Tag: china

China’s Economic Demise And Its Impact On The US

Few are as candid and historically accurate as hedge fund manager Kyle Bass when identifying structural breaks in the global economy. In a recent interview, Bass painted a grim but telling picture of China’s economic condition, warning:

“We are witnessing the largest macroeconomic imbalances the world has ever seen, and they are all coming to a head in China.”

While China has long been touted as the next great economic superpower, its recent trajectory reveals a far different story, one marked by policy missteps, systemic financial rot, and a rapidly eroding growth engine.

Bass didn’t mince words either:

“China’s economy is spiraling with no end in sight.”

China’s GDP deflator, the broadest measure of prices across goods and services, continues to decline as economic activity erodes.

For investors around the globe, this isn’t just a regional concern; it’s a seismic macroeconomic event that will ripple through capital markets. The implications are significant for U.S. investors because when global economies falter, especially one as large and interconnected as China’s, capital doesn’t just vanish. It moves. That movement will significantly impact U.S. assets as flows transfer back into U.S. dollars and Treasury bonds. This global repositioning of capital isn’t merely a symptom of market volatility; it reflects a profound reevaluation of risk in the face of deteriorating confidence in China’s financial system.

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Wells Fargo Suspends Travel to China After Communist Regime Blocks Top Banker from Leaving

Wells Fargo suspended travel for all of its employees to China on Thursday after the Chinese government slapped an exit ban on banker Chenyue Mao.

Mao is an American citizen who was born in Shanghai. She is a managing director for Wells Fargo, working from an office in Atlanta. According to the bank, her duties include helping international companies manage their working capital in different countries.

Mao specializes in “factoring,” the practice of selling accounts receivable to third parties. The seller gets cash immediately, while the buyer or “factor” proceeds to collect on the invoices they purchased at a discount. Companies that do business overseas often find factoring preferable to running debt collections operations in foreign countries.

In June, Mao was elected as chairwoman of FCI, a global industry organization for international accounts receivable. FCI was called Factors Chain International when it was established in 1968, and factoring remains one of its primary interests, but it has diversified into other aspects of finance and debt collection across national borders.

When it announced Mao’s election as chair of its executive committee, FCI noted she had over 21 years of experience with factoring and has worked at Wells Fargo for over a decade. During that time, she was credited with growing “annual import-factoring flows to 2.6 billion euros (over $3 billion in U.S. dollars) while fostering innovation in open-account solutions.”

FCI said her goals as chairwoman included recruiting more banks to the organization and “expanding import-factoring know-how within the network.”

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House Committee Leaders Urge FBI To Halt Certifying Chinese Biometric Devices

The bipartisan leaders of a House committee are urging the FBI to halt the certification of biometric products manufactured by Chinese tech companies, citing risks to U.S. national security.

In a letter dated July 15 to FBI Director Kash Patel, Reps. John Moolenaar (R-Mich.) and Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.), chair and ranking member, respectively, of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, said that biometric products from 32 Chinese companies are currently on the agency’s Certified Products List.

The FBI should “put an end to its ongoing certification of products from Chinese military-linked and surveillance companies … that could be used to spy on Americans, strengthen the repressive surveillance state of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), and otherwise threaten U.S. national security,” the lawmakers wrote.

Among the 32 companies, the lawmakers highlighted Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology, which was added to the Commerce Department’s Entity List in 2019 over its involvement in the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP’s) human rights violations in China’s far-western Xinjiang region. In 2021, Hikvision was designated as a company linked to China’s military-industrial complex in an executive order.

Currently on the FBI list is Hikvision’s HK300 PIV “single finger capture device,” which was certified on Jan. 15.

“Including these products on the Certified Products List grants these companies the FBI’s seal of approval, which they can leverage to market their products as FBI-approved to customers in the U.S. government, elsewhere in the United States, and around the globe,” the letter reads.

“This sends a dangerous signal to potential buyers that these companies’ products are trustworthy and heightens the risk that these products will be procured by U.S. government entities or contractors despite the security risks.

“It also sends conflicting messages about U.S. policy toward companies with ties to the PRC’s military-industrial complex.”

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Chinese Military Unveils Robot Murder Wolves, Drones That Definitely Violate Asimov’s Laws

The Chinese military conducted tactical exercises integrating robotic wolves and infantry-operated drones, underscoring Beijing’s push to deploy unmanned systems in modern combat operations, according to state-run media.

