Full Contents - April 2006


PERSPECTIVE [Premium content]

  • A diplomatic balancing act

  • When it comes to satisfying China's rising energy demands, all roads lead to the Gulf - and this has left Beijing playing to both sides in the Iran nuclear debate.

  • Turning the tables over trade

  • From US$793 million worth of business at a 1972 trade fair to US$763 billion in exports last year, it has taken China a generation to usurp the US and dominate trade.

  • Time to break free of the bonds

  • Dubai's US port acquisition brought back ugly memories of the CNOOC-Unocal debacle, but overseas equity stakes are the way forward for Chinese investors.

  • Green-tinged cooperation

  • Europe is positioning itself as China's supplier or both power stations and the technology and expertise required to get rid of the pollution they create.

COMMENTARY

  • Dissension in the ranks

  • Whisper it, but Chinese politics is in danger of becoming interesting again. For a country that tends not to emerge from a decade without at least one major political upheaval under its belt (in the modern era, at least), the last 10 years have been phenomenally stable. Ever since doubts about joining the WTO were put aside, China has galloped forward with little or no opposition from within.

REVIEW

  • The man most likely to?

  • With Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian alienated by both Beijing and Washington, opposition leader Ma Ying-jeou is positioning himself as a conciliatory successor.

  • Standard bearers

  • China's move to accept international accounting standards represents a significant step forward, but doubts over compliance and enforcement lurk in the background.

  • Opportunities overseas

  • Flush with cash from successful domestic operations, China's firms - both big and small - are now looking to invest abroad in order to build on their business.

  • Cosmetic cravings

  • Huge cosmetics growth in China is a sure bet, but don't count on quick returns from a rapidly aging female population - at least not yet.

  • Coffee culture

  • A new breed of cafes is trying to steer China's traditional tea drinkers toward coffee consumption. But which is the real draw - the beverage or the caf� environment?

China Buzz

  • QUESTION & ANSWER / China's Guiding Light

  • While he admits the Asian Development Bank's financial contribution to China is "peanuts", the ADB's chief economist is keen to make a difference in structural reform.

FOCUS

Q&A

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