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Tag: Shanghai

  • Record sea level rise in China threatens coastal towns like Shanghai

    Record sea level rise in China threatens coastal towns like Shanghai

    For the second year in a row, sea levels along China’s coastline have reached record highs, increasing faster than the worldwide average and posing a major threat to coastal cities like Shanghai, the world’s financial center.

    China’s coastline sea levels in 2022 were the highest since records began in 1980, measuring 94 millimeters (3.7 inches) above “normal,” which is the average for the years 1993 to 2011, a Ministry of Natural Resources official said during a news briefing on Wednesday.

    In comparison to 2021, when the previous record was attained, the swell was 10 mm higher.

    The temperature of China’s coastal waters has increased significantly due to global warming, and the rise in sea levels has accelerated, said Wang Hua, head of the marine forecasting and monitoring department at the ministry.

    China’s sea levels have increased by an average of 3.5 mm per year since 1980, and an average of 4.0 mm per year since 1993 – higher than the global rate over the same periods, Wang said.

    The global mean sea level has risen 3.4 mm over the past three decades, according to NASA.

    “In the last 11 years, from 2012 to 2022, China’s coastal sea levels were the highest since observations were first recorded,” Wang said at the news conference, which released the latest annual report on China’s sea levels.

    About 45% of China’s population of around 1.4 billion and more than half of the country’s economic output comes from coastal regions.

    The Chinese coast is home to important metropolises including Shanghai, the country’s most developed and richest city, as well as the port city of Tianjin and the tech hub of Shenzhen.

    Over the past four decades, rising sea levels along the Chinese coast have caused long-term effects, including the erosion of coastal ecosystems and the loss of tidal flats. They have also affected groundwater supply and increased the damage caused by storms, floods and salt tide intrusion, Wang said.

    While the sea swelled, land in coastal regions had sunk, exacerbating the problem, he added.

    In 2022, high sea levels along the Chinese coast aggravated the impact of storms, dealing a severe blow to the provinces of Guangdong, Zhejiang and Shandong. The rises also contributed to heavy coastal flooding in Zhejiang and Hainan province, causing great economic loss, according to Wang.

  • I’ve never seen protests of this scale in Shanghai – resident

    More from Shanghai now, where thousands protested against strict Covid measures over the weekend – with some even calling on President Xi Jinping to step down.

    One observer of the protest there is Frank Tsai, who organises public lectures in China. He told the BBC he was surprised at how large the protest had become.

    “I haven’t seen any protests of this scale in Shanghai in the entire 15 years that I have lived here,” he said.

    Over the past two or three decades, he said, there have been tens of thousands of small-scale protests about things including labour rights and land grabs.

    But, he says, “very, very few” have targeted the central government, and “basically nothing” has targeted the regime itself before.

    Source: BBC

  • Shanghai Covid: Ikea shoppers flee attempt to lock down store

    There were chaotic scenes at an Ikea store in Shanghai on Saturday, with shoppers trying to escape as authorities tried to quarantine them.

    Health officials were attempting to lock the store in Xuhui district down as a customer had been in close contact with a positive Covid case.

    Videos show the guards closing the doors at one point, but a crowd forced them open and made their escape.

    Since then, in line with the country’s strict “zero-Covid” strategy, the city of 20 million people has ordered flash lockdowns of areas where positive cases or their close contacts have been detected.

    Many have been locked down in unusual locations – including hot pot restaurants, gyms and offices.

    The Ikea store’s sudden shutdown was ordered because a close contact of a six-year-old boy who tested positive after returning to Shanghai from Lhasa in Tibet had visited, Shanghai Health Commission deputy director Zhao Dandan said on Sunday.

    He did not say when the close contact was believed to have been at the store.

    Those who were at the Ikea store and related areas must quarantine for two days followed by five days of health monitoring, Mr Zhao said.

    By Sunday nearly 400 close contacts of the six-year-old boy – who is asymptomatic – had been traced while 80,000 people had been ordered to undergo PCR testing, according to Shanghai Daily.

