Author: Yi Liu

Could local debt weigh down China’s economy?

In January 2019, Xie Junchi eagerly signed a contract to provide 20,000 tons of steel to the Zunyi Road and Bridge Engineering Construction Group every month, a company controlled by the local government of Guizhou, for public road construction. Four years later Mr. Xie has received only $30,000 of the $550,000 […]

U.S. goods trade deficit grew in January to widest in three months

The US economy continue stronger than expected. The U.S. trade deficit in goods is widest gap in three months in January, according to data released Wednesday by the Commerce Department.  That month, imports surged by 3% to $325.8 billion, exports rose by 3.4% to $257.5 billion. The main driver of […]

Did the education budget get spent on disinfectant and hazmat suits? (The Chinese characters on the blackboard mean: “Welcome back students.” December 2022 photo by CFOTO/Sipa USA.

China’s local governments are struggling to pay their bills

Last September, 29-year-old graduate Alex Xu began her first day as an English teacher at a public elementary school in Shenzhen, one of the richest cities in the economic powerhouse of southern China. She was happy with her promised salary of around 11,000 yuan ($1,600) per month and around 12 […]