As China Marches Forward on A.I., the White House Is Silent - February 13, 2018

Media Report

February 13 , 2018

The New York Times：As China Marches Forward on A.I., the White House Is Silent
The New York Times reports: "In July, China unveiled a plan to become the world leader in artificial intelligence and create an industry worth $150 billion to its economy by 2030. To technologists working on A.I. in the United States, the statement, which was 28 pages long in its English translation, was a direct challenge to America's lead in arguably the most important tech research to come along in decades. It outlined the Chinese government's aggressive plan to treat A.I. like the country's own version of the Apollo 11 lunar mission — an all-in effort that could stoke national pride and spark agenda-setting technology breakthroughs. The manifesto was also remarkably similar to several reports on the future of artificial intelligence released by the Obama administration at the end of 2016. "It is remarkable to see how A.I. has emerged as a top priority for the Chinese leadership and how quickly things have been set into motion," said Elsa Kania, an adjunct fellow at the Center for a New American Security who helped translate the manifesto and follows China's work on artificial intelligence. "The U.S. plans and policies released in 2016 were seemingly the impetus for the formulation of China's national A.I. strategy." But six months after China seemed to mimic that Obama-era road map, A.I. experts in industry and academia in the United States say that the Trump White House has done little to follow through on the previous administration's economic call to arms. China's embrace of A.I. comes at a crucial time in the development of the technology and just as the lead long enjoyed by the United States has started to dwindle."
U.S. News & World Report：China Imposes Anti-Dumping Measure Amid Trade Tensions
U.S. News & World Report reports: "China told importers of a U.S. industrial chemical to start posting deposits Tuesday in preparation for possible anti-dumping duties amid rising trade tension with Washington. A preliminary ruling by the Ministry of Commerce said styrene monomer from the United States, South Korea and Taiwan is being sold at prices 5 to 10.7 percent below the proper level. The chemical is widely used to make packaging and consumer products. Importers must now pay cash deposits while the ministry completes its investigation. The ministry said in its ruling the Chinese styrene industry has been "substantially damaged" by dumping, which occurs when manufacturers sell a product to another country at unusually low prices. The decision follows U.S. President Donald Trump's approval last month of higher tariffs on Chinese-made solar equipment and washing machines that Washington said were sold at unfairly low costs. The Trump administration is also due to announce results of a probe into whether Beijing improperly pressures foreign companies to hand over technology, which could lead to further penalties."
Bloomberg：How China Is Getting Serious About Financial Risk
Bloomberg comments: "China is getting real about dangers in its financial system. While de-risking has been the government's mantra since 2015, the country's most powerful politicians have been ramping up directives on everything from excessive borrowing to stock-market speculation. Those efforts have gained momentum since October's Communist Party Congress, where leaders pledged to make controlling financial risk a top priority. Their challenge is to do so without derailing the economy... Beijing seems to prefer slowing debt growth to actually cutting the overall stock. Top leaders said in December they will prevent systemic risk, omitting a "deleveraging" pledge from prior years. The government said in 2016 it would "control" overall debt and "reduce" corporate borrowing. In January, top bank regulator Guo Shuqing told state-run People's Daily there's a need to "dismantle" the shadow banking sector and "suppress" household leverage... What has been achieved? The broad money supply as a percentage of GDP fell last year for the first time since 2011, growth in the outstanding volume of wealth management products slowed, and the net issuance of short-term bank debt shrank for the first time in four years in 2017. The market was spooked by tougher regulation as well, sending the yield on the benchmark 10-year government bonds surging."

Calendar

2018-02-12 Chinese stealth fighters are combat-ready, Beijing says
2018-02-11 China pledges 'employment first' policies to create millions of jobs
2018-02-09 China draws up trade retaliation options against US
2018-02-08 China's imports surge 37% in January, exports jump 11%
2018-02-07 The Rise of China and the Fall of the ‘Free Trade’ Myth
2018-02-06 China’s latest trade maneuver is worrying. Here’s the story.
2018-02-05 China Opens Inquiry Into U.S. Sorghum as Trade Tensions Worsen
2018-02-04 China Launches Probe Over US Sorghum Imports
2018-02-02 Britain’s May discusses trade barriers with China’s Xi
2018-02-01 China believes in free and fair trade too, Mr Trump

News

The New York Times As China Marches Forward on A.I., the White House Is Silent
U.S. News & World Report China Imposes Anti-Dumping Measure Amid Trade Tensions
CNN Pentagon asks for major budget increase amid threats from Russia, China and North Korea
USA Today Bill Gates: U.S. risks losing role as a global leader
CNBC China to select theaters nationwide to show propaganda films
Financial Times UK risks Beijing anger with South China Sea navy mission
Financial Review China's influence expands as it finds a new outlet in Africa
CNBC China nuclear reactor delayed again on 'safety concerns'
Financial Times China banks back in vogue as share prices rally
Reuters Taiwan says 'insensitive' China playing politics with Papua New Guinea move soon after quake
BBC News The 'globalisation' of China's military power
The Wall Street Journal There's a Global Race to Control Batteries—and China Is Winning
CNBC Expectations are high for electric vehicles in China

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