This monthly report is prepared for Sinocism by the excellent Sinification. It is an invaluable resource for understanding how domestic and international affairs are debated within the Chinese establishment. AI formed the second major focus after both sides agreed to launch an intergovernmental dialogue on AI governance. The clearest fault line in the economics debate is between proponents of infrastructure-led stimulus and advocates of consumption-based stimulus.
Deputy Foreign Minister François Chih-chung Wu said that safeguarding peace across the Taiwan Strait is a shared interest of the international community. Wu made the remarks in an interview with French YouTuber Hugo Travers for a video published May 31 on the France 5 public television channel and the HugoDécrypte YouTube channel.
Brussels agreed on a tough new approach to trade relations with China in May. Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Beijing for a visit aimed at deepening the two sides' comprehensive partnership. China's military used electronic interference to drive away a Dutch warship near the disputed Paracel Islands.
Chinese biotech companies struck a record US$60 billion in the first quarter of 2026. This year, Chinese firms accounted for about 69 per cent of the total value of global biotech deal-making. Washington is already wary of growing dependence on China's supply chains. Biotechnology is already a key area of focus for the next national security review in the United States.
On the data front, the May ISM manufacturing PMI report yesterday showed continued sector expansion with a reading of 54, bettering the 53.3 consensus and marking an acceleration from 52.7 in April. The prices paid component surprised to the downside, reporting 82.1 versus 85 expected (down from 84.6). The employment index increased to 48.6, beating expectations of 47.5 and up from 46.4. The USD index faded from the underside of a daily double-bottom pattern neckline at 99.34. Eurozone CPI inflation report will be released at 9 am GMT, followed by the April US JOLTS job openings report at 2 pm GMT.
China and Britain have pledged to enhance high-level exchanges and deepen cooperation. It follows a meeting of their top diplomats in Beijing. British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper is on a three-day visit to China. Keir Starmer's visit to Beijing in January was the first by a British prime minister since 2018.
China has developed more than 17,600 national-level little giant enterprises. Little giants are specialised and innovative small and medium-sized companies. The designation offers a window into how it identifies specialised companies and connects them to local government execution, bank credit, industrial funds, procurement systems and capital market pipelines.
Colin Zwirko is the Senior Analytic Correspondent for NK News. This week he discusses North Korea's latest missile test and the Choe Hyon-class destroyer undergoing final testing near Nampho. The episode also looks at signs Pyongyang may be preparing to welcome a foreign leader visit amid reports of a possible Xi Jinping trip.
Rep. Michael Baumgartner is in Singapore at the IISS Shangri-La Dialogue. He discusses the significance of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s speech and the future of the American-led order with the show's host.
Wang Yi visited Ottawa on May 28-29 for his first visit to the country in more than a decade. He met with Prime Minister Mark Carney and Foreign Minister Anita Anand. During the visit, hundreds of Falun Gong practitioners and nearly 40 members of the Chinese Democracy Party’s Canadian Committee gathered on Parliament Hill to protest what they described as the Chinese Communist Party's ongoing human rights abuses and transnational repression. Relations between Canada and China deteriorated after the arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou and the detention of Canadian citizens Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor.