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Bahrain Strengthens Economic Ties with China, Signs 8 Landmark MoUs

Bahrain Strengthens Economic Ties with China, Signs 8 Landmark MoUs
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Bahrain Strengthens Economic Ties with China, Signs 8 Landmark MoUs

Bahrain Strengthens Economic Ties with China, Signs 8 Landmark MoUs

A senior delegation from Bahrain led by the Capital Governor Sheikh Hisham bin Abdulrahman Al Khalifa and organized by the Bahrain Economic Development Board (EDB) concluded its visit to Shenzhen, China, by signing eight Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen cooperation between the two countries.

The Bahraini delegation met with Vice Mayor of Shenzhen, Ai Xuefeng, and a number of local government officials and business leaders at the Bahrain – Shenzhen Business Forum and the China High-Tech Fair.

An MOU between EDB and the artificial intelligence (AI) firm, Intellifusion Technologies was signed to advance AI dynamic portrait recognition that can benefit China, Bahrain, and the Middle East.

EDB partnered with Shenzhen FinTech company to establish a full mobile payment gateway in Bahrain and explore opportunities in crypto-currency, in addition to the possibility of initiating FinTech Funds.

An MOU between EDB and Shenzhen Outbound Alliance aimed at strengthening economic cooperation, information exchange, and establishing a regular communication channel for business information, and investment opportunities.

In addition, the delegation signed a memorandum with Softbank China Capital – Wonder News aiming to encourage Softbank China Capital and their investment portfolio companies to establish a presence in Bahrain and use it as a regional hub to cover the Middle East.

EDB and 4PX signed an MOU exploring the possibility of 4PX initiating and establishing funds together with Bahraini companies in order to invest in entrepreneurship in both countries.

EDB and Shenzhen Cool-hi Network Culture Technology partnered to promote the development of E-sports between the Middle East and China including hosting E-sports events.

Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI) signed an MOU with the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade Shenzhen Branch (CCPITSZ) to harness and enhance collaborative initiatives to promote trade and investments between the two countries.

After that, EDB also established an MOU with CCPITSZ to enhance collaborative initiatives between Bahrain and Shenzhen, strengthening information exchange and cooperation in economic and business activities.

Al Khalifa explained that the partnership with Shenzhen was built on common heritage as open and innovative business hubs with shared economic interests.

“We are very pleased to see our ties with this vibrant city continue to strengthen and believe these agreements will help us move towards a new era of collaboration,” he asserted.

Chief Executive of EDB Khalid al-Rumaihi also commented on the matter saying that Shenzhen is the first city with which Bahrain established a friendship city agreement in China.

He indicated that there are numerous opportunities for Chinese companies in the region, especially as the GCC markets continue to transform their economies.

“Bahrain’s location as the Gateway to the Gulf, and given the fact that it is one of the key countries along the new Belt and Road route, along with our open and liberal lifestyle, competitive business landscape, and world-class regulation makes the Kingdom the ideal location from which Chinese companies can access this $1.5 trillion GCC market,” concluded Rumaihi.

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China State Media Warn Trump against Mutually Destructive Tariff War

A shopper walks with his purchases at Plaza Las Americas Mall near the US-Mexico border in San Ysidro, California, on November 26, 2024. (AFP)
A shopper walks with his purchases at Plaza Las Americas Mall near the US-Mexico border in San Ysidro, California, on November 26, 2024. (AFP)
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China State Media Warn Trump against Mutually Destructive Tariff War

A shopper walks with his purchases at Plaza Las Americas Mall near the US-Mexico border in San Ysidro, California, on November 26, 2024. (AFP)
A shopper walks with his purchases at Plaza Las Americas Mall near the US-Mexico border in San Ysidro, California, on November 26, 2024. (AFP)

China's state media warned US President-elect Donald Trump his pledge to slap additional tariffs on Chinese goods over fentanyl flows could drag the world's top two economies into a mutually destructive tariff war.

Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20, said on Monday he would impose "an additional 10% tariff, above any additional tariffs" on imports from China until Beijing clamped down on trafficking of the chemical precursors used to make the deadly drug.

The two superpowers are setting out their positions ahead of the former president's return to the White House. Trump's first term resulted in a trade war that uprooted global supply chains and hurt every economy as inflation and borrowing costs shot up.

Editorials in Chinese communist party mouthpieces China Daily and the Global Times late on Tuesday warned the next occupant of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue to not make China a "scapegoat" for the US' fentanyl crisis or "take China's goodwill for granted regarding anti-drug cooperation."

"The excuse the president-elect has given to justify his threat of additional tariffs on imports from China is farfetched," China Daily said.

"There are no winners in tariff wars. If the US continues to politicize economic and trade issues by weaponizing tariffs, it will leave no party unscathed."

Economists have begun downgrading their growth targets for China's $19 trillion economy for 2025 and 2026 in anticipation of further tariffs promised by Trump during the election campaign, and are warning Americans to brace for an increase in the cost of living.

"For now, the only thing we know for sure is that the risks in this area are high," said Louis Kuijs, chief Asia economist at S&P Global Ratings, which on Sunday lowered its China growth forecast for 2025 and 2026 to 4.1% and 3.8%, respectively.

"What we assumed in our baseline is an across-the-board (tariff) increase from around 14% now to 25%. Thus, what we assumed is a bit more than the 10% on all imports from China."

Trump is threatening Beijing with far higher tariffs than the 7.5%-25% levied on Chinese goods during his first term.

"China already has a template for dealing with the previous US tariff policy," the Global Times quoted Gao Lingyun, an analyst at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing, as saying.

"Using counternarcotics issues to increase tariffs on Chinese goods is untenable and unpersuasive," Gao added.

Chinese President Xi Jinping told former Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong that China's economy would continue to grow and develop in the long-term during a meeting in Beijing on Tuesday after Trump's comments, state news agency Xinhua said.

Lee reportedly told Xi "no one should underestimate the Chinese people's determination for their nation to succeed and stand tall in the world," a remark which a separate Global Times piece said was "also meant for some people in (the) international community."

Profits at Chinese firms fell 10% year-on-year in October, data showed on Wednesday, showing how companies are struggling to remain profitable in an economy that is far more vulnerable to trade shocks this time around.

Economists in a Reuters poll last week expected additional US tariffs ranging from 15% to 60%. Most said Beijing will need to inject more stimulus to boost economic growth and offset pressure on exports.

TRADE WAR TWO

Trump previously said he would introduce tariffs in excess of 60% on Chinese goods.

The threat is rattling China's industrial complex, which sells goods worth more than $400 billion annually to the US and hundreds of billions more in components for products Americans buy from elsewhere.

His pick of trade lawyer Jamieson Greer as new US trade representative elevates a key veteran of Trump's first term trade war against China and points to a bruising four years for trade negotiators the world over.

Greer served as chief of staff to Trump's former US Trade Robert Lighthizer, the architect of Trump's original tariffs on some $370 billion worth of Chinese imports and the renegotiation of the North American free trade deal with Canada and Mexico.

The president-elect looks set to tear up that agreement on his first day in office.

Trump on Monday also pledged 25% tariffs on goods from Mexico and Canada, saying the US' neighbors were not doing enough to stop drugs and migrants crossing their borders.

But China can expect to bear the brunt of Trump's efforts to bring down the US' trade deficit and bring about the "manufacturing renaissance" he promised on the campaign trail.

"What the future will bring on this front is hard to say," S&P Global's Kuijs said. "There are many uncertainties. There is still a large increase to go to get to 60%."