CHINA: Tianjin Embraces its Colonial Legacy

When the old Astor Hotel reopened to great fanfare from the local city fathers here in 2010, it marked more the return of the "Grande Dame of Tianjin" to the city’s growing collection of luxury hotels. It was a travel back to the future. It manifested the city leaders’ eagerness to embrace and rebrand the colonial heritage as a way of boosting Tianjin’s modern identity.

China Advances a Grip on IMF

The IMF’s new Chinese deputy chief Zhu Min is known by many in the financial capitals in the West for warning as early as 2007 about the dangers of the U.S. sub-prime mortgage market and its dire consequences for the global economy.

E-Waste Hits China

Despite new government regulations, China, for decades the dumping ground for the world’s electronic waste, still struggles to treat and process millions of tonnes of e-waste, prompting health and environmental concerns.

CHINA: Not Dollar, Not Euro, But Gold

Growing concerns about the slow death of the dollar rather than a saviour’s goodwill are underpinning China’s widely publicised purchases of European government debt, according to experts. But as the Eurozone debt crisis spreads from Greece and Portugal to countries like Italy and threatens the very survival of the euro, China’s finance mandarins and keepers of the country’s 3 trillion dollars foreign reserves are looking yet again at gold as the anchor of stability.

China Eclipsing U.S. in Global Reach, Poll Finds

A growing number of people around the world believe that China will eventually surpass the United States as the world's premier superpower, if it hasn't already, according to the latest survey of 22 countries released here Thursday by the Pew Global Attitudes Project.

Chinese Buying, China Losing

Prime property in the Georgian architectural gem town of Bath? Check. Luxury brand shopping on London’s Bond Street? Check. A seat on the fine art auctions? Check. The wish list of Chinese visitors to the UK is endless, and their aspirations and wealth are reshaping the property, retail and art treasures market here in ways unforeseen a few years ago.

China Offers Lifeline to Hard-Hit Europe

As the debt crisis drains the purses of European countries, EU members are trying to alleviate the economic downturn, in part with the aid of Chinese investments.

TRADE: Brazil and Africa Ready to Do the Samba

African trade with India and China flourished over the past decade but, with unemployment rising and industrialisation failing to take hold, cracks are appearing in Africa’s much-vaunted "Look East" doctrine. Meanwhile, from across the Atlantic, Brazil is making inroads into the continent.

Q&A: “Africa Can Provide More Than Minerals in South-South Trade”

South-South co-operation is firmly on Africa’s agenda. Leading the way is South Africa, which has recently joined up with Brazil, Russia, India and China’s BRIC formation to form a new global grouping of emerging markets, known as BRICS.

China Offers a Different Freedom

For a populist premier like China’s Wen Jiabao, the irony of landing in a European capital celebrating the art of one of the Chinese communist party’s most outspoken critics who had been imprisoned by Beijing for months was never lost.

Africa-Wide Trade Zone Could Boost South-South Cooperation

The plan to create a new 26-nation liberalised trade zone for Africa, spanning the length of the continent from Cape to Cairo, could open up more possibilities for South-South cooperation that would benefit Africans.

Chinese Model Showing Cracks

The Chinese Communist Party likes claiming credit for the success of the country’s model of steady rule and economic prosperity. But as it prepares to celebrate its 90th birthday on Jul. 1, the party has seen the attractive China brand lose appeal with once enthusiastic followers abroad and being outright rejected by violent protests at home.

Amidst ‘Dire’ Humanitarian Crisis, U.S. Urges Ceasefire in South Kordofan

As the date for South Sudan’s long anticipated Jul. 9 secession inches closer, on-going violence in the Northern state of South Kordofan threatens to destroy the country’s hopes for peace.

Pollution Rising Fast in China’s Seas

Rapid economic growth in China’s coastal regions has resulted in serious levels of ocean pollution, damaging marine life and posing a threat to humans. As much as half of China’s offshore areas are considered polluted.

CHINA: Trains on a Dubious Fast Track

The novelty of the super-fast ride on China’s bullet train never seems to wear off. On board of the inter-city train connecting the capital with the port city of Tianjin 117 km east you can buy an arm-long model of China’s prestige train and more than two years since its launch there are still many enthusiastic takers.

Death Penalty Popular in China

Despite government efforts to curb the number of people it puts to death, China continues to execute more people than the rest of the world combined, and corporal punishment remains popular among the citizenry.

China Begins to Look Away From Africa

Jasmine blossoms’ fall from grace in the Chinese flower industry is not the only blow Chinese businesses have suffered as a result of the North African and Middle Eastern democratic uprisings this spring. China is evaluating the impact of the Jasmine revolution on its overseas investment and outward business expansion strategy.

CHINA: HIV Patients Find Treatment but Face Discrimination

Despite notable successes in the battle against HIV and AIDS in China, discrimination against infected people remains rife here and critics continue to question the Chinese government over allocation of treatment funds.

China Takes Back Seat on IMF, For Now

The sex scandal in the top couloirs of the IMF and the power struggle to find a successor to Dominique Strauss-Kahn has fascinated the Chinese. Rife speculations about political intrigues and shadowy deals behind the scenes have spilled into cyberspace and the usually restrained media.

IBSA: India Stakes Its Bets on Training Africa

Of the various cooperation programmes Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announced in Addis Ababa on Tuesday, plans for an India-Africa Virtual University (IAVU) take pride of place.

China Ponders This Royal Business

The glamour of the UK royal wedding is slowly disappearing from China's photo spreads, but it seems to have opened the door to a debate on the allure of old Britain's soft power and what makes an aspiring China lacking of it.