Sharp China with Bill Bishop

Bill Bishop, author of Sinocism, discusses PRC messaging at Shangri-La Dialogue, Xi's speech on 'New Quality Productive Forces,' Russia-China gas negotiations, and reflections on Tiananmen Square 35 years later.

Get all episodes of Sharp China, Sharp Tech, Stratechery Updates and Interviews, Greatest of All Talk and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $15/month or $150/year. Bill Bishop is the author of Sinocism On today’s show Andrew and Bill begin with President William Lai’s inauguration in Taiwan, including the PRC responses we've seen so far, recent activity around Kinmen island, and a Bloomberg report that ASML’s EUV machines can be shut down remotely in the event of an invasion of Taiwan. From there: Friday’s announcement of relief plans for the real estate sector, and more thoughts on the challenges facing policymakers as they look to revive consumer sentiment. Then: Questions on the People's Bank of China, a recent push into gold purchases, EV capacity, tariffs on foreign cars, and the latest Central Committee member to be investigated for corruption. At the end: Temu and Shein inspire a Saturday Night Live skit, and Rep. Mike Gallagher is formally sanctioned by the PRC. To email the show: email@sharpchina.fm @SharpTechPodcast Channel — YouTube @Stratechery Channel — YouTube New Taiwan President; PRC reactions; Real estate; New bull market in Shanghai?; EU trade threa — Sinocism "Pillar of shame" for Lai; Wang Yi at SCO; Gallagher sanctioned; XiAI; Guo Youcai; Ben Lim — Sinocism Full text of President Lai Ching-te's inaugural address — Focus Taiwan Mainland says Lai sends "dangerous signal" in speech as Taiwan's new leader — Xinhua China has a point about Taiwan’s new leader — Financial Times Thousands protest against contentious Taiwan parliament reforms — Reuters Record number of Chinese ships enter Taiwan waters near Kinmen island — RFA China's property support measures disappoint — Reuters What China’s central bank and Costco shoppers have in common — The Economist ASML and TSMC Can Disable Chip Machines If China Invades Taiwan — Bloomberg How China’s EV overcapacity has come to a head after 15 years, and what’s in store for the industrial policy race with US and EU — SCMP China Has Gotten the Trade War It Deserves — The Atlantic China Hints at Retaliation in Trade Clash With Europe — Bloomberg China Says Agriculture Minister Tang Renjian Is Under Investigation — Bloomberg China sanctions former Rep. Mike Gallagher, a fierce critic of Beijing — NBC News Hudson’s Mike Gallagher’s Statement in Response to CCP Sanctions — The Hudson Institute Fast Fashion Ad - SNL — YouTube: Saturday Night Live

Get all episodes of Sharp China, Sharp Tech, Stratechery Updates and Interviews, Greatest of All Talk and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $15/month or $150/year. Bill Bishop is the author of Sinocism On today’s show Andrew and Bill begin with an overview of the new tariffs announced by President Biden this week, including the implications for America's green energy industries, the evolving scope of global competitive realities, and a variety of questions for future US policymakers. From there: Why Beijing may be reluctant to issue a substantive response to US tariffs while the EU refines its own tariff policies on EVs, and Vladimir Putin's visit to China highlights the delicate balance Beijing has tried to strike between capitalizing on the relationship with Russia and maintaining its ties to Europe. At the end: The many hurdles facing policymakers trying to restore the real estate sector, a New York Times op-ed about TikTok, an update on the Michael Chang documentary that was delayed last year, and Pink Floyd in Sichuan. To email the show: email@sharpchina.fm @SharpTechPodcast Channel — YouTube @Stratechery Channel — YouTube Xi-Putin; Real estate meeting Friday; US-China — Sinocism US Tariffs; Putin to China; April credit contraction; Taiwan; UK; Qinghai court drama — Sinocism President Biden Takes Action to Protect American Workers and Businesses from China’s Unfair Trade Practices — The White House US-China Trade War, Volume 2 — Rhodium Group US factories under threat from 'unprecedented wave' of Chinese solar panel imports — Recharge Asian Solar Imports Are Subject of New US Commerce Probe — Bloomberg EU feels heat from all sides as decision on Chinese EV duties looms — SCMP Chinese solar groups pull out of tender after EU anti-subsidy probe — Financial Times China Considers Government Buying of Unsold Homes to Save Property Market — Bloomberg Cover Story: Will China’s Latest Policy Call-to-Arms Turn the Ailing Property Market Around? — Caixin The End of TikTok Is a Propaganda Win for Beijing — New York Times ESPN Films Announces Upcoming 30 for 30 Summer 2024 Programming Slate — ESPN ESPN Films Announces 30 for 30 Documentary “American Son” on Tennis Player Michael Chang — ESPN (2022) Kids from Leshan, Sichuan-based music school perform Pink Floyd’s “Another Brick in the Wall” — X: @Byron_Wan

