Try the Daily Briefing
Try the Daily Briefing for your country of choice for two weeks--free of charge and with no obligation.
Have a service or subscription question? We'd be happy to hear from you.
Intelligence for Better Decision Making
Erudite Risk takes an all risks approach to intelligence reporting. We categorize key intelligence into one of 40 different risk intelligence categories.
The goal is to provide intelligence that allows decision makers to avoid being blindsided by what they may have missed, while informing them to make better decisions as well.
Erudite Risk also includes operations categories so you can monitor the environment for better decision making. Everything is tied together--what happens in risk affects operations and what happens in the market impacts risk profiles.
We categorize key intelligence into one of 30 different operations intelligence categories.
Different roles and functions within the organization can monitor different key issue areas. HR may monitor employment, wages, regulations, labor and management relations, etc., while P&L leaders may monitor overall developing trends.
Interview: China's economy demonstrates resilience, optimism prevails for future growth: ADB's country director for China
Xinhua | English | News | Jan. 23, 2026 | UndeterminedEconomic Growth
China's economy showed strong resilience and vitality in 2025, achieving a 5-percent growth despite a complex domestic and international environment, according to Asif Cheema, Asian Development Bank's (ADB) country director for China. The ADB revised its 2025 growth forecast upward in December, reflecting confidence in China's economic trajectory. The growth was driven by robust export performance and active industrial sectors, notably in high-tech and new energy industries.
In 2025, China ranked among the top 10 of the Global Innovation Index and surpassed the OECD average with an R&D spending intensity of 2.8 percent. Cheema highlighted "resilience" and "innovation" as key attributes of China's economy, citing rapid progress in artificial intelligence (AI) research and patenting. AI's integration with traditional industries is boosting productivity and fueling significant corporate revenue growth, positioning AI as a strong engine of economic expansion.
Cheema also praised China's macroeconomic policies aimed at improving productivity, enhancing social security to stimulate domestic consumption, and further opening the economy. Foreign investor confidence increased sharply, with offshore inflows into Chinese stocks reaching 50.6 billion U.S. dollars in the first ten months of 2025, up significantly from 11.4 billion dollars for all of 2024.
Looking ahead, Cheema expressed optimism about China's economic outlook, emphasizing stability and sustainable growth through continued efforts to boost domestic consumption and high-tech sectors. As the world’s second-largest economy and largest exporter, China plays a vital role in the global economy by fostering job creation, economic opportunities, and technology transfers through both trade and overseas investments.
Chinese private firms embed themselves in Southeast Asia
China Daily | English | News | Jan. 23, 2026 | Shifting Geopolitical Alliances
Chinese private firms are increasingly embedding themselves in Southeast Asia through comprehensive investments in industrial development, infrastructure, and workforce training. Zhenshi Holding Group, a diversified Chinese industrial firm, has established the Indonesia Huabao Industrial Park in Morowali, Central Sulawesi, which serves as a key example of this trend. The park integrates nickel-iron smelting and related industries with supporting infrastructure such as power facilities, roads, housing, and ports, transforming undeveloped land into a significant industrial hub.
Local employment is a central focus, with Indonesian workers making up over 91 percent of Huabao’s workforce, totaling 2,555 on-site employees and 8,217 including affiliated projects. The company has invested heavily in workforce development, providing thousands of training hours and skill-building programs in vocational, leadership, and digital areas, including Mandarin language courses tailored for the workplace. These efforts have earned recognition from local government and business associations for contributions to employment and human resource development.
Zhenshi’s investment strategy extends beyond manufacturing to stimulating local supply chains, infrastructural improvements, and community development. The park has developed over 300 suppliers, including Indonesian firms, and invested $10 million to expand Morowali’s airport, enhancing regional transport capacity. Ongoing social responsibility projects cover infrastructure, education, healthcare, environmental protection, and economic support, reflecting a broader shift in Chinese overseas investment towards industrial upgrading and sustainable local engagement.
Southeast Asia is a growing priority for Chinese firms aiming to diversify supply chains and markets, with over 6,500 Chinese companies investing directly in ASEAN countries. Indonesia’s large market and rich nickel reserves make it particularly attractive amid growing electric vehicle and new materials industries. The China-ASEAN economic relationship remains strong, bolstered by trade agreements such as the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area 3.0 Upgrade Protocol.
For Zhenshi, the Indonesian experience has shifted its overseas approach from isolated projects to integrated industrial platforms that promote long-term regional development. The Huabao Industrial Park exemplifies how Chinese private enterprises are positioning themselves as enduring partners in Southeast Asia’s economic growth.
Japan unqualified to seek a seat as a permanent member of UN Security Council: Chinese envoy to UN
Global Times | English | News | Jan. 23, 2026 | Geopolitical Conflict and Disputes
Chinese Ambassador Sun Lei, Chargé d'Affaires a.i. to the UN, stated on January 21, 2026, that Japan is fundamentally unqualified to seek a permanent seat on the UN Security Council. He argued that Japan cannot shoulder the responsibility of maintaining international peace and security nor gain the trust of the global community.
Sun highlighted that the Security Council is central to upholding the postwar international order and that Japan's historical militarism has not been fully addressed. Despite the Tokyo trials punishing Japanese war criminals 80 years ago, right-wing forces in Japan have sought to whitewash wartime atrocities such as the Nanjing Massacre and forced labor, while revising history textbooks and honoring Class-A war criminals at the Yasukuni Shrine.
He also criticized Japanese leaders, including Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, for provocative remarks on Taiwan, pro-nuclear positions, and efforts to revise security policies, which Sun viewed as a push toward remilitarization that threatens regional and global security.
Sun concluded that a country that denies its wartime crimes, challenges World War II outcomes, and disregards the postwar order cannot be trusted with the responsibilities of a permanent Security Council member. China, as a current permanent member, expressed its willingness to collaborate with peace-loving nations to uphold the postwar order and maintain the Security Council's authority and unity.
Try the Daily Briefing for your country of choice for two weeks--free of charge and with no obligation.
Have a service or subscription question? We'd be happy to hear from you.
info@eruditerisk.com
The Daily Briefing is delivered Monday through Thursday via email.
Each day's reports include a combination of:
Takes
Takes are our deep dives into a topic of enduring interest or concern. Takes include copious references to all the media resources we gathered to build them.
Developments
Developments are key issues and incidents being heavily reported on in country. These are the centers of local thought gravity around which everything else revolves.
Risk Media
Summaries and analysis of the most important risk issues reported on in media, arranged by risk category. Learn about risk trends and issues while they are developing--before they blow up.
Ops Media
Summaries and analysis of the most important operational issues reported on in media, arranged by operations category. See what's changing in your market, and what's not.
Government Releases
Government press and data releases on key economic data, regulation, law, intiatives, incidents. Straight from the government's press to your eyes in less than a day.
Embassy and Business Association Releases
Statements and news releases from foreign embassies and business/industry associations, including chambers of commerce.
The Daily Briefing can run 50-100 pages each day!
Luckily, Erudite Risk tailors every report specifically to you.
Content Filtering
We try hard to ensure that every piece of information included in each day's reports will be of interest to our readers.
To fulfill our goal of comprehensively monitoring the intelligence landscape and also keeping reports readable, we build big reports--then deliver only the information that applies to you.
Each Daily Briefing is a bespoke report matched to your concerns. Tell us what you want in it, or we can match it to your professional needs. It's that easy.