Global Pulse

标签： Asia

亚洲

  • Need for speed fuels mini-car race craze

    Need for speed fuels mini-car race craze

    For generations of Chinese people born between the 1980s and 1990s, mini four-wheel-drive (4WD) toy cars hold far more than nostalgic value. Far from being just simple playthings, these tiny speed machines were childhood portals to adventure, sparking boundless imagination and forging lasting friendships between like-minded hobbyists. Now, decades after their first boom in popularity, that long-dormant childhood passion is roaring back to life across the country, driven by a retro hobby craze centered on the thrill of speed.

    On April 12, one of the largest recent amateur mini 4WD events brought nearly 300 enthusiasts from across China to Beijing’s Wenyuhe Park, where a purpose-built track has become an unlikely hub for the resurgent hobby. The action-packed day of competition kicked off in the morning with 60 teams going head-to-head in a timed group challenge that tested both assembly speed and on-track performance. In the afternoon, the tournament shifted to a high-stakes one-on-one knockout format, featuring 160 individual racers vying for the top title.

    The Wenyuhe Park track, which first opened in 2022, was originally conceived as a public art installation designed around China’s traditional xiangyun (auspicious cloud) pattern. Planners later made subtle modifications to the layout to meet the strict dimensional requirements of official mini 4WD racing courses, but the space remained relatively unknown to the broader hobby community until late 2025, when it went viral across Chinese social media platforms. Today, the 88-meter track — which includes a complex overpass section — is open to the public completely free of charge, and has grown into a thriving social gathering spot for retro culture lovers, drawing hobbyists from every profession and age group.

    For many enthusiasts, the Wenyuhe track has already achieved near-legendary status. Among the participants at the April 12 event was 33-year-old Zou Chenyang, who traveled more than 1,000 kilometers from his home in Harbin, Heilongjiang province, to join the race. A full-time livestreamer and professional custom mini 4WD builder, Zou describes the park as a “pilgrimage site” for anyone passionate about the hobby. “I came here just to race and have fun,” he explained. “The atmosphere is incredible, there are so many kids and parents here enjoying the day. I really hope more families will give it a try and join the community.”

    The winner of the inaugural one-on-one ultimate battle, An Ruifeng, a middle-aged working professional, downplayed his victory, attributing his win to good fortune rather than raw skill. An first fell in love with mini 4WD cars when he was just 8 or 9 years old, and took up the hobby again as an adult to decompress from the stress of his daily work. Before the event, he even turned down his family’s offer to come cheer him on, worried he would be embarrassed if he crashed out early. “My only real goal was to pass the pre-race technical inspection and finish just one lap,” he said. “That would have made me happy enough. Getting all the way to the win is unbelievable… I just love these cars.” Holding the winner’s flag, he shared advice for future participants: “Don’t put too much pressure on yourself. This is just for fun — don’t let it get in the way of your work, family or daily life. As long as you cross the finish line, we’re all champions.”

    All competing cars are required to meet strict technical regulations to keep competition fair and accessible. Liu Han, one of the event’s technical inspection judges, outlined key rules for the afternoon knockout race, including a 40,000 revolution per minute limit on motors and a ban on metal chassis. “As a long-time mini 4WD enthusiast, I didn’t get to compete this time around, but volunteering as a judge let me stay involved with the community while making sure all racers follow the rules,” Liu explained.

    The mini 4WD craze is not limited to Beijing, with new tracks opening and hobby communities growing across the entire country. Earlier this month, Shanghai’s Jiabei Country Park launched trial operations for a new 228-meter professional-grade track, which offers greater challenges for experienced racers with a layout that includes long straightaways, sharp curves and gentle sloped sections. Like the Wenyuhe Park venue, the Shanghai track is free for public use, and also offers dedicated spaces for car maintenance and customization, plus on-site sales of starter cars for new enthusiasts looking to join the hobby.

  • Jilin’s chill no challenge for cherry tomato crop

    Jilin’s chill no challenge for cherry tomato crop

    Even as lingering cold snaps still grip Northeast China’s Jilin province in mid-April, a cutting-edge smart agricultural facility in Changchun is bucking traditional seasonal constraints to produce bountiful, high-quality cherry tomatoes year-round.

    Located within the Changchun National Agricultural High-Tech Industry Demonstration Zone, the 77,000-square-meter intelligent greenhouse operated by Hengtong Ecological Agriculture Technology Development Co is a showcase of modern, data-driven agriculture. Unlike open-field farms that rely on natural weather conditions, every element of cherry tomato growth here is fine-tuned by a connected digital system: sensors woven through rows of climbing tomato vines continuously collect real-time data on plant development, feeding insights to a centralized big data platform that automatically adjusts water, fertilizer, light, temperature, air flow and heat. Every management task, from drip irrigation to environmental regulation, can be completed remotely with a single click.