Get all episodes of Sharp China, Sharp Tech, Stratechery Updates and Interviews, Greatest of All Talk and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $15/month or $150/year. Bill Bishop is the author of Sinocism On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with takeaways from Xi Jinping’s visit to France, Serbia and Hungary, where topics included cognac, "so-called overcapacity", the war in Ukraine, and Ambassador Lu Shaye twelve months after his comments about post-Soviet states. From there: The People’s Daily and other party media went dark for much of the day on Tuesday, and the Biden administration does not renew export licenses that allow Intel and Qualcomm to supply Huawei with semiconductors for computers and mobile phones. At the end: The latest twist in the dispute at Second Thomas Shoal, an Australian helicopter takes evasive action to avoid the PLA, ByteDance and TikTok take their fight to court, and a book rec for anyone interested in the origins of the GDP metric. To email the show: email@sharpchina.fm @SharpTechPodcast Channel — YouTube @Stratechery Channel — YouTube Xi in France; Overcapacity; Chinese modernization; PRC-Philippines; Real estate — Sinocism Xi in Europe; Bytedance and TikTok sue the US; PRC-Philippines "gentleman's agreement" mess; Hauwei; AI — Sinocism Macron’s cognac — the only thing that went down smoothly with Xi — Politico Macron puts trade and Ukraine as top priorities as China’s Xi opens European visit in France — AP Emmanuel Macron in his own words (English) — Economist Xi Jinping lashes out at Nato over 1999 Belgrade bombing ahead of Serbia visit — Financial Times China’s Mouthpieces Go Quiet — China Media Project US revokes licences for supply of chips to China’s Huawei — Financial Times U.S. assessing if China's SMIC broke U.S. rules to make Huawei chip — CNBC Wescom chief agreed to China's 'new model' — Manila Times Australian helicopter forced to take evasive action after Chinese fighter detonates flares — ABC Australia China slams Australian military for ‘disrupting’ drill after Yellow Sea helicopter confrontation — SCMP TikTok Taps Covington, Mayer Brown in Fight for US Survival — Bloomberg TikTok's Free Speech Lawsuit Has a Logic Problem — Bloomberg Despite international hires, TikTok is Chinese at its core — Rest of World Growth: A History and a Reckoning — David Susskind

