Nvidia's CEO Enjoys Noodles in Beijing

Huang tucking into a big bowl of zhajiangmian in Beijing

Nvidia founder Jensen Huang got a big boost in popularity after he was seen eating street food in Beijing during US President Donald Trump's visit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

There are numerous video clips and pictures of Huang in Nanluoguxiang, a street that has some hutongs converted into shops. 

The noodles are served with various toppings 

The Taiwanese-American billionaire held a large bowl of zhajiangmian or "fried sauce noodles", where wheat noodles are topped with ingredients like thinly sliced cucumbers, radish, carrots, or minced pork, and mixed with a fermented soy bean sauce.

"It's so good," he said, taking a bite. 

However, Huang did not like douzhi'er, a fermented mung bean drink that tastes a bit sour and gray-green in colour. It's a traditional Beijing beverage, but not for everyone.

He instead bought a sweet drink from beverage chain Mixue Bingcheng.

Trump brought Huang along at the last minute in the hopes of getting big deals from Beijing, with the Commerce Department clearing 10 Chinese firms to purchase Nvidia's second-most powerful AI chip called the H200.

Musk's son with his viral tiger bag

But in the end China did not allow companies like Alibaba, Tencent and ByteDance to buy the chips, and so Nvidia came away empty-handed, and the market reacted with the stock dropping 4.4 percent on Friday.

Did Huang know this would happen and that's why he thought he'd make the most of the trip by eating street food? Possibly. Or was he in a popularity contest with Elon Musk -- who brought his six-year-old son, whose hand-stitched tiger head-shaped bag went viral...

What billionaires have to do to be popular...

The Chinese Art of Flattering Trump

Trump received an energetic spectacle upon arrival in Beijing

Donald Trump's highly-anticipated visit to China was a lesson in subtle visual clues on how Chinese leader Xi Jinping would treat the American president.

These kinds of state visits are a window into what kind of image Beijing wants Trump to see.

He was greeted in person by Vice President Han Zheng, which Trump probably thought was highly respectful, but in fact Han doesn't have much political power, making his position mostly ceremonial.

Children jumping as they greet Xi and Trump

Nevertheless Trump got the fanfare he wanted as 300 young people dressed neatly in sky blue and white uniforms and white sneakers, waving flags in unison as they shouted slogans.

How very... 1960s...

There was a similar scene outside the Great Hall of the People as younger children jumped frantically up and down waving bouquets, with boys in trousers and polo shirts, the girls in dresses.

Trump met Chinese leader Xi Jinping and it was overt flattery, as Trump laid the endless adulation on thick, calling him "a great leader" and how "powerful" Xi was, but he kept a poker face.

The state dinner didn't have McDonald's hamburgers (which Trump could have ordered from Alipay or WeChat), and instead he was served a menu of lobster in tomato soup, crispy beef ribs, Peking roast duck, slow-cooked salmon in mustard sauce, stewed seasonal vegetables, and for dessert, tiramisu.

Why not all American apple pie? Oh there was also fruits and ice cream though.

Xi and Trump at the state banquet

For Xi, having Trump in Beijing was the perfect opportunity to showcase China's 5,000 years of history compared to the United States merely celebrating its 250th birthday in July.

Xi showed the American president the Temple of Heaven and the Forbidden City, both dating back to the Ming dynasty in the early 1400s.

However, what was really interesting was Xi showing Trump Zhongnanhai, a place even ordinary Chinese people have never seen. Zhongnanhai is the compound where senior Chinese officials reside and work. It is adjacent to the Forbidden City as the former imperial garden. 

As they walked through the garden, Xi pointed out the trees and explained they were over 100 years old, some up to 400 years old, again emphasising they were older than the US.

Trump was in awe, and asked if other leaders had toured Zhongnanhai before.

Xi replied very few, except for say, Putin.

Xi gives Trump a tour of Zhongnanhai

When he heard that, Trump beamed.

The Chinese gave the pageantry Trump wanted without making any substantial deals.

Talk about sleight of hand.

China's Birthrate Continues to Fall

China's birthrate made a record 17 percent drop last year

China's birthrate has dropped for the fourth consecutive year, despite government efforts for couples to have more children.

Last year registered births fell to 7.92 million, down 17 percent from 9.54 million in 2024, the biggest drop since the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949.

Yi Fuxian, a demographer at the University of Wisconsin-Madison was quoted in The Guardian that births in 2025 were "roughly the same level as in 1738, when China's population was only about 150 million."

The government's incentives aren't enough

The falling birthrate is not news the authorities were hoping to hear after years of trying to encourage couples to have more kids.