    First launched for construction in 2024, the facility’s 36,000-square-meter planting center is already fully operational, turning out consistent yields that outperform traditional cultivation by a wide margin. “We hit an annual output of more than 300 metric tons, with a steady daily harvest of one ton,” explained Xu Lihui, chairman of Hengtong. “On the same plot of land, our total yield is three times higher than open-field growing. Where traditional cherry tomato harvests only last around four months a year, we harvest 12 months out of the year—even during Jilin’s frigid deep winters, our vines stay heavy with ripe, plump fruit.”

    The intensive, technology-driven design of the plant factory maximizes land productivity while cutting down on agricultural inputs. Growing cherry tomatoes in a sterile, soilless environment, paired with AI-powered precision control of growth conditions, has drastically reduced the need for synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. Automated transport robots and guided vehicles navigate the greenhouse by scanning ground QR codes, handling logistics tasks assigned by the central system to cut down on labor needs and reduce human error.

    This focus on optimized, controlled growing translates directly to premium product quality. Ripened from flowering to maturity under consistently perfect conditions, the greenhouse-grown cherry tomatoes boast thin, crisp skin, rich juiciness and a naturally sweet flavor that has resonated with upscale buyers across China’s major cities. Today, the company’s output is in high demand at high-end supermarkets, membership-based fresh food chains and corporate bulk buyers in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen.

    To meet growing market demand, Hengtong is already expanding its operations. By the end of 2026, the company will complete construction of a second 42,000-square-meter plant factory dedicated to cultivating high-quality seedlings for vegetables, flowers and medicinal herbs, as well as scaling up production of new specialty varieties of cherry tomatoes, cucumbers and strawberries for both domestic and international markets. A 24,000-square-meter agricultural science center will also open to the public as an educational and outreach hub.

    Once the expansion is fully completed, the project is expected to deliver far-reaching benefits beyond its own production output. It will create roughly 300 local jobs for residents in surrounding communities, while driving coordinated growth in supporting local industries including logistics, agritourism and catering, unlocking simultaneous improvements to the region’s economic output, ecological sustainability and social well-being.

  • Rising maritime threats test global trade lifeline

    Rising maritime threats test global trade lifeline

    Against a backdrop of accelerating global interconnectedness and shifting geopolitical dynamics, rising traditional and non-traditional threats to maritime security have emerged as an urgent collective challenge for the international community. Global industry experts and academic analysts have emphasized that coordinated negotiation, mutual respect, and unified governance mechanisms are critical to protecting maritime shipping, the undisputed backbone of the global economy and international stability.

    This consensus was forged by hundreds of global participants at a high-level international forum hosted by Shanghai Maritime University on Thursday, which centered on advancing shared maritime security and inclusive blue economic prosperity.

    Zhang Feng, professor and dean of the School of Marxism at Shanghai Maritime University, outlined the outsized importance of maritime shipping to global commerce, noting that more than 80 percent of all global trade by volume and over 95 percent of China’s foreign trade cargo – much of it originating from China’s role as the world’s manufacturing hub – moves across ocean shipping lanes. Even minor disruptions to these shipping operations can ripple through global import and export markets, Zhang warned, posing cascading risks to global economic activity, food security, and energy stability.

    “Shipping connects every corner of the globe and binds our shared future together; it is the irreplaceable economic lifeline of the modern world,” Zhang said. “As the world navigates major changes unseen in a century, maritime security has become a central arena for major power competition. Recent events in the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea have underscored just how critical this domain is to global welfare.”

    Kazem Agamy, dean of the Arab Research Institute for Sustainable Blue Economy at the Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport, used a recent high-profile disruption to illustrate the fragility of global maritime security. Two years ago, widespread insecurity in the Red Sea forced the world’s largest container carriers to divert their fleets on the much longer route around the Cape of Good Hope, sending global freight costs soaring. The centuries-old supply chain connecting Asia, Africa, and Europe via the Suez Canal was severed almost overnight. The canal, which normally carries roughly 12 percent of all global trade and generates over $10 billion in annual revenue at peak activity, saw its annual earnings plummet by nearly half.

    “This incident laid bare a harsh fundamental truth,” Agamy explained. “While more than 80 percent of global trade travels by sea, the governance frameworks that underpin maritime security remain deeply fragmented. Shipping lanes are inherently global, but the institutional mechanisms designed to protect them are not. This gap is the single most pressing challenge we face on this issue.”

