Torbjørn Færøvik's Blog, page 73

Trump lowered tariffs on China. Here’s why that won’t spare Americans from price hikes and shortages

The steep drop in tariff rates on Chinese goods shipped to the United States might have consumers thinking there’s significant relief in sight — at least compared to before. But in practice it might not feel that way. With timing of the essence given the new rates are only temporary, businesses are rushing to complete orders and get products made in China on ships and planes while tariffs

Apple boosts India's factory hopes - but a US-China deal could derail plans

Just as India showed flickers of progress toward its long-held dream of becoming the world's factory, Washington and Beijing announced a trade "reset" that could derail Delhi's ambitions to replace China as the global manufacturing hub. Last week, Trump's tariffs on China dropped overnight - from 145% to 30%, vs 27% for India - as the two sides thrashed out an agreement in Switzerland.As a

The True Story of How a Chinese Farmer Died in 1830s London

In the spring of 1831, hundreds of spectators and journalists gathered at Guy’s Hospital in London to watch as three British surgeons attempted to remove a massive tumor from the genitals of a 32-year-old Chinese farmer named Hoo Loo. The operation took one hour and forty-four minutes and was carried out without anesthesia. Hoo Loo lost consciousness several times and eventually died on the table

Scroll Locked: Why Rural Teens in China Struggle to Disconnect

China’s rural students are increasingly at risk of mobile phone addiction and depression, according to a recent survey by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). Researchers cite the absence of parental support and limited access to mental health services as key contributing factors.Released last month, the study surveyed nearly 14,000 students aged 8 to 20 across the country’s 20 poorest counties

AI Translation Is Helping Chinese Literature Go Global

AI translation is accelerating the global reach of Chinese online literature — that’s the conclusion of an annual industry report by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and culture and entertainment group China Literature. The report released last Friday found that overseas readership of Chinese web novels surged from 230 million in 2023 to 352 million in 2024.By the end of last year, the

30 years on, rights groups press China for word of Tibet’s missing Panchen Lama

The Tibetan government-in-exile and rights groups have called on China to free the Panchen Lama, the second-highest spiritual leader in the largest sect of Tibetan Buddhism, who was kidnapped 30 years ago and has remained missing ever since.“At just six years old, he was abducted by Chinese authorities — an act that remains one of the starkest examples of China’s grave human rights violations,”

China is the most important country in the world for Russia’s war machine

The People’s Republic of China is one of the most powerful and complex countries in the world. To understand even its name and essence is a major undertaking. Is it communist? No one can answer with certainty. Perhaps the best description is that it is a capitalist state under full state authoritarian control.How it can be considered a people’s republic when democracy is non-existent is one of

China threatens Scott Bessent’s economic rebalancing act

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent once described tariffs as the “gun […] on the table”. The gun may have gone off a tad early, but ultimately the image is correct. Yet it’s not about the gun so much as it’s about the table. Something of a White House strategy appears to be crystallising, in which goods tariffs will still play a role. Europeans could end up with a 10% tariff for most goods, and

Torbjørn Færøvik: The British lawyer who cut India in two and unleashed a human tragedy

Meet Sir Cyril Radcliffe, the pipe-smoking British lawyer who in 1947 divided India in two. He was given a six-week deadline and had only rather crude maps to go by. “My God, what an inhuman job!” he sighed midway through the assignment. Once he was finally done, he hurried home. Since then, he has been cursed by millions of people.In recent days, his name has gained new relevance. India and

Asia, Unfettered: RFA’s most compelling recent stories

For nearly three decades, Radio Free Asia has provided reliable, uncensored and unbiased news to people in Asia.  Our pioneering journalism and unparalleled access to on-the-ground sources in highly restricted media environments — like China, North Korea and Myanmar — have enabled us to confront new challenges with resilience and determination. Amid growing threats to global press freedom,