Xi Jinping points China to Communist Revolution 2.0

yong · Post by **yong** » Thu Sep 02, 2021 1:41 pm

https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Comme ... 9&si=44594

Xi Jinping points China to Communist Revolution 2.0
President's Mao-like common prosperity policies could end up terrorizing Chinese

Xi Jinping marks the Chinese Communist Party's 100th anniversary on July 1. His policies are becoming more like Mao Zedong's. © Xinhua/Kyodo
YURI MOMOI, Nikkei China bureau chiefSeptember 1, 2021 11:31 JST

BEIJING -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Aug. 17 announced policies toward achieving "common prosperity," a redistribution of income arrived at through new remuneration, tax and donation systems.

Twenty-six hours after the policies were unveiled, tech giant Tencent Holdings said it would provide 50 billion yuan ($7.8 billion) to the common prosperity initiative.

China needs income redistribution, but even with the flurry of announcements, societal tensions are mounting.

This is because Xi's policies are becoming ever more similar to those implemented by Mao Zedong. Here are some of the echoes of Mao's policies China hears today:

Attack local tyrants, divide up the farmland:

In its early days, the Chinese Communist Party won the hearts of peasants by seizing farmland from its owners and redistributing it to the peasants.

Donations under the initiative of common prosperity are supposed to be voluntary, but the policies call for "adjusting excessive incomes and prohibiting illicit income." These words have great power in a country where leaders, not laws, determine what should and should not be done.

Public-private joint management:

Under this economic reform, "delighted" private company owners were forced to dedicate their enterprises to the party.

In July, the Education Ministry said private schools should be operated by public authorities or abolished under certain conditions. A private high school in Henan Province won praise by swiftly deciding it "will donate everything to the government."

In another example, some cash-strapped private companies that relied on government rescue funds have been put under state control. Also, many private enterprises such as Alibaba and Tencent have internal party organizations that can serve as the foundation for de facto nationalization.

Supply and marketing cooperatives:

Along with people's communes and rural credit cooperatives, these took charge in distributing produce and supplying materials while heeding a rations system.

In June, the national organization of supply and marketing cooperatives -- all but forgotten since Deng Xiaoping introduced his reform and opening-up policy in 1978 -- made a surprise announcement: It will team up with the People's Bank of China and other parties to establish a business model covering everything from production to supplies and marketing to credit in rural areas. If materialized, it's a return to the era of the people's commune.

Why is Xi implementing policies that could make capital markets uneasy and put the brakes on innovation? If the "revival of the Chinese race" is the Chinese dream, policies that deny the path set by Deng and hamper economic development will certainly backfire.

But a close examination of Xi's ideology reveals a different ambition. Below are excerpts of important speeches about the developmental stage of Xi Jinping Thought.

"Marxism argues that humankind will inevitably take a path to communism, but it will be achieved through historical phases."

"Comrade Deng Xiaoping said socialism is the primary stage of communism and China is at the primary stage of socialism, in other words, at the undeveloped stage."

"With that judgment, he promoted reform and opening-up, made historic achievements and ushered in a new era."

"We already have a rich material basis for realizing new, even higher goals."

These remarks are in line with the historical materialism of Marxism. Karl Marx argued that capitalism's contradictions prompt socialist revolutions and eventually lead to communism. Ironically, revolutions occurred in countries where capitalism was undeveloped, and experiments to create communist societies ended in failure.

From this point of view, Xi has not denied the path taken by Deng. Through the inevitable developmental stage of the "maturing of a capitalist economy and the exposure of contradictions" brought about by Deng, Xi is leading China to Communist Revolution 2.0, an attempt to renew society.

In fact, East and West have arrived at the same historical perception of today's society. Look at the theme of this year's canceled World Economic Forum, "The Great Reset." It denotes an attempt to reflect on and re-imagine capitalism to bring about a better society.

However, Xi's revolution differs from the great reset. To borrow the words of Deng, China is at the primary stage of democracy, the undeveloped stage. If Chinese leadership suppresses people's desires by ignoring the manifestation of mature public opinions while trying to achieve innovation, it will have no way to do so but to impose strong peer pressure and terrorize people.