One of its initiatives that begins this year is 90 billion yuan (US$12.9 billion) poured into the first nationwide childcare subsidy program for children under the age of three. There are also plans to expand national healthcare insurance to cover all childbirth-related expenses, including IVF treatment.

But when the economy is slowing down coupled with high unemployment -- particularly among fresh graduates, people don't feel it's the right time to have kids, who have also become a very expensive investment.

The average cost of raising a child in China until the age of 18 is 538,000 yuan -- more than 6.3 times as high as the country's GDP per capita, compared to 4.11 times in the United States, and 4.26 times in Japan, according to a Chinese population think tank.

It's also a big problem when companies frown on young women getting married and having children, overlook them for career advancement, and society still expects women to do the household chores.

Instead women are pushing back, choosing either to remain single and childless, despite calls from the government, including Xi Jinping, for Chinese people to "actively cultivate a new culture of marriage and childbearing and strengthen guidance on young people's view on marriage, childbirth and family."

The drumbeat has already begun, with women receiving calls from community workers asking about their plans to have children. But dangling 3,600 yuan ($500) a year for families with children under the age of three is hardly much of an incentive, particularly for those living in cities. 

So... perhaps a re-think on how women are treated before coming up with plans on bumping up birthrates?

Canada Back on China's Approved Travel List

Chinese tourists like to visit Vancouver's Stanley Park

Tour companies geared towards Chinese groups are excited that Canada is back on the approved destination status list. 

Chinese tour groups stopped coming to Canada when the Covid-19 pandemic hit in 2020, and relations between China and Canada were on the rocks because of the arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou in 2018 and the subsequent detention of the two Michaels, Spavor and Kovrig.

But now that Prime Minister Mark Carney has reset relations with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, there may be some deals in the future, though critics are concerned that human rights violations are being sidelined. 

While Canada is not as large a market as the United States, China is probably keen to divide and conquer North America. Does this mean Chinese electric vehicles in Canada are in the cards? 

In the meantime, we could see the resurgence of Chinese tour groups in Canada as early as Chinese New Year, which is February 17 next year. One tour operator, Glynnis Chan of Happy Times Travel says Chinese groups usually spend six weeks in Canada, visiting places like Vancouver's Stanley Park, the Rocky Mountains and Parliament Hill in Ottawa, and easily dropping $1,300 a day.

"[Monday's] news was like a shot in the arm to the local tourism industry, and I am ready to show them the beauty of the country," she said in an interview with the Canadian Press.

Individual Chinese tourists can travel to Canada, but it's the groups that bring more visitors.

One can only imagine not only tour operators are thrilled, but also Chinese restaurants that used to cater to these tourists will surely be gearing up to welcome them and their hungry stomachs...

China Marks 60 years of Control of Tibet

Festivities marking 60 years of the Tibet Autonomous Region

There was a big party on Lhasa to mark the 60th anniversary of the Communist Party of China's governance of Xizang or Tibet with a massive parade complete with goose-stepping soldiers, colourful floats and dancers dressed in costumes representing 56 ethnic minorities.

President Xi Jinping was on hand to witness the celebrations. One China expert pointed out Xi's appearance should put to rest any rumours of the leader's health as it would not be a good idea for a 72-year-old with health issues to go to Lhasa, which is at 3,636 metres above sea level.

Xi made his second trip to Tibet since 2021

The last time Xi visited Tibet was in 2021, his first trip there. But interestingly this time Xi did not speak.

Wang Huning, China's No. 4 official, said that since the 18th party congress in 2012, under Xi's guidance and comprehensive plan, "Tibet has entered its best period of development, experiencing the greatest changes and bringing the most tangible benefits to people of all ethnic groups".

During the parade, floats representing several different cities drove past Xi and the audience at the foot of the Potala Palace. 

While China regards this anniversary as one that benefitted Xizang, others see it as six decades of iron fist control over the religious region that used to be governed by the Dalai Lama. 

Military strength on display at the anniversary

In March 1959, the Tibetan spiritual leader fled by foot across the border to India and settled in Dharamshala, where he and his entourage and followers have been ever since.

Six years later the Communist Part established the Tibet Autonomous Region, after Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang, Guangxi, and Ningxia.

The Dalai Lama has been playing a political game of chess with the CPC over who and where the next leader will be. In early July he said he will have a successor that he himself will appoint and "no-one else has any authority to interfere in this matter".

According to Tibetan tradition, Dalai Lamas are "reincarnated" after they die. 