    Norman Martinez Gutierrez, director of the International Maritime Law Institute at the International Maritime Organization, added that while maritime security is most often linked to traditional threats such as terrorism, piracy, and armed robbery at sea, its actual scope is far broader. Modern maritime security also encompasses reliable safe navigation, protection of critical offshore and port infrastructure, environmental protection of marine ecosystems, and consistent compliance with established international legal standards.

    “Without robust, widespread maritime security, there can be no predictability in global maritime transport, no stability in cross-border supply chains, and no confidence in the international legal rules that govern global shipping,” Gutierrez said.

    Mao Ruipeng, a senior researcher at the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies, highlighted China’s active role in advancing collective global maritime security. He noted that China was among the first group of nations to sign the ambitious agreement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea focused on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction, widely known as the BBNJ Agreement.

    “China is a steadfast defender of the established international maritime order,” Mao said. “It has proposed and implemented the Global Governance Initiative, consistently upholds multilateral cooperation, and works to safeguard the international maritime order rooted in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.”

  • Scientists deploy tech in cancer radiation therapy

    Scientists deploy tech in cancer radiation therapy

    A decade-long research project led by scientists at Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center in Guangzhou has yielded an artificial intelligence-powered innovation that is set to reshape radiation therapy for cancer, particularly nasopharyngeal carcinoma, by drastically improving precision and cutting down on clinician workload.

    Nasopharyngeal carcinoma, which forms in the upper throat behind the nose, is primarily treated with radiation therapy. The stakes of this treatment are extraordinarily high: an undersized radiation field leaves sections of the tumor untreated, raising the likelihood of cancer recurrence, while an overly broad field can inflict irreversible damage to critical nearby structures including the brainstem, temporal lobe, middle ear, and optic nerve. Such collateral damage often triggers life-altering complications ranging from chronic headaches and memory loss to permanent hearing and vision impairment, severely diminishing a patient’s post-treatment quality of life.

    To avoid these outcomes, clinicians must complete a meticulous pre-treatment step called target volume delineation, where they manually identify and trace the boundaries of both the tumor and surrounding healthy organs on medical scans to define the exact radiation field. Before this new technology was introduced, this demanding task required clinicians to maintain intense focus for three to six hours per patient, according to Sun Ying, a professor at the cancer center.

    The complexity of the process is further compounded by changes in patient anatomy over the course of treatment. A full course of radiotherapy typically spans six to seven weeks and requires more than 30 separate treatment sessions. During this period, tumors often shrink and patients may experience weight loss that shifts the exact position of the remaining cancer. This means initial scans taken at the start of treatment quickly become outdated, leaving clinicians to update delineations repeatedly to avoid misaligned radiation delivery.

    To solve these longstanding challenges, the research team led by the center’s vice-president Ma Jun, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Sun spent more than 10 years developing their proprietary AI-powered “digital dissection” technique. The system is trained on large datasets that map how nasopharyngeal tumors grow and shift over the course of treatment, allowing it to automatically generate highly precise outline of target radiation areas in real time as a patient’s condition changes. Clinicians then only need to review and make minor adjustments to the AI-generated outline before finalizing an adaptive radiotherapy plan, which adjusts to current patient anatomy during each session.

    In a recent demonstration at the center, the entire process — from integrated CT imaging to completed adaptive radiation delivery — was finished in under 30 minutes for a nasopharyngeal carcinoma patient.

    Zhou Guanqun, a chief physician at the center, noted that the new system already outperforms 50% of specialist physicians in terms of delineation accuracy. Beyond accuracy gains, the technology has cut the variation in outline work between different clinicians by 50% and boosted workflow efficiency by more than five times, bringing total treatment time for each case down to roughly 30 minutes from the multiple hours previously required for manual delineation alone.

    The innovation marks a significant step forward in making precision radiotherapy more accessible and consistent, addressing a critical gap in cancer care that has long depended on individual clinician skill and experience.

  • Remembering Raghu Rai: The photographer who showed India to itself

    Remembering Raghu Rai: The photographer who showed India to itself

    The global photography community and audiences across India are continuing to pay heartfelt tribute to Raghu Rai, the nation’s most iconic and influential photojournalist, who passed away at 83. Over a more than 50-year career, Rai built an unmatched body of work that did not merely capture moments in Indian history — it reshaped how the nation understood its own defining events, and cemented his status as the father of modern Indian photojournalism.

    Rai launched his professional journey in 1966 at Kolkata-based daily *The Statesman*, before moving on to hold key roles as photo editor at leading Indian publications *India Today* and *Sunday* magazine. A major milestone of his career came in 1977, when he was accepted into the prestigious international photography cooperative Magnum Photos, an achievement widely considered one of the highest honors in the field. His acceptance was supported by legendary French photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson, whose candid, human-centered approach to street photography left a permanent mark on Rai’s own artistic philosophy.