Domestic distortions can lead to extreme actions abroad. If China veers toward communism, major economies like Japan won't be immune to the fallout.

The future we envision now is one based on discontinuity, perhaps a power reversal or a decoupling between the U.S. and China, but we also need to prepare for a communist revolution by a superpower, a future everyone thinks is improbable.

nemo · Post by **nemo** » Thu Sep 02, 2021 2:00 pm

A great leap forward!
But!
The property development and tech sectors are broken and Xi will have to find the money to bail out many crucial enterprises.

HONG KONG, Sept 1 (Reuters) - China Evergrande Group's (3333.HK) shares and bonds extended declines on Wednesday, a day after the debt-laden developer warned of default risks and legal action from creditors as it scrambles to repair its balance sheet.

Evergrande, which has more than $300 billion in total liabilities, has been scrambling to raise the funds it needs to pay its many lenders and suppliers, with regulators and financial markets worried that any crisis could ripple through China's banking system.

Reporting first-half earnings on Tuesday, Evergrande said it would implement measures to improve cashflow, including adjusting project development timetables, renewing borrowings and disposing of equity interests and assets. But it cautioned that if it was not successful, it could default on borrowings and could see more litigation.

While net profit jumped on asset sales, its income that includes non-controlling interests slid 29%. In addition, its gross profit margin tumbled 12.9% in the first half from 25% a year ago due to a drop in sales prices and delivered area.

Citi analyst Griffin Chan said in a report he expects a loss in Evergrande's core property business for the full-year, and cut its earnings per share estimate for the next two years by 59% and 60% due to lower margin assumptions.

He also slashed its target price to HK$4 from HK$13.5.

Shares of the country's No. 2 developer fell as much as 2.5% in Tuesday morning trade to HK$4.25. The stock has lost more than 70% of its value this year.

The mid-price of Evergrande's 7.5% June 2023 dollar bond was last quoted at 36.92 cents by financial data provider Duration Finance, down nearly 2 cents.

Its 6.98% July 22 exchange-traded puttable bond was the third-biggest loser among corporate bonds on Wednesday, according to the Shanghai Stock Exchange, falling 0.15% to 66.7 yuan.

https://www.reuters.com/business/evergr ... 021-09-01/

CEOCambodiaNews · Post by **CEOCambodiaNews** » Sun Sep 19, 2021 5:05 pm

September 17, 2021
Billions wiped from Macau casino stocks as city eyes gambling review of huge employer

AFP – Macau casino operators saw billions wiped off their value on Wednesday as their shares collapsed after officials in the world’s biggest gambling city unveiled plans for a crackdown that would tighten their grip on the already beleaguered industry.

Hong Kong-listed operators Sands China and Wynn Macau both plunged around 30 percent; SJM Holdings and MGM China lost 25 percent while Melco and Galaxy Entertainment both shed around 20 percent.

Bloomberg News estimated the combined losses for the six big operators amounted to some $14 billion.

The sell-off came after the Macau government announced a 45-day public consultation that included a proposal for direct supervision over the gambling industry, which has faced increasing scrutiny from authorities in recent years.

Officials are looking to put government representatives on licensed operators’ boards to oversee their operations and to criminalise underground banking in the industry.

The move comes as the government in mainland China embarks on a crackdown on a wide range of industries – including tech and private education firms – as it looks to tighten its grip on the world’s number two economy.

President Xi Jinping is also in the midst of a drive targeting the country’s uber-rich and calling for “common prosperity”.

“The casino issues are a continuation of what’s been a pretty big crackdown,” said Jason Ader, of New York-based investment manager SpringOwl Asset Management.
https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50936728/b ... -employer/

newkidontheblock · Post by **newkidontheblock** » Mon Sep 20, 2021 1:52 am

Macau crackdown was discussed on CNBC on Friday. The word from on high was that the Party was unhappy that non-Chinese owned majority control of some of the business enterprises.

How it will play out is anyone’s guess.