However, Beijing claims the religious leader's successor would be from inside China and must be approved by the government.

US and China Backdown on Tariff War -- for Now

Tariffs have fallen for now, but enough to maintain relations?

After two days of talks in Geneva, China and the United States have backed down on their tariff brinkmanship -- for 90 days.

US President Donald Trump had imposed a whopping 145 percent tariff on Chinese goods which caused small and large businesses to cancel orders from China, and so China reciprocated with 125 percent tariffs on American goods.

Perhaps the outcry from the business community concerned about having no inventory for Christmas spurred the Trump administration to finally hold talks with China, because Chinese leader Xi Jinping was very willing to patiently wait for Trump to cave in.

Now the tariffs have dropped to 30 percent on Chinese goods, and 10 percent for American, but is that enough to get businesses moving again? Many believe a rise of 10 percent would be the threshold, so 30 percent may not cut it.

Businesses should be placing their Christmas orders now, but waiting to see what happens after 90 days still leaves uncertainty in the market.

That probably explains why stocks rose at first, but then in Asia, they fell slightly.

Even though the US is claiming this is a win, Xi is hinting it may end badly.

"Bullying or hegemonism only leads to self-isolation," he told Chinese and Latin American officials.

To be continued!

Trump Itching to Make a China Deal

Trump claims the US is in talks with China over tariffs

US President Donald Trump seems to be wavering in his stance towards China. Earlier he was willing to back down a few notches on his threats of imposing 145 percent tariffs, but now seems to be hardening his position again, saying he would not roll them back unless Beijing offered "something substantial" in return. 

But China hasn't even bothered to entertain Trump at all, despite the American president claiming they have been in talks over the phone.

In an interview with Time Magazine this week, Trump claimed "We're meeting with China", adding Chinese leader Xi Jinping had called, though he didn't say when.

Beijing says there has been no talks, period.

Time: Will you call President Xi if he doesn't call you?

Trump: No.

Time: You won't?

Trump: Nope.

Time: Has he called you yet?

Trump: Yep.

Time: When did he call you?

Trump: He's called. And I don't think it's a sign of weakness on his behalf.

Time: But you would think it's a sign of weakness if you called him?

Trump: I don't -- I just look -- 

Time: Well, what did he say?

Trump: If people want to -- well, we all want to make deals. But I am this giant store. It's a giant, beautiful store, and everybody wants to go shopping there. And on behalf of the American people, I own the store, and I set prices, and I'll say, if you want to shop here, this is what you have to pay."

Meanwhile, Reuters asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs if the Americans had reached out for trade talks.

Spokesman Guo Jiakun replied in part: "China and the US are not having any consultation or negotiation on tariffs. The US should stop creating confusion."

Who are you going to believe?

China Caught in Massive Tariff Showdown

Trump said people were getting "yippy" in tariffs reversal

This morning over dim sum all the chatter was over US President Donald Trump imposing 104 percent tariffs on China.

About an hour later we saw stocks that were blood red were suddenly in the green -- Trump had reversed course and dropped worldwide tariffs down to 10 percent and 90 day pause -- except for China, which he imposed a jaw-dropping 125 percent.

Canada and Mexico still face 25 percent tariffs on cars, steel and aluminium.

Leavitt adamant tariff U-turn was art of the deal

The S&P 500 shot up more than 9 percent, but still not back "to normal". 

Trump gave in after massive selling on the bond markets, which are supposed to be a place of refuge for shell-shocked investors. Instead they were worried a recession was coming, if not here already.

"Over the last few days it looked pretty glum," Trump said. "I thought that people were jumping a little bit out of line. They were getting yippy. They were getting a little bit afraid."

His spokesperson Karoline Leavitt insisted to the media the move was part of the plan all along.

"Many of you in the media clearly missed The Art of the Deal," she said referring to Trump's book on negotiating. "You clearly failed to see what President Trump is doing here. You tried to say that the rest of the world would be moved closer to China, when in fact we've seen the opposite effect."

As for the 125 percent tariffs, Trump is expecting Xi to call him to negotiate... 

Talk about pushing to the limit. But China may not back down, and it's strong enough not to. Perhaps this is Beijing's way to call Trump's bluff?

One of the Chinese captured in Ukraine

Another story that grabbed headlines was Chinese citizens fighting in Ukraine for Russia. Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelensky stated two were captured and showed a video of them being interrogated. They had Chinese identification and bank cards.

The Ukrainian leader later claimed there were over 150 such Chinese citizens who were recruited by Russia to fight; unlike the North Korean soldiers, they were not officially sent there by Beijing.

