NewsBite

Jessica Sier

Yesterday

Vineyards in the Ningxia region in China’s central north area are among the sources of grapes for the Chinese version of Penfolds.

Penfolds or a smooth Ningxia red? China’s wine tastes are changing

Australian wine has long been a favourite in China, but an economic downturn along with a government push to “Shop in China” is seeing local vintners step up the competition.

This Month

Xi Jinping’s patience could be paying off as the US backtracks on trade tariffs.

China signals it is open to trade talks with US

China’s commerce ministry urged US officials to show “sincerity” after three months of tensions and tariffs.

April

From our factory to your living room floor: Employees produce Christmas stuffed toys for export in Lianyungang, Jiangsu Province of China.

China’s export orders plunge in alarming first look at tariff damage

China’s factory activity slipped into the worst contraction since December 2023, revealing an early impact of Donald Trump’s trade war.

Deep-sea mining exploration.

New battleground in critical minerals race is on Australia’s doorstep

The US under Donald Trump sees the ocean floor as a new frontier, making the Pacific Ocean’s mineral-rich seabed a new strategic flashpoint.

Inside China’s angry push to win Trump’s trade war

J.D. Vance has inadvertently fuelled nationalistic fervour inside China to ride out the global trade war by spurning US imports and shopping locally.

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Xi Jinping’s patience could be paying off as US backtracks on trade tariffs.

China says US must revoke all tariffs, denies talks

Beijing says the US must lift all tariffs against China if it “truly” wants to resolve the trade war after the US president flagged rolling back levies.

China’s military spending has surged. So have the purges

As Australia remembers its war dead on Anzac Day, the Chinese military’s huge build-up and sophistication is raising questions in China and countries across the region.

 Xi Jinping during a meeting with Vietnam’s Communist Party General Secretary To Lam in Hanoi, Vietnam this week.

Japan eyes pact with China, South Korea as trade war hedge

Tokyo signals renewed interest in negotiations with a personal letter from Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba to Chinese President Xi Jinping.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks with reporters in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

White House press sec cops flak for ‘Made in China’ dress

Chinese social media users and diplomats accuse White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt of hypocrisy after she appeared in a dress reportedly made in China.

President Donald Trump has met with Japan’s trade representatives.

Little progress in US-Japan trade talks despite Trump’s claims

The two-day trade talks come as both sides address the 24 per cent “reciprocal” tariffs imposed on Japanese goods, along with an earlier 25 per cent tariff on cars.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, left, shakes hands with Vietnam's National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man, in Hanoi, Vietnam, Monday April 14, 2025. (Athit Perawongmetha/Pool Photo via AP)

Will China’s bid to win allies in Asia work?

The world’s second-largest economy is settling in for the long game with a strategy that could soon extend to Australia.

Dr James Fielding CEO of Audeara.

Aussie tech exporter caught in Trump’s trade chaos

Australian high-tech headphone exporter Audeara is struggling with the uncertainty of Donald Trump’s tariffs against China, even as US tech giants get relief.

A Chinese investor looks at the boards in Shanghai.

China’s $2trn market rescue is just the start as trade war intensifies

State-linked funds stepped in to rescue Chinese stocks this week as the battle with the US intensified. But it’s an expensive exercise.

Neither Xi Jinping nor Donald Trump is giving any indication they are likely to back down. For both leaders, national pride is on the line.

Could China win a ‘fight to the end’ against Trump?

There is a real chance the two largest economies in the world decouple. If that happens, both will be competing to be the engine room, and the cornerstone, of global trade.

The question now is whether China’s economy can withstand an almost complete breakdown in trade with the US.

Battle-hardened China can survive Trump’s trade war: ex-envoy

Geoff Raby says the country’s transition from a low-cost producer of clothes and household goods to a centre of advanced manufacturing had made it more resilient.

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China has hit back at Trump’s tariffs quickly.

Defiant China escalates trade war, raises tariffs on US goods to 84pc

Beijing slapped another 50 per cent tariff on all American imports in direct response to Donald Trump ramping up levies on Chinese goods.

‘US hard to sell to now’: China’s exporters train sights on Australia

US tariffs of 104 per cent will force Chinese exporters to diversify. A flood of cheap goods could be good for consumers, but a weakened China is not good for Australia.

US President Donald Trump and China’s President Xi Jinping.

China vows to ‘fight to the end’ after Trump’s new tariff threat

China slammed the US for threatening to raise tariffs and pledged to retaliate if Washington follows through.

A Japanese LNG tanker at a JERA thermal power station in greater Tokyo.

Japan warns on Dutton’s gas reservation policy

A Tokyo think tank says limiting sales into the regional spot market could “handicap” Australian producers and trim Japanese trading in South-East Asia.

China has hit back at Trump’s tariffs quickly.

‘The sky won’t fall’: Beijing appeals for calm over tariff storm

Beijing said it has a range of tools to defend its economy from Trump’s trade war, but also acknowledged growth could take a hit, as China stocks plunged.

Original URL: https://www.afr.com/by/jessica-sier-j7ge4