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.

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.

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.

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."

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.

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."

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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'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.

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.

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."

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.

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 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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink kicked off a four-country visit to Southeast Asia over the weekend, in an attempt to, among other things, further promote economic and trade ties with countries in the region. The trip has been viewed as yet another move by the Biden administration to counter China.

Biden and Powell are aligned to keeping interest rates low to support the US economy, but the stakes are high in reappointing Powell as the Fed chair, for Powell is obsessed with QE, opposing policy tightening.

“It's the economy, stupid.” This phrase comes to mind, as we watched US President Joe Biden this week sought to handle mounting economic headwinds and, more importantly, salvage his rapidly falling approval ratings. The phrase was coined by the veteran US political consultant James Carville to describe one of the three main massages of Bill Clinton's successful presidential campaign in 1992. It has become a popular phrase used by US pundits to talk about the key themes of US politics.

At the recent special summit to commemorate the 30th anniversary of China-ASEAN Dialogue, the two sides officially announced the establishment of a China-ASEAN Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. The enhancement of bilateral relations will usher in an even brighter future for China-ASEAN cooperation and inject strong impetus to regional and global peace, stability, prosperity and development.

Although the US trade war and blame game against China has been proven to be a failure, it has not prevented US officials and the media from continuing to go further down this wrong path. Bloomberg on Tuesday again pointed fingers at China on trade issues, claiming China has slowed purchasing American goods in order to meet the US-China phase one trade deal.

Visiting US officials recently urged Kathmandu to ratify a $500 million grant aid agreement, which has been repeatedly postponed due to strong opposition in Nepal. US assistant secretary of state for South and Central Asian Affairs Donald Lu and US deputy assistant secretary of state for South and Central Asian Affairs Kelly Kidderling both arrived in Nepal last week to persuade top leaders of Nepal to ratify the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Compact Agreement.

At the last stop of his three-nation trip to Africa, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken claimed on Saturday that there will be a fresh investment in Senegal without “saddling countries with unmanageable debts.” Though Blinken didn't directly point his finger at China, US media said his debt talk is clearly aimed at China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

Japan's new Prime Minister Fumio Kishida last week approved a colossal $490 billion fiscal spending package to prevent the country from slipping into a painful recession. However, Japan, with its shrinking population and waning business competitiveness, is unlikely to recover to its pre-pandemic economic size if the government fails to address the structural constraints facing the country.

A research report by McKinsey and Company last week shocked many and was also broadly reported by global media which says that world's wealth rose to $514 trillion at the end of 2020, and China, miraculously, emerged at the top of the net worth list, surpassing the US. The report said China's wealth reached $120 trillion in 2020, compared to $90 trillion for the US. Germany, Japan, Britain, France, South Korea and other countries share the list.

US President Joe Biden is far from recovering from a disastrous military withdrawal from Afghanistan that was set in motion before he took over the White House, and he is now facing a dilemma over another lost cause started by his predecessor - the US' failed trade war against China.

Opinion: While refusing to join CPTPP, the US plans to launch an Indo-Pacific economic framework, another deviation from the right path for regional cooperation. Regional economies should judge the US on actions over words when it comes to the new initiative.

The ASEAN economies, as one of the major manufacturing hubs in the world, are continuing to bear the brunt of the COVID-19 pandemic, with many workers hesitant returning to work and investors losing patience over them.

Top leaders from China and the US held a virtual summit on Tuesday Beijing time. The longer-than-expected meeting affirmed the mutual willingness of both sides to deal with differences and ease tensions, demonstrating a positive attitude towards cooperation across many areas.

As tackling climate change becomes an increasingly mainstream topic across the world, some Western media outlets have not missed the chance to show their imaginary moral superiority by pointing fingers at developing nations, with their artillery appears converging on India recently.

If Washington is really looking for practical engagement and cooperation with China, doing away with Trump's anti-China policies is an important first step.

Recent consumer price index (CPI) data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics revealed that the US inflation crisis is even worse than expected. The unprecedented level of inflation, which may worsen in coming months, is not only impacting almost every aspect of the US economy, but also causing spillover effects on global markets, especially developing countries.

China's property development climate index compiled by the National Bureau of Statistics stood at 100.62 in October, down 0.12 points from that of September and remaining at a moderate developing range.

Consumer prices rocketed by 6.2 percent in October in the US, the fastest pace since 1990 and far above the Federal Reserve's inflation target of two percent. The elevated prices are leading to rising concerns about diminished buying power among ordinary Americans, who are likely to hold President Joe Biden and his fellow Democrats accountable for their series of overspending programs.

