Xi-Trump Call & TikTok - 2024 Economic Data - New Guideline on Building Education Power - South China Sea Drills
There were a couple of interesting reports over the weekend that I’ll look at before going into today’s paper. First, Xi Jinping had a phone call with US president-elect Donald Trump on Friday. Xinhua says that the call was at Trump’s request.
“Xi congratulated Trump on his re-election as U.S. president. He pointed out that both he and Trump attach great importance to interaction with each other, hope that China-U.S. ties will have a good start in the new U.S. presidential term, and stand ready to push China-U.S. relations to make greater progress from a new starting point. Xi stressed that both China and the United States, two great countries, are pursuing their own dreams and are committed to making the lives of their people better. China and the United States share extensive common interests and broad space for cooperation, and the two countries can become partners and friends, contribute to each other’s success, and enjoy common prosperity, which will benefit both countries and the whole world, Xi said. Xi said that it is inevitable that China and the United States, two major countries with different national conditions, have some differences, and the key is to respect each other's core interests and major concerns, and find appropriate ways to solve issues. He said that the Taiwan question concerns China's national sovereignty and territorial integrity, and it is hoped that the U.S. side handles it with caution. The nature of China-U.S. economic and trade relations is mutually beneficial and win-win, and confrontation and conflict should not be the choice of the two countries, Xi said. He also called on both sides to step up cooperation and do more great, practical and good things that are conducive to the two countries and the world at large based on the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation, so as to keep the two giant ships of China and the United States moving forward on the course of stable, healthy and sustainable development.”
The report adds:
“Trump thanked Xi for his congratulations, saying that he cherishes his great relationship with Xi, hopes to continue to maintain dialogue and communication, and looks forward to meeting Xi at an early date. The United States and China are the most important countries in the world today, and they should maintain long-lasting friendship and work together to safeguard global peace, Trump said. Xi and Trump exchanged views on major international and regional issues of common concern, such as the Ukraine crisis and the Israel-Palestine conflict. They agreed to establish strategic communication channels and maintain regular contact on major issues of common concern.”
Here’s CNN’s report on how Trump described the call:
“I just spoke to Chairman Xi Jinping of China,” Trump wrote on his social media platform, Truth Social. “It is my expectation that we will solve many problems together, and starting immediately.” Trump said the pair discussed trade, fentanyl, TikTok and other subjects, and that the call was “very good” for both countries. “President Xi and I will do everything possible to make the World more peaceful and safe!” he wrote.”
Of course, things have moved at a dizzying pace since the call with regard to TikTok. The app went off and then seemingly back on in the US. At a rally on Sunday ahead of his inauguration, this is what Trump said: “Frankly, we have no choice. We have to save it.” Reuters reports that he added that the US will seek a joint venture to restore the short-video sharing app used by 170 million Americans.
Thinking Aloud: The question, of course, is what’s the bargain? Trump doesn’t need the young voter any more; this is his last term in office. The Indian experience on TikTok also shows that the market often rather quickly creates new options and the consumer too rapidly moves to other alternatives. Moreover, getting the app back creates a legal crisis, given the Supreme Court’s 9-0 verdict upholding the law banning the app. So, one wonders if there’s a quid pro quo in the works to allow say X or Facebook, perhaps in an alternate/deeply sanitised/heavily censored version into China’s information ecosystem. That would be a really interesting proposition, given how the Communist Party under Xi has viewed this domain as a battlefield. Xi has over the years insisted on ensuring strict ideological alignment and expressed deep concerns with regard to the “infiltration” of Western ideas. He has viewed the information domain as being of existential significance to the Party. So giving on this would be rather big. But then, the devil will always lie in the details, and a quid pro quo might not always be like-for-like.
Anyway, Xinhua also quotes a WSJ report saying that Trump wants to visit China during his first 100 days in office.
Next, over the weekend, we got China’s 2024 economic data. Key data points from the NBS release:
Total 2024 GDP was 134.9 trillion yuan, an increase of 5.0 percent over the previous year at constant prices. By industries, the value added of the primary industry was 9.1 trillion yuan, up by 3.5 percent over last year, that of the secondary industry was 49.2 trillion yuan, up by 5.3 percent and that of the tertiary industry was 76.6 trillion yuan, up by 5.0 percent. By quarters, the GDP for the first quarter went up by 5.3 percent year on year, up by 4.7 percent for the second quarter, 4.6 percent for the third quarter and 5.4 percent for the fourth quarter.
Total output of grain in 2024 was 706.50 million tons, an increase of 11.09 million tons over the previous year, or up by 1.6 percent.
The total value added of industrial enterprises above the designated size increased by 5.8 percent over the previous year. The value added of mining was up by 3.1 percent, that of manufacturing up by 6.1 percent and that of production and supply of electricity, thermal power, gas and water up by 5.3 percent. The value added of equipment manufacturing went up by 7.7 percent, and that of high-tech manufacturing up by 8.9 percent, 1.9 percentage points and 3.1 percentage points faster than that of the whole industrial enterprises above the designated size respectively.
By products, the production of new energy vehicles, integrated circuits and industrial robots grew by 38.7 percent, 22.2 percent and 14.2 percent respectively.
The service sector expanded by 5%.
Total retail sales of consumer goods reached 48.8 trillion yuan, up by 3.5 percent over the previous year.
Fixed assets investments reached 51.4 trillion yuan, up by 3.2 percent over the previous year. The investment in fixed assets was up by 7.2 percent with the investment in real estate development deducted. Specifically, the investment in infrastructure went up by 4.4 percent, manufacturing up by 9.2 percent and real estate development down by 10.6 percent.
The floor space of newly-built commercial buildings sold was 973.85 million square meters, down by 12.9 percent; and the total sales of newly-built commercial buildings were 9.68 trillion yuan, down by 17.1 percent.
Investment in the primary industry went up by 2.6 percent; that in the secondary industry up by 12.0 percent; and that in the tertiary industry down by 1.1 percent. The private investment went down by 0.1 percent. Deducting the investment in real estate development, the private investment grew by 6.0 percent.
The investment in high-tech industries grew by 8.0 percent. Specifically, the investment in high-tech manufacturing and high-tech services grew by 7.0 percent and 10.2 percent respectively. In terms of high-tech manufacturing, the investment in manufacturing of aerospace vehicles and equipment and manufacturing of computers and office devices grew by 39.5 percent and 7.1 percent respectively. In terms of high-tech services, the investment in professional technical services and in services for transformation of scientific and technological achievements went up by 30.3 percent and 11.4 percent respectively. In December, the investment in fixed assets (excluding rural households) grew by 0.33 percent month on month.
The total value of imports and exports of goods was 43.8 trillion yuan, an increase of 5.0 percent over the previous year. The total value of exports was 25.45 trillion yuan, up by 7.1 percent; the total value of imports was 18.4 trillion yuan, up by 2.3 percent. The imports and exports with the Belt and Road partner countries grew by 6.4 percent, accounting for 50.3 percent of the total value of imports and exports. The exports of mechanical and electrical products grew by 8.7 percent, accounting for 59.4 percent of the total value of exports.
CPI went up by 0.2 percent over the previous year.
Urban surveyed unemployment rate averaged 5.1 percent.
Total population was 1.408 billion people. In 2024, the number of births was 9.54 million with a birth rate of 6.77 per thousand; the number of deaths was 10.93 million with a mortality rate of 7.76 per thousand; the natural population growth rate was negative 0.99 per thousand. Male population was 719.09 million, and the female population was 689.19 million; the sex ratio of the total population was 104.34 (the female is 100). The population aged 65 and over was 220.23 million, accounting for 15.6 percent of the total population.
Now to today’s paper. There isn’t a whole lot that I found interesting. So I am going to go report-by-report rather than page wise.
