The First Month of Reopening; Xi's Credibility; Qin Gang and US-China Relations; TikTok Forfeits the Benefit of the Doubt

On today's show Andrew and Bill reunite after the holiday break and begin with the continued reopening process around China. Topics include: the tragedy of the past several weeks, calls for more transparency from the CCP, dubious testing requirements for Chinese travelers, the government reportedly pressing pause on some of its chip investments, and why it may take a few months before reopening yields any meaningful shift in economic data. Then: Xi's New Year's address and reactions to a spate of articles related to his standing in China. At the end: Formula 1 may be returning to China, Qin Gang goes from the Washington Wizards to the Central Committee, and TikTok's future is murkier than ever after some news that was not-quite-buried before the Christmas holiday.

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Reopening; Transparency; Stimulating real estate demand; US-China — Sinocism

Covid reopening and growing concerns about lack of transparency; Marcos meets Xi; Propaganda work — Sinocism

Reopening; Testing PRC travelers; Wang Qishan in Brazil; More weak economic data; 辱华 — Sinocism

China Condemns Its People to Relive the Nightmare of 2020 — Bloomberg

China threatens ‘countermeasures’ over other countries’ Covid travel restrictions — The Guardian

Battered by Covid, China Hits Pause on Giant Chip Spending Aimed at Rivaling US — Bloomberg

China can see a ‘light of hope’ in Covid battle, says Xi Jinping in New Year’s message — SCMP

Xi Jinping’s credibility ‘badly wounded’ as China’s Covid death toll mounts — Financial Times

Update: 2023 Chinese Grand Prix return inches closer  — RacingNews365

New Chinese foreign minister Qin Gang: What I learned in America — Washington Post

Why China’s new foreign minister could be a problem for Biden — Politico

Qin Gang 秦刚 on Twitter — @AmbQinGang

EXCLUSIVE: TikTok Spied On Forbes Journalists — Forbes

Biden signs TikTok ban for government devices, setting up a chaotic 2023 for the app — NBC

Leaked Audio From 80 Internal TikTok Meetings Shows That US User Data Has Been Repeatedly Accessed From China — Buzzfeed News

China's Bayi Rockets vs NBA champions Washington Bullets in 1979  — YouTube

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