The situation in the Taiwan Strait is “complex and grim”, Chinese President Xi Jinping yesterday wrote in a congratulatory letter to the newly elected leader of Taiwan’s main opposition party, who has pledged to renew talks with Beijing.

Tesla Inc’s Shanghai factory is expected to produce 300,000 cars in the first nine months of the year, capped by a delivery rush in the end of the July-September quarter, despite a global semiconductor shortage, two sources said.

Several local governments in China have set up special custodian accounts for property projects of its most indebted developer, Evergrande, to protect funds earmarked for housing projects from being diverted, media outlet Caixin said. 

Huawei Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou arrived in China on Saturday, ending her near three-year U.S. extradition fight, the same day two Canadians detained by Beijing for more than 1,000 days returned home, potentially paving the way for improved ties between China and the two western allies.

Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou was headed home from Vancouver yesterday as two Canadians were released from prison in China, ending a bitter diplomatic row that has poisoned ties for three years.

China’s central bank on Friday said all financial transactions involving cryptocurrencies are illegal, sounding the death knell for the digital trade in China after a crackdown on the volatile currencies.

The Shanghai government will support companies applying for approval to sell duty-free goods, and encourage duty-free shops to be set up at airports, hotels, malls and other commercial venues, municipal authorities said.

Three Chinese astronauts returned to Earth yesterday after completing the country’s longest-ever crewed mission, the latest landmark in Beijing’s drive to become a major space power.

China yesterday denounced a new Indo-Pacific security alliance between the United States, Britain and Australia, saying such partnerships should not target third countries and warning of an intensified arms race in the region.

A Chinese court on Tuesday threw out a landmark sexual harassment case on the basis of insufficient evidence, in a blow to the country’s fledgling #MeToo movement.

China on Wednesday banned private tutors from giving classes online or in unregistered venues such as residential buildings, hotels and coffee shops, ramping up its effort to stamp out all for-profit tutoring.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang urged major powers to “show responsibility” and play a leading role in improving global environmental governance and addressing such challenges as climate change.

Activity in China’s services sector slumped into sharp contraction in August, a private survey showed on Friday, as restrictions to curb the Covid-19 Delta variant threatened to derail the recovery in the world’s second-biggest economy.

China’s Alibaba Group will invest 100 billion yuan ($15.5 billion) by 2025 in support of ‘common prosperity’, it said, becoming the latest corporate giant to pledge support for the initiative driven by Chinese President Xi Jinping. 

China will put an end to large-scale urban demolitions and preserve old historical buildings as part of a programme to protect its cultural heritage, it said in new policy guidelines published late on Friday.

China has developed a prototype miniature helicopter for surveillance work on future Mars missions, according to its space science agency, following the historic landing of a robotic rover on the Red Planet a few months ago.

Taliban claim China to maintain embassy in Kabul, hail new Silk Road. US has no plans to release billions in Afghan assets, Treasury says.

Senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi has warned the United States that political tension between Beijing and Washington could undermine efforts by the world’s top two sources of greenhouse gas to co-operate in the fight against climate change.

China’s special envoy for Asian Affairs Sun Guoxiang visited Myanmar last week for talks with its military rulers, as a new route spanning the Southeast Asian nation opened up connecting Chinese trade flows to the Indian Ocean.

China on Monday announced a drastic cut to children’s online gaming time to just three hours a week during term time, the latest move in a broad crackdown on tech giants in the world’s biggest gaming market.