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Chinese companies are opening factories in Mexico – but some have found themselves in a precarious position. Photo: Shutterstock
ChinaDiplomacy

Chinese factories in Mexico on thin ice, Xi-Biden talks and the surprise tiny EV hit: 7 reads about US-China relations

  • Struggling US-China ties, a human rights shock and a student in big trouble: these are the highlights from the SCMP’s overseas correspondents from April 2024
US-China relations
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We have selected seven of the biggest and most important news stories covering US-China relations from the past few weeks. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing.

1. Chinese manufacturers in Mexico tread on thin ice amid threat of US barriers

Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen

“Keep a low profile.” Such was the advice often repeated by Chinese embassy officials in Mexico to the country’s Chinese-funded factories in April. The factories, however, did not need to be reminded. Warnings from the other side of Mexico’s northern border are more evident than ever, with the latest threat coming from Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee in this year’s presidential election.

Read the full story here.

2. Xi-Biden phone call signals deepening disconnect on tech, economy: analysts

Photo: Reuters
The first phone call in nearly two years between Xi Jinping and Joe Biden conveyed stability overall in a bilateral relationship previously marked by contention on all fronts, while also signalling a deepening disconnect on tech restrictions and economic disputes, analysts said. With both sides using “candid” and “constructive” as key descriptors for the talk – and expressing a willingness to build on a foundation laid down when the two leaders met face-to-face in November – they allowed space to air grievances diplomatically but in no uncertain terms.
Read the full story here.

3. Japanese PM Kishida backs ‘indispensable’ global role of US, citing threat by China

Photo: Reuters

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida gave a full-throated defence of the United States’ international role as guardian of democracy to a rare joint session of Congress, citing the threat that China and other authoritarian states represent to the global order. “China’s current external stance and military actions present the unprecedented and the greatest strategic challenge, not only to the peace and security of Japan, but to the peace and stability of the international community at large,” Kishida said.

Read the full story here.

4. Professors, students say ‘no’ to Florida as new law targets Chinese

Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen
Academics are starting to vote with their feet after Florida enacted a law that makes it harder for public schools in the state to hire Chinese students and collaborate with Chinese institutions. According to Peng Xiong, a physics professor at Florida State University, the new law came up frequently in recent interviews with faculty candidates, particularly for those wanting to pursue physics and quantum science. “It’s undoubtedly one of the top concerns of our faculty candidates who originally came from China,” he said. Students, too, have decided that Florida is too risky.
Read the full story here.

5. China’s electric ‘beng bengs’ are a hit in the US. Now about those delivery charges …

Photo: Handout

Bad news for Americans worried about the viability of domestic auto production: the super-cheap Chinese electric vehicles that Elon Musk and Donald Trump fear are already rolling on US soil. The good news is that these vehicles only have three wheels.

Read the full story here.

6. MSCI, BlackRock ‘funnelled’ billions to Chinese firms accused of abuses: panel

Photo: Shutterstock
Major US financial institutions poured billions of dollars worth of Americans’ “life savings” and other investments into some 60 Chinese companies that Washington accuses of committing human rights abuses and fuelling China’s military, a congressional investigation has claimed. Wall Street behemoths including MSCI, the world’s foremost index provider, and BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, facilitated the investments last year, a US House of Representatives’ select committee report said.
Read the full story here.

7. Chinese student in US sentenced for threatening pro-democracy schoolmate

Photo: US Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts handout via Reuters

A Chinese music student in Boston was sentenced to nine months in prison by a US district court judge for harassing and threatening a fellow student who distributed fliers advocating for democracy in China. The judge said the jail sentence served as a deterrent to other Chinese students in the US who might engage in criminal behaviour, especially actions aimed at suppressing free speech.

Read the full story here.

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