Get all episodes of Sharp China, Sharp Tech, Stratechery Updates and Interviews, Greatest of All Talk and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $15/month or $150/year. Bill Bishop is the author of Sinocism On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with a surprise, 24-hour trip to China for Elon Musk, and a Sunday meeting with Premier Li Qiang. Topics include: The Musk meeting as PRC response to mounting scrutiny in the US, the benefits to both sides of the Tesla-PRC relationship, and why this week's news may not answer Tesla's long term questions in the Chinese market. From there: Parsing the readout from the April Politburo meeting, including insights into how leadership sees the economy now, an announcement for the long-awaited Third Plenum, and policy changes that may or may not materialize in the months to come. At the end: Takeaways from Secretary of State Blinken's visit to Beijing last week, Xi Jinping prepares to travel to the EU amid a flurry of investigations into PRC entities and actors, and an emailer asks about the veracity of officially reported PRC economic data. To email the show: email@sharpchina.fm @SharpTechPodcast Channel — YouTube @Stratechery Channel — YouTube Politburo meeting and a July Third Plenum; Beijing relaxes some housing restrictions; Scarborough Shoal tensions — Sinocism Xi to Europe; MSS head on the "five antis"; Musk's big Beijing trip; Housing restrictions; RMB; Kinmen patrols — Sinocism Elon Musk flies in to meet China’s premier as Tesla fights local rivals — Financial Times Elon Musk Can’t Solve Tesla’s China Crisis With His Desperate Asia Visit — Wired Politburo meeting and announcement of Third Plenum in July — Sinocism Macron plans to charm Xi in the Pyrénées — Politico EU President Xi Jinping Meets with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken — MoFA Blinken Meets With Xi as U.S. Pressures China to End Support for Russia — Wall Street Journal China Has Crossed Biden’s Red Line on Ukraine — Wall Street Journal Thread from Finbarr Bermingham — X: @fbermingham 永恒的经典！窦唯 《艳阳天》 — YouTube: TheXQL1100

Get all episodes of Sharp China, Sharp Tech, Stratechery Updates and Interviews, Greatest of All Talk and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $15/month or $150/year. Bill Bishop is the author of Sinocism On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with Secretary of State Anthony Blinken's trip to Beijing and Shanghai this week, including reports that the Blinken plans to warn PRC counterparts about their continued commercial support of Russia's defense industry, and additional reports that the U.S. has drafted sanctions that could be levied against Chinese banks facilitating that support. From there: The many flashpoints that have emerged since Xi Jinping and Joe Biden shared their "San Francisco Vision," talking points from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in advance of Blinken's visit, and interesting language from Speaker of the House Mike Johnson late last week. Then: The House TikTok legislation is about to become law, what TikTok may do next, and questions surrounding the PLA's new Information Support Force. At the end: A recent scandal for Chinese swimming inspires memories from the '90s and commentary from Ambassador Rahm Emanuel. To email the show: email@sharpchina.fm @SharpTechPodcast Channel — YouTube @Stratechery Channel — YouTube Xi in Chongqing; MoFA on Blinken visit; Financial sanctions over support for Russia? QE talk again; Another alleged PRC spy in Germany — Sinocism PLA's new Information Support Force; Blinken to PRC; TikTok; Swimming scandal; UK and Germany espionage arrests — Sinocism Blinken to warn China over weapons-related exports to Russia — Financial Times U.S. Takes Aim at Chinese Banks Aiding Russia War Effort — Wall Street Journal Sanctions, SWIFT, and China’s Cross-Border Interbank Payments System — CSIS Chinese foreign ministry official on U.S. secretary of state's upcoming visit to China — Xinhua TikTok fortune of billionaire Republican donor Jeff Yass threatened by Washington — Financial Times Chinese diplomats are quietly meeting with Hill staffers about TikTok — Politico China Orders Apple to Remove Popular Messaging Apps — Wall Street Journal ‘Team USA Was Cheated’: Chinese Doping Case Exposes Rift in Swimming — New York Times Top Chinese Swimmers Tested Positive for Banned Drug, Then Won Olympic Gold — New York Times Chinese generosity in lead-up to cleared doping tests reflects its growing influence on WADA — AP Post by Ambassador Rahm Emanuel — X: USAmbJapan

