Report: Slow Economy, Housing Crisis Fuel More Protests in China | China In Focus

Welcome to China In Focus. I'm Tiffany Meyer. Our top story. More Chinese people are gathering to protest the communist regime's iron fist amid a sluggish economy and a housing crisis. Data from a U.S.-based rights group highlights the rising calls for change. President Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping will attend the APEC summit in Peru. Details on the meeting and why Peru will give maximum importance to the presence of His Excellency, the President of the United States, Joe Biden. Taiwan says China isn't ready to invade its shores, but adds Beijing is developing new weapons and building up other methods to threaten the island. And the preliminaries for NTD's International Martial Arts Competition are on with contestants from around the world set to participate. One contestant tells his story and how traditional martial arts has bettered his life. More protests are popping up inside China. A U.S. human rights group says the country's slow economy and real estate crisis have A demonstration kicked off at a construction site in Tianjin, one of China's metropolitan cities. This Wednesday, hundreds of workers gathered together to strike, demanding that a state-owned entity pay their long overdue salaries. In a video, workers were heard saying their wages have been delayed for an entire year. The day before, a large crowd of Shanghai citizens took to the streets protesting a new policy that will allow authorities to charge homeowners a new tax. It was imposed in the name of funding building maintenance, an issue facing heavy criticism in China. Also in Shanghai, thousands of victims of an alleged investment fraud gathered in front of a local government building earlier this month. Reports said the local Chinese authorities ignored their appeals. And last December, a wealth manager disappeared from the public eye soon after many of his clients had entrusted his company with their life savings. An estimated to be 10 billion dollars was tied to the fraud case. Besides unrest caused by economic issues, confrontations between citizens and police are also on the rise. On Friday, a big group of passers-by surrounded several officers in Zhejiang province. A social media post shared along with the video says that the city management officers had attempted to seize a street vendor's vehicle. NTD uncovered a number of cases tied to city management officers in China. Many reportedly abused their power to suppress Chinese citizens. Recordings appear to show them beating citizens or otherwise taking advantage of them. U.S. advocacy group Freedom House has been tracking the human rights issues in China for years. According to the group's latest report published Wednesday, protests in the second quarter increased by almost 20 percent year on year. Two out of every five cases are tied to labor disputes and one-fifth are tied to the real estate crisis. A Bloomberg article added that the report only captures a snapshot of public sentiment across China. Due to Beijing's strict censorship and surveillance, it's difficult for media to uncover the full picture. President Biden and Chinese regime leader Xi Jinping are set to attend an economic summit in Peru this November. Peru will give maximum importance to the presence of His Excellency the President of the United States, Joe Biden, not only for his global leadership but also because the United States is a high hierarchy ally. Peru's foreign minister confirmed both leaders would attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit. That's after signing an agreement with a top U.S. official to improve cooperation in critical minerals. The summit is scheduled for November 15th and 16th. Next, Taiwan's defense ministry says China isn't ready to invade Taiwan, but is finding other ways to threaten the island. Here's a closer look. The ministry submitted its annual threat assessment of the Chinese military, Taiwan's 2025 defense budget plan, along with a five-year defense plan to the Congress today. It said China's tactics against Taiwan are still limited due to natural factors in the Taiwan Strait, plus insufficient landing equipment and logistics capabilities. But the defense ministry also highlighted China's rapid development of its weapons. This includes hypersonic missiles and an increasing number of nuclear warheads. That's on top of mounting cyber attacks and disinformation campaigns against the island. Taiwan is a self-governed island. The Chinese regime sees it as its own, despite never having ruled the island. Yesterday, the Chinese Communist Party's defense ministry lashed out at Taiwan's defense budget and warned that, quote, no one should ever think the Chinese military would never attack. Taiwan's 2025 defense budget accounts for about three percent of its GDP, which is about 20 billion dollars, the highest in its history. Under U.S. law, the U.S. government is required to support Taiwan with arms to defend itself. Executives from Nippon Steel and other Japanese steel makers have a message. Protecting