Despite high tariffs against Chinese-built products, the United States imported record volumes of manufactured goods from China in July.

Policymakers in the United States, along with governments in friendly countries and those in North America, expected that after years of high tariffs and sanctions, that supply chain managers would be moving supply chains out of China, and bring them home.

The opposite happened, and imports from China are not merely larger than ever, but are accelerating relative to countries most friendly to the United States.

Resources and links:

Descartes, July 2024 U.S. Container Imports Break 2.5M TEUs
https://www.descartes.com/reso....urces/knowledge-cent

US volumes break 2.5 million TEU mark in July; Imports from China set record high
https://container-news.com/us-....volumes-break-2-5-mi

Reform & Opening-up｜How was the world-class port of Qingdao made?
https://www.ourchinastory.com/en/11148/Reform&Opening-up

Top 20 North American ports
https://www.ajot.com/premium/a....jot-top-20-north-ame

Infographic, Top 10 busiest container ports in 2023
https://twitter.com/_ValiantPa....nda_/status/18182284

New Tariff Policy Amplifies the United States’ Efforts To Bolster Nearshoring Strategy
https://www.swlaw.com/publicat....ion/new-tariff-polic

Definitions and applications of Reshoring, Nearshoring, and Friendshoring
https://www.aatcc.org/aatccnews_2024_01a/

Closing scene, Qingdao Container Port, Shandong

Discover the truth behind Ghana's newly inaugurated gold refinery. Touted as a game-changer for Africa's economic independence, this refinery hides a controversial reality. With only 20% owned by Ghana's Central Bank and 80% by foreign entities with no refining experience, is this really the path to prosperity? We'll uncover the hidden facts, compare Ghana's approach to other African nations like Burkina Faso, and explore what this means for the future of Africa's rich mineral resources. #ghanagold #goldrefinery #economicdevelopment #environmentalconcerns #goldindustry #2024news

Global auto markets were rocked by a recent agreement between Uber, the global ride-sharing app, and BYD, a Chinese electric vehicle brand that is now the world's largest EV manufacturer and exporter.

While BYD will surely benefit through its partnership with Uber, the extra 100,000 vehicles in the first phase of the agreement with Uber represents only a modest percentage increase in BYD"s global sales.

Far more important is how this agreement will transform Uber. BYD is the most vertically integrated motor vehicle company today, and earns very high marks for vehicle quality and reliability, which will keep its cars on the road instead of in costly repair shops. The cars are fast-charging, with long-lasting battery life. And BYD can produce at far lower costs than non-Chinese carmakers.

This all adds up to Uber now able to create new markets as fast as BYD delivers cars to put on the road.

Resources and links:

Uber and BYD Partner to Accelerate Global EV Transition
https://investor.uber.com/news....-events/news/press-r

BYD to unleash 100,000 EVs globally with its new partner, Uber
https://electrek.co/2024/07/31..../byd-unleash-100000-

Uber and BYD partner to introduce more EVs to global markets
https://www.automotivedive.com..../news/uber-byd-ev-pa

Uber, China’s BYD, form partnership to deploy 100,000 EVs in EU and Latin America
https://apnews.com/article/chi....na-uber-byd-ev-5c45f

BYD press release
https://www.byd.com/us/news-li....st/BYD-and-Uber-Part

Rocky Mountain Institute (2018) Ride-Hailing Drivers Are Ideal Candidates for Electric Vehicles
https://rmi.org/ride-hailing-d....rivers-ideal-candida

Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, Despite easing inflation vehicle repair costs soar
https://www.minneapolisfed.org..../article/2023/despit

Surging auto insurance rates squeeze drivers, fuel inflation
https://apnews.com/article/aut....o-insurance-inflatio

New Car Price Trends in 2024 (August Update)
https://caredge.com/guides/new....-car-price-trends-in

Closing scene, Yingwuzhou Yangtze River Bridge, Wuhan, Hubei province

China is pushing Hong Kong as a global hub for Stablecoins, which are digital currencies backed by fiat money.

Western analysts correctly point out that China, uniquely among large economies, is aggressively building out the financial infrastructure and regulation for digital currencies, issued by the central bank. But these analyses err on a major point: the stablecoins issued by Hong Kong institutions will not be China-yuan denominated, as they assume. Instead, they will be denominated in US dollars, and will be a powerful driver of economic growth to the benefit of the Chinese financial system, and without exposing their own currency to outside speculators, seizure, or debt issuance.

To see how this may play out, consider the explosive growth of Tether, a stablecoin with stated US dollar reserves of $116 billion and 1-to-1 parity with the US dollar. The sudden rise and global acceptance of Tether serve as a playbook for Chinese banking regulators, who are sitting on nearly $4 trillion in US dollar reserves, with hopes to deploy these deep capital pools but without exposure to the Western banking system.

Resources and links:

Reuters, Tether's $100 billion stokes stablecoin stability concerns
https://www.reuters.com/techno....logy/tethers-100-bln

Learn how Tether (USDT) Makes Money
https://www.markets.com/educat....ion-centre/how-tethe
Inside the Russian Shadow Trade for Weapons Parts, Fueled by Crypto

Hong Kong to increase digital asset regulation in next 18 months, with focus on stablecoins
https://coingeek.com/hong-kong....-to-increase-digital

Tether’s Ascent: Breaking Down the Dominant Stablecoin's Growth
https://coinmetrics.substack.c....om/p/state-of-the-ne

Forbes, The House Bans The Fed From Building A CBDC Like The Digital Yuan
https://www.forbes.com/sites/d....igital-assets/2024/0

Reuters, What and where are Russia's $300 billion in reserves frozen in the West?
https://www.reuters.com/world/....europe/what-where-ar

China contends for the central position in the global economy
https://merics.org/en/6-china-....contends-central-pos

ASEAN: The ultimate winner of a China-US rivalry (Part I)
https://www.thinkchina.sg/econ....omy/asean-ultimate-w

Tether Stablecoin Home Page
https://tether.to/en/

Closing scene, Hong Kong

Auto industry insiders were stunned when Caresoft, a highly regarded engineering consulting firm, tore down BYD's mass-market EV, the Seagull.

Priced around $11,000, the engineers found the Seagull to be well-designed, user friendly, rich with options, and of surprisingly high quality and reliability.

The US automakers reacted swiftly, and produced reports insisting that BYD's entrance into US car markets would be met with strong enthusiasm from buyers, and legacy carmakers would be unable to survive.

Because of the Seagull's low price point, US tariffs of 25% would be irrelevant: BYD could still make high profits even after the tariffs were paid. Or, BYD could simply place final assembly plants in Mexico and avoid them altogether. Aware of this, the Biden Administration in May jacked the tariffs up to 100%, and announced that Chinese car plants even in tariff treaty countries would be cut off from US markets.

Correction: I was wrong when I said that EV's are lighter. Apologies. I was working with three sets of notes, and the changes didn't make it over in the final draft. It was my fault. Cheers. Kw

Resources and links:

American Test Of $11,500 BYD Seagull: 'This Doesn't Come Across Cheap'
https://insideevs.com/news/710....364/byd-detroit-impo

On a collision course: China's existential threat to America's auto industry and its route through Mexico
https://www.americanmanufactur....ing.org/wp-content/u

CNBC, Why a small China-made EV has global auto execs and politicians on edge
https://www.cnbc.com/2024/03/2....2/byd-seagull-ev-put

American Test Of $11,500 BYD Seagull: 'This Doesn't Come Across Cheap'
https://insideevs.com/news/710....364/byd-detroit-impo
5 takeaways from Biden's tariff hikes on Chinese electric vehicles

NPR, 5 Takeaways from Biden's new tariffs on Chinese cars
https://www.npr.org/2024/05/14..../1251096758/biden-ch

Associated Press, Small, well-built Chinese EV called the Seagull poses a big threat to the US auto industry
https://apnews.com/article/chi....na-byd-auto-seagull-

Forbes, China’s Seagull Leads The Way In Cheap, Well-Made Electric Cars
https://www.forbes.com/sites/j....oshmax/2024/05/14/ch

Caresoft Global, company page
www.caresoftglobal.com

BYD’s new Seagull EV shocks the industry
https://electrek.co/2024/03/22..../byds-new-ev-startin

Closing scene, Harbor, Hainan Province

For the first time ever, global business executives ranked the United States outside the Top 10 in international surveys of competitiveness. The US was firmly in the top spot for decades, and was never out of the top three. According to this year's survey, executives pushed the United States to #12, while Asian economies Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and the UAE snagged four of the top eight spots.