Subscribe to Stratechery Plus to get full episodes of Sharp China, plus Stratechery Updates and Interviews, Sharp Tech, Greatest of All Talk, and Dithering. Bill Bishop is the author of Sinocism On today’s show Andrew and Bill begin with takeaways from the meeting between Xi Jinping and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, including muted messaging on overcapacity concerns, Germany’s investments in the PRC market, and a request for Xi Jinping to broker peace in Ukraine. From there: Economic data from Q1 in China, and a question about Beijing's calculus in the face of mounting tension between Iran and Israel. At the end: National Security Day and more anecdotes from the MSS, memories from Bill’s time translating Chinese literature in the early 90s, journalist Vicky Xu shines a light on transnational harassment in Australia, and Fortune Magazine delivers the latest blow to TikTok's claims of independence from ByteDance. To email the show: email@sharpchina.fm @SharpTechPodcast Channel — YouTube @Stratechery Channel — YouTube National Security Day; Nine guidelines for capital markets; Scholz in China; PRC on Iran attack; TikTok — Sinocism Q1 GDP; Xi-Scholz; National Security; Microsoft and G42; Donkeys — Sinocism Olaf Scholz joins TikTok with a pledge: ‘I won’t dance’ — Politico @teambundeskanzler — TikTok Scholz wants Xi to stop Russia’s war. Xi wants Europe to stop trade war. — Politico Why Germany's Scholz is bowing to the Chinese dragon — Politico Post by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz — X: @Bundeskanzler US says China is supplying missile and drone engines to Russia — Financial Times China’s economy expands by a surprisingly strong pace in the first quarter of 2024 — CNN Biden’s options for retaliating against Iran risk antagonizing China — Washington Post China reveals it executed scientist for spying in 2016 in documentary about ‘shocking’ cases — SCMP How it feels to live under surveillance by China — The Saturday Paper Powerful Senator Crafts TikTok Crackdown — Wall Street Journal Some ex-TikTok employees say the social media service worked closely with its China-based parent despite claims of independence — Fortune

Subscribe to Stratechery Plus to get full episodes of Sharp China, plus Stratechery Updates and Interviews, Sharp Tech, Greatest of All Talk, and Dithering. Bill Bishop is the author of Sinocism On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with takeaways from Secretary of Treasury Janet Yellen's visit to China, including what her meetings may or may not accomplish and the likely next steps for the Biden Administration in the months to come. From there: As the US and Europe grapple with the threat of cheaper PRC goods in key industries, how might China respond to raised tariffs around the world? Will there be consequences for continued support of Russia's defense industrial base? And how realistic is the deterrence strategy articulated by Ambassador Rahm Emanuel this week? At the end: A question about Xi's vision for the PRC financial system, the deepening partnership between the US and Japan, the US and allies conduct naval exercises in the South China Sea, and a question about Tesla's 0% financing for PRC customers. To email the show: email@sharpchina.fm @SharpTechPodcast Channel — YouTube @Stratechery Channel — YouTube China Shock 2.0 Sparks Global Backlash Against Flood of Cheap Goods — Wall Street Journal US should not politicise trade issues, China’s Li Qiang tells Janet Yellen in response to ‘overcapacity’ concerns — SCMP US and China agree to start new talks on 'balanced' economic growth — France 24 China Providing Geospatial Intelligence to Russia, US Warns — Bloomberg How Billions in Bitcoin Laundered From China Ended Up in British Hands — Caixin Financial Development with Chinese Characteristics; Taiwan Earthquake; Yellen; NDRC support for private sector; Tesla — Sinocism Yellen enjoys a beer at the now Carlsberg-owned Jing A in Beijing — Image U.S. Amb. to Japan Rahm Emanuel: China’s most persistent & pernicious economic strategy is coercion — CNBC Rahm on China: Colorful Diplomacy, Alliances, and the Military-Industrial Complex — ChinaTalk China says it patrolled the South China Sea in an apparent response to US naval drills with allies — AP Aukus weighs expanding security pact to deter China in Indo-Pacific — Financial Times Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning’s Regular Press Conference on April 8, 2024 — MOFA Substack Note from Bill Bishop — @sinocism