After months of what his administration called a review period on its trade policy toward China, US President Joe Biden appears poised to make some adjustments to his predecessor Donald Trump's toxic China trade policy.

The US and China, the world's top two emitters of carbon dioxide, unveiled a deal on November 10 at the ongoing Glasgow climate summit aimed at strengthening cooperation in the decade, tackling global climate change in tandem, including cutting the poisonous methane emissions, protecting forests and using less coal.

The US Federal Reserve has just released its bi-annual financial stability report, in which it picked up "stresses in China's real estate sector which could strain the Chinese financial system, with possible spillovers to the US," rendering it an economic threat for US.

US research institute AidData recently issued a report claiming in an average year during the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) era, China spent $85 billion on overseas development programs, causing a significant increase in "hidden debt" in low- and middle-income countries. The report also listed a range of other problems that it alleged was caused by BRI, such as "infringement of labor rights" and "environmental issues."

The "pine nut air transport corridor" between China and Afghanistan has been recently relaunched, and is being viewed as crucial for the recovery of Afghanistan's war-torn economy. Since the first shipment of Afghan pine nuts to China, the China Arab Economic and Trade Promotion Committee in Kabul has received a constant stream of phone calls, WeChat messages and emails with requests to learn more about China-bound shipping channels.

The US' escalating abuse of hegemony demonstrates that it is increasingly essential for the world to build a "non-US technology system."

In a letter sent to the US President Joe Biden, a dozen of US Republican senators urged the White House to begin digital trade negotiations with their “allies and partners” in Asia so that the US, rather than China, could “write the rules for digital trade in the 21st Century.”

Observers had estimated that bilateral trade between China and India might surpass the milestone of $100 billion in 2021 despite a cold political and diplomatic relationship between the two nations. The latest trade data from China's Customs revealed that the new record was reached in October as two-way trade totaled $102.29 billion in the first 10 months of the year, surging 47.8 percent year-on-year.

Biden is facing a revolt among moderate US voters. “Nobody elected him to be F.D.R.. They elected him to be normal and stop the chaos”, as one fellow Democrat chided him.

After a week of diplomacy in Europe, where he had to apologize to world leaders for his predecessor's decision to withdraw from the Paris climate pact, US President Joe Biden returned to Washington on Wednesday to face what some call a political nightmare that is placing his presidency as well as his Democratic Party's electoral prospects in upcoming key races under serious question.

The political relationship between China and India has been at a very low point since last year's border clash, and, the economies of the two Asian countries have also been through a roller coaster ride under the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Even if some countries erect discriminatory barriers, China's strong competitiveness can ensure that its steel industry can remain active in international markets, winning space for its own development and making its contribution to the world's growth.

After China's coal supply and price stabilization policies bore immediate effects, Western media commentators that had previously vilified China with energy supply shortages began to use climate change as a weapon to blame the world's second largest economy for increasing coal production.

US and other Western media outlets have recently concocted another absurd allegation against China's moves to regulate its tech sector and the market. By associating the resignation of chief executives of a few Chinese internet companies with the authority's regulatory measures, they claimed that “Beijing's crackdown on the (tech) industry spooks investors and company leaders.”

While fulfilling its commitment of providing humanitarian assistance worth 200 million yuan ($31 million) by sending the first shipment of 3 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine to Afghanistan, China has restarted its direct air link with the war-torn Afghanistan.

As India is greeting a major festival of the year, Diwali, on November 4, and some non-governmental organizations in the country have once again set off a wild wave of "boycott Chinese goods".

The US economy slowed sharply in the third quarter, growing at an annualized rate of 2 percent, lower than China's 4.9 percent growth for the corresponding period. For the whole year, the gap between the world's two largest economies is expected to be further narrowed, as China's yearly growth rate will likely reach 8 percent, doubling the speed of the US' GDP growth.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel received her discharge papers on Tuesday, formally marking the conclusion of her 16-year reign as Chancellor. An iconic figure on the global stage, Merkel has been largely praised by world leaders. Within the EU, where she played a leading role for years, she was given an ovation at her final summit by leaders.

The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on Tuesday announced moves to “revoke and terminate” China Telecom (Americas) Co's authority to provide telecom services in the US. Washington again wielded its knavish stick toward a Chinese firm under the guise of “national security.”

For the first time in four years, the US President took part in a virtual summit with leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on Tuesday. But the meeting has been widely viewed as the latest move in Washington's attempt to cajole the bloc back into its containment campaign against China.

As the flagship project under the framework of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has become a main target of fierce slander by anti-China forces in the US, India and some other countries. Responding to the relentless attacks, a Pakistani official recently said that the US was “conniving in cahoots with India against the economic lifeline of Pakistan.”