![A general view of the opening session of the National People’s Congress in the Great Hall of People in Beijing on March 5.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/china-beijing-two-sessions-GettyImages-2059909649.jpg?w=800?quality=80)
Beijing Holds Annual Two Sessions Amid Economic Crisis
Chinese Premier Li Qiang will not take questions from the press, underscoring the fraught moment.
![A high-up view shows the tops of skyscrapers in the city of Nanjing, China, beneath a blue sky. The closest building is part of a China Evergrande Group housing project.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/china-evergrande-property-GettyImages-1961127702.jpg?w=800?quality=80)
Can Beijing Contain the Property Crisis?
As firms default on debt, China hopes to boost household spending—but it lacks consumer confidence.
![Visitors walk past a dragon installation at a Lunar New Year fair in Chengdu, China, on Feb. 17.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/china-dragon-new-year-GettyImages-2008858232.jpg?w=800?quality=80)
The Dragon Won’t Bring China a Baby Boom
In the Chinese zodiac cycle, children born in the year of the dragon are considered lucky—but it’s unlikely to cause a bump in 2024.
![Seen from above, a worker arranges red lanterns for upcoming Lunar New Year celebrations in Huaian, China.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/china-lunar-new-year-GettyImages-1961127237.jpg?w=800?quality=80)
China’s Stock Market Falters as Holiday Season Begins
Government action may not be able to stop slipping public confidence in the economy.
![A delivery worker uses an escalator at a partially operating Evergrande commercial complex in Beijing.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/china-evergrande-group-GettyImages-1963649782.jpg?w=800?quality=80)
It’s Almost the End for China’s Evergrande
A Hong Kong judge ordered the property giant to liquidate, but courts in mainland China will set the timeline.
![Investors look at screens showing stock market movements at a securities company in Fuyang, China, on Jan. 17.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/china-economy-stock-market-GettyImages-1931126463.jpg?w=800?quality=80)
China’s Economy Is Off to a Bad Start in 2024
Chinese stock markets are in sharp decline, reflecting the gap between official optimism and investor pessimism.
![Confetti falls as Taiwanese President-elect Lai Ching-te speaks to supporters at a victory rally in Taipei.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/taiwan-election-lai-ching-te-GettyImages-1929880589.jpg?w=800?quality=80)
Taiwan’s New President Won’t Placate China
Still, Beijing’s reaction to Lai Ching-te’s victory has been surprisingly muted—for now.
![A missile is fired from a military base in Lashio, Myanmar, on Oct. 28, 2023.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/myanmar-shan-rocket-GettyImages-1751406688.jpg?w=800?quality=80)
Is China Playing Both Sides in Myanmar?
Anti-government forces’ campaign against cyberscams has benefited Beijing, even as it keeps up ties with the ruling junta.
![People eat at a restaurant as a screen broadcasts Chinese President Xi Jinping's New Year's speech in Beijing.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/china-xi-jinping-speech-tv-GettyImages-1889032846.jpg?w=800?quality=80)
China Closed 2023 With a Military Purge
Nine top generals were removed from Beijing’s rubber-stamp parliament last Friday.
![A woman walks past images depicting the late Chinese leader Mao Zedong at a stall in an antique market in Beijing on Dec. 26.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/china-beijing-mao-posters-GettyImages-1876007008.jpg?w=800?quality=80)
5 Predictions for China in 2024
From a small crisis with Taiwan to growing youth disillusionment, here’s what China likely faces next year.
![Medical staff triage a patient at the entrance of a busy hospital in Shanghai on Jan. 14.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/China-COVID19-GettyImages-1457795879.jpg?w=800?quality=80)
China’s Year in Review
Beijing had a difficult 2023, from COVID-19 fallout to unexpected political purges.
![A view from the sky shows a partial blanket of fog settled over a several blocks of residential skyscrapers in Wuhan, China. The buildings are dozens of stories tall and architecturally similar to each other, although some are narrow and some are wider.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/china-property-buildings-GettyImages-1805471885.jpg?w=800?quality=80)
Chinese Shadow Bank Can’t Pay Up
A wealth management firm’s insolvency raises questions about unconventional lending institutions—a $3 trillion industry in China.
![Children and their parents wait at an outpatient area at a children's hospital in Beijing.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/china-health-children-GettyImages-1797516641.jpg?w=800?quality=80)
Cold and Flu Season Stirs Dread in China
An uptick in respiratory illnesses among children isn’t a new virus, but it hasn’t helped the public mood.
![Chinese President Xi Jinping attends an event on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in San Francisco. A U.S. flag hangs in the background.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/xi-jinping-us-apec-GettyImages-1785073397.jpg?w=800?quality=80)
This Isn’t a Honeymoon Phase for the U.S. and China
After last week’s Xi-Biden meeting, the world’s two chief powers have merely agreed to a cessation of hostilities.
![U.S. President Joe Biden, right, gestures toward Chinese President Xi Jinping seen from behind at left. Behind them are U.S. and China flags. A blurry hand gestures to the left in front of them.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/xi-biden-china-brief-2022-11-14T100407Z_1778239641_RC2MLX9XDDST_RTRMADP_3_G20-SUMMIT-BIDEN-XI.jpg?w=800?quality=80)
Can Xi and Biden Repair U.S.-China Ties?
Their meeting in San Francisco will reportedly lead to pledges on areas of mutual concern, as tensions remain high.