Monthly Archives: September 2008
Missing Melamine
The concerning thing about Cadbury’s recall of its chocolates made with milk tainted with melamine is that all of the dairy suppliers to Cadbury’s Beijing plant had earlier been given the all-clear by the Chinese testing. It was the company’s … Continue reading
Filed under Economy
Shenzhou VII Flies Home, Airline Passengers Wait
With the Shenzhou VII mission safely and jubilantly returned to Earth, the FT reports how China’s air traffic controllers grounded civil airliners for the launch of the mission without notice, only the latest sudden and unexplained delay to flights by … Continue reading
Buffett Buys Batteries
Warren Buffett knows a smart deal in China when he sees one. He came away from a $488 million investment in PetroChina in 2002/03 with a $3.5 billion profit in 2007 (see Buffett On PetroChina). Now he is putting down … Continue reading
Filed under Uncategorized
Spacewalks, Milestones and the Party Plenum
It was shorter than expected, 13 mins, but a spacewalk nonetheless, and the latest milestone in China’s fast advancing space program. Astronaut Zhai Zhigang, floated out of Shenzhou 7′s orbital module on Saturday afternoon, and at one point waved a … Continue reading
Filed under Politics & Society
Ripples From Tainted Dairy Products Scandal Spread Wider
It is less than 48 hours since a senior official said the problems with tainted dairy products were under control. Since then the E.U., India, France and South Korea have joined the ranks of those imposing restrictions on Chinese milk … Continue reading
Filed under China-E.U., Economy
Xinhua Spaces Out
Xinhua’s web site ran a detailed report Thursday on the successful launch of the Shenzhou 7 space mission, including snatches of dialogue between the astronauts. Only problem was the story was posted hours before lift off. An Associated Press report … Continue reading
Venezula, China To Build Oil Refineries Together
Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez would like to sell more of his country’s oil to China and less to the U.S. Venezuela sold Beijing 38 million barrels in the first seven months of this year, almost double last year’s sales, despite … Continue reading
China’s First Spacewalk Due On Friday
The first Chinese spacewalk is due to occur on Friday, according to the commander-in-chief of the Shenzhou VII spacecraft. As we have noted before, it will be broadcast live, though there will probably be some time delay, for expediency’s sake. … Continue reading
Tainted Dairy Products Scandal Deepens, Claims First Central Government Official
The most senior head to date has rolled in the tainted dairy products scandal. Li Changjiang has resigned as head of the agency responsible for ensuring China’s food supply chain is safe. Li is the first central government official to … Continue reading
Filed under Politics & Society
More Tainted Dairy Products, More Anger, Less Confidence
It now not just melamine in baby formula from one company sold in three provinces, but in dairy products nationwide, and beyond. Chinese dairy products are being pulled off shelves in Hong Kong and Japan. Malaysia and Singapore have banned … Continue reading
Filed under Politics & Society