Subscribe to Stratechery Plus to get full episodes of Sharp China, plus Stratechery Updates and Interviews, Sharp Tech, Greatest of All Talk, and Dithering. Bill Bishop is the author of Sinocism On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with takeaways from Tuesday’s phone call between President Biden and President Xi, including the PRC rhetoric surrounding US trade and tech policies, and messages to both domestic audiences and allies. From there: Janet Yellen’s visit to China and her evolving stance on PRC exports, the March Politburo meeting comes and goes without plenum news, Xi meets with U.S. business leaders, and Harvard’s Graham Allison emerges as a potential Henry Kissinger successor. At the end: Escalating rhetoric and the latest confrontation between the PRC and the Philippines, Tesla’s latest sales numbers and structural challenges in the PRC, and the debut of 3 Body Problem on Netflix. To email the show: email@sharpchina.fm @SharpTechPodcast Channel — YouTube @Stratechery Channel — YouTube Xi-Biden call; More US tech controls coming?; NDRC on equipment and consumer upgrades; Another Justice Minister goes down — Sinocism March Politburo meeting; PRC-Philippines tensions; Xi's meeting with US VIPs — Sinocism Joe Biden and Xi Jinping have ‘candid’ phone call in first engagement since November — Financial Times US and EU officials talk China in Belgium — Politico EU Janet Yellen Missed the First ‘China Shock.’ Can She Stop the Second? — Wall Street Journal China's Xi meets American CEOs in bid to boost confidence in ailing economy — NBC News Thread by Graham Allison — X: @GrahamTAllison Professor Graham ‘Thucydides Trap’ Allison’s Three-Body Problem — China Heritage 'China and US are inseparable, conjoined Siamese twins:' Graham Allison — Global Times Post by Joseph Morong — X: @Joseph_Morong Tesla’s Shrinking China Market Share Compounds Global Woes — Bloomberg [4K Ver.] ENG SUB [Three-Body] EP01 — YouTube: Tencent Video

Subscribe to Stratechery Plus to get full episodes of Sharp China, plus Stratechery Updates and Interviews, Sharp Tech, Greatest of All Talk, and Dithering. Bill Bishop is the author of Sinocism On today’s show Andrew and Bill begin with the Ministry of State Security providing its interpretation of the Cybersecurity Law. Topics include: The odd timing of this message as debate roils over TikTok, the legal and regulatory framework that’s emerged under Xi, and the lack of anonymity on the PRC internet. From there: The Hong Kong legislature passes Article 23 faster than expected, and an update on the state of the TikTok legislation as the Senate prepares for an intel briefing on Wednesday. Then: Lessons from the solar industry as domestic suppliers in the EU and US struggle to compete with the PRC, Liu Jianchao offers clarifying commentary on China's approach to the Global South, Rahm Emanuel talks to Semafor, and Zach Edey takes center stage in the NCAA Tournament. To email the show: email@sharpchina.fm @SharpTechPodcast Channel — YouTube @Stratechery Channel — YouTube MSS on cybersecurity law; Wang Yi; Handan murder; CSRC; Liu Jianchao on the Global South — Sinocism Article 23, Xi in Hunan; Action plan to encourage foreigners to "invest in China"; 400B RMB spent on stock market rescue?; AI dialogue — Sinocism MSS’ interpretation on Cybersecurity Law highlights prioritization of critical information infrastructure — Global Times Hong Kong Article 23; No Plenum and Another Market Setback; Trump and Taiwan; TikTok in Congress — Sharp China Why is Hong Kong fast-tracking its Article 23 domestic national security law? Catching enemies off guard among key reasons, sources say — SCMP After TikTok bill sails through House, senators pump the brakes — Washington Post TikTok Deal Is Complicated by New Rules From China Over Tech Exports (2020) — New York Times TikTok Struggles to Protect U.S. Data From Its China Parent — Wall Street Journal EU snubs dying solar manufacturers as China poised to swallow market — Politico US solar manufacturers in ‘dire situation’ as imports soar — Financial Times Solar Zugzwang — Doomberg Dirty Secret — Doomberg ‘Have I stopped saying anything?’ Rahm Emanuel on China, Japan, and sitting out a historic U.S. election — Semafor Zach Edey Is Just Different — The Ringer