China’s next five-year economic development plan will be unveiled at its largely ceremonial national legislature, the National People’s Congress, on March 5. The plan, which covers 2026 to 2030, will likely outline the CPC’s aim to shift the Chinese economy toward boosting domestic consumption.
However, with high youth unemployment at home and an unpredictable global economic situation, the Chinese government is unlikely to give up on low-level consumption. This ...
Category: Development
China E-Mobility Weekly Digest: Ethiopia’s EV Surge as African Countries Push Local E-Mobility
This is a free preview of the upcoming Africa EVs Weekly Digest, part of the new CGSP Intelligence service. Electric vehicle (EV) adoption sometimes feels like a see-saw, with some weeks showing progress and others regression. The reality is ...
Panama Officials Search CK Hutchison’s Local Office as Tensions Rise
Panamanian authorities searched the local ports unit of Hong Kong conglomerate CK Hutchison, the subsidiary said on Friday, escalating a rift over control of two key ports near the globally strategic Panama Canal. The search, carried out on Thursday, comes amid ...
The Three Faces of Chinese Investment in Southeast Asia: SOEs, POEs, and MNEs
In 2025, China remained a top-three source of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Southeast Asia, following only the U.S. and intra-Southeast Asian flows. While much of the investment falls under the umbrella of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), it is important to distinguish between broad ...
The Paradox of Panama’s “Rule of Law”: Hutchison Ports vs. Minera Panama
In the wake of the forced transition at the ports of Balboa and Cristóbal, Panamanian Foreign Minister Javier Martínez-Acha sent a clear message to the international community: Panama is a country of legal certainty, and the government is "simply respecting a Supreme Court ruling" regarding the ouster ...
Panama Wrests Control of Canal Ports From Hong Kong Group
Panamanian authorities took control of two ports on the Panama Canal from CK Hutchison on Monday after the Hong Kong-based conglomerate’s concession was annulled amid a row between the United States and China. The court ruling was the latest legal development affecting ...
Analysis from Cobus van Staden
Panama Wrests Control of Canal Ports From Hong Kong Group
Panamanian authorities took control Monday of two ports on the Panama Canal from CK Hutchison after the Hong Kong-based conglomerate's concession was annulled amid a row between the United States and China. "The Panama Maritime Authority has taken possession of its ...
WEEK IN REVIEW: China, Russia, Iran Hold Naval Drills Near Hormuz
China joined Russia and Iran in joint naval drills near the Strait of Hormuz, deploying the guided-missile destroyer Urumqi and a supply ship. The exercises included maritime search-and-rescue and live-fire drills in waters critical to global oil shipments. (AL-MONITOR) The Philippines rebuked ...
WTO Head Calls for New Chinese Growth Model
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the head of the World Trade Organization, called on China to change its model of growth because of its impact on global trade surpluses. Speaking at the Munich Security Conference, she said that while China wants to support the ...
Uruguay Pushing Ahead With Pivot Away From Dollar Debt, Says Finance Minister
By Karin Strohecker and Libby George Uruguay will push ahead with shifting its government debt away from the dollar and seek the broadest trade ties possible as the Latin American nation looks to boost growth, the country's finance minister told Reuters. ...
Panama and the New U.S. Strategy to Counter China in Latin America
The Panama Supreme Court’s ruling against Hutchison Ports in late January was not merely an isolated legal event; it was the successful proof-of-concept for a new geopolitical weapon. What appears on the surface to be a dispute over contracts from ...
U.S. Warns Peru Over Chinese-Built Chancay Port as Exports Hit Record
The Trump administration warned Peru that the Chinese-built Port of Chancay risks undermining the country’s sovereignty, escalating U.S. pressure over Beijing’s growing infrastructure footprint in Latin America.
Can Africa Win as the West and China Scramble for Minerals?
By Clyde Russell Two multi-billion-dollar rail projects in Africa. One headed west, the other east. One backed by Western countries, the other by China. Both are aiming to ship vast quantities of critical minerals. Welcome to the new scramble for Africa. ...