Editorial independence is core to our work. Some links may earn us a commission, without influencing our opinions.This mistake almost cost me my GST refund at Changi Airport; Buy these Charles & Keith handbags in India insteadA simple mistake at Changi Airport nearly cost us our GST refund after a
The United States and Cuba held talks this week on a U.S. offer of $100 million in assistance, which Washington has dangled as an incentive for reforms, a U.S. official said on Tuesday (May 19, 2026). Mike Hammer, the acting U.S. ambassador to Havana, met on Monday (May 18
The legendary GTI badge goes electric for the first time. The Volkswagen ID Polo GTI Electric was originally previewed as the ID. 2all concept in 2023. It has a 0 to 100km/h sprint time of 6.8 seconds. Volkswagen has unveiled an electric version of its famous ID. Polo hatchback. While the new
Mouni Roy brings India to Cannes with chic patola print gown, dazzles the night in midnight blue dressAt Cannes, Mouni Roy donned two striking looks, including a chic midnight-blue gown and a stunning patola-embroidered dress. Published on: May 20
Bengaluru techie explains why life in Germany felt calmer than India: ‘Never opened laptop after work’A Bengaluru techie said life in Germany felt quieter and more balanced than his daily routine in Bengaluru. Published on: May 20, 2026 10:05 AM IST By Mahipal Singh Chouhan Share via Copy link
Three things we learned from China's big political meeting this week
Three things we learned from China's big political meeting this week
A four-day meeting of hundreds of Chinese Communist Party (CPC) delegates, chaired by General Secretary Xi Jinping concluded on Thursday, with the release of a communique.
The broad document highlights major points in the next five-year plan for China's economic development.
Here are three of the main things we have learned from the meeting and what the communique says:
China watchers have been looking at the official numbers regarding attendance this week.
You would need a pretty good excuse not to turn up to a Plenum session chaired by Xi. For example, very serious illness.
And yet, of the 205 members of the Central Committee, only 168 were there.
We know that one has died and 10 have already been purged.
That leaves 26 missing cadres.
Do these missing members mean that more senior Party officials have been taken down in the latest "anti-corruption" drive than have been reported?
On top of this there are also dozens of missing "alternate" delegates. These are non-voting positions for people who can fill missing slots as required.
Names of those not in attendance have not been provided, but it is not a small number of missing delegates. This has led to wide speculation that they too have been purged in the latest sweeps from the Party's feared internal discipline inspection teams.
In the military alone the numbers are stark.
It seems that of the 33 generals who are members of the Central Committee, 22 did not attend the plenum. This might include the eight who have been removed officially but where are the other 14? Who are they and what happened to them?
With China's opaque system of governance, sometimes questions like these are never answered.
What is clear though is that the Party was clearing the decks in the days leading up to this gathering so such dismissals could be made official, including the expulsion of He Weidong who was number three in the PLA.
Political analysts will argue though as to whether this represents strength or weakness on General Secretary Xi's part. Are these the acts of a paranoid leader concerned that power blocks might be forming beyond his control, or the firm hand of a figure prepared to take down those who act improperly irrespective of their rank?
Either way, it seems there will be no letting up.
At a press conference on Friday, the Director of the Central Policy Research Office, Jiang Jinquan, said the Party would "maintain an unwavering tenacity with no finish line in the fight against corruption".
When Donald Trump and Xi Jinping meet in South Korea next week, they will be discussing the considerable trade frictions between the two superpowers.
At the pointy end of this, China wants better access to US computer chips and advanced software and the US wants better access to China's rare earths and magnets. The problem is that both sides are reluctant to provide them because they will assist in boosting the other's economic and political strength.
So, Beijing needs other sources for its high-tech requirements, leading naturally to the conclusion: when in doubt develop it yourself.
A key objective listed in the communique was the achievement of "substantial improvements in scientific and technological self-reliance".
Then – just to make it really clear – the read out from the Communist Party's trusted Xinhua wire service again referred to "self-reliance", stating: "The country should achieve greater self-reliance and strength in science and technology and steer the development of new quality productive forces".
Xi Jinping's catchphrase of "new quality productive forces" gets used a lot in Chinese government documents. It encapsulates the drive for homegrown, high-level, technological advances – often with military applications – which are to emerge in partnerships between the private sector, state-owned enterprises and the People's Liberation Army.
It is all about more tech, better tech, hopefully without any reliance on the Americans.
Another impact of the trade war with the US has been the loss of export markets. This has been a heavy blow to an economy which has been, and remains, heavily reliant on selling goods overseas.