This survey of international business leaders mirrors what everyday Americans tell pollsters at home: the United States is on the wrong track, and American citizens' confidence in national institutions are at all-time lows.

But our policymakers rely on other surveys, such as from the World Economic Forum and the UN, which continue to show the US as the most competitive. Why is there such an apparent disconnect, between what business executives say about doing business in and with America, and what transnational organizations claim?

Resources and links:

Is the United States Really One of the Most Competitive Economies in the World? No.
https://www2.itif.org/2022-ina....ccurate-competitiven

The US drops out of the Global Competitiveness Top 10
https://aheadoftheherd.com/the....-u-s-drops-out-of-gl

U.S. High School Students Lag Foreign Peers in Achievement Scores
https://www.ethicssage.com/202....2/03/us-high-school-

Statista, The world's most competitive economies
https://www.statista.com/chart..../30231/the-worlds-mo

U.S. Education Rankings Compared to Other Countries
https://www.thebalancemoney.co....m/the-u-s-is-losing-

Gallup, Satisfaction With the United States
https://news.gallup.com/poll/1....669/general-mood-cou

Historically Low Faith in U.S. Institutions Continues
https://news.gallup.com/poll/5....08169/historically-l

Majority of American voters say country is headed in wrong direction
https://nypost.com/2024/07/16/....us-news/majority-of-

Closing scene, Chongqing riverside


Confidence in colleges and universities hits new lows, per FIRE polls

https://www.thefire.org/news/c....onfidence-colleges-a

Worldwide adoption of China's currency, the renminbi (RMB), is gaining steam as the de-dollarization push takes hold across the non-G7 countries.

Two macro factors are accelerating the growth of the RMB in place of the US dollar as the preferred currency for trading and settlements. The economic sanctions against Russia, which froze and then seized billions of dollars of Russian USD reserves held in custody in Western banks, are forcing countries and companies to de-risk by moving their reserves from SWIFT-associated financial institutions. Another crucial factor is the high US interest rates, which are sucking in hundreds of billions of dollars from global accounts to feed huge and growing fiscal deficits.

High US government borrowing causes USD to be drained from the global system. Ironically, this causes USD to gain in value outside the US, while feeding inflation and reducing the dollar's strength inside the country.

Simply by moving its USD and Euro reserves from US and European banks to Chinese-based institutions, Chinese banks enjoy the best of all worlds: they receive billions of USD and Euro every day through trading surpluses, and can then lend those foreign currencies and create assets and economic activity on their own balance sheets. Analysis of Chinese banking and lending data confirm explosive growth in Chinese lending abroad, in both RMB and USD.

Resources and links:

Inside China Business, China isn't dumping dollars. They're dumping banks, and setting up a new financial system.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DnzuR-kog-w

National Debt of the United States
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/....National_debt_of_the

SCMP, Global use of China’s yuan up sharply, beating pound and yen on internationalisation index
https://www.scmp.com/economy/e....conomic-indicators/a

The renminbi overtakes the euro as a trade settlement currency as its use in global trade finance accelerates
https://asiahouse.org/research...._posts/the-renminbi-

Bloomberg, The Yuan Is Finally Showing Some Muscle in International Trade
https://www.bloomberg.com/opin....ion/articles/2023-12

Third time lucky? China’s push to internationalise the renminbi
tps://www.bruegel.org/policy-brief/t....hird-time-lucky-chin

Closing scene, Guilin, Guangxi province

In this thought-provoking video, we explore the shocking truth about the West's relationship with Africa. For over 800 years, the West has maintained a ruthlessly extractive economic relationship with Africa, exploiting its natural resources and human capital to fuel its own growth and prosperity. From chattel slavery to neocolonialism, the West has consistently prioritized its own interests over the well-being of African nations and peoples.

We examine how this centuries-long pattern of exploitation has enabled the West to impersonate a superior civilization, and how it has maintained its grip on power despite the rise of new global players like BRICS. We also look at the ways in which the West has worked to undermine African independence and sovereignty, from regime change to economic manipulation.