The 76th Group Army’s drills focused on battlefield coordination between personnel and autonomous technologies for reconnaissance, strategic point clearing, fire support and breaching defensive positions, according to a military statement. The exercises represent China’s latest effort to advance unmanned warfare capabilities amid growing global competition in military robotics.

The robotic wolves, branded “steel warriors,” debuted at the 2024 Airshow China exhibition before being deployed in joint exercises with Cambodia. During the 2024 “Golden Dragon” exercise, China fielded a rifle-armed robotic wolf for assault operations. The follow-up “Golden Dragon 2025” exercise featured a UAV equipped with a QBZ-95 assault rifle providing fire cover for ground units.

The military demonstrations come as Chinese defense analysts raise concerns about the ethical implications of autonomous weapons systems. In a recent People’s Liberation Army Daily op-ed, analysts Yuan Yi, Ma Ye and Yue Shiguang called for “ethical and legal research” to address risks from militarized robots, warning that malfunctioning units could cause “indiscriminate killings and accidental deaths.”

The PLA Daily authors referenced Isaac Asimov’s Three Laws of Robotics, which prohibit robots from harming humans, arguing that militarized humanoid robots “clearly violate” these principles. They proposed overhauling Asimov’s framework for military applications, emphasizing that combat robots must adhere to laws of war by “obeying humans,” “respecting humans” and “protecting humans.”

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US To Fund and Build a Fast Boat Base for the Philippines on the South China Sea

The US will fund and construct a base for fast boats for the Philippine military on the South China Sea amid heightened tensions between Manila and Beijing over disputed rocks and reefs in the area.

The base will be built on the west coast of the Philippine island province of Palawan and is expected to be completed by the first quarter of the 2026 fiscal year. According to USNI News, the base will house five boats, including both “assault boats” and rigid-hulled inflatable boats, which will be constructed by the US-based company ReconCraft.

The USNI report said that the base will be situated approximately 160 miles east of Second Thomas Shoal, a major source of tensions in the maritime dispute and the site of collisions and encounters between Chinese and Philippine vessels. Despite the distance, the Philippine military frequently deploys small boats to the disputed reefs, and the US project will give them a more effective way to do that.

It’s unclear how much the project will cost the US, but it’s the latest in a series of US-funded military construction projects in the Philippines. In 2023, Washington and Manila signed a deal to expand the US military presence in the country, and the US has also been increasing military aid to the Southeast Asian nation.

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China faces draft dilemma as youth reject military conscription

As Beijing prepares for its grand September 3rd military parade, a pageant meant to project might across the Taiwan Strait, troubling cracks are appearing beneath the polished boots and synchronized salutes. A rising wave of defiance among China’s youth is testing not only the mettle of its armed forces but also the ideological grip of the Communist Party itself.

The announcement of the parade, made by the State Council Information Office on June 28th, was meant to remind the world of China’s growing military prowess. But just days later, that carefully curated image was shaken by a bold act of resistance. In early July, Chinese state media reported that a young man from Guilin had been severely punished for refusing compulsory military service after enlisting in March 2025.

A 2004-born college student nearing graduation reportedly struggled to adapt to the military’s rigid conditions and sought to withdraw from service multiple times. Authorities, however, responded with severe penalties—expelling him and imposing restrictions on employment, financial access, and overseas travel. He also faces a hefty fine of over ¥37,000, signalling zero tolerance for voluntary exit.

Recent conscription refusals in China appear far from isolated. A former legislative official now in exile claims over 200 similar cases occurred in Inner Mongolia alone, along with provinces like Shandong, Hubei, and Fujian recording widespread resistance. Analysts link this trend to a deeper disillusionment: a clash between rigid military expectations and a generation nurtured in comfort and digital independence, increasingly skeptical of the state’s legitimacy and unwilling to endure harsh regimentation for questionable nationalist aims.

What deters these young recruits is more than just the iron discipline. Whistleblowers reveal widespread corruption within the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) forged reports, sold positions, and power networks immune to accountability. For idealistic youth once drawn by patriotic fervour, the realization is sobering: they are entering not a dignified profession, but an institution hollowed out by greed and favouritism.

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Report: Microsoft’s Chinese Engineers Access Pentagon Systems with Minimal Oversight from ‘Digital Escorts’

Microsoft is using engineers in China to help maintain the Defense Department’s computer systems — with minimal supervision by U.S. personnel — leaving some of the nation’s most sensitive data vulnerable to hacking from its leading cyber adversary, a ProPublica investigation has found.