    Ikea’s customer service said on Sunday that the store was shut due to Covid curbs.

    The flagship Xuhui store, opened in 1998, was the Swedish furniture retailer’s first outlet in China. It now has 35 outlets across the country.

    China has stuck to its zero-Covid approach to slowing the spread of the coronavirus despite its huge impact on the economy and increasingly vocal objection from the public.

    The scenes of panic at Ikea follow videos last week showing people in another part of Shanghai running out of a building over rumours of an abnormal Covid test result.

    Shanghai’s citywide lockdown earlier this year saw widespread reports of food shortages and poor living conditions in quarantine centres.

    Frustrated residents were filmed engaging in heated arguments with pandemic staff and screaming from windows in protest against the restrictions during this time.

     

     

    Source: BBC

  • Asia sees rise in market ,China records a decline

    The majority of Asian markets increased on Monday as investors cheered evidence of declining US inflation; however, Hong Kong and Shanghai declined as statistics indicated that China’s economy was suffering due to the Covid-19 limitations.

    The markets have been worried that additional hikes of a comparable magnitude could stifle economic recovery after two straight increases in borrowing costs by the Federal Reserve of three-quarters of a percentage point.

    Last week’s indicators of improved inflation statistics have sparked discussion about whether the Fed may change course more rapidly from its current stance of moving aggressively to raise interest rates.

    “We’re definitely heading in a better direction,” Kristina Hooper, Invesco chief global market strategist, told Bloomberg Television.

    “It looks like we are passed peak for inflation. The problem is inflation is still very, very high.”

    Wall Street ended Friday on a positive note after consumer and producer price data indicated a meaningful cooling in inflation.

    The optimistic mood carried over to Asia, with Tokyo climbing one percent as GDP data showed the Japanese economy recovering after the government lifted Covid-19 curbs on businesses.

    Sydney rose 0.5 percent and Taipei was up 0.7 percent. Wellington, Manila, and Kuala Lumpur also saw gains. Seoul and Mumbai were closed for holidays.

    Among the few losers, Hong Kong and Shanghai fell as Chinese economic figures came in weaker than analysts’ expectations.

    China unexpectedly cut key interest rates as a raft of data released Monday indicated the world’s second-largest economy was struggling with virus restrictions and a slumping property market.

    The figures showed China’s industrial production and retail sales growth for July came in lower than expected. Industrial production was up 3.8 percent year-on-year, but down from 3.9 percent in June and below Bloomberg economists’ forecasts of a 4.3 percent increase.

    “The risk of stagflation in the world economy is rising, and the foundation for domestic economic recovery is not yet solid,” China’s National Bureau of Statistics warned.

    Beijing’s rigid adherence to a zero-Covid strategy has held back economic recovery as snap lockdowns and long quarantines batter business activity and a recovery in consumption.

    “July’s economic data is very alarming,” Raymond Yeung, Greater China economist at Australia & New Zealand Banking Group, told Bloomberg.

    “The Covid-zero policy continues to hit the service sector and dampen household consumption.”

    Oil was lower in Asian trade, with WTI down one percent at $91.20 while Brent was off 0.9 percent at $97.25.

  • China signals it could miss economic growth target

    China has signaled that it may miss its annual economic growth target, as Covid restrictions weigh on the world’s second largest economy.

    On Thursday, the Politburo – the ruling Communist Party’s top policy-making body – said it aims to keep growth within “a reasonable range”.

    It did not mention the official growth target of 5.5% it had earlier set.

    China is continuing to pursue a zero-Covid policy that has put major cities into full or partial lockdowns.

    In a statement after its quarterly economic meeting, the 25-member Politburo, which is chaired by President Xi Jinping, said leaders would “strive to achieve the best results possible”.

    However, it also called on stronger provinces to work to meet their growth targets.

    Analysts said the lack of a GDP mention was notable, though economists had earlier predicted it would be difficult for China to reach its 5.5% target.

    “The 5.5% growth target is no longer a must for China,” Iris Pang, chief China economist at ING Bank, had told news outlet the Wall Street Journal.