But there is hope for change. As global power dynamics shift and new options emerge, African nations have the opportunity to break free from the West's stranglehold and forge their own paths to development and prosperity. Will they seize this moment, or will they continue to be held back by the West's neocolonial grip?

Watch to learn more about the West's 800-year-old secret and the future of Africa in a rapidly changing world.

#africanliberation #decolonization #africa

Despite political rhetoric to the contrary, the United States and China have enjoyed the most mutually successful economic partnership in modern history.

The Group of Seven (G7) nations include the US, Canada, the UK, Japan, Germany, France, and Italy. As emerging market economies, and especially China, have boomed, the G7's share of global GDP has dramatically fallen.

But a closer examination of the underlying economic data shows that the United States' share of global GDP has risen, especially since 2010. The US is the only G7 country to take a larger share of global GDP while China's economy rocketed higher.

Resources and links:

Skipping class: Chinese students are looking beyond the US
https://www.chartr.co/stories/....2022-08-12-2-chinese

Wall Street Journal, U.S.-China Investment Flows Bigger Than Thought
https://www.wsj.com/articles/BL-CJB-29645

For wealthy Chinese students, studying abroad becomes the norm
https://list.juwai.com/news/20....12/05/infographic-fo

EGS Biweekly Global Business Newsletter Issue 109, Tuesday, May 28, 2024
https://geowizard.biz/2024/05/....egs-biweekly-global-

Statista, The countries with the most countries studying abroad
https://www.statista.com/chart..../3624/the-countries-

Zerohedge, Visualizing The G7's Declining Share Of Global GDP
https://www.zerohedge.com/geop....olitical/visualizing

China’s universities just grabbed 6 of the top 10 spots in one worldwide science ranking – without changing a thing
https://theconversation.com/ch....inas-universities-ju

Closing scene, Peking Duck from the award-winning Grand Hyatt Beijing
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gc2AvoXVCz4

The Leiden University Center for Science and Technology Studies CWTS group has new university rankings that add open-data sources to the traditional list of top journals, which were previously the standard.

Common university ranking systems carefully consider research reputation and scholarship, including real-world impact and application. But tens of thousands of scientific and engineering journals are omitted by Western university ranking systems, especially those not written in the English language.

Simply by including the journals in the OpenAlex databases, Chinese universities vault to the top of global rankings for research universities, snagging six of the top nine spots, and ten of the top 20.

Resources and links:

Forbes, China Used More Concrete In 3 Years Than The U.S. Used In The Entire 20th Century [Infographic]
https://www.forbes.com/sites/n....iallmccarthy/2014/12

Nature, Modernizing cement manufacturing in China leads to substantial environmental gains
https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-022-00579-3

Graphic, China HSR network since 2008
https://www.reddit.com/r/Urban....ism/comments/1ceda02

CNN, High speed trains are racing across the world. But not in America
https://www.cnn.com/travel/art....icle/high-speed-rail

Sample English-language abstracts of Chinese scholarship in high-speed rail:
Nature, High-speed rail new towns and their impacts on urban sustainable development: a spatial analysis based on satellite remote sensing data
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41599-024-03337-2

Nature, The impacts of high-speed railway on environmental sustainability: quasi-experimental evidence from China
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41599-023-02135-6

Nature, The impact of high-speed rail on SO2 emissions—based on spatial difference-in-differences analysis
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-023-49853-0

High-Speed Rail and Energy Productivity: Evidence from China
https://journals.sagepub.com/d....oi/10.5547/01956574.

Nature, How does the opening of high-speed rail drive energy restructuring? New micro evidence from China
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41599-024-02622-4

Forbes, A Look Inside Shenzhen's High-Tech Empire
https://www.forbes.com/sites/w....adeshepard/2016/07/1

China’s universities just grabbed 6 of the top 10 spots in one worldwide science ranking – without changing a thing
https://theconversation.com/ch....inas-universities-ju

Methodologies for CWTS Leiden Global University Rankings:
https://open.leidenranking.com..../#:~:text=The%20Leid
and https://www.universiteitleiden.....nl/en/news/2024/01/

Leiden Rankings for 2024
https://www.leidenranking.com/

Closing scene, Hong Kong