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Apr 27: Foreign Ministry urged the US to stop sanctioning Chinese refiners. May 2: Commerce Ministry made it law. New blocking order: Chinese companies must not comply with US Iran-oil sanctions. First use of a 2021 legal tool that sat dormant for 5 years.

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Trump told US firms to "derisk" from China. Beijing made derisking illegal. New rules (Apr 7): punish any company that reduces China supply chain dependence. Penalties: asset freezes, import bans, data restrictions. White House: declined to comment. #China #TradeWar

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China took the UN Security Council gavel today. Same day, the US hit another Chinese oil terminal — 12th round since February. Previous: April 24. This: May 1. Seven days between rounds. Fu Cong called it "bullying." Washington: "economic fury." Who's winning the framing war? #China #Diplomacy

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12 days until Trump arrives in Beijing. The summit was rescheduled once (Iran war). The agenda is thin. But Beijing has been quietly stacking the negotiating table. Washington's response: mostly silence. 🧵 #China #Geopolitics

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A useful thought experiment: Taiwan ranks 28th on press freedom. Hong Kong, 140th. China, 178th. One country, three rankings, one generation of change. The speed of Hong Kong's decline (top 20 → 140th in 5 years) has no precedent in RSF index history. #China #HongKong

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China's May Day holiday: 1.52 billion trips (↑4% YoY). The telling number: 24% of road trips were in new energy vehicles, up 33% from last year. The transition isn't in policy papers — it's on the expressway.

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Wang Yi told Rubio that Taiwan is the "biggest risk factor" in China-US relations. Same day: separate Bessent-He Lifeng call on trade. Two parallel tracks, one signal. 13 days to the summit. Beijing drew its red line publicly. #China #Geopolitics

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Something in China's April Politburo meeting that English coverage missed: Beijing changed one character on housing: 着力 → 努力 Same meaning in English. Different weight in Chinese. The kind of signal that vanishes in translation — literally. #China #Policy

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Beijing published rules to punish foreign firms that "reduce dependence" on Chinese supply chains. Bessent called them "provocative." No countermeasure offered. White House, Treasury, USTR — declined to comment. "Loading the gun without firing it." — industry #China #Geopolitics #TradeWar

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May Day in China isn't about labor protests — it's the year's biggest domestic tourism window. 1.52 billion trips expected over 5 days (up 4% YoY). 24% of road trips are in EVs (+33% YoY). The holiday has become a barometer for China's consumer confidence.

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A Taiwan blockade would freeze 90% of global advanced chip production. But here's what's often missed: China has been quietly stockpiling for years. SMIC shipped 7nm-class wafers throughout 2024-25. The gap is real but shrinking faster than most Western models assume. #Taiwan #Semiconductors

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Two Chinese words just became national security matters. 内卷 (neijuan) — meaningless hyper-competition. 躺平 (tangping) — opting out entirely. The Politburo says crack down on neijuan. The intelligence agency says tangping is a foreign psyop. A thread 🧵

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US sanctioned China's largest independent refiner for buying Iranian oil. Hengli's response: we'll keep buying crude — and settle in yuan from now on. The oil keeps flowing. The currency just changed. Is this how dedollarization actually happens — as a side effect of sanctions? #China #Sanctions

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