•CCP briefing on fifth plenum: discipline body says 7.922 million punished since 2012, including 963 centrally managed cadres
The CCP Central Committee held a press conference at 10am on 30 October on the fifth plenum of the 20th Central Committee, with Zhang Fuhai (deputy secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection), Huang Jianfa, Hu Heping, Tang Fangyu and Xie Chuntao. Zhang said that since the 18th Party Congress in 2012, discipline and supervision bodies have opened 8.105 million cases and punished 7.922 million people, including 963 centrally managed cadres, and dealt with 1.644 million cases of the 'four undesirable work styles', involving 2.257 million people. Tang said the plenum's key outcome was the Decision on persevering in full and rigorous Party self-governance, organised in three parts: a general section, seven specific sections (Party spirit, democratic centralism, cadres, organisation, discipline, anti-corruption and rules-based governance), and a section on the Party and state oversight system and political responsibility. Lianhe Zaobao reported the figures the same day, citing earlier Xinhua figures of 87, 92 and 181 centrally managed cadres placed under investigation in 2023, 2024 and 2025. Share · Copy
•China's defence ministry says activities east of Taiwan are lawful and calls Japan's scramble data a smear
Defence ministry spokesperson Zhang Xiaogang told a regular briefing on 29 October, in response to claims by Taiwan's defence authorities and coast guard of an "abnormal increase" in mainland coast guard, research and fishing vessels off Taiwan's east and south amounting to multi-front hybrid warfare, that the relevant mainland departments' normal activities in Chinese-administered waters east of Taiwan are entirely lawful, and that China would act to "crush all Taiwan independence separatist illusions". Reuters had reported that Taiwan National Security Council chief Joseph Wu said on 28 October that 53 Chinese ships, 34 of them warships including the carrier Liaoning, were spread from southern Japan to the Philippines, and that Japan's defence ministry tracked three Chinese warships and a coast guard vessel transiting the Osumi Strait into the Pacific on 27 October. Zhang also responded to Japanese data showing 442 Air Self-Defense Force scrambles against Chinese and Russian aircraft from April to September, 285 of them against Chinese aircraft, calling it Japan's habitual hyping of "surrounding security threats" that exposes its frequent surveillance and harassment of legitimate Chinese and Russian operations. He separately said the US should stop "stirring up trouble" after the littoral combat ship USS Charleston recently sailed near Sabina Shoal. Share · Copy
•Pakistan briefly bars Taiwanese airlines from its airspace citing one-China policy, then reverses within hours
Bloomberg reported on 28 October that Pakistan's defence minister Khawaja Asif, who also oversees aviation, said the aviation division follows the one-China policy and allows only mainland Chinese airlines to overfly the country, describing Pakistan as the first country to take such a step against Taiwanese carriers. Flight-tracking data showed China Airlines and EVA Air had been routing Asia–Europe flights over Russia since Sunday 25 October. Hours later, AP and Bloomberg, citing documents, reported that Pakistan's Civil Aviation Authority approved both carriers to use its airspace from 28 October to 27 March 2027. Taiwan's foreign ministry condemned Pakistan for politicising and weaponising airspace; Nikkei Asia said the episode fuelled concern about Taiwan's shrinking international space. Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said on 29 October that the one-China principle is a broad international consensus and that, to China's knowledge, people from the Taiwan region face no obstacles in international travel. Share · Copy
•PLA Southern Theater Command patrols Scarborough Shoal, calling it a necessary countermeasure to Philippine provocations
The PLA Southern Theater Command said on the afternoon of 30 October, via its WeChat account and CCTV, that its naval and air forces conducted combat-readiness patrols in the territorial sea and airspace of Huangyan Dao (Scarborough Shoal) and surrounding areas, calling it "a necessary countermeasure to the Philippines' rights-violation and provocative acts" and saying it has stepped up patrols and control around the shoal since October. China's defence ministry website shows a similar patrol notice on 30 September without the countermeasure wording; on 5 October the command said a Philippine C-208 aircraft had entered the shoal's airspace without approval on 3 October. Reuters reported the statement and said the Philippine embassy in Beijing did not immediately respond. ABS-CBN reported on 29 October that Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson Jay Tarriela said a Chinese research-support vessel had stayed near the shoal since 3 October amid suspicions of illegal marine scientific research, and that a patrol flight that day spotted one PLA Navy ship, three China Coast Guard vessels and five maritime militia vessels, a number he described as not unusual. Share · Copy
•NYT says US spy agencies concluded ex-Megaspeed executive close to Nvidia's Jensen Huang was a Chinese intelligence asset; Beijing calls it a smear
The New York Times reported on 29 October, citing people briefed on classified intelligence, that US spy agencies concluded Huang Le (Alice Huang), a Chinese citizen and former top executive of Singapore data-centre company Megaspeed, was a Chinese intelligence asset passing information to Beijing, and that electronic surveillance of her revealed a close relationship with Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang. President Trump was briefed about a year ago but took no action, and Jensen Huang did not receive the defensive briefing US agencies sometimes give Americans targeted by foreign spies, the paper said. It said US officials had already suspected Megaspeed of helping Chinese firms evade export controls on advanced AI chips, and that surveillance of Huang Le continues. An Nvidia spokesperson told CNBC and others that Jensen Huang's interactions with her were ordinary customer meetings, that regional cloud customers receive only ordinary business information and nothing relevant to national security, and that diversion allegations against Megaspeed were investigated and debunked last year. A Chinese embassy spokesperson in Washington told the Times the accusations were baseless. Foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun, asked by AFP at a regular briefing on 30 October, said the report was groundless speculation and a smear against China. Share · Copy
•Xi meets Swiss President Parmelin in Beijing and attends signing ceremony, says upgraded trade deal shows 'political courage'
Xinhua said President Xi Jinping met Swiss President Guy Parmelin, on a working visit, in Beijing on 30 October, and the two then attended a signing ceremony for cooperation documents; Xinhua did not specify the documents. The Swiss government had announced that the two sides would sign the optimised bilateral free trade agreement after the meeting. Reuters reported that Xi said the upgraded agreement reflected political courage and a sense of responsibility in upholding open cooperation and could bring confidence and certainty to China-Europe trade and the global economy, while Parmelin called it a new step in relations that met companies' concrete expectations and said he hoped to hold the next foreign-ministers' strategic dialogue later this year. According to figures published earlier by Switzerland's SECO, about 53.6% of Swiss exports to China are currently duty-free, rising to 77.5% on entry into force and 99.8% after transition periods of up to ten years; the deal also covers investment access, services, digital trade, and environmental and labour provisions, and takes effect only after domestic approval in both countries, which in Switzerland is expected to take at least a year. Share · Copy
•GJ-21 carrier-based stealth reconnaissance-strike drone makes first take-off and landing on Type 076 amphibious assault ship Sichuan
Xinhua reported on 30 October that, according to the navy, the GJ-21, the PLA's first carrier-based reconnaissance-strike stealth drone, recently made its first take-off and landing on the Sichuan, China's first Type 076 amphibious assault ship, marking the navy's ability to operate fixed-wing stealth drones from large maritime combat platforms. China Military Online said the operation took place during consecutive sea trials in late October. The Sichuan, hull number 51, was launched and named on 27 December 2024 and uses an automatic landing guidance system, an integrated electric power system and electromagnetic catapult and arresting technology; it can carry fixed-wing drones, helicopters and amphibious equipment, and has been conducting sea trials since November 2025. The South China Morning Post reported the milestone citing state media. Share · Copy
Friday 30 Oct close; STAR50 -5.48% to 1,160.84; Shanghai and Shenzhen turnover about 1.67 trillion yuan. CNH quoted 6.6502 at 17:04 on 30 October (Sina Finance FX); CNY is the 30 October fixing of 6.7138 (up 9 basis points, CFETS); the onshore yuan closed at 6.6557 at 16:30. Data: Sina Finance, Jiemian, China News Service, Gelonghui.
•China markets close: Shanghai Composite down 1.44% at 3,599.02, STAR50 down 5.48%; onshore yuan ends at 6.6557, extending 4-year high
All three major A-share indices fell on 30 October. The Shanghai Composite closed at 3,599.02, down 1.44% and below 3,600; the Shenzhen Component at 10,833.78, down 2.73%; ChiNext at 2,413.63, down 4.13%; the CSI 300 at 3,985.50, down 1.39%; and the STAR50 at 1,160.84, down 5.48%. Turnover in Shanghai and Shenzhen was about 1.67 trillion yuan, some 118 billion yuan more than the previous session, with 893 stocks rising, 4,602 falling and 86 limit-down. Securities IT, short-drama, optical-module, cinema and telecoms stocks led losses, while liquor, contract research, shipping and ports, food and beverage and banks rose. Reuters said the CSI 300 booked its steepest monthly loss since early 2016 amid a global AI selloff and was set for a record 12th straight weekly decline. The yuan's central parity was set at 6.7138 per dollar, 9 pips stronger and the strongest since February 2023; the onshore yuan closed at 6.6557 at 16:30, up 64 pips, and the offshore yuan traded around 6.650 near 17:00. Reuters said the onshore yuan hit its strongest in more than four years intraday, up about 5% this year and heading for a fourth straight monthly gain. Share · Copy
•PBOC to run overnight reverse repos every working day from 2 November at 1.25%; 7-day operations switch to fixed-quantity rate tenders
The People's Bank of China said in Open Market Operations Announcement No. 13 of 2026 on 30 October that, to further improve its short-term interest-rate management, it will adjust open market operations from 2 November 2026: it will conduct overnight reverse repo tenders every working day at a fixed rate with quantity bidding, currently at 1.25%; 7-day reverse repos will switch to fixed-quantity, interest-rate tenders with multiple winning rates, held mainly around tax periods and month-ends; and tools previously priced at a spread to the 7-day reverse repo rate, including temporary repos and reverse repos and the repo facility for overseas central-bank-type institutions, will instead be priced off the overnight rate with unchanged spreads. Reuters called it a step towards making the overnight rate the main policy anchor, noting that 1.25% is the first overnight operation rate the PBOC has disclosed, broadly in line with market expectations and below the 1.4% 7-day rate; Citic Securities chief economist Ming Ming said the reform lays the groundwork for diversifying loan-rate pricing benchmarks. Share · Copy
•78 students share one needle in TB screening at Liaoning high school; county says tests show no abnormality, probe launched
Kangping county in Shenyang, Liaoning province, said in a notice on the evening of 29 October that during a routine tuberculosis skin test at Kangping County Senior High School on 27 October, a medical worker violated the "one person, one needle" rule, affecting 78 students. The county halted the screening, tested all 78 students with no abnormal results, and set up a special investigation team, pledging to deal seriously with the violation. Lianhe Zaobao, citing New Yellow River, said first-year and some second-year students were affected; a county official said online claims that students had HIV or syphilis were untrue, and police, health and education departments are handling the case. Caixin reported on 30 October that the screening service appears to have been outsourced and that HIV transmission risk has been provisionally ruled out, with follow-up testing still needed. Share · Copy
•Sanrio apologises and ends Hello Kitty tