Newsletter By 2025-07-28
Looking from the aspect of social policy effectiveness and the performance of the securities industry, the current state of China’s financial sector has, in effect, ceded much of the country's financial potential to private commercial companies such as Ant Group, Alipay, and Tencent, helping them create growth miracles. It remains unclear whether this outcome was intentional, a deliberate policy choice, or simply the result of unconscious policy shortcomings. China's economy has now entered a phase of debt-driven growth, a stage many developing countries experience during their development. To continue making progress in this phase, the top priority must be the development of a robust securities market. Without a mature and thriving capital market, a debt-driven economy becomes a ticking time bomb. China cannot rely solely on a bank-dominated system of indirect financing to support its future development in the face of mounting debt. Looking ahead, it is essential to plan for, incentivize, and build a vibrant, developed securities market. The very process of establishing such a market carries intrinsic value in supporting sustained economic growth, according to
Kung Chan, the founder of ANBOUND.
>>The relationship between the United States, the European Union, and China is one of the most important international relationships of the 21st century; any direct conflict among the three would severely disrupt global stability. The EU-China Summit has taken place in Beijing last week. Whether the summit can yield substantive outcomes is a matter of great interest to the international community. Do both China and the EU have the will to improve relations? The answer is undoubtedly yes. Achieving broader "reciprocal market openness" is at the core of advancing EU-China relations, discussed
Yi Wang, Head of Global Development Program and Senior Researcher at ANBOUND. In areas such as green industries, climate change, technological innovation, digital transformation, and standard-setting, both sides have opportunities to identify new, mutually beneficial pathways. The following are several specific recommendations.
>>In Central Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa, haggling is regarded as a core norm and even an art form in business, diplomacy, and everyday transactions. Most things are considered negotiable or tradeable, a mindset shaped by historical trading practices such as the souq markets and Islamic cultural influences, which emphasize negotiation, flexibility, relationship-building, and mutual benefit. It is important to note that not everything is open to negotiation. Matters related to honor, religion, or family core values are generally non-negotiable. However, nearly everything else often involves some level of bargaining. Understanding and becoming familiar with the bargaining culture along the ancient Silk Road can contribute to building stronger commercial and diplomatic relationships with some Muslim-majority countries and regions, writes
Xia Ri, Industry Researcher at ANBOUND.
>>Not long ago, analysts at Deutsche Bank released a research report highlighting that the adjustments to U.S. Treasury bonds and changes in Fed regulatory policies signal a major shift in macroeconomic policy. This policy framework was named by the Deutsche Bank the Pennsylvania Plan. Although this Plan provides some breathing room for the Trump administration, the long-term pressure means that the U.S. government debt issue is increasingly becoming an unavoidable gray rhino problem that must be addressed. Faced with various constraints, Trump has no choice but to make trade-offs and compromises for the smooth implementation of his OBBBA budget. This signals that the dollar is entering a period of weakness, analyzed
Wei Hongxu, Senior Economist of China Macro-Economy Research Center at ANBOUND.
>>After China began to "weaponize" its rare earth resources, large-scale, full-industry-chain efforts in the U.S. and other Western countries have been significantly activated. These efforts are being jointly advanced by industry, capital, governments, supporting legal frameworks, and multinational cooperation. This marks the latest evolution in the global rare earth landscape. While some believe that the U.S. lacks rare earth refining technology, faces stringent environmental standards, and has high manufacturing costs, it would be difficult for it to reduce its reliance on Chinese rare earths. However, current U.S. actions suggest otherwise: through government-backed capital support, price guarantees, and closer coordination with allies, the U.S. has been making consistent efforts to reduce its dependence on China, noted
Zhou Chao, Research Fellow for Geopolitical Strategy programme at ANBOUND.
>>The key to comprehensive China-Israel cooperation lies in the deep complementarity between the two countries across various fields. Through coordinated development in areas such as technology, industry, and finance, China and Israel have established a close-knit innovation chain. Although the situation in the Middle East is complex, Israel has already attained a position of regional hegemony. In this context, China should leverage shared interests and long-term strategic vision to plan ahead as much as possible, demonstrating forward-looking diplomatic wisdom and further consolidating the bilateral relations, noted
Yang Xite, Research Fellow at ANBOUND.
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