The main story on the front page is the publication of the 2024-2035 master plan on building China into a leading country in education.
“The document calls to adhere to the Party’s comprehensive leadership over education, highlight the promotion of fairness and quality improvement, strengthen strategic guidance and support development, deepen reform and innovation, and coordinate integration, adhere to self-confidence and maintain a broad mind. It emphasizes correctly managing the relationships between supporting national strategies and meeting people’s livelihood needs, between knowledge acquisition and holistic development, between talent cultivation and meeting societal needs, between regulation and vitality, and rooting in Chinese soil and drawing on international experience. The document calls to comprehensively construct an ideological and political education system that establishes the foundation and forges the soul; a high-quality and equitable basic education system; self-reliant and excellent higher education system, a vocational education system that integrates industry and education; an accessible lifelong education system; technological support system driven by innovation; a highly competent teacher workforce; and an open and mutually learning international cooperation system, thereby achieving a systemic leap from a large education system to a strong one.” 《纲要》提出，要坚持党对教育事业的全面领导，突出促进公平、提高质量，强化战略引领、支撑发展，深化改革创新、协同融合，坚持自主自信、胸怀天下。正确处理支撑国家战略和满足民生需求、知识学习和全面发展、培养人才和满足社会需要、规范有序和激发活力、扎根中国大地和借鉴国际经验的关系，全面构建固本铸魂的思想政治教育体系、公平优质的基础教育体系、自强卓越的高等教育体系、产教融合的职业教育体系、泛在可及的终身教育体系、创新牵引的科技支撑体系、素质精良的教师队伍体系、开放互鉴的国际合作体系，实现由大到强的系统跃升.
The document clarifies key goals for 2027 and 2035, setting out nine priority tasks. Establish a new pattern for fostering virtue and cultivating people, nurturing a new generation ready to shoulder the mission of national rejuvenation.
Shape a new pattern of moral education and cultivating people, nurturing new era people who shoulder the great task of national rejuvenation. In the full document, under this task, there is tremendous emphasis on learning and teaching Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. The goal is to ensure that “students are always loyal to the Party, the country, the people, and socialism, and firmly believe in Marxism, socialism with Chinese characteristics, and the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation”. The document calls for the “regularisation and institutionalization of education on ideals and beliefs”, calls “to strengthen education on the core socialist values”, to “strengthen education on the history of the Party, the history of New China, the history of reform and opening up, and the history of socialist development”, to “deepen education on patriotism, collectivism, and socialism, and promote the education of the spiritual lineage of the Chinese Communist Party” In addition, there are ideas like “ensure that primary and secondary school students have no less than 2 hours of comprehensive physical activities every day”; strengthen cultural self-confidence, strengthen the education of advanced socialist culture, revolutionary culture and excellent traditional Chinese culture, and integrate them into ideological and political education in different stages of study. Strengthen the education of building a strong sense of a Chinese national community.” 加强和改进新时代学校思想政治教育。坚持不懈用习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想铸魂育人，加强习近平总书记关于教育的重要论述的学理阐释。实施新时代立德树人工程，坚持思政课建设与党的创新理论武装同步推进，加快构建以习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想为核心内容的课程教材体系，把学校思想政治教育贯穿各学科体系、教学体系、教材体系、管理体系，融入思想道德、文化知识、社会实践教育，确保广大学生始终忠于党、忠于国家、忠于人民、忠于社会主义，坚定马克思主义信仰、中国特色社会主义信念、中华民族伟大复兴信心。开好讲好“习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想概论”课，系统完善中小学思政课课程标准，整体优化设计高校思政课课程方案，推进大中小学思政课一体化改革创新。打造一批“大思政课”品牌。推动理想信念教育常态化制度化，加强社会主义核心价值观教育。加强党史、新中国史、改革开放史、社会主义发展史教育。深化爱国主义、集体主义、社会主义教育，开展中国共产党人精神谱系教育。坚定文化自信，加强社会主义先进文化、革命文化和中华优秀传统文化教育，分学段有序融入思想政治教育。加强铸牢中华民族共同体意识教育。完善党政领导干部进校园开展思想政治教育长效机制，开展教育系统党员教育基本培训。增强学校基层党组织政治功能和组织功能，发挥战斗堡垒作用.
