RECORD CHINA TRADE SURPLUS AS DEMAND SAGS

[anon45]

North Texas

Ah I live in LA and I was used to around $3.5 - $4 a gallon, it's gone to below 3 now.

Hell I remember when we were looking at $5 gas!

 

[Huan]

Ah I live in LA and I was used to around $3.5 - $4 a gallon, it's gone to below 3 now.

Hell I remember when we were looking at $5 gas!

Well, thanks alot Obama! lol

 

[AndrewJin]

Well, thanks alot Obama! lol

WTF?! Why is Trump not the leading candidate any more?

 

[TaiShang]

As the world economy seems to unable to recover, China is prudent to further promote domestic investment (Made in China 2025) and consumption (Internet of things). Lower commodity prices is a plus because China is a major manufacturing power, as @Shotgunner51 says.

It might also be the right time to acquire and invest in foreign assets, especially in machinery and high-tech.

***

Chinese cash to pour into high-tech start-ups
November 9, 2015

Chinese companies are looking beyond the country to fund foreign startups. [File photo]

Chinese cash is starting to pour into high-tech start-ups in Europe and the United States. One of the largest funds has been set up by China Development Bank in partnership with Bpifrance, the French state-owned investment vehicle.

The 250 million euro ($275 million) Sino-French Innovation Fund will be used to support digital startups in France, China and the US.

"French companies have an urgent need to develop their activities across a wide range of markets," Nicolas Dufourcq, chairman of Bpifrance, said in a statement.

"This is something that China, as well as the United States, can offer."

The fund was launched earlier this year and will be managed by Cathay Capital, a cross-border investment firm, with offices in Shanghai, Beijing, Paris and New York.

Indeed, this move into funding overseas tech-based businesses is gathering pace. An increasing number of Chinese companies are looking beyond the country to invest in foreign startups.

Last month, Zhongguancun Software Park Development Co Ltd, a government-backed enterprise, unveiled a 40 million euro fund to nurture high-tech fledgling firms in Nordic countries.

Sectors earmarked for investment include finance, gaming, communication and new energy projects.

"Northern Europe is a traditional major source of innovation," Liu Kefeng, general manager of Beijing Zhongguancun Software Park, said.

"We hope the fund, co-backed by Chinese and Finnish enterprises, can promote the exchange of ideas and technology between China and the Nordic countries."

The decision to put together these partnership deals is the result of the country's growing wealth and Beijing's desire to attract cutting-edge companies.

Denis Barrier, managing partner of Cathay Capital, pointed out that it was "natural evolution" for more Chinese companies to invest in smart startups.

"China is the most competitive ecosystem in the world when it comes to online business and a very innovative nation," Barrier said.

But to retain its edge in a fast-evolving world the country needs to tap into the latest global developments by investing in new ventures, he added.

This policy is also a direct consequence of China's economic expansion, according to Bharath Madhus, co-founder of Securly, a Silicon Valley-based startup backed by Chinese investors.

"It makes sense for Chinese venture capital to diversify into other competitive regions," he said.

Securly has developed software and cloud-based services for parents and schools to manage the time children spend online.

Founded in 2013, the company raised funding from Chinese venture capital firms, Zhen Fund and Innovation Works, without disclosing detailed figures.

Although Securly has no immediate plans to move into the Chinese market, its investors will help smooth the way when the time is right.

"Addressing foreign markets can be difficult, so investing in (the right products) is a good first step," Barrier, at Cathay Capital, said.

"Still, it doesn't solve the real question: how to make it a significant part of the main core business outside China," he added.

 

[cirr]

Commodity prices are ebbing at multi-year lows and external demands are extremely weak（read：the world economy at large and western economies in particular are still in a sh1thole），no wonder China's trade surpluses are scaling higher and higher。

 

[AndrewJin]

Commodity prices are ebbing at multi-year lows and external demands are extremely weak（read：the world economy at large and western economies in particular are still in a sh1thole），no wonder China's trade surpluses are scaling higher and higher。

Right time to buy companies.

 

[Shotgunner51]

As the world economy seems to unable to recover, China is prudent to further promote domestic investment (Made in China 2025) and consumption (Internet of things). Lower commodity prices is a plus because China is a major manufacturing power, as @Shotgunner51 says.

It might also be the right time to acquire and invest in foreign assets, especially in machinery and high-tech.
***
Chinese cash to pour into high-tech start-ups
November 9, 2015

China as industrialized economy is on the buy side not sell side of commodities, so yes low prices is definitely a good thing. With adequate surplus and reserves, China should (1) stockpile strategic commodities while they are cheap, or (2) simply buy-out the sources of supply. In my opinion, China is going the right direction in this regard.

Consumption is a separate issue though, a big agenda, it requires massive socio-economic reforms.

On overseas investment, other than acquiring commodity-related assets (mines, farms, lands, transports, etc) as mentioned above, venturing into tech startups through VC approach is also a good trend. If managed correctly, such an approach will (1) lower political/public sensitivity in the beginning, (2) avoid early stage hostility from strategic competitors, while (3) in the long run should still serve strategic purposes of uplifting techs and industries back home.

In dealing with matured techs/assets, just use ordinary M&A approaches.

 

[Jlaw]

Gas prices rising? That's odd my dear, prices are dropping here in Shanghai. Where in US do you live?

Off topic: If I may ask, is there by any chance that you might bear a resemblance to your DP?

Bro, world oil prices are not correlated with gasoline prices, not in Canada. Gasoline is inelastic so the seller can charge whatever the hell they want, consumers will buy it.

 

[tranquilium]

Record China trade surplus as demand sags - www.thebull.com.au

China recorded its highest trade surplus on record last month, official data shows, as plunging imports highlighted the country's continued struggle to boost domestic demand and prop up sagging growth.

The disappointing figures show how Beijing is struggling to keep the world's second-largest economy on the rails and add to mounting evidence China could be heading for a hard landing.

As the planet's biggest trader in goods and a key driver of already subdued world growth, the figures will also add to signs the global economy is facing its toughest year since the height of the financial crisis.

Imports fell 18.8 per cent compared to a year ago to $US130.77 billion ($A183 billion), the 12th consecutive monthly drop in imports, following a 20.4 per cent decrease in September, according to customs figures.

Exports, too, continued their losing streak from July, dropping by 6.9 per cent year-on-year in October to $192.41 billion as foreign demand languished.

That set the trade surplus at $US61.64 billion, a 36 per cent increase compared to the same period in 2014 and the highest such figure since at least 1995, the earliest data held on record by Bloomberg News.

The decrease in exports was larger than a median forecast of a 3.2 per cent decline in a Bloomberg News survey of economists.

The data "suggests that domestic demand remained sluggish", ANZ analysts said in a research note, adding that they expect "imports growth may start to improve gradually" into the first quarter of 2016.

Weakness in China's property market, overcapacity in the manufacturing sector and slowed government spending on infrastructure have contributed to the country's economic slowdown and decreasing demand for commodities.

Falling demand from the world's top importer of everything from industrial metals and energy to corn has in turn driven commodity prices down, which has made China's exports even cheaper.

Coal imports have dropped almost 30 per cent in volume and 45 per cent in value over the first 10 months of the year, measured in the local currency, the data showed.

The sagging numbers have caused anxiety for countries like Australia and Mongolia, whose economies are driven by Chinese demand for the raw materials they produce, despite government efforts to stimulate the economy.

Last week, the ruling Communist Party announced its intention to pursue a combination of stimulus and structural reform measures in its 13th five-year plan, which provides guidance for the national economy through 2020.

Erm, correct me if I am wrong. Isn't domestic demand in China better reflected by indicators such overall domestic consumption (including 居民消费支出, 最终消费支出 and 政府消费支出 in China's case) rather than indicators such as import?

Take the recent development in Chinese domestic chip industry for example, increased output and quality of domestic chips will lead to a drop in importation for computer chips, but that doesn't mean domestic consumption have dropped. In fact, it will just be opposite where lower cost and easier intellectual property coordination likely to lead to an increase in consumption.

 

[AndrewJin]

Erm, correct me if I am wrong. Isn't domestic demand in China better reflected by indicators such overall domestic consumption (including 居民消费支出, 最终消费支出 and 政府消费支出 in China's case) rather than indicators such as import?

Take the recent development in Chinese domestic chip industry for example, increased output and quality of domestic chips will lead to a drop in importation for computer chips, but that doesn't mean domestic consumption have dropped. In fact, it will just be opposite where lower cost and easier intellectual property coordination likely to lead to an increase in consumption.

Tomorrow is critical.

 

[Huan]

WTF?! Why is Trump not the leading candidate any more?

I think the Republican polls are rigged by undercover democrats... Hehehe.

 

[AndrewJin]

I think the Republican polls are rigged by undercover democrats... Hehehe.

Maybe Trump himself is a undercover democrat.

 

[tranquilium]

Maybe Trump himself is a undercover democrat.

Trump's personality is the type of the in your face personality, it is good for making a TV show, but I am not sure I like that for the leader of a nation.

To be honest though, I have been listening to all these candidates talk and I received really little information on their actual ability to govern.

 

[AndrewJin]

Trump's personality is the type of the in your face personality, it is good for making a TV show, but I am not sure I like that for the leader of a nation.

To be honest though, I have been listening to all these candidates talk and I received really little information on their actual ability to govern.

It doesn't really matter, they are only puppets.

 

[kawaraj]

Can anyone share info on the volume changes in major commodities? to exclude the volatility on prices vs last year.