    They also added that China was urging larger provinces to make up for those that were more affected by the lockdown.

    “Beijing requested that provinces which are relatively well-positioned should strive to achieve economic and social targets for this year,” Nomura analysts Ting Lu, Jing Wang, and Harrington Zhang said in a note.

    “We think Beijing is suggesting that GDP growth targets for provinces with less favorable conditions, especially for those that were hard hit by the Omicron variant and lockdowns, could be more flexible.”

    Earlier this month, China said its economy had contracted sharply in the second quarter of this year.

    Large Chinese cities, including the major financial and manufacturing hub of Shanghai, were put into full or partial lockdowns during this period.

    China’s once-booming property market is also in a deep slump, and home sales have fallen for 11 consecutive months.

    Several Chinese developers have halted the construction of homes that had already been sold, because of concerns over cash flow.

    In recent weeks, some home buyers have threatened to stop paying their mortgages until the work restarts.

    In 2020, China made the rare decision to scrap its GDP targets, in light of the pandemic.

    GDP measures the size of an economy. Gauging its expansion or contraction is one of the most important ways of measuring how well or badly an economy is performing and is closely watched by economists and central banks.

    It also helps businesses to judge when to expand and recruit more workers or invest less and cut their workforces.

    Source: bbc.com

  • Flirting with danger: Message apps add to China marital woes

    Echo couldn’t figure out why her Shanghai businessman husband routinely came home well past midnight, straining their 10-year marriage – until she looked at his phone.

    Flirtatious messages from other women revealed a pattern of affairs facilitated by WeChat, China’s top messaging app.

    WeChat and other platforms have helped revolutionise inter-personal relations in China, but are also blamed for adding to growing strain on Chinese marriages by making it easier to flirt with potential new partners.

    Divorce is rising in China due to a range of factors, causing a concerned government to pass a law in May imposing a month-long “cooling-off” period on feuding couples before they split.

    But thanks to technology, “making acquaintances has become more convenient. It’s possible there will be temptations,” said Echo, who declined to give her full name and is now seeing a marriage counsellor along with her husband.

    Extramarital sex is hardly a new phenomenon in China, with its thriving sex industry and hostess bars, and a 2015 study by a respected Chinese sex researcher found a sharp increase in affairs in recent years.

    The errant-partner issue went viral in April when Chinese model-celebrity Zhou Yangqing revealed that her boyfriend of nine years, Taiwanese singer Show Lo, had used WeChat and other platforms for dalliances with multiple women.

    Technology adds to rising socio-economic stresses on couples, said Zhu Shenyong, a Shanghai marriage counsellor.

    They include growing career and financial pressures, surging business travel, meddling in-laws, and less willingness by Chinese women to endure a poor marriage.

    “(Chinese) society is developing too fast, extremely fast,” he said.

    “We have quickly become a relatively well-off society, but material happiness means working more and spending less time building and maintaining marriages.”

    Casual hook-ups

    Many find an outlet through technology-enabled dalliances, Zhu said.

    In particular, he cites WeChat’s “People Near Me” function, which is often used for casual hookups.

    But even seemingly innocent use of WeChat, China’s default communication tool, can lead people astray.

    Zhu recalled a recent counselling case that grew from a man and woman becoming business contacts through a “friend” group.

    “The man said, ‘You’re divorced. I actually want to divorce too,’” Zhu said.

    “After discussing business and signing a deal, they went out for a drink and ended up together.”

    WeChat makes it “incredibly easy to find the opposite sex”, Zhu said.

    Annual Chinese marriage registrations grew nearly 14 percent from 1998-2018 to more than 10 million, according to government figures. But divorces nearly quadrupled to 4.5 million per year over that span.

    Dai Pengjun, a Shanghai private detective who investigates suspected infidelities, says messaging apps are a common thread in cases.

    ‘More and more affairs’

    The business has taken off in recent years and he now has seven staff handling around 10 cases monthly across the country, 40 percent of which involve unfaithful women.

    “I’ve thought a lot about why there are more and more affairs nowadays,” Dai said.