    Throughout his career, Rai’s lens turned to every corner of Indian public and private life, ranging from corridors of political power to quiet moments of ordinary daily life, always rendered with a striking, intimate clarity. His most enduring works include an extensive catalog of photographs of former Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, shot across decades: from raucous, high-stakes election campaigns to confidential closed-door Congress Party meetings, and even her diplomatic visits to meet world leaders like UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. These images remain the definitive visual record of one of modern India’s most consequential political figures.

    Beyond politics, Rai created unforgettable portraits of many of India’s most celebrated cultural icons, from legendary filmmaker Satyajit Ray and iconic playback singer Lata Mangeshkar to celebrated painter MF Hussain and global Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan. Each portrait captured the quiet, unspoken connection between creator and their craft, revealing layers of personality rarely visible to the public.

    Two of Rai’s most impactful bodies of work documented some of the darkest and most consequential chapters of late 20th century India: the devastating 1984 Bhopal Gas Tragedy, one of the world’s worst industrial disasters, and the violent period of Sikh militancy in Punjab that claimed thousands of lives in the 1980s. His tense, unflinching portrait of Sikh separatist leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale remains one of the most striking visual artifacts of that turbulent era. Rather than distancing himself from the suffering and upheaval he documented, Rai embedded himself in these moments, creating work that forced the nation to confront its own truths.

    For Rai, photography was never just a technical craft or a journalistic task — it was a deeply spiritual practice. In one of his final interviews, he framed the art as a form of connection to the divine, explaining, “I meet my god through my camera. Once I pick up my camera, I am driven by the ever-changing energy of life and nature. When you have invested mentally, physically, and spiritually in situations and take pictures constantly, it is like investing in a bank of life in which the returns keep getting bigger and the energy keeps you going.”

    He emphasized that powerful photography required consistent, disciplined practice rather than fleeting, trendy experimental techniques. When asked about his favorite portrait subject, he named the Dalai Lama, citing the leader’s unique “intensity and spiritual energy” that translated so powerfully on camera. Even when photographing subjects he admired deeply, Rai argued that a great portrait must prioritize raw authenticity over flattery, capturing “the moment, the experience of the person, the energy of the person” exactly as it existed in front of the lens.

    Peers across the industry have long described Rai’s work as a seamless bridge between hard-nosed news reportage and fine art, balancing the urgent immediacy of breaking news with intentional, thoughtful composition that elevates every image. Today, his massive archive stands not just as a collection of photographs, but as a decades-long act of intentional witnessing: a deeply human portrait of a nation, its people, and its many contradictions, that will continue to influence and inspire generations of photographers for decades to come.

  • ‘Lie-down napping’ helps pupils get forty winks

    ‘Lie-down napping’ helps pupils get forty winks

    Across China, a quiet but transformative shift is underway in K-12 education: replacing the long-standing tradition of hunching over classroom desks for midday naps with comfortable, lie-down rest, enabled by a newly implemented national standard for student furniture.

    The national technical standard for purpose-built napping desks and chairs, issued by the State Administration for Market Regulation and the National Standardization Administration in September 2025, officially went into effect this February. Developed with children’s physical growth and developmental needs at its core, the regulation sets clear, unified requirements for critical product specifications including seat height, recline angle, under-desk clearance, and material durability, addressing a gap that previously left the growing market for napping furniture with inconsistent quality and safety standards.

    Well before the new standard was introduced, national policymakers had already prioritized improving student sleep health. Back in 2021, the Ministry of Education released a guidance on strengthening student sleep management, which outlined age-appropriate recommended sleep durations and encouraged schools with sufficient resources to secure adequate midday break time for rest. In 2023, the State Council followed with a policy supporting schools to expand classroom and recreational spaces to create usable napping conditions. That same year, Zhang Qiongli, a national legislator and high school teacher from Hubei province, tabled a proposal to upgrade K-12 students’ lunch break arrangements, which quickly garnered broad public and official support. Today, nearly 40,000 primary and secondary students in Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture, Zhang’s home region, already have access to lie-down napping during lunch breaks. “I also hope that in the future, all primary and secondary school students across the country can achieve lying lunch breaks,” Zhang shared in an interview.

    Since the national standard took effect, rollout has accelerated across multiple regions. In Wuhu, Anhui province, 468 sets of the new lie-down napping furniture have been included in the city government’s 2026 key livelihood projects, with many local schools already rolling out the equipment to help students say goodbye to the discomfort of hunched-over desk napping.
    The innovative furniture is designed for dual use: during regular class hours, it functions as a standard student desk and chair. When lunch break rolls around, a few simple adjustments extend the seat and tilt the backrest, transforming it into a comfortable mini recliner that eliminates the neck and shoulder strain that comes from napping while bent forward.

