China's consumer inflation accelerated to its fastest pace in nearly three years in December, official data showed on Friday, signaling a stabilizing economy as recent stimulus measures continued to bolster domestic demand. Going forward, analysts said consumer inflation is expected to remain mild through 2026, leaving ample room for policymakers to step up macroeconomic adjustment to counter mounting uncertainties. Policy options include targeted measures to boost domestic demand and support innovation, as well as further cuts to the reserve requirement ratio and interest rates. The country's consumer price index, the main gauge of inflation, rose by 0.8 percent year-on-year in December, following a 0.7 percent rise in November, marking the highest level since February 2023, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Friday. "China's latest consumer inflation data points to a continued strengthening in domestic demand, mainly driven by the impact of consumption-boosting polici...
This episode delves into the capabilities, limitations, and societal implications of artificial intelligence. The host and guest explore AI myths, technical constraints, ethical considerations, and the effects of AI on human creativity, decision-making, and education. They also address the hype propagated by big tech companies, the black-box nature of AI, and the challenges of establishing rules and responsibility for AI systems.
In a stark departure from the cooperative multilateralism that has defined global progress in recent decades, the US administration announced its withdrawal from 66 international organizations on Wednesday. The latest attack on multilateralism is another sign of the United States' troubling retreat into the shadows of the country's 19th century past when the US sought to consolidate its control of the Western Hemisphere taking an exclusionary approach to global issues. The move comes after a review of US participation in all international organizations and treaties by the US administration, purportedly to determine which are operating "contrary to US national interests". Most of the targets of the executive order suspending US support for 31 United Nations entities and 35 non-UN international organizations are related to climate, energy, international law and labor rights. Washington views international commitments as constraints on the US' sovereignty. This perspective is deepl...
Chinese astronauts worked with the country's scientists and engineers to carry out 86 new scientific and technological tasks in 2025, highlighting the value of the Tiangong space station in research work, according to the China Manned Space Agency. 中國載人航天工程辦公室表示，2025 年，中國航天員與國內科學家、工程師協同開展 86 項全新科技任務，彰顯出天宮空間站在科研工作中的重要價值。 The agency said on Thursday in a report about scientific and technological achievements made through the space station project that in 2025, a total of 1,179 kilograms of experimental instruments, materials, and other necessities required for science and technology missions were transported to the Tiangong, while 105 kg of experimental samples were brought back to Earth for further study. More than 150 terabits of scientific data were transmitted back to ground control. 該辦公室於週四發布一份空間站項目科技成果報告稱，2025 年，共計 1179 千克的實驗儀器、實驗材料及其他科技任務所需物資被運送至天宮空間站，...
China will bar online platforms from using big data to engage in discriminatory pricing against consumers, as market regulators move to regulate the platform economy under new regulations released on Wednesday. 中國市場監管部門於週三發布新規，著手規範平臺經濟發展，明確禁止網絡平臺利用大數據對消費者實施價格歧視。 The State Administration for Market Regulation and the Cyberspace Administration of China released new measures on the supervision of online trading platforms. The latest rules aim to standardize the formulation, amendment and implementation of platform rules, safeguard online trading market order, and better protect the legitimate rights of merchants and consumers. 國家市場監督管理總局與國家互聯網信息辦公室聯合出臺網絡交易平臺監督管理新規，旨在規範平臺規則的制定、修訂與執行流程，維護網絡交易市場秩序，更好地保護平臺內商家與消費者的合法權益。 The measures target what regulators describe as a "critical minority" — online platform operators — and seek to further clarify a...
