommunications technology, it has become more urgent than ever for China to break the blockade of West-led alliance in consolidating its role in network infrastructure.

China's tone-setting Central Economic Work Conference came to a close on Friday in Beijing, in which top officials sent a clear signal that stabilizing growth in the coming year was a top priority.

Consumer prices surged across the board in the US, with the country's Labor Department reporting on Friday that inflation shot up by 6.8 percent in November from a year ago, marking the sharpest inflationary spike in 39 years. Food prices, housing rent, energy costs and a host of services, all climbed considerably, causing a fresh round of discontent and concern toward the Biden administration's competency in managing the economy.

With only a few days to go before the 20th anniversary of China's accession to the WTO, it is ludicrous to see US Republican Senator Marco Rubio, like some internet influencers, take advantage of the situation to again blame China for the US' economic problems.

It is impossible for the US and its allies to establish a set of rules in the WTO that only serve their own economic interests. The Europe and Japan will not completely follow the US to set in place US-centric trade rules. Not to mention that most developing countries in the WTO will definitely support China's position on the WTO reform.

A US development agency focusing on emerging markets announced on Tuesday approval to finance the country's largest solar manufacturing company to build a factory in India, which has been widely viewed as a move aiming to weaken China's leading role in the industry.

The European Commission was set to propose on Wednesday an "anti-coercion" trade measure that is designed to create a pathway to more easily launch economic retaliation against non-EU countries.

The Council of the EU on Monday announced its decision to prolong its so-called sanctions against individuals and entities alleged to be responsible for "human rights violations" until December 8, 2022, in which four Chinese individuals and one Chinese entity were included in a series of baseless accusations centered on "violating human rights" in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

China's central bank on Monday announced to cut the reserve requirement ratio (RRR) by 50 basis points for all financial institutions, while on the other side of the Pacific, the US Federal Reserve is widely anticipated to tighten its monetary policy.

After the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) responded to concerns about the prospects of Chinese companies going public in the US, US-listed Chinese stocks rebounded on Monday following last week's sell-offs. The Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index closed up 3 percent. Alibaba shares rose 10.4 percent, recording the biggest one-day gain in four and a half years.

In its Asia Power Index for 2021 released on Sunday, the Sydney-based Lowy Institute said that while China improved on some resilience indicators, its influence in Asia has declined with its "isolationist" turn as well as structural problems such as the aging population and heavy debt load.

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni recently pointed out in a media interview the distinct differences between investment from China and from the West: Western companies are blind to Ugandan investments while Chinese private investment in the country is growing.

Alibaba Cloud should enhance its efforts in localization when setting up businesses in other countries or regions, integrating with and facilitating the growth of local industries. Establishing a win-win cooperation is vital for long-term partnerships worldwide and such malicious assaults launched by some anti-China politicians will not stunt the growth of Chinese firms in the long run.

Lithuania has turned to the EU for help after local media outlets hyped that the Chinese customs had blocked all imports from the Baltic nation amid an escalating diplomatic dispute over the Taiwan question. But if the EU respects the one-China principle, then it has the responsibility to restrain Lithuania from recklessly elevating its own political issue to the bloc's economic and trade sphere.

With 2021 rapidly drawing to an end, China's policymakers are expected to convene an important economic meeting in Beijing in middle December to craft the course of accelerating structural reforms while overcoming a raft of challenges in 2022. Investors worldwide are closely watching for clues on next year's policy and reform agenda as China has become the leading engine of the global economy.

If there was still any question about China's solid economic resilience or the US' fragile economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, the two countries' vastly different reactions to the emergence of the Omicron variant should offer an unmistakable answer.

Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who resigned last year amid a series of challenges and appears poised to reenter Japanese politics, made extremely erroneous remarks on the Taiwan question on Wednesday, suggesting that Japan would intervene if the Chinese mainland attacks the island of Taiwan.

The European Union (EU) on Wednesday announced plans to unveil the so-called Global Gateway, an infrastructure initiative to mobilize up to 300 billion euro ($341 billion) in public and private funds by 2027 to finance EU infrastructure projects abroad. Ever since it was first brought up in September, Western media outlets have widely described it as a bid to rival China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

Starting from Wednesday, Chinese exports to 27 EU members, the UK, Canada, Turkey, Ukraine, and Liechtenstein will no longer enjoy the preferential tariff treatment under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP), and Chinese Customs will stop issuing GSP certificates of origin for shipments to the 32 countries.

Some Chinese investors are no longer willing to put up with Ukraine's politicization of commercial projects and have moved to take legal actions, after the country imposed sanctions on Chinese investors, while expropriating their investments over unfounded excuses.

US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo on Monday urged the House of Representatives to immediately pass the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors for America Act, or CHIPS Act. Speaking in the US Motor City Detroit, which has borne the brunt of the global chip shortage, Raimondo said the bill is critical to lowering US' dependence on parts from China.