the Japanese market is critical. They're urging Tokyo to limit imports of the metal from China. China is the world's biggest steel producer. Let's dive in. The CEO of Nippon Steel said, quote, we are in a very dangerous situation. If we don't protect it, the Japanese market will go wrong. The company is the world's fourth biggest steel maker. China's steel exports rose 24 percent in the first half of 2024. The CEO worries that China's exports could be even more dominating as the Chinese domestic needs dropped significantly. The U.S., Europe and South Korea have implemented trade policies to restrict Chinese steel imports. Ancient Chinese martial arts, once on the verge of vanishing, are now being revived and celebrated in the U.S. This Friday, Waldwick, New Jersey, becomes the battleground for NTD's eighth international martial arts competition. Over 90 contestants from around the world will gather to test their mastery. Among them is Ikea Opfermann from Germany. He tells us how this ancient discipline has transformed his life. Take a listen. Coming from a martial arts family in Germany, Ikea Opfermann started training at the age of eight. It wasn't until he took a break years later that he truly understood what the discipline meant to him. When I was 18, I kind of got like the typical phases that every teenager who goes to puberty had to and I had those as well and then I realized that's something that gave me so many advantages in my life already up to this point that I just want to pursue it. He said one of the biggest benefits is the improvement in physical condition, a realization that came after he suffered a serious skiing accident. My leg was twisted around and like somewhat sideways and I was laying there after the fall as if I would have broken my several joints. When his ski instructor came to check on him, he was surprised to find Opfermann injury-free. He was like oh my god if I would have fallen like that I would have like ruptured everything in my leg. That kind of reflected to me that all the effort that I put in during my younger years and also after I started again are not by then not to waste, not something that doesn't benefit me. But martial arts also come with challenges. It's the same as any kind of art, it's when you get to a certain point and you don't see yourself improving. He noted times like these can be really tough. Because it really pushes down on your motivation and like tests how hard you can persevere, how hard you can say like I'll just keep going even if like I won't improve in 10 years because I really enjoy it and I really like it and I'm trusting the process basically. Bit by bit as he kept practicing he started to see changes. Traditional Chinese martial arts give a big sense of freedom, a big sense of freedom in movement and also that reflects on how I move and how I use my body and all those things and you just feel lighter and freer. Opfermann said that if he hadn't practiced traditional martial arts he wouldn't be as calm and mindful. He adds that it's been a very humbling experience. Because I got to experience and got to realize what true dedication and what true effort means, how hard it is and what the results are if you actually persevere and put in the effort and 吃苦 in Chinese so like endure hardships because it's not easy, it's hard. You have to want it and you have to bite through it at a certain point but every time I look back to that time I actually enjoy it a lot. He says the key to traditional martial arts lies in the moral values behind it. Really when it comes to the core I think it's preventing bad and preserving the good. His sister Ellen shares the same view. Martial arts isn't about fighting, it isn't about like there's a person and I want to fight him, I want to punch him, I want to hurt him. It's really I want to protect something. I want to protect my family, my people, my country. The Offerman family participated in the very first NTD martial arts competition 16 years ago and now the entire family will be competing starting this Friday. Ellen and Ike will showcase the qimen sword, an ancient Chinese sword technique. The competition will take place at the village school in Whatwick, New Jersey. Tickets are available at martialarts.ntdtv.com. NTD's martial arts competition preliminaries begin Friday at 9 a.m. in New Jersey and run through Saturday. The semi-finals start on Sunday with the finals on Monday. Tickets are available online at martialarts.ntdtv.com. Coming up, a warning from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. A popular kids game sold by a Chinese company could pose serious danger to children. It's been a good year for Italian luxury sports car maker Ferrari with a smart decision leading to record stock gains. Find out what's driving the iconic automaker's success. By Ferrari limiting their exposure in China to 10 percent, they're evening out their exposure across the entire world. They're creating false scarcity in China to make sure that they don't too heavily tip their hand in one direction and become reliant on that market. And the U.S. is teaming up with Pacific Island nations to combat drug trafficking. More on what officials reveal about Chinese drug networks there after the break here on China In Focus. Welcome back to China In Focus. I'm Tiffany Meyer. The U.S. Consumer Product and Safety Commission is warning people to immediately dispose of a magnetic kids game. The agency says the game's pieces pose serious ingestion risks for children. The magnetic chess game sold by China-based seller Jomo contain magnets that do not comply with U.S. federal safety regulations. The CPSC warning said that the loose magnets can cause serious injury or even death. The agency has issued a violation notice to Jomo, but the company has not agreed to recall its magnetic chess games or provide a remedy. The commission urged people to stop using the game and throw it away immediately. The games were sold online at Walmart in a blue box with the word magnetic on the front and on the back. After the cheers during Vice President Kamala Harris's Chicago acceptance speech, one major detail is raising questions. What she didn't say with China seen as America's greatest existential challenge across the aisle. What could Harris's silence mean for future U.S. China policy entities? Stefania Cox sat down with Javier Palomares, founder and CEO of the U.S. Hispanic Business Council and former Obama campaign advisor to discuss how you said on our program. The nation decides recently that it would be a missed opportunity if Harris and Walz don't articulate what the policy surrounding China is going to be. Have you got enough of an answer on that so far? Absolutely not. You know, China is an existential threat to the American people, to the American way of life, to our economy, certainly. I think both campaigns need to be very, very clear and specific about what are we going to do. I mentioned before that China is issuing more patents than the United States, Great Britain, Canada, India combined. And so we need to be in a position to be able to compete with China. And I think either administration needs to be very clear about the threat that China poses to the American people and ultimately to the American economy. And just based on what we know from the record of both candidates currently, where do you see them standing or differing in regards to China? Do you expect Harris to continue Biden's policies? And what would that look like? I don't know what to expect because I haven't heard enough from the Harris campaign as to how she would manage China. We need to be working together, Republican and Democrat, to make sure that we are able to continue the important commercial relationship with China, but at the same time be aware that China is not necessarily playing by the rules and we need to be on top of that. We need to be on the alert. And certainly the American business community needs an administration that is with them on China. All right. Thank you so much, Javier. Great to speak with you. Thank you. Have a great weekend. And you. Luxury vehicle maker Ferrari has been doing something right. The automaker's stock price has been outperforming other European luxury vehicle and clothing brands. NTD's Sean Marshall takes a look at what's happening over at Ferrari. Ferrari shares have risen 43 percent this year to a record high, outdoing other high-end European automobile makers such as Mercedes and Volvo. Stock buybacks and rising profit estimates have helped Ferrari's stock rally. Morgan Stanley analysts say fierce brand loyalty is another reason for the gains. It takes a long time to create a rapport with Ferrari and they like to control that because there are many instances where they want to say the right people have to own our cars at the right time for the market. Something out of the ordinary is how Ferrari purposely keeps their exposure to China low. Ferrari CEO Benedetto Vigna told Bloomberg in an interview the market in China is still not mature, stating that China's auto market needs time for development. Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas said on Tuesday no other major publicly traded luxury goods company discloses both a higher repeat customer percentage and lower China mix. By Ferrari limiting their exposure in China to 10 percent, they're evening out their exposure across the entire world. They're creating false scarcity in China to make sure that they don't too heavily tip their hand in one direction and then become reliant on that market. Part of Ferrari's low China exposure allowed them to not be impacted when the European Union imposed strict tariffs on Chinese electric vehicle imports. Those same tariffs forced Volvo to lower its sales forecast this year since their electric vehicles are made in China. Ferrari plans to go the opposite direction by building a factory in Italy for the company's first all-electric vehicle along with other hybrid models. Sean Marshall, NTD News. The U.S. will work with Pacific Island nations to tackle drug trafficking. That's the message from Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, who says drug networks from China use the region to move narcotics into the U.S. While the U.S. grapples with overdose deaths from fentanyl, Pacific Island nations like Fiji and Tonga are seeing more meth drug busts this year. To strengthen its ties with these island nations, Washington opened an embassy in Vanuatu last month. The U.S. is helping Vanuatu with funding for small businesses, tourism and infrastructure upgrades. The goal is to give Pacific Island nations more choices when it comes to what countries they do business with. China is Vanuatu's largest external creditor. Beijing has provided loans and worked on infrastructure projects in the country for a decade. Campbell said that the Pacific has made it clear it doesn't want to be caught in conflicts between major powers, adding that the U.S. respects that stance. He also noted that drug issues are increasingly troubling leaders in the region and that the U.S. can't assist with drug interdiction, treatment and prevention. On Wednesday, the Pacific Island Forum backed an over 270 million dollar plan funded by Australia to improve police training and set up a mobile unit. Australia hopes this will cut down on the need for Chinese police in the region as concerns rise about China's growing influence. In April, the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party reported that the CCP is subsidizing illegal fentanyl production, funding trafficking operations, holding stakes in drug-related firms and obstructing U.S. investigations by tipping off manufacturers. A young man who fled China after Beijing lifted its pandemic lockdown is sharing his story. He told NTD that communist rule has wrecked his country and advises other Chinese to leave if they can. Here's what he had to say. Alex says education was at the heart of his eventual decision to flee China. He recalled how his high school textbooks changed their descriptions of the cultural revolution from 10 years of chaos to a decade of exploration. The social upheaval happened under former Chinese Communist Party head Mao Zedong and was characterized by violence. Death toll estimates range from half a million to tens of millions. Alex said the change to his textbooks gave him a glimpse into the regime's brainwashing tactics. This caused a big stir among us students. They claim to be presenting accurate history, but it keeps changing. History is constantly being rewritten. His father insisted he attend college in Australia. There he behaved like many other pro-communist nationalist Chinese students, taking part in activities sponsored by the Chinese embassy. In China, we were taught to follow the party's orders and obey without question. But once he arrived in Australia, he was told to question the media, the government, and other parts of social structure. He says the experience helped him to finally wake up from the regime's lies. After returning home to China at the end of 2019, he got trapped inside the country during its three-year pandemic lockdown. By the time I returned to China, it had already been a year and a half. I was still getting calls from the epidemic prevention office asking if I had come back from being abroad and accusing me of spreading the virus. He said many students from his generation were forced to delay their graduation due to the lockdown. He regretted that the lockdown cost him three years of his youth and delayed his education. While under lockdown, he tried to build up a career in computer-generated art. But when the regime opted to clamp down on gaming companies in 2021, his dream crumbled. From there, he tried other avenues, taking over his father's construction business and doing his best to conserve money. But he says constant extortion from local officials ultimately cost him the business. At that time, I felt like our money and energy were only going to support the regime, its bureaucrats, and their comfortable lives. He said life in China felt hopeless for his family. His father, an honest businessman, was interrogated by local officials for over a month and falsely accused of bribery. And eventually, Alex decided to leave. He arrived in the U.S. on Christmas Day, 2022. One year later, his parents joined him. He says Beijing's censorship stifles creativity in young Chinese people and that life there has become unlivable under the communist regime. Now, he urges others to take a hard look at the truth of the situation, just like he did. That's all for today's China In Focus. I'm Tiffany Meyer. If you have any feedback on the show or have something you'd like to see us cover, send us an email at chinainfocusntd.com. We'd love to hear from you. For around-the-clock original news coverage, visit us at ntd.com or download our NTD app. Coming up on NTD, stay tuned for America's Hope with Kelly Wright. Tonight, Kelly talks about the role of black conservatives in politics with Dr. Eric Wallace. Plus, as the NFL kicks off its new season, George Gregory Chaplin of the Los Angeles Chargers discusses the role that faith plays in the competitive world of the NFL. That's tonight at 10 p.m. after China In Focus. Thanks for watching. See you soon.