    “Is it because of lower morals? I don’t think so. It has a lot to do with people’s material lives and technological development.”

    Cases typically involve staking out, tailing, and photographing “targets”.

    An AFP journalist tagged along as Dai and his team tailed a man — whose wife suspected him of mid-day trysts — for several hours through Shanghai’s financial district and subway system. Nothing overtly incriminating was observed.

    In extreme cases, Dai has found male targets who juggled not one, but two long-term extramarital affairs, including some that produced offspring.

    Lack of education is a problem, said Zhu.

    “Our sex education starts from primary school, but education on love and marriage is non-existent,” he said.

    Chinese media have speculated that lengthy COVID-19 lockdowns earlier this year could fuel more divorce as hunkered-down couples tire of each other.

    Echo experienced the opposite. Shanghai’s shutdown gave the couple time to work on their marriage. She is hopeful.

    “Sometimes I even feel thankful to the other women,” she said.

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    Source: france24.com

  • Coronavirus: Students return to class in Shanghai and Beijing

    Tens of thousands of students returned to school in Shanghai and Beijing Monday after months of closures intended to curb the spread of the coronavirus, as China’s major cities gradually return to normality.

    Shanghai students in their final year of middle and high school returned to classrooms, while only high-school seniors in Beijing were allowed back on campus to prepare for the all-important “gaokao” university entrance exam.

    China has largely curbed the spread of the deadly disease, but is still on high alert with growing fears of imported cases and a second wave of domestic infections in the northeast.

    Teenager Meng Xianghao said he was taking extra precautions on his first day back at Beijing’s Chenjinglun High School.

    “I brought masks, garbage bags and disinfectant,” Meng, who had just taken the subway for the first time in months, told AFP as children in masks and uniform tracksuits filed past police and officials to enter the school.

    “I’m glad, it’s been too long since I’ve seen my classmates,” said 18-year-old student Hang Huan. “I’ve missed them a lot.”

    A tent set up at the entrance was staffed by a person in a white hazmat suit, while a man wearing a container of disinfectant on his back sprayed the ground by the school gates.

    Across the country, schools that have been closed or online-only since January began gradually reopening last month, while virus epicentre Wuhan is set to reopen its high schools on May 6.

    Students in the capital will have their temperatures measured at school gates and must show a “green” health code on a special app that calculates a person’s infection risk, according to China’s Ministry of Education.

    The ministry said some schools in Beijing had rehearsed the reopening with mock “students” in advance.

    Welcome speeches

    Footage from the Communist Party-run Beijing Daily showed some of the city’s 49,000 high-school seniors in classrooms Monday, wearing masks at desks which were spaced evenly apart as teachers welcomed them back with speeches.

    A screen at the front showed a photo of Chinese President Xi Jinping, as the teacher talked to the class about the significance of overcoming the COVID-19 pandemic.

    In some cafeterias, students are assigned fixed seating spots spaced at least one metre apart.

    Beijing still has strict measures in place to prevent a fresh outbreak, requiring visitors to the city to pass stringent testing requirements and complete lengthy quarantine periods.

    In Shanghai, some schools have set aside special rooms for isolating students with “abnormal temperatures,” the ministry said.

    Beijing student Xiao Shuhan told AFP he thought some form of social distancing would continue even as classmates and friends reunite.

    “We’ll no longer put our arms around each other’s shoulders,” he said.

    The long absence from classrooms has added to the pressure on final-year students preparing for the high-stakes “gaokao” exams, which is the only route to Chinese universities and notoriously difficult.

    “At school there’s a certain atmosphere for learning and at home there is not,” said Wang Yuchen, a 17-year-old student.

    China said in March that it would postpone the exams by one month to July this year.

    Source: france24.com

  • Shanghai Disney resort partially reopens

    Although Disneyland in Shanghai will remain closed, parts of the wider resort are to re-open.

    The company said “a limited number of shopping, dining, and recreational experiences” would open as “as the first step of a phased reopening”.

    The complex has been closed since January.

    Source: bbc.com