    In northwest China’s Urumqi, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, roughly 2,000 sets of the new napping-friendly desks and chairs entered service at local K-12 schools this spring. In the southern technology hub of Shenzhen, Guangdong province, more than 400 primary and secondary schools have already completed midday napping program upgrades, with the city planning to roll out the national standard-compliant furniture to an additional 200 schools in the 2026 spring semester.

    For parents, the change is widely welcomed. Lu Xiao, a primary school parent based in Dalian, Liaoning province, noted that a quality midday nap helps students recharge their energy and boost afternoon learning efficiency. “I hope students in my son’s school can use the adjustable backrests and extendable seats as soon as possible,” she said.
    Most Chinese K-12 schools already schedule approximately two hours for lunch and midday break daily, creating a natural window for structured rest.
    Despite this progress and widespread policy and public support, full nationwide promotion of universal lie-down napping still faces notable practical barriers. As of early 2026, only a relatively small share of schools across the country have rolled out the upgraded furniture, with challenges including limited classroom space, tight education budgets, and complex daily management of the adjusted napping routines remaining to be addressed.

  • Daydream believers lift ‘lunch-break economy’

    Daydream believers lift ‘lunch-break economy’

    Across China’s major urban centers, a growing cohort of overworked white-collar professionals is redefining the traditional midday break, fueling the rapid expansion of a new consumer segment dubbed the “lunch-break economy.” Stretched thin between packed work schedules and family responsibilities, these workers are turning their one-hour midday window into a precious, paid-for period of personal control and self-care that did not exist on this scale just a few years ago.

    For Lin Yihan, a 43-year-old in-house legal counsel based in Dalian, Liaoning province, this new routine has become non-negotiable. Twice a week, she walks 10 minutes from her office to a local massage studio, pays 100 yuan ($14.7) for a 60-minute full-body relaxation session, and escapes the constant demands of her open-plan office. “Usually, my day is occupied by heavy work and taking care of my family,” Lin explained. “It’s the only time when no one is asking me for anything. No emails, no WeChat messages, no urgent requests. Just 60 minutes of being taken care of.”

    Lin is far from an outlier. A wide range of service and product providers are reporting soaring demand for lunch-break-focused offerings, as young and mid-career professionals prioritize mental and physical recharge over casual post-meal chats with colleagues or quick office naps. What once was reserved for a quick bite and a casual stroll is now being repackaged as a discrete, consumable self-care experience, with options ranging from 30-minute power nap sessions, express facials and head spas to high-intensity interval training (HIIT) workouts, group meditation and even oxygen therapy.

    Platform data highlights the rapid growth of this fragmented new market. On domestic local services platform Meituan, one massage studio similar to the one Lin visits sold more than 19,000 60-minute lunch-break relaxation packages over the past 12 months. Across 19 additional lunch-break-focused service offerings at the same establishment, total sales hit 45,000 orders, with prices ranging between 100 yuan and 250 yuan. While lunch-time orders make up less than 25% of the studio’s total business, the volume is already substantial enough to reshape its operating schedule.

    Even physical goods tailored to office lunch breaks have seen explosive sales. On e-commerce giant JD.com, sales of office napping pillows, foldable camp beds for workplaces and portable sleeping chairs have all exceeded 1 million units each in recent months.

    To meet this surging demand, service providers across multiple sectors are adjusting their business models to fit the tight 60-minute midday window. In Shanghai’s bustling Jing’an Temple central business district, lunch-time head spa slots have become such a hot commodity that customers must book by 10 a.m. to secure a spot, with the most popular venues requiring reservations a full day in advance. “I walked in at lunchtime wanting a quick head wash to relax, and they told me there were no slots left,” one regular customer told local Chinese media, describing the high demand.

    Fitness facilities are also tapping into the trend. At a 24-hour gym in downtown Dalian that counts more than 400 annual members paying 4,000 yuan per person for membership, nearly one-fifth of all visits during weekdays fall during the lunch break. “Many white-collar workers who work nearby have signed up for our yoga class during the busiest time at noon,” said Zhang, the gym’s manager.

    One regular lunch-time gym goer, Luo, shared that his routine now revolves around maximizing the midday hour: he eats a 15-minute bento at his desk, then spends 45 minutes on a HIIT workout before returning to work. “I used to drink two espressos to get through the afternoon,” he said. “Now I just move my body for 45 minutes. It’s more effective than any amount of caffeine.”

    Public health events have also helped raise broader awareness of the importance of rest and stress management, with niche activities popping up to meet growing interest. Earlier this year in Huzhou, Zhejiang province, a public sleep competition invited 1,000 participants to set aside their smartphones, wear masks and earplugs, and focus on intentional rest, with the goal of raising public awareness of sleep health among overworked urban professionals.

