TIME reports: "China's increasingly image-conscious government has appointed a trusted member of the ruling Communist Party to head up its international propaganda operation. Former top internet regulator Xu Lin will be in charge of efforts to portray China as a progressive force for good in the world at a time when it's facing criticism over its allegedly unfair trading practices, human rights abuses and militarization of island claims in the South China Sea. Xu's appointment to the position of head of the Cabinet-level State Council Information Office was announced by state media outlets on Tuesday."
CNBC reports: "Two U.S. airlines on Tuesday cut routes between China and the United States, underscoring increasingly tough competition from state-backed Chinese rivals as they aggressively expand their fleets with cut-price tickets. American Airlines, the largest U.S. carrier by passengers, said it would drop a route between Chicago and Shanghai, canceling the second direct flight from the U.S. city to China in four months. It had canceled a flight to Beijing in May, although it still operates daily flights to the capital from Los Angeles and Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas."
The Wall Street Journal reports: "The intensifying trade fight between the U.S. and China didn't come out of the blue. American frustration has long been building over China's failure to live up to its commitments when it joined the World Trade Organization in 2001. But President Trump's unilateral tariffs risk a Pyrrhic victory that damages global trading rules that have broadly served U.S. interests. There may be a more effective solution: threaten China with expulsion from the WTO. Calling this the nuclear option doesn't really do it justice since the nuclear weapons don't even exist. The WTO lacks a formal mechanism to throw out a member."