Well before the tariff conflict with the Trump administration, academics had been warning China that it needed to rebalance its economy, placing a much greater emphasis on domestic consumption as opposed to exports.
The thinking was that it was not sustainable, in the long run, to have such a low proportion of GDP made up by the Chinese people's consumption rates as they stood.
Trump's tariff assault on the world has brought this into sharper focus. New charges on the import of Chinese made goods have slowed some of them being sold in the US.
While China's exporters have proven to be more resilient than Trump predicted – finding new global buyers to make up for lost American orders – the problem has not gone away.
The thinking is that with such geopolitical uncertainty, this is the time for China to turn to its huge domestic population to give its economy a shot in the arm.
According to the official readout from this Plenum, it has been determined that the country "should build a robust domestic market and work faster to foster a new pattern of development".
But how?
These five-year-plan documents are usually more of a broad vision for the economy, rather than a specific set of measures. However, many analysts say that nothing has emerged from this meeting to indicate that the government has any fresh ideas to actually drive domestic consumption.
In short, how do you get people to save less and spend more when they are worried about the real estate crisis and high youth unemployment?
The Party can talk about "building a robust domestic market" but it needs solid solutions.
Source: BBC
Related Posts: Congress taunts BJP for meeting Communist Party of China team Chinese Communist Party delegation meets BJP leaders Chinese Communist Party expels top generals in sweeping military crackdown Four oil tankers attacked by drones in Black Sea near CPC oil terminal Xi takes Trump on tour of Communist Party's seat of power in Beijing Vietnam's Communist Party congress meets to pick new leaders 7th CPC to be rolled out in Bengal within 45 days of BJP govt formation Odisha Assembly Speaker to attend 68th CPC in Barbados CBDT Empowers CPC Bengaluru To Expedite Tax Rectifications And Refunds Kazakhstan criticises Ukraine over drone attack on CPC oil terminal
The All-India Organisation of Chemists and Druggists (AIOCD), which represents nearly 12.4 lakh chemists, pharmacists and drug distributors across India, has announced a nationwide strike on 20 May. The protest is expected to disrupt the supply of medicine in several parts of the country for the
2 hours ago
One of the most expensive Korean films ever made, this epic sci-fi begins as a "breathless rollercoaster ride" and mashes up The Terminator, Predator, Aliens and Avatar. The films that compete for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival are known for their depth
2 hours ago
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Tuesday chaired meeting to assess preparations for the forthcoming NEET (UG) Re-Examination and demanded a foolproof conduct under strict security protocols. During the high-level meeting, Pradhan stressed on the need for complete integrity and
3 hours ago
Cornell professor talks AI chaos, and dismissing AI writersThe biggest AI developments, decoded. 20 May 2026. Published on: May 20, 2026 8:00 AM IST By Vishal Mathur Share via Copy link Cognitive warmup. Actor, comedian and filmmaker Seth Rogen has some choice words for creatives using AI to
2 hours ago
England captain Nat Sciver-Brunt could miss next month’s T20 World Cup after the all-rounder was ruled out of her side’s warm-up series against New Zealand and India. Sciver-Brunt tore her left calf while playing for the Blaze in domestic cricket earlier this month and was subsequently ruled
3 hours ago
Congressman Thomas Massie, one of the most vocal Republican critics of Donald Trump, has lost his fight for re-election to a challenger endorsed by the president. Ed Gallrein, a former Navy Seal, will now compete in November's midterm election after his victory in the Kentucky primary on Tuesday
2 hours ago
CHSE Odisha Class 12 Result 2026 LIVE: The Council of Higher Secondary Education (CHSE), Odisha, will declare the Class 12 (+2) examination results for 2026 today, May 20, at 12:30 PM. Students who appeared in the 12th board examinations can check and download their results from the official
3 hours ago
Qatar said on Tuesday (May 19, 2026) that U.S.-Iran negotiations, mediated by Pakistan, required more time to reach a deal, a day after President Donald Trump said he had postponed planned attacks to give the process a chance. "We are supportive of the diplomatic effort by Pakistan that has shown
2 hours ago
Stars are often photographed everywhere they go, but Salman Khan seemed to completely lose his cool after paparazzi surrounded him outside Mumbai’s Hinduja Hospital in Bandra on Tuesday night. The actor had reportedly visited the hospital to see a family member when photographers gathered outside
2 hours ago
