President Hu Jintao made it clear to the visiting President Obama in November that China is serious about the need to fight protectionism in all its forms. Yet what is the real extent of the threat of protectionism facing China? While the global financial crisis may not have initiated a deluge of trade restrictions like that which ensued in the Great Depression, China has reason enough to fear protectionism. By Barry van Wyk.
In 2009, China was in the media spotlight a number of times, with one of the recent issues involving rare earth metals and their compounds—products in which China dominates world production. In this article we take a closer look at the history of the rare earth industry in China, the recent controversies surrounding it, and some of the upcoming trends to watch. By Lilian Luca.
The fourth Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Egypt was a sound platform for Sino-African cooperation, yet the event illustrated two prominent features of China-Africa cooperation: 1) China is committed to Africa and is making good on its promised commitments, yet 2) Africa is neither united nor does it have a coherent and strategic plan to meet China on middle ground. By Michele (Mitch) Cosani.