Nevertheless, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said Bejing was "verifying the relevant situation", but dismissed the suggestion that more Chinese citizens were participating in the war. 

Officially Beijing has claimed to be neutral and pushing for peace, but has diplomatically and financially backed Moscow by buying large quantities of oil. 

Zelensky claimed Russia recruited the Chinese citizens via social media, and it was a sign that Russian President Vladimir Putin was not interested in peace.

"Ukraine believes that such blatant involvement of Chinese citizens in hostilities on the territory of Ukraine during the war of aggression is a deliberate step toward the expansion of the war, and is yet another indication that Moscow simply needs to drag out the fighting," Zelensky said.

Trump Tries to Force Xi to Make a Deal

Trump has imposed a 104 percent tariff on Chinese goods

As of 9pm EST, the United States started imposing a whopping 104 percent tariffs on Chinese imports. The extra 50 percent was added this evening because US President Donald Trump claimed China refused to back down from its counter tariffs.

Beijing refused to bow to what it called "blackmail" and vowed to "fight to the end."

Trump said at a black-tie dinner tonight that China "wants to make a deal, badly, but they don't know how to get it started."

Will Xi bargain with Trump to lower tariffs?

He seems to be trying to force President Xi Jinping to come to the negotiation table, but will Xi concede the need to make a deal?

So far Xi has been pretty aloof, but with tariffs at 104 percent surely he has to act now.

However, the US is more dependent on China than Trump cares to admit. 

At the same time there is no way the US will fulfill Trump's vision of manufacturing moving back to America again. 

Can you imagine Americans actually standing for hours on end assembling iPhones or sewing denim jeans being paid by the piece?

It's not going to happen. Manufacturing went off shore back in the 1990s and labour costs are too prohibitive for them to return to the US, let alone finding people willing to do that work.

People online are speculating whether Walmart will raise prices 104 percent to match the tariffs. If that happened that could spell the end of Walmart!

Now people are starting to realise how dependent they are on imported goods, and what this means for their wallet.

For everyone outside of the US, how about we cut America out and make a deal on trade? 

US State Department Revises China Page

Trump says Xi will visit the US... will he make the trip?

China isn't too happy with Donald Trump in the White House. It also doesn't help that he appointed Marco Rubio as Secretary of State, who is hawkish on China.

So it isn't a surprise that the State Department has updated its China page with language Beijing isn't happy about.

According to Chinese embassy spokesperson Liu Pengyu, the revised page is "distorting truth, denigrating China's foreign policy and touting 'US-China strategic competition.'"

Here are some examples of the differences between the Biden and Trump pages:

The Biden-era referred to...

"Fundamental freedoms"

"Shared challenges such as climate change and global public health crises"

"US assistance to China"

"Advancing the rule of law"

"Investing at home and protecting American workers and businesses"

The need to "work together with democratic allies"

The updated Trump page refers to...

"Principles of reciprocity and fairness"

"Malicious cyber activity"

"China's global trafficking of fentanyl precursors"

US-China trade and investment deficit data

"Forced labor and massive state subsidies"

"Gross violations of human rights"

Three days ago Trump said he was expecting Chinese leader Xi Jinping to visit the US, but didn't give a timeline.

He said this to reporters on Air Force One, and added, "it's possible" for the US and China to have a new trade deal, and that would mean having Xi speaking to Trump about easing trade tariffs.

"We'll have, ultimately, President Xi, we will have everybody coming [to the US]," Trump said, while speaking about other world leaders visiting as well.

It's all about the deal... will Xi make the pilgrimage trip?

Trudeau Finally Resigns

Trudeau giving his speech to reporters this morning in Ottawa

Finally this morning Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced he would step down. 

There was a flurry of excitement on CBC Radio, where a network special would start at 7am Pacific -- no -- at 7.30am Pacific. 

They cut into the morning show to bring Trudeau live from outside his Rideau Cottage, still decked in holiday decorations.

He looked hurt (and maybe cold?) when he explained "internal battles" had made it impossible for him to lead the Liberals in the next election, while also blaming the polarisation in the legislature for not being able to get bills passed.

Just having turned 53 on Christmas Day, Trudeau probably wanted a better celebration, but there was too much pressure mounting on all sides. Inside the Liberal Party there were already calls for Trudeau to resign, but he seemed to ignore the writing on the wall until his deputy and finance minister Chrystia Freeland abruptly quit last month, citing she did not agree with the direction he was taking the country.

Trudeau has also been facing a lot of heat from Conservative opposition leader Pierre Poilievre, who constantly chided him with snarky soundbites, and then New Democrat Jagmeet Singh finally said his party was no longer propping up the Liberals anymore -- the Liberals were on their own.

There was also pressure from across the border from US President-elect Donald Trump, calling Trudeau the "governor" of the "51st state", despite the Canadian leader paying at least two visits to Mar-a-Lago to see if there was any chance of talking down Trump from the 25 percent tariffs.

So yes, Trudeau was dealing with a lot of heat on all sides.

"Removing me from the equation as the leader who will fight the next election for the Liberal Party should also decrease the level of polarisation that we're seeing right now in the House and in Canadian politics," he said, "and allow people to actually focus on serving Canadians in this House and with their work, the way Canadians deserve," he said at one point in his speech.

Trudeau's announcement garnered a lot of interest from friends and relatives from San Francisco to Singapore, wondering what my take was on him resigning.

In 2015 we visited Halifax and we bumped into someone was campaigning for him. They hoped he would beat then Prime Minister Stephen Harper and I said, "I sure hope so!"

And he did, but then his majority kept shrinking with each election.

I knew Trudeau would be a lightweight, but he managed to hold his own for almost 10 years. However, he wasn't able to handle curveballs well, like the Meng Wanzhou case that was intertwined with the two Michaels. Trudeau later tried to stand up to Xi Jinping but instead was ridiculed in Chinese state media. 

There were later revelations of Chinese interference in the Canadian elections, and the strange case of Chinese police stations in the country that raised a lot of eyebrows. Not much has happened since the revelations, while other countries have kicked out these police stations.

Hopefully the next leader will take the opportunity to really clean house and get rid of any potential interference by Chinese and Indian state actors. Canada does not need these influences in politics or society.

Another misstep was immigration; the Trudeau government had announced there would be up to 500,000 immigrants let into the country annually which left Canadians flabbergasted -- how could so many be invited to come when they themselves didn't have jobs or places to live. 

The government later backtracked on its numbers, but it was too late -- anti-immigrant sentiment had already set in, not just by native-born Canadians, but also first and second generation immigrants who had benefited from Trudeau's father's immigration policies.

Despite Freeland's ambitions to become the next Liberal leader, her chances are slim because of her long association with Trudeau. While no one has officially thrown their hat into the ring, former Bank fo Canada governor Mark Carney has expressed interest, and same with former BC Premier Christy Clark.

Whoever is chosen by March 24 will have a tough road ahead dealing with not only Trump, but also the possibility of Canadian opposition parties calling a non-confidence vote in the House that could precipitate into an election.

The best case scenario would be a Conservative minority government to keep Poilievre in check. We don't want the CBC defunded, but we do want the budget managed... Trudeau's frivolous spending days are over.

 

Beautiful Gardens at Sunnylands

Gorgeous reflecting pool at Sunnylands Garden

We finally made it to the Sunnylands Center and Gardens, and glad we did. It was the winter home of Walter and his second wife Lenore Annenberg who bought more than 900 acres at Rancho Mirage and started developing it in 1963. 

The home includes a golf course and the gardens have 13 lakes, 6,000 trees, and 180 acres of turf -- in a desert.

Carefully arranged cacti and succulents

At Sunnylands he entertained royalty, celebrities and presidents. The garden which was opened to the public in 2012, features carefully planted cacti and succulents which match the arid environment. When we arrived around lunchtime today, dancers from the Nickerson Rossi Dance Company performed contemporary dances within the grassy areas of the gardens. 

In the gardens is a labyrinth made from low hedges and there's a replica of a bench gifted to Chinese leader Xi Jinping from then US President Barack Obama.

They two met in June 2013 in Sunnylands and there's a picture of the two of them, Obama with his easy smile on the left, and Xi kind of looking awkwardly at him on the right. The redwood bench says: "Presented to His Excellency Xi Jinping President of the People's Republic of China By Barack Obama President of the United States, Sunnylands Annenberg Estate, June 7-8, 2013.

The garden was opened in 2012 to the public

Near the bench is a reflecting pool and my cousin who is an architect marvelled at how beautifully constructed it was. He explained that to make it so that the water looked completely still, the whole thing had to be completely level and flat. Also it is designed such that viewers can't even see the water falling down the sides -- you can only hear the sound of the water running.

Annenberg came from money -- his father Moses was a newspaper publisher, who published the Daily Racing Form and The Philadelphia Inquirer.

When Moses Annenberg died, Walter took over the family business and bought other print media along with radio and TV stations. He made his money from publishing TV Guide which he started in 1952, and made some US$600,000 to US$1 million a week.