China's ice and snow resources have turned into a robust economic driver, with experts noting the transformation of winter tourism and related leisure activities from a "niche experience" into a "popular trend" and predicting that the industry will continue to boom. 中國的冰雪資源已成為強勁的經濟驅動力，專家指出，冬季旅遊及相關休閒活動正從 “小眾體驗” 轉變為 “大眾潮流”，並預計該產業將持續蓬勃發展。 According to a report released on Monday by the China Tourism Academy, the season from December 2025 to February 2026 is expected to see 360 million winter tourism trips, generating around 450 billion yuan ($64 billion) in revenue. 中國旅遊研究院週一發布的一份報告顯示，2025 年 12 月至 2026 年 2 月的冰雪季期間，預計全國冬季旅遊人次將達 3.6 億，旅遊收入約 4500 億元人民幣（折合 640 億美元）。 Yang Lezhi, 27, a resident of Beijing, said she decided to hone her skiing skills in recent years, thanks to the mushrooming winter resort options across the country. 27 歲的北京市民楊樂芝（音...
Chinese mainland authorities named two senior officials from Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party as die-hard "Taiwan independence" separatists on Wednesday and labeled a Taiwan prosecutor as an accomplice, saying that they will face lifelong legal accountability. Chen Binhua, a spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, said at a news conference that Liu Shih-fang, head of Taiwan's so-called "interior affairs department", and Cheng Ying-yao, head of the island's "education department", were added to a mainland list of people accused of pushing "Taiwan independence". Chen accused Liu and Cheng of promoting separatist ideas that go against mainstream public opinion. He said that authorities had received reports from compatriots on both sides of the Taiwan Strait calling for the two officials to be punished. The spokesman said that Liu has blatantly propagated "Taiwan independence" rhetoric and has restricted people in Taiwan who support or take part in ex...
The United Nations Security Council's first meeting of 2026 heard a global chorus of UN member states strongly denounce the United States' strike in Venezuela as a grave violation of the UN Charter, although a US representative defended it as a "surgical law enforcement operation". At Monday's emergency session, Sun Lei, China's deputy permanent representative to the UN, urged Washington to heed the international community's "overwhelming voice", comply with international law and the UN Charter, halt actions that infringe on other countries' sovereignty and security, stop toppling Venezuela's government, and return to dialogue and negotiations as the path to a political solution. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, seized and brought to the US on Saturday after a large-scale US strike in the South American nation, pleaded not guilty in federal court in New York on Monday to charges of narco-terrorism. Crowds of protesters gathered outside the courthouse, many voicing opposi...
China's postal industry processed 216.5 billion delivery items in 2025, an increase of 11.5 percent year on year, according to data released at the 2026 national postal work conference on Wednesday. 2026 年全國郵政工作會議於週三發布數據顯示，2025 年中國郵政行業處理寄遞業務量達 2165 億件，同比增長 11.5% The courier sector alone handled 199 billion parcels, marking a 13.7 percent growth from 2024. 僅快遞業務板塊就處理包裹 1990 億件，較 2024 年增長 13.7% Zhao Chongjiu, head of the State Post Bureau, said at the conference that the postal industry's total business revenue reached 1.8 trillion yuan (about $256.5 billion) in 2025, rising 6.4 percent year on year. Revenue from courier services climbed 6.5 percent to 1.5 trillion yuan. 國家郵政局局長趙衝久在會上表示，2025 年郵政行業業務收入累計完成 1.8 萬億元人民幣（約合 2565 億美元），同比增長 6.4%；其中快遞業務收入達 1.5 萬億元，同比增長 6.5%。 Zhao noted that the industry has maintained steady and positive growth momentum, with key...
China announced on Tuesday an immediate ban on exporting dual-use items to Japan, in response to Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's erroneous remarks hinting at the possibility of military intervention in the Taiwan Strait. 中國於週二宣布，立即禁止向日本出口軍民兩用物品，以此回應日本首相高市早苗有關暗示可能軍事干預臺灣海峽的錯誤言論。 These remarks "constitute gross interference in China's internal affairs, seriously violate the one-China principle, and are extremely egregious in both nature and impact", a spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce said on Tuesday. 商務部發言人於週二表示，上述言論 “嚴重干涉中國內政，嚴重違反一個中國原則，性質惡劣、影響極壞”。 In order to safeguard national security and interests, as well as fulfill international nonproliferation obligations, China decided to strengthen control over dual-use item exports to Japan, the ministry said in its first announcement of the year. 商務部在其本年度首份公告中指出，為維護國家安全和利益，履行防擴散國...