China

BEIJING (AP) — Asian stock markets followed Wall Street lower after President Donald Trump cast doubt over the potential for a trade deal with China this year.

Benchmarks in Tokyo and Hong Kong fell more than 1% while Shanghai and South Korea also retreated.

Trump said he has “no deadline” for a trade deal and doesn’t mind waiting until after next year’s presidential election to make one. Investors had hoped for at least enough progress to stave off new U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods, including smartphones and laptops, scheduled to start Dec. 15.

BEIJING, Dec 3 (APP): China and Pakistan will hold a month-long joint military exercise to boost cooperation between the two militaries and capability to jointly deal with terrorist threats including those targeting joint projects with China.

A Chinese unit from a special forces brigade of the People’s Liberation Army Xinjiang Military Region has departed from their base camp and began mobilizing in Pakistan for the “Warrior VII” joint exercise, using vehicles and aerial transportation, according to a statement released by China’s Ministry of National Defense.

BEIJING, Dec 2 (APP): As a Chinese all-weather strategic cooperative partner, Pakistani exporters are eager to enter the huge Chinese meat market, China Economic Net (CEN) reported on Monday.

“China’s demand for meat imports is very large, and many Pakistani exporters call us every day to indicate that once China opens Pakistani meat exports, they hope to sign a one-year contract immediately,” Adnan Hafeez, Secretary-General of the Preparatory Committee of China Pakistan Chamber of Commerce said.

BEIJING, December 2. /TASS/: Russia’s priority in ensuring its security and social and economic development is to enhance partnership with China, Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev said on Monday.

"Friendly Russian-Chinese ties have been gradually developing based on the principles of transparency and mutual respect," Patrushev said opening bilateral consultations in Beijing as part of the public security, justice, law and order mechanism.

HONG KONG (Reuters) - China has appointed a slate of new officials to head the world’s top gambling hub of Macau, changing key roles including the city’s economy and justice secretaries.

The appointments in Macau, a special administrative region of China, come as the city’s casino industry is experiencing tumbling revenues and ahead of an expected visit by President Xi Jinping this month to mark 20 years of Chinese rule.

HONG KONG (AP) — China said Monday it will suspend U.S. Navy visits to Hong Kong and sanction a range of pro-democracy non-governmental organizations in retaliation for Congress’ passage of legislation supporting human rights in the semi-autonomous territory.

Foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying repeated Chinese accusations Monday that the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act “seriously interfered” in Hong Kong’s internal affairs, and appeared to back up China’s threats that the U.S. would bear the costs of the decision.

BEIJING, Dec 01 (APP): The second phase of China-Pakistan Free Trade Agreement (CPFTA) has come into the effect from today (Sunday) allowing the Pakistani manufacturers and traders to export around 313new products on zero duty to the Chinese market.

The two countries have completed all the legal procedures and formalities to start the implementation of the agreement from today,” well-informed sources confirmed here on Sunday.

KUNMING/China/, December 1. /TASS/: The Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s authority is constantly growing mainly thanks to Russia’s active role in its work and development, the alliance’s Secretary-General Vladimir Norov told TASS on Sunday.

"Definitely, the SCO’s growing authority and role is mainly linked to Russia’s active role in solving vital issues related to international and regional politics, and security," Norov stressed. "Today Russia plays a very important and key role in solving respective issues."

1 December 2019; AFP: China will require telecom operators to collect face scans when registering new phone users at offline outlets starting Sunday, according to the country's information technology authority, as Beijing continues to tighten cyberspace controls.

In September, China's industry and information technology ministry issued a notice on "safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of citizens online", which laid out rules for enforcing real-name registration.

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Police fired tear gas to disperse thousands of anti-government protesters in Hong Kong on Sunday, ending a rare lull in violence, as residents took to the streets chanting “revolution of our time” and “liberate Hong Kong”.

The protest in the busy shopping district of Tsim Sha Tsui followed a march by hundreds of people to the U.S. consulate to show “gratitude” for U.S. support for the demonstrations that have agitated the Chinese-ruled city for six months.