He also started Seventeen magazine, a publication for teenager girls.

Replica bench for Xi from Obama

In 1988 Annenberg sold his print publications to Rupert Murdoch for a record US$3 billion -- soon afterwards print would disappear with the advent of the internet...

Apparently getting tickets to visit the Sunnylands House are hard to get -- will try to do that next year.

Three Americans Freed from China in Prisoner Swap

Harrison Li holds a picture of his father, Kai Li

Just in time for American Thanksgiving, US President Joe Biden secured the release of three Americans prisons in China in a prisoner swap deal.

They are Texan businessman Mark Swidan who was arrested in 2012 and accused of drug related offenses; Kai Li, who had been held on espionage charges since 2016, and John Leung, who was born in Hong Kong, and last year was sentenced to life in prison on spying charges.

Swidan was held in China for over a decade

Sean Savett, a National Security Council spokesman says no other Americans are "wrongfully detained" in China, a designation where the US government sees a person as the equivalent of a political hostage, or that charges were fabricated.

In return, the US released Xu Yanjun, a Chinese intelligence officer who was serving a 20-year sentence after he was arrested in Brussels in 2018 and extradited to the US.

This deal was in the works for several months under secrecy, and earlier this month Biden discussed the prisoner swap with Chinese leader Xi Jinping during the Apec summit in Peru.

Earlier this year Secretary of State Antony Blinken had repeatedly pressed his counterpart Wang Yi to release the Americans who were wrongfully detained. 

Leung was in jail on spying charges

This is a big win for Biden in the last few weeks in office; in total he has managed to secure the release of more than 70 Americans that the US consider were wrongfully detained overseas.

"Soon they will return and be reunited with their families for the first time in many years," said Savett.

It's going to be a very special Thanksgiving for them.

Trump Projected to Win... Again

Badiucao imagining what Kim, Xi and Putin are wishing for

It's 2.49am Eastern time and Donald Trump is on stage rambling about how he is going to make America great again, and how democracy is so beautiful, as he is poised to become the next president of the United States with 266 electoral votes, with four more to win.

For the Democrats it's 2016 all over again where Hilary Clinton suffered a shock loss, and now Kamala Harris. 

Analysts on CBC Radio are saying that President Joe Biden should be blamed for the result because he should have not run and given others a chance, that him holding on until after the first presidential debate showed he was egotistical and selfish.

Others said Harris didn't have enough time to tell voters who she is, and that she didn't clearly distinguish herself from Biden. For some voters it was the conflict in Gaza that hurt the Democrats versus Trump claiming he would make peace in a day.

For many it seems, the economy was top of mind, and high interest rates and tight budgets didn't help the Democrats, and voters remember Trump's presidency was in relatively good times and want to return to that. And so even women's rights on abortion wasn't enough of an issue to resonate with voters.

Some critics say the Republicans were more organised in getting voters registered compared to the Democrats even though Harris's team spent US$3 billion on her campaign, much more than Trump.

Canada is horrified by this impending result, and so is Europe. Ukraine won't be happy either, or Taiwan.

Political cartoonist Badiucao has drawn a cartoon of Kim Jong-un, Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin praying for Trump to win, and they pretty much have their wish come true.

Will terrified Americans really move to Canada? Will women have to come up north to get an abortion? Will gay and trans people also come here too?

And will Trump go ahead with his Project 2025? Will he ban abortion nationwide? Will he kick out all illegal immigrants? Will he prosecute his enemies?

Some voters think the prosecutions and convictions against Trump were politically motivated...

Michelle Obama recently said in frustration: "We've got one candidate that's allowed to be lawless while the other one has to be flawless."

Harris unfortunately could not turn things around and could not even face her supporters tonight, who are grumbling that she didn't come out to thank them for voting for her.

She is probably overwhelmed that she actually lost... Democrats will be doing more soul-searching -- again...

Fact of the Day: Public Housing Wait Gets Longer

The wait for public housing is now an average of 5.8 years

People waiting to be able to rent a public housing flat now have to wait 0.2 years longer at an average of 5.8 years, according to the Housing Authority.

Last year around 13,700 public rental flats were allocated, much fewer than the 26,400 in 2022. The Housing Authority said it was because there were fewer rental flats to allocate, the "lowest in recent years".

The government body explained it was due to construction delays, such as one accident in 2022 when a crane in Sau Mau Ping collapsed and killed three workers, causing other construction projects to be suspended for inspections.

Meanwhile, the average wait time for elderly one-person applications increased by 0.1 years to four years.