A ProPublica investigation has uncovered that Microsoft is relying on engineers based in China to help maintain sensitive computer systems for the U.S. Department of Defense, with only minimal oversight from U.S. personnel. This arrangement, which Microsoft deems critical to winning the Pentagon’s cloud computing business, could potentially expose some of the country’s most sensitive data to espionage and hacking by China.

The system relies on U.S. workers with security clearances, known as “digital escorts,” to supervise the Chinese engineers and serve as a firewall against malicious activities. However, ProPublica found that these escorts often lack the advanced technical skills needed to effectively monitor the foreign workers, who possess far greater coding expertise. Some escorts are ex-military with little software engineering experience, earning barely above minimum wage.

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NIH Director Bhattacharya warns U.S. taxpayers are funding science journals compromised by China

The National Institutes of Health isn’t just concerned about how much taxpayers are spending to read scientific and medical journals where the published research has already been funded by taxpayers. It wants to know more about publishers’ possible ties to hostile powers.

NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya announced a cap starting this fall on how much journals can charge “NIH-supported scientists to make their research findings publicly accessible” and told investigative journalist Paul Thacker the fees prop up Germany-based publisher Springer Nature, which has a “tremendous investment and interest in the Chinese scientific establishment.”

The 3,000-journal publishing behemoth declined to confirm to Fox News last month the Trump administration terminated one contract and didn’t renew three others, claiming there was “no material change” to its “global business.”

One of its journals is Nature Medicine, which published the “Proximal Origin” paper dismissing a COVID-19 lab leak from China after forcing the coauthors to completely rule out the plausibility of a leak as a condition of publishing it.

The paper was covertly shaped by Bhattacharya predecessor Francis Collins and then-National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Anthony Fauci, who funded the research that may have unleashed the pandemic with U.S. taxpayer dollars.

Then-interim U.S. Attorney Ed Martin sought information from Nature Medicine this spring, suggesting it committed a quid pro quo with Collins and Fauci, who soon after gave coauthor Kristian Andersen federal grants, by leaving their names off “Proximal Origin.” 

Springer Nature also publishes Scientific American and Nature, which both endorsed Democrat Joe Biden for president in 2020. The former tried to quash the Chinese lab-leak theory as “xenophobia.”

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China’s Space “Dogfighters” and Kill Mesh: Practicing to Destroy U.S. Satellites and Ships at Sea

China is conducting increasingly sophisticated satellite maneuvers in orbit, essentially rehearsing attacks on U.S. space-based infrastructure critical for navigation, communication, and missile targeting. China’s expanding space capabilities also extend to what military officials call a “kill mesh”, a networked targeting system that connects multiple sensors, platforms, and weapons in a decentralized web where data flows in multiple directions and engagements can occur from several nodes simultaneously. Apart from disrupting U.S. satellites and space assets, this kill mesh can also be used to target U.S. ships at sea.

At the McAleese defense conference in March 2025, U.S. Space Force Vice Chief of Operations Gen. Michael Guetlein reported that five Chinese space objects, three Shiyan-24C experimental satellites and two Shijian-6 intelligence-gathering spacecraft, were observed executing synchronized, controlled maneuvers in low Earth orbit.

These exercises, described by Space Force as “dogfighting in space,” are not routine operations. “They are practicing tactics, techniques, and procedures to conduct on-orbit operations from one satellite to another,” Guetlein warned. In the general’s estimation, these satellites are training to disable or destroy American space assets.

Beyond physical attacks, China has also expanded its electronic warfare (EW) capabilities. Its arsenal includes jamming systems targeting GPS, radar, and multiple communications platforms. In 2015, China used GPS jamming to interfere with U.S. surveillance flights over the Spratly Islands, an early example of its willingness to disrupt American drone networks and space-based positioning systems.

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Pfizer bribery probe dropped after ex-company lawyer Pam Bondi takes over DOJ in February 2025.

The DOJ dropped its Pfizer bribery probe in China and Mexico soon after Pam Bondi, a former Pfizer legal consultant, became Attorney General in February 2025. The investigation’s closure, evident from Pfizer’s latest filings, has raised concerns about Bondi’s influence and DOJ impartiality.

For the past several years, pharmaceutical giant Pfizer has been under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice for potential foreign corruption violations related to its activities in China and Mexico, according to the company’s financial filings.

But that appears to have changed after the Trump administration tapped Pam Bondi — previously an outside legal counsel for Pfizer — to lead the Justice department as attorney general.

In the company’s most recent annual report, filed three weeks after Bondi took office in early February, there was no longer any reference to the Justice Department investigations into the company’s potential violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practice Act. A quarterly a report in May also contains no reference to these investigations.

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