Culture
High-speed rail is all the rage: here, there and everywhere
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High-speed rail seems to be top of mind among the world’s transportation wonks and policy makers, with action in the U.S., Europe and, most of all, China.
Culture
Beijing puts the ‘work’ in workout
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Compulsory workplace exercise has returned to Beijing after a three-year hiatus.
Democracy
Cantonese speakers defend their language
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Cantonese-speaking protesters in Hong Kong and Guangzhou demonstrate against new official policy that would increase Mandarin broadcasting in the region.
Economy
U.S., Viet ‘Catfish Wars’ heat up (again)
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The so-called “Catfish Wars,” pitting U.S. catfish farmers against Asian producers since 2002, is heating up.
Economy
Beijing stinks! Deodorant cannons to the rescue
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“At night we all wake up coughing. Even when you are sleeping soundly, you can wake up coughing. Everyone opens their windows in the summer and there is that smell.”
Environment
China and Nepal agree on height of Mt. Everest, or whatever the heck it’s named
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China and Nepal did little to demystify the tallest mountain on earth on April 8, when the two countries finally—finally—agreed how tall Mt. Everest actually is.
Economy
China Comes Calling in Latin America
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China’s search for natural resources is taking it to Latin America, and bringing considerable economic clout at a time when U.S. trade with the region is steadily declining. In Peru, China has locked in control of copper production with its multibillion-dollar purchase of a mountain that holds most of Peru’s copper reserves, according to the Christian Science Monitor. Venezuela, meanwhile, has sealed a new agreement that will increase crude oil exports to China to one million barrels daily by 2012, reports Portworld.com. Other Chinese investments in Latin America include $1 billion for a hydroelectric plant in Ecuador and a $10 billion loan to Brazil’s national oil company, The New York Times reports. China is now Latin America’s second largest trading partner, with trade increasing by almost 40 percent in 2008, up to $140 billion, according to China Daily, while a Foreign Policy magazine essay states that China is signing currency swap agreements worth more than $100 billion.