"Xi Jinping's New Silk Road will not only be one of the most discussed topics of 2015, but it will profoundly mark China's coming decade and reshape Eurasia. Backed by massive financial investments coming from the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the Silk Road Fund, 'the Silk Road Economic Belt'... and 'the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road' are symbols of 21st century China and constitute for the Eurasian actors a historical opportunity... Some observers can point out that Beijing's renewed focus on the Eurasian continent can be seen, in geopolitical terms, as an answer to the U.S. pivot to Asia initiated by the Obama administration, however, the New Silk Road should not be interpreted as a tactical scheme to counter other forces, it simply complements 'a new type of major-power relationship' which characterizes the China/U.S. bilateral relations," reports The Huffington Post.

According to The New York Times, "Costa Rica's foreign minister said Friday he sees no conflict between the U.S.'s longstanding ties with Latin America and China's growing presence in the region. China's hosting this week of a forum with 33 Latin American and Caribbean countries highlighted what some see as a rivalry for influence in Washington's traditional backyard. However, Manuel Gonzalez said the region's foreign relations were not exclusive and there was no reason why it couldn't maintain harmonious ties with both China and the U.S." 

The Wall Street Journal writes, "China is increasingly likely to take new action to bolster growth, economists said, after figures released on Friday showed that inflation in the country remains near its lowest levels in five years. Sluggish economic growth and falling prices for oil and other key commodities are resulting in weakening inflation in some of the world's biggest economies... In China, prices are falling because of weak domestic demand and the downturn in commodity markets. For example, prices for coal, iron ore and copper are at their lowest levels in at least five years, and China is the world's biggest consumer of all three."