Nevertheless, the Housing Authority said more public housing flats were on the way in Tuen Mun, Tung Chung and the New Territories that would be completed in two years.

Dealing with the housing issue was among those mentioned by Chinese leader Xi Jinping when he visited Hong Kong in 2022.

"Currently, the biggest aspiration of Hong Kong people is to lead a better life, in which they will have more decent housing," Xi said at the time.

Interestingly the number of applicants for public housing has fallen in recent years, from 155,100 at the end of 2017 to 129,400 at the end of last year, and yet the wait has risen.

China's Further Opaqueness

Last year was the last time the Premier would speak to media

The liang hui or Two Sessions has kicked off in Beijing and already there is a big bombshell of an announcement -- the Premier will no longer host a press conference at the end of the National People's Congress.

It used to be at the closing of the NPC that the Premier would field questions from both domestic and foreign journalists once a year. Even though the questions would be vetted ahead of time, it was still an opportunity to not only ask but also hear what he had to say about a wide range of topics that wasn't too scripted.

For 30 years premiers answered questions

But alas, this press conference is no more and Premier Li Qiang will not be taking any questions.

It was a tradition that was held since 1993, but apparently now there will be more briefings by other government ministers on the economy, diplomacy and people's livelihoods. 

Some China watchers see this as a further erosion of the role of the country's number 2 leader and shifting more to leader Xi Jinping. 

Many remember then premier Wen Jiabao in 2012 talking about the Cultural Revolution in a veiled reference to Bo Xilai, the charismatic party boss of Chongqing who tried to demonstrate how "red" he was in his devotion to patriotism by reviving Mao-era songs and promoting "red culture". 

In 2012 Wen gave Bo a dressing down

At the time Wen said that Bo "should learn from his experience in Chongqing", which was an unusual reprimand. Soon after the NPC Bo was removed from his position in Chongqing and was later removed from the Central Committee and Politburo. He was put on trial for corruption, bribery and abuse of power, and was convicted. He is currently languishing in jail. 

In other news, remember Zhang Xiaoming? He used to head the liaison office in Hong Kong, and the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office for several years, including during the 2019 protests. But in February 2020 he was demoted. Then two days before the start of the Two Sessions, it was announced he would be leaving the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office; the move was described as a "normal leadership reshuffle".

Lots of changes with not much explanations... 

Taiwanese Vote for Self-Determination in DPP Win

Lai of the DPP will be the next President of Taiwan

Before the Taiwan election on January 13, the People's Republic of China had warned voters to "make the right choice", and the Taiwanese heard it loud and clear -- re-elect the Democratic Progressive Party back into office, this time with Tsai Ing-wen's deputy Lai Ching-te as the next leader of the island.

Lai won about 40 percent of the vote, followed by the Kuomintang's Hou Yu-ih at 33 percent, and Ko Wen-je of the Taiwan People's Party with 26 percent.

Although votes still need to be counted, Lai will become the next President of Taiwan, though the DPP may not have full control of the legislature with a projected 51 seats out of 113, while the KMT is expected to have 52 seats, eight for the TPP.

KMT is projected to have more seats in parliament

Nevertheless, the third consecutive win for the DPP shows the island is keen on standing its own ground and does not want to be usurped by Communist China, particularly by force. 

There are concerns former KMT president Ma Ying-jeou should not have said that Xi Jinping should be trusted, which may have turned off voters; but after the Taiwanese had front-row seats watching what happened to Hong Kong in 2019 and 2020 with the imposition of the national security law, they don't want the same thing to happen to them.

Meanwhile Hongkongers wistfully looked to Taiwan and watched its residents able to freely exercise their right to vote, and wondered if the city would ever achieve universal suffrage.

Lai is 64 years old and a former doctor turned politician, whose party is pushing for self-determination, social justice and rejection of China's threats. 

However, Beijing painted Lai as a stubborn "Taiwan independence worker", a "destroyer of cross-strait peace", and potentially a "creator of a dangerous war". 

Taiwan has over 19 million eligible voters

Nevertheless, Lai took a less radical approach during his campaign, saying Taiwan did not need formal independence, and in his victory speech said he would seek "cooperation with China", following the path of of his predecessor Tsai. 

This seems to have appealed to voters, much to the chagrin of Beijing, which does not seem to understand how it is perceived on the island.

It's a well-known trend that the older generations are generally more supportive of the KMT, as they were the ones who moved to Taiwan after 1949 and want to see some kind of reunification. However, the younger generation voters identify themselves as Taiwanese. They are well aware of the existential threat that Beijing imposes, but they do not align themselves with China.

Beijing will have to recalibrate its response to the election results as Lai is signalling his willingness to have some kind of balanced approach to cross-straits relations. Constant threats by China have had the opposite effect and made the Taiwanese more interested in controlling their fate the best they can. 

China's "Old Friend" Henry Kissinger Dies at 100

Kissinger made his last trip to China in July this year

At dinnertime, I received breaking news that former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger had died. He was 100 years old.

And as expected, Chinese state media described him fondly as "an old friend of China".

So old a confidant was he that earlier this year the centenarian made one last trip to Beijing, where Kissinger had way more guanxi that he got an audience with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, and not Secretary of State Anthony Blinken.

He has met every Chinese leader from Mao to Xi

But alas China is now without its greatest advocate, who according to Xinhua news agency, visited the Middle Kingdom over 100 times.

Interesting fact -- so what was he doing in China all those times?

Can you imagine going on a plane to China over 100 times? That alone is gobsmacking, not to mention how many air miles he racked up.

In his later years, Kissinger claimed he was concerned about China and the United States in a "new cold war". 

Was he really?

There are questions who were Kissinger's clients after he left public office and had his own consultancy, Kissinger Associates. When he was appointed to investigate why the US government was unable to detect and prevent the attacks on September 11, 2001, Kissinger found out he would have to disclose his firm's clients and abruptly withdrew.

What was he hiding?

In time this will be revealed one way or another. 

Nevertheless, he will always be remembered as the one who helped break the ice between US President Richard Nixon and Chinese leader Mao Zedong. And another interesting fact -- he is the only American to have dealt with every Chinese leader from Mao to Xi.

That is super guanxi, my friend... but alas it had to end sometime...

Biden and Xi Meet Again

Biden and Xi shake hands in highly choreographed meeting

Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Joe Biden finally met again in San Francisco following over a year of tense relations between the two countries.

They had talks that lasted four hours, which is considered really productive, going over a wide range of topics from restarting military-to military direct contact, curbing fentanyl production, Taiwan, the Israel-Hamas war, and artificial intelligence.

The two leaders held talks for four hours

Xi offered a diplomatic comment: "Planet Earth is big enough" for both superpowers, and that while their countries were different, they should be "fully capable of rising above differences."

The Chinese leader also hinted the panda diplomacy program might start up again after the US sent back three pandas over a week ago.

At a press conference after Xi had left, a reporter asked Biden if he still regarded Xi a dictator, a word he had used earlier in the year.

"Well, look, he is," Biden said. "I mean, he's a dictator in the sense that he's a guy who runs a country that is a Communist country."

Reporters freaked out that Biden had said the D-word, but he was just calling a spade a spade.

Will it undo the four hours of talks? No.

Perhaps panda diplomacy will restart again?

China needs the US desperately to woo back American companies to do more business in the Middle Kingdom, but the political risks are too high these days. 

Company executives and journalists being disappeared and detained, or have exit bans placed on them are not conducive to a good business environment...

China's Former Premier Dies Suddenly

Li died suddenly Friday morning in Shanghai

As we sat down to dinner Vancouver time, there was breaking news that former Chinese premier Li Keqiang had died suddenly of a heart attack in Shanghai shortly after midnight Friday morning. He was 68 years old. 

There was no further information or an obituary from Chinese state media, only saying it would come later, which probably meant the senior leadership did not expect this news at all.

As for as the general public knew, Li did not have any health problems or recent illnesses, which is why his death comes as a shock at such a young age for a senior Chinese leader.

Li was Xi's premier for 10 years

When news of Li's passing was broadcast on Weibo, there were reports some people posted a song by Malaysian-Chinese singer Liang Jingru (also known as Fish Leong), "A pity it wasn't you", as an indirect way of criticising Chinese leader Xi Jinping. These comments were soon quickly scrubbed by censors.

Nevertheless, Li was not flamboyant like his predecessors, such as Zhou Enlai, Zhu Rongji or Wen Jiabao. Instead Li, who had a PhD in economics, quietly rose to the top, having governed two provinces (Henan and Liaoning) before the age of 50. 

Many thought the Anhui native was well qualified to be China's top leader, but Li was eclipsed by Xi. As most leaders leave the economy to premiers to tackle, Xi took over this portfolio as well, leaving Li with little to do. 

After his two terms were up, Li quietly exited stage right to let Li Qiang take over in March.

Now Xi has another funeral to plan, on top of dealing with his foreign minister sacked for allegedly having a child in wedlock, and more recently his defense minister suddenly fired too.

Ah Li... we hardly knew ye.