Chinese cooperation and 'zero' tariffs come at a price?

MOFA blasts China over exclusion from Kenya ocean conference

The [Taiwanese] Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) today condemned China for pressuring Kenya to block Taiwan from participating in the Our Ocean Conference, accusing Beijing of political interference and urging it to stop undermining global ocean cooperation.

Kenya is hosting the 11th Our Ocean Conference from today through Thursday in Mombasa.

At the invitation of the Kenyan government, Taiwanese academics traveled to Mombasa on Sunday to attend a preconference academic exchange and present research, the ministry said in a statement. When the academics arrived at the venue, organizers refused to issue entry badges on the grounds that Taiwanese passports are not recognized, the ministry said ...

The incident shows China’s “heavy-handed and overbearing diplomacy” and how it places political considerations above professional cooperation on ocean sustainability, the ministry said.

Chinese cooperation and 'zero' tariffs come at a price?

MOFA blasts China over exclusion from Kenya ocean conference

The [Taiwanese] Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) today condemned China for pressuring Kenya to block Taiwan from participating in the Our Ocean Conference, accusing Beijing of political interference and urging it to stop undermining global ocean cooperation.

Kenya is hosting the 11th Our Ocean Conference from today through Thursday in Mombasa.

At the invitation of the Kenyan government, Taiwanese academics traveled to Mombasa on Sunday to attend a preconference academic exchange and present research, the ministry said in a statement. When the academics arrived at the venue, organizers refused to issue entry badges on the grounds that Taiwanese passports are not recognized, the ministry said ...

The incident shows China’s “heavy-handed and overbearing diplomacy” and how it places political considerations above professional cooperation on ocean sustainability, the ministry said.

Some additional information according to the Kyiv Post:

Located just 15 kilometers (9 miles) from the Kremlin, the Moscow Oil Refinery (MNPZ), owned by Gazprom Neft, supplies up to 40% of Moscow’s fuel market and around 70% of gasoline consumed in Moscow and the surrounding region ... According to Exilenova+’s OSINT analysis, the refinery’s AVT-6 ELOU unit – described as the heart of the facility – was burning.

More than 25 Russian regions are reportedly experiencing fuel shortages, with gasoline sales restrictions appearing even in major cities such as Moscow and St. Petersburg ... Regional emergency officials [in Russia's Krasnodar Krai ] said more than 500 gas stations are currently out of fuel, forcing many operators to purchase small wholesale volumes without long-term supply contracts. Russian media also reported shortages at major gas station chains due to a sharp spike in demand.

The report says that the Russian government is attempting to ease the crisis through subsidies and regulatory concessions to oil companies. In April and May alone, oil firms received about 700 billion rubles ($9 billion) in state subsidies. In June, authorities also allowed lower-quality Euro-3 gasoline to be sold instead of Euro-5. But it doesn't appear to help, according to the report citing The Moscow Times with reference to Energy experts:

“This does not solve the main problem – the Ukrainian drone strikes. As a result, in the first week of June, oil refining volumes in Russia fell below 4 million barrels per day, the lowest in 21 years."

It's not so a surprise, as what is going on has been happening for a while now with Chinese bond yields being historically low for some time now.

As the Financial Times writes:

Every slice of China’s bond market has now succumbed to Japanisation - (Archived)

Back in November 2024, China’s 30-year bond yield fell below Japan’s for the first time in history ... A year later, China’s 10-year yield also fell victim to Japanisation ... That was “a historic crossover that may reignite fears the world’s No. 2 economy is sliding into the deflationary spiral that paralysed its neighbour in the 1990s” according to Bloomberg at the time ... Then, in March, two-year yields did the same. And last week, even China’s 12-month bill yield briefly moved below Japan’s ... There’s no secret to what is going on here. Japan’s economy has finally emerged from deflation.

... Meanwhile, China’s economy is sluggish, Chinese real estate continues to struggle, the debt overhang is monstrous, and the country’s demographics are bad. Plus, some investors think Chinese bonds are an attractive, safe diversifier for portfolios, weighing further on yields.

It's not so a surprise, as what is going on has been happening for a while now with Chinese bond yields being historically low for some time now.

As the Financial Times writes:

Every slice of China’s bond market has now succumbed to Japanisation - (Archived)

Back in November 2024, China’s 30-year bond yield fell below Japan’s for the first time in history ... A year later, China’s 10-year yield also fell victim to Japanisation ... That was “a historic crossover that may reignite fears the world’s No. 2 economy is sliding into the deflationary spiral that paralysed its neighbour in the 1990s” according to Bloomberg at the time ... Then, in March, two-year yields did the same. And last week, even China’s 12-month bill yield briefly moved below Japan’s ... There’s no secret to what is going on here. Japan’s economy has finally emerged from deflation.

... Meanwhile, China’s economy is sluggish, Chinese real estate continues to struggle, the debt overhang is monstrous, and the country’s demographics are bad. Plus, some investors think Chinese bonds are an attractive, safe diversifier for portfolios, weighing further on yields.

From the original source:

China’s military build-up has already ... increased the threat to Taiwan, and created structural pressure on regional states to accommodate Beijing’s preferences. These shifts affect Australian security regardless of China’s capacity to strike Australian territory.