    Unlike mature, well-documented sectors such as e-commerce or ride-hailing, the lunch-break economy remains a fragmented phenomenon spanning wellness, beauty, fitness, hospitality, food service and furniture retail. But as urban work pressure continues to rise and professionals increasingly prioritize personal well-being alongside career advancement, industry observers expect the segment to continue its rapid expansion in coming years.

  • China retains stable supply of fertilizers

    China retains stable supply of fertilizers

    Escalating geopolitical tensions across the Middle East have sparked widespread concerns over potential ripple effects on global commodity and energy markets, with risks of cascading cost increases hitting agricultural sectors worldwide. But for China, the world’s largest grain producer, domestic fertilizer markets have remained largely resilient, backed by robust domestic output, strategic government reserves, and targeted regulatory measures that have offset external volatility, agricultural officials and industry analysts confirm.

    Li Guoxiang, a senior researcher at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences’ Rural Development Institute, explained that the conflict’s economic impact is primarily projected to travel through three key channels: disrupted fertilizer manufacturing, interrupted energy transit routes, and shaken global commodity trading systems. The Gulf region accounts for roughly 20% of global fertilizer output and nearly 46% of the world’s total urea supply, placing global markets at risk of major shortages if shipping through the critical Strait of Hormuz is interrupted. Combined with the sharp upward pressure on global oil prices triggered by regional unrest, energy-reliant fertilizer production facilities around the world could be forced to scale back operations or cease production entirely, Li noted.

    A reduced global fertilizer supply would almost certainly push global prices upward, raising input costs for farmers and potentially leading to reduced fertilizer application that could cut global crop yields and drive up global food prices. In the immediate aftermath of the latest tensions escalation, China saw minor short-term market reactions: domestic grain prices posted a brief, modest rebound, while fertilizer and diesel prices ticked up slightly.

    However, experts and industry leaders emphasize that China’s well-established domestic fertilizer infrastructure has effectively absorbed these external shocks. The country maintains a high rate of fertilizer self-sufficiency, supported by proactive government supply management and a national strategic reserve system. “Overall, both grain and fertilizer markets have gradually returned to steady levels, which lays a solid foundation for another promising grain harvest this year,” Li said.

    Recent industry data confirms that China’s overall fertilizer supply remains abundant, especially for two of the most widely used varieties: urea and compound fertilizers. Nearly 80% of China’s domestic urea production capacity relies on coal-based manufacturing, creating a largely self-reliant supply network that is less vulnerable to global energy market disruptions than production systems dependent on imported natural gas.

    Fu Chunhua, deputy director of the China Agricultural Means of Production Association, noted that since the start of the 2026 spring planting season, domestic urea producers have operated at nearly 90% capacity, a higher utilization rate than recorded in the same period in 2025. At a large-scale production facility in Linyi, Shandong Province – one of China’s key agricultural and fertilizer manufacturing hubs – the plant churns out 3,000 to 4,000 metric tons of high-nitrogen fertilizer daily, with daily sales matching that output, according to the facility’s general manager.

    Across Shandong, spring fertilization for the new planting season is nearly complete, with consistent supply and largely stable pricing. Nitrogen fertilizer prices have held steady throughout the planting rush, while compound fertilizer prices have seen a moderate 10% to 15% increase compared to pre-Chinese New Year levels. National aggregate data reflects this modest growth: in early April, the average ex-factory price of domestic urea rose just 0.12% month-on-month and 1.69% year-on-year, while compound fertilizer prices increased 1.78% month-on-month and 14.17% year-on-year.

    China’s national fertilizer reserve system has also played a central role in stabilizing markets. The policy builds up stockpiles of key fertilizers during off-peak demand seasons, then releases stored supplies during peak planting periods to curb excessive price volatility. In Shandong alone, local supply and marketing cooperatives hold 170,000 tons of reserved fertilizer, which was distributed to markets ahead of the spring planting rush to ease upward price pressure.

    Distribution efficiency has also improved significantly in recent years, with many regional networks integrating digital tools to streamline access for farmers. In multiple major agricultural regions across China, digital platforms now allow farmers to input field-specific data to receive customized fertilizer recommendations, with orders fulfilled directly through local supply outlets, cutting delivery times and reducing logistical costs. Many large-scale commercial farming operations have also adopted proactive risk management strategies, securing their fertilizer supplies months in advance – often immediately after the autumn harvest – to insulate their operations from seasonal and geopolitical price swings.

    Despite the current stability of domestic fertilizer markets, analysts note that rising global energy prices remain a lingering concern. China’s highly mechanized agricultural sector relies heavily on diesel for farm machinery and transportation, so sustained higher fuel costs could push up both production and logistics expenses, potentially creating upward pressure on grain prices later in 2026.

    Li emphasized that the duration and intensity of the Middle East conflict remain unpredictable, underscoring the need for strengthened market monitoring and early warning systems. Chinese authorities should enhance market oversight, guide public expectations to prevent unnecessary panic, and guard against the spread of misinformation about global food shortages, he said. If agricultural input costs rise sharply in the coming months, policymakers could introduce temporary targeted subsidies for farmers, covering fertilizer and fuel expenses to preserve planting incentives and protect national food production capacity.

  • Series of visits shows Beijing’s anchoring role

    Series of visits shows Beijing’s anchoring role

    Over a two-week period in mid-April 2026, the Chinese capital played host to an extraordinary flurry of high-level diplomatic visits, drawing leaders and senior officials from Europe, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, Africa and Eurasia. This unusually intensive schedule of diplomatic engagement comes at a moment of profound global uncertainty: ongoing Middle East conflicts have upended energy security, and the world economy continues to grapple with persistent sluggish growth. Among the visiting dignitaries were Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Vietnamese Party General Secretary and President To Lam, Mozambican President Daniel Francisco Chapo, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, and Lao Standing Deputy Prime Minister Saleumxay Kommasith.

    Global observers widely view this wave of visits as a clear reflection of shifting global power dynamics, underscoring the broad international appeal of China’s diplomatic approach and its growing recognition as a key anchor of stability in an increasingly turbulent world. “This intensive diplomatic schedule is no random coincidence. It reflects a growing circle of nations that trust China both as a reliable partner for practical cooperation and a source of stability in an increasingly fragile global landscape,” noted Ding Duo, a research fellow at the National Institute for South China Sea Studies. Ding emphasized that as global instability and uncertainty multiply by the day, China has emerged as a consistent source of stability and predictability for the international community. “This standing is not the product of short-term policy shifts. It is rooted in China’s consistent long-term diplomatic strategy, its long-held traditional Eastern principle of ‘do not do to others what you would not have them do to you,’ and the steady demeanor of a responsible major power,” Ding added.

    During meetings with visiting leaders, Chinese President Xi Jinping reaffirmed China’s commitment to its role as a champion of world peace, a core contributor to global development, and a steadfast defender of the established international order. He also emphasized China’s ongoing readiness to share its development opportunities with all countries through mutually beneficial win-win cooperation. Speaking with Spanish Prime Minister Sanchez, President Xi noted that China maintains firm resolve in advancing its process of Chinese modernization, and holds a broad commitment to sharing development opportunities with the world through high-standard opening-up. Through its own steady development, Xi stated, China will continue to inject much-needed confidence and new momentum into global economic growth.

    The timing of this wave of high-level visits coincided with the 2026 Spring and Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank Group held in Washington, D.C. During the event, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva warned that ongoing conflict in the region will leave long-lasting “scarring effects” on the global economy, with an estimated 3% output drop in conflict-affected areas that will persist for years. Against a broader backdrop of slowing growth across major world economies, persistently tight global financial conditions, and growing Middle East tensions that have injected new uncertainty into energy markets and global supply chains, the search for reliable stability has become a top priority for policymakers and market actors around the world.

    Against this fragile global context, China’s economic trajectory has drawn increasing international attention. New data released by China’s General Administration of Customs on April 14 showed that the country’s total foreign trade volume reached 11.84 trillion yuan (approximately $1.72 trillion) in the first quarter of 2026, marking a robust 15% year-on-year increase. Exports grew 11.9% to hit 6.85 trillion yuan, while imports rose 19.6% to reach 4.99 trillion yuan, signaling strong trade momentum both inbound and outbound.

    International media framed Spain’s decision to send Prime Minister Sanchez on the visit as a clear signal that the country is pursuing a pragmatic, independent path to expand economic cooperation with China while upholding its existing transatlantic partnerships. Spanish broadcaster Onda Cero noted in an opinion piece that Spanish leaders have recognized the profound shift taking place in the global order, and that China is the most consequential actor capable of reshaping the global landscape moving forward.

    During his four-day state visit, Vietnamese leader To Lam worked to deepen the longstanding traditional friendship and strategic alignment between Hanoi and Beijing, with more than 30 new bilateral cooperation agreements signed across sectors including economic development, industrial and supply chain coordination, customs facilitation, and science and technology innovation.

    Mozambican President Chapo’s April 16-22 visit went far beyond routine diplomatic protocol. From high-level bilateral talks with President Xi in Beijing to visits to manufacturing facilities in Changsha, Hunan, and discussions on anti-poverty cooperation in Qinghai province, the trip laid out a practical new blueprint for the next stage of China-Africa cooperation, a partnership increasingly defined by tangible on-the-ground progress rather than empty promises, centered on shared pursuit of modernization.

