Inside Shanghai's indefinite lockdown: isolation, outcry and food shortages

Apr 12, 2022
Shanghai's latest citywide lockdown has left residents anxious about being separated from their children, pets and struggling to find food.
Shanghai has been mass testing its residents almost every day since the start of the month.
Charles Zhang/Marketplace

After Ukraine invasion, Germany reconsiders trading with autocrats

Apr 12, 2022
Russia’s aggression has forced Germany to reconsider the notion that trade helps promote democracy.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addresses the German lower house of parliament on March 17. Zelenskyy has criticized Germany for failing to ban Russian gas.
Tobias Schwarz/AFP via Getty Images

Could the U.S. have weakened its financial clout by using it to sanction Russia?

Apr 4, 2022
Probably not, but Russia and China are likely to keep looking for ways to avoid U.S.-controlled financial infrastructure.
The U.S. has a lot of leverage in the global financial system — at least for now.
SSV-Photo/Getty Images

Life inside Shanghai’s latest COVID surge

Mar 29, 2022
Shanghai officials boast that their strategy to snuff out the spread of COVID-19 is preferable to a city-wide lockdown. For residents living through the current wave, the effects are jarring.
Medical workers in Shanghai exit a residential building that has been sealed. Shanghai has done mass testing in this latest surge of COVID-19 cases.
Charles Zhang/Marketplace

How China could cushion the effects of sanctions on Russia

Mar 18, 2022
China has experience serving as a sort of middleman for sanctioned nations like North Korea and Iran, one expert says.
Several Russian banks have been excluded from SWIFT, the international financial messaging system. But Russia and China have their own versions of SWIFT. Above, Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Alexei Druzhinin/Sputnik/AFP Getty Images

China walks a trade tightrope between Russia and the West

Mar 17, 2022
The Chinese government is opposed to sanctions against Russia and says it will continue to trade with it. But that is not easy in practice.
Though China relies on Russian oil, voluntary sanctions by Western companies could make it harder for China to get it. Above, a worker stands on pipes at an offshore oil in China's eastern Shandong province.
STR/AFP via Getty Images

If China aids Russia, what options would the U.S. have?

Mar 16, 2022
The U.S. could expand tariffs on Chinese goods — but that may raise prices for American consumers.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping met in Beijing on Feb. 4. U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan has promised consequences if China were to assist Russia in its war against Ukraine.
Alexei Druzhinin/Sputnik/AFP via Getty Images

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China's COVID outbreak causing new manufacturing slowdowns

Mar 14, 2022
China’s zero-tolerance approach to the virus is affecting American as well as Chinese companies.
Strict anti-coronavirus measures are hindering electronics manufacturing and other business in China. Above, workers in protective gear at a mass testing site in Beijing.
Kevin Frayer/Getty Images

Shanghai is under COVID-19 restrictions after omicron surge

Mar 14, 2022
China's financial capital is not under a full lockdown, but strict anti-COVID measures still weigh on residents.
Some large foreign businesses, seeing COVID restrictions and slowing growth in China, are considering other countries like India for their future manufacturing plans.
Hector Retamal/AFP via Getty Images

Could China scoop up Russian goods at bargain-basement prices because of sanctions?

Mar 8, 2022
If fewer countries want Russian goods, supply goes up and China could, in theory, get cheaper prices. It is a whole other thing in practice.
Workers sort packages at a JD.com warehouse in Beijing in November. Items have been flying off the virtual shelves of a Russian store on the Chinese e-commerce site.
Jade Gao/AFP via Getty Images