Nearly seventy years after the Korean War, President Xi Jinping cautioned that "blackmailing, blocking and extreme pressure" is a losing strategy in a speech commemorating China's involvement in the Korean War. Although the United States wasn't directly mentioned, many are calling the event a warning for Washington, and a reminder of what many in China view as its victory against the U.S. In the same speech, President Xi vowed to speed up the country's military progress, and quoted Mao Zedong, saying, "Let the world know that 'the people of China are now organized, and are not to be trifled with." 

Notably, Xi's speech was given at the same time as the final U.S. presidential debate between President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joseph Biden. During the debate, Trump defended his ownership of a Chinese bank account, after the New York Times reported that Trump International Hotels Management LLC controlled a bank account in China, while Trump attacked Biden for allegedly receiving money from business dealings in China . The United States will choose their next President in less than 2 weeks, and China has set October 26 to 29 as the date for the Fifth Plenum meeting, marking the country's 14th five-year plan. The meeting will convene hundreds of party elites in Beijing and set the framework for China's economic strategy, as well as other top issues, including Covid, the environment, and international tensions. For more, read "China in the 2020 U.S. Presidential Election" by David Shambaugh, Gaston Sigur Professor of Asian Studies, Political Science & International Affairs at George Washington University.

Washington's sanctions on Huawei may be seriously affecting the company's supply of semiconductors. As U.S.-China tensions soar, some Chinese have abandoned American companies and products, opting to support domestic companies. Huawei's smartphone sales have reached about 50% of China's domestic market in recent months, and as the telecoms giant continues to release new smartphone models, Huawei may not have a supplier for semiconductors if U.S. sanctions continue. 

Despite the U.S.-China rivalry, Apple's iPhone remains a strong contender in China's smartphone market. The latest iPhone 12 model, revealed last week, has already hit stores in Beijing, and while Covid kept the usual crowds away, online excitement ran high. JD.com, one of China's largest e-commerce companies, reported over 500,000 preorders for the iPhone 12 Pro to date. 

Washington has labeled six more Chinese media outlets as "foreign missions," in an attempt to help news consumers differentiate between free press and government-controlled news. Announced at a press briefing this Wednesday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo characterized the outlets as being "substantially or effectively controlled by a foreign government." As a result, the American branches of Yicai Global, Jiefang Daily, Xinmin Evening News, Social Sciences in China Press, Beijing Review and Economic Daily will have to discontinue operations in the U.S. The move follows the designation of nine other Chinese media companies as foreign missions earlier this year.