It also calls to: “Deeply interpret the scientific connotation and practical requirements of the Party's innovative theory, strengthen the discipline of Marxist theory, and build a discipline system, academic system, and discourse system”. 深入阐释党的创新理论科学内涵和实践要求，建强马克思主义理论学科，构建学科体系、学术体系、话语体系. And to create an “independent textbook system” along with “promoting and popularising the national common language and script.”
Strengthen and improve basic education, and consolidate the strategic basis for comprehensively improving the quality of the nation;
Enhance the comprehensive strength of higher education and forge strategic leading forces;
Cultivate and strengthen national strategic scientific and technological forces, strongly support high-level scientific and technological self-reliance and self-strengthening;
Accelerate the construction of a modern vocational education system, and cultivate great craftsmen, skilled workers, and highly skilled talents;
Build a learning society, use educational digitalization to open new development tracks and shape new development advantages;
Build a high-quality and professional teaching team and lay a solid foundation for a strong country in education;
Deepen comprehensive reform of education and stimulate the vitality of education development;
Improve the strategic strategy of opening up education to the outside world and build an important education center with global influence.
《纲要》明确了到2027年和2035年的主要目标，部署了9个方面重点任务：塑造立德树人新格局，培养担当民族复兴大任的时代新人；办强办优基础教育，夯实全面提升国民素质战略基点；增强高等教育综合实力，打造战略引领力量；培育壮大国家战略科技力量，有力支撑高水平科技自立自强；加快建设现代职业教育体系，培养大国工匠、能工巧匠、高技能人才；建设学习型社会，以教育数字化开辟发展新赛道、塑造发展新优势；建设高素质专业化教师队伍，筑牢教育强国根基；深化教育综合改革，激发教育发展活力；完善教育对外开放战略策略，建设具有全球影响力的重要教育中心.
As per the report, the document also calls to comprehensively advance Party building in schools of all levels and types, safeguard political security, harmony and stability in the education system. Fully leverage the Central Education Work Leading Group’s role in overall coordination, holistic advancement, and supervision of implementation, promote solutions to major issues in building an education power, strengthen monitoring and evaluation of education power construction. 全面推进各级各类学校党的建设，维护教育系统政治安全与和谐稳定。充分发挥中央教育工作领导小组统筹协调、整体推进、督促落实作用，推动解决教育强国建设中的重大问题，加强教育强国建设的监测评价.
If you are interested the full plan is published on Page 6. On Page 7, there’s a report featuring a Q&A with a Ministry of Education official.
Next, ILD chief Liu Jianchao visited Indonesia from Thursday to Sunday. Xinhua reports:
“During the visit, Liu held talks with Indonesian political leaders, including Prabowo Subianto, president of Indonesia and general chairman of the Great Indonesia Movement Party, Megawati Soekarnoputri, chairperson of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle and former president, Bahlil Lahadalia, chairman of the Golkar Party and minister of energy and mineral resources. The discussions focused on implementing the key consensuses reached by leaders of the two countries, advancing the building of a China-Indonesia community with a shared future, and deepening inter-party and practical cooperation. Liu also delivered a speech at the Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia.”
Although not in the paper, another report informs that the Chinese military conducted joint sea-air combat readiness patrols in the South China Sea from Friday to Saturday. The Southern Theatre Command’s statement was issued after the Philippine Navy held live fire drills and carried out joint maritime exercises with the US in the South China Sea. ‘Any military activity that stirs up trouble in the South China Sea is within our control,’ the PLA statement read.