    Russia’s Foreign Minister Lavrov centered his visit on deepening bilateral and multilateral cooperation between Moscow and Beijing to strengthen the resilience of both countries’ development paths, while coordinating policy positions on key pressing global issues. Saleumxay, visiting in his capacity as special envoy to Lao Party General Secretary and President Thongloun Sisoulith, used the trip to advance bilateral cooperation and push forward the development of the China-Laos community with a shared future, targeting progress around high standards, high quality and high levels of integration.

    Matteo Giovannini, a finance professional at the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and nonresident associate fellow at the Center for China and Globalization, noted that China’s steady economic performance, paired with its forward-looking structural transformation and ongoing commitment to opening-up, has positioned the country as a critical anchor for the turbulent global economy. “A stable Chinese economy helps anchor global supply chains, supports sustained demand for commodities and manufactured goods from around the world, and offers a critical degree of predictability for international investors,” Giovannini explained. “In an era of heightened global uncertainty, this kind of stability is an increasingly valuable global public good.”

    During his meeting with the Abu Dhabi Crown Prince, President Xi put forward a four-point proposal for advancing lasting peace and stability in the Middle East, calling on all parties to remain committed to the core principles of peaceful coexistence, respect for national sovereignty, adherence to international rule of law, and a balanced approach to development and security. Beyond regional diplomatic coordination, the visit yielded multiple new bilateral cooperation agreements between China and the UAE across sectors including agriculture and science and technology.

    Ahmed Saeed Al-Alawi, editor-in-chief of UAE-based Al-Ain News, noted that the crown prince’s visit came at a moment of heightened sensitivity in regional and international affairs, giving the trip deeper strategic significance. Al-Alawi added that the UAE no longer views China solely as an important economic partner, but now recognizes it as a key strategic pillar in the broader international political landscape.

  • Kim Jong Un opens memorial for N Korean soldiers killed in Ukraine war

    Kim Jong Un opens memorial for N Korean soldiers killed in Ukraine war

    In a high-profile ceremony that underscores the deepening military alliance between North Korea and Russia, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un joined Russian Defense Minister Andrey Belousov on Sunday to unveil a new memorial in Pyongyang honoring North Korean personnel killed while fighting in the ongoing Ukraine war.

    The ceremonial opening of the Memorial Museum of Combat Feats at the Overseas Military Operations featured a flyover by North Korean military jets and the release of white balloons into the sky, as the two leaders together unveiled a commemorative statue and opened the doors of the new memorial facility. The event was intentionally scheduled to align with the one-year anniversary of Russia’s claim to have reclaimed full control over portions of the Kursk region, which Ukraine first entered in a surprise incursion in August 2024.

    Public confirmation of North Korean troop deployments to support Russia’s military operations comes amid widespread intelligence estimates from third-party observers, as neither Pyongyang nor Moscow has released official casualty or deployment figures. South Korean intelligence assessments put the total number of North Korean troops sent to Russia’s Kursk offensive at no fewer than 15,000, with approximately 2,000 of those personnel confirmed killed in combat, according to Seoul’s calculations.

    According to North Korean state media outlet KCNA, Kim used the occasion to reaffirm Pyongyang’s unwavering backing for Moscow’s strategic objectives in Ukraine. He stated that North Korea would continue to fully support the Russian Federation’s efforts to protect its national sovereignty, territorial integrity, and core security interests, adding that he is confident Russia will ultimately prevail in what he described as a “just sacred war.”

    Russian state news agencies report that Belousov used his visit to hold detailed talks with North Korean officials on expanding long-term military cooperation between the two countries. Beyond his meeting with Belousov, Kim also held discussions with Vyacheslav Volodin, speaker of Russia’s lower parliament and a close confidant of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

    This latest high-level diplomatic engagement builds on a series of increasingly close ties between the two nations over the past two years. In September 2025, during a sideline meeting at China’s Beijing military parade where both Putin and Kim attended as invited guests, Putin publicly thanked Kim for North Korea’s military support, noting that North Korean soldiers had fought with exceptional courage and heroism in combat. Just months earlier, in June 2024, the two leaders signed a landmark mutual defense treaty that commits both nations to provide military assistance to the other in the event of an armed aggression against either party, an agreement Kim hailed at the time as the strongest bilateral treaty in North Korea’s modern history.

    In addition to its deployment of combat troops, North Korea has also committed to sending thousands of civilian workers to assist with reconstruction efforts in the war-damaged Kursk region. International analysts widely believe that North Korea has received substantial compensation in exchange for its military and logistical support, including shipments of food, direct financial assistance, and advanced military technical expertise from Moscow.