May 20, Birthday Horoscope: Here's what the tarot cards have in store for youIf your birthday falls on May 20, here’s what your year ahead looks like, as per Tarot. Updated on: May 20, 2026 11:02 AM IST By Kishori Sud Share via Copy link If you were born on May 20
2 hours ago
Aaron Rodgers seen with wife Brittani ‘Starlight Leszczyński’? Viral post-marriage pic, Coyote Ugly claims fact-checkedA photo has gone viral allegedly showing Pittsburgh Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers with wife Brittani, and the caption identified her as ‘Starlight’ Leszczyński
3 hours ago
For over two decades, Chef Kunal Kapur has been one of the most recognisable faces of Indian cuisine from judging MasterChef India to championing regional flavours on global platforms. But today, the celebrity chef, restaurateur, author and television personality believes the future of dining is
2 hours ago
The ongoing war in West Asia and the rising costs of fuel and fertilizers give India an opportunity to enhance fertilizer use efficiency and moderate demand. India produces 80% of its urea requirement domestically and imports the rest while also boosting domestic production capacities to become
3 hours ago
For more than two decades, football fans of a certain vintage relied on a specific piece of cultural shorthand whenever the red-and-white half of North London let them down. In the classic The IT Crowd episode “Are We Not Men?", a pair of socially awkward computer nerds used an automated web
2 hours ago
Saiju Kurup is ecstatic. With Bharathanatyam 2: Mohiniyattam, which he acted in and co-produced,trending on streaming after raking in crores at the box office, the actor says he is still not able to process it. “I ask myself if this is all for real
2 hours ago
Bhopal dowry death victim's co-actor Swetaa Varma ‘in shock’, doubts suicide angleSwetaa Varma, who acted with the victim in a Telugu film, has reacted to her sudden death and said she is still in shock. May 20, 2026, 10:33:34 IST By Abhimanyu Mathur Share via Copy link A former co-star of the
2 hours ago
The Indian rupee slumped to a record low of 96.9 against the United States dollar on Wednesday. The currency had opened at 96.8. The Indian currency had closed at an all-time low of 96.5 against the US dollar on Tuesday. The slump has come amid elevated global oil prices and economic headwinds
2 hours ago
The Directorate of Government Examination, Tamil Nadu (TNDGE) has declared the SSLC Class 10th results 2026. Students who had appeared for the Tamil Nadu TNDGE SSLC 10th Result can go to the official website of tnresults.nic.in or dge.tn.gov.in and check their results
2 hours ago
Sebastian Stan recalls when Donald Trump tried to stall The Apprentice's Cannes premiere, calls out censorshipSebastian Stan, who played Donald Trump in his biopic The Apprentice, has slammed the US President and his policies. May 20, 2026, 10:21:54 IST By Abhimanyu Mathur Share via Copy link
2 hours ago
In recent days, Trump has repeatedly warned that if an agreement is not reached quickly, Iran will face difficult consequences. Iran, on the other hand, has said that it will respond strongly to any attack. New Delhi: In a significant development
2 hours ago
US President Donald Trump has endorsed Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in his bid to unseat incumbent Senator John Cornyn in next Tuesday's Republican primary run-off race. By siding with Paxton, Trump is supporting a Texas politician who has long been a close ally of the president – but also
2 hours ago
BMW has revealed a manual-only M3 CS with rear-wheel drive and 543 bhp as a farewell model for the sixth-generation M3, targeting enthusiasts still wanting an old-school performance sedan experience. BMW making a manual-only BMW M3 CS in 2026 feels almost rebellious at this point
2 hours ago
Referring to the notices issued by the civic body, Paul alleged that several properties linked to Banerjee, his family and Leaps and Bounds company had come under scrutiny. New Delhi: In a significant development, the TMC-run Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has issued notices to several
2 hours ago
Rupee Weakens Further: The Indian rupee fell by 33 paise in early trade on Wednesday to touch a fresh record low of 96.89 against the US dollar, extending its losses for the past several sessions. It further weakened in the early trade session to drop to 96
2 hours ago
DRDO successfully tests ULPGM-V3 missile | All about the indigenous weaponThe defence ministry informed in a statement that the trials were conducted at a DRDO test range near Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh using an integrated GCS. Updated on: May 20
5 hours ago
The Trinamool Congress’ Falta candidate Jahangir Khan on Tuesday announced that he has withdrawn from the repolling in the Assembly constituency, two days ahead of voting. “This decision is for Falta’s development and the public good, following the chief minister’s special package
5 hours ago
Who is Andrej Karpathy? OpenAI cofounder and one of AI’s most influential figures joins AnthropicAndrej Karpathy, a founding member of OpenAI, has joined Anthropic. The 39-year-old announced his move to Anthropic on Tuesday. Updated on: May 20
5 hours ago
