Central Banking
The Belt and Road Initiative 2021 Survey – The impact of Covid‑19 on the BRI
The fourth annual Belt and Road Initiative survey reveals that the Covid‑19 pandemic has disrupted many projects despite China remaining committed to financing the initiative, which is expected to support future economic growth and environmental development. By Zhang Jizhong, Rachael King and Christopher Jeffery
Old Nisa, Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, one of the first Parthian capitals
This article is part of The IFF China Report 2021
The Covid‑19 pandemic had a stark effect on global GDP growth last year. In April 2021, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said the global economy contracted by 3.3% in 2020 – the steepest downturn since the Great Depression of the 1930s. The plunge in economic output was the result of social distancing measures implemented to contain the novel coronavirus, which in turn caused supply chain disruptions and major project delays. Most governments w
By Gu Minkang · 2020-12-22 · Source: China Focus
Visitors taste food in the 20th Macao Food Festival at Sai Van Lake Square in Macao, south China, November 13(XINHUA)
The date of December 20 this year marks the 21st anniversary of Macao’s return to the Mainland. Even though the handover of Macao happened later than Hong Kong, this special administrative region has successfully implemented the policy of “One Country, Two Systems” and sets a good example.
It has been 21 years since Macao’s return from Portugal back to China, and it has since transformed from a less developed society with poor social order, to an international metropolis. On December 19, 2019, President Xi Jinping delivered a speech at a welcome banquet of the 20th anniversary of Macao s return to China, in which he commented that the past two decades were an ample witness to Macao’s fast-growing economy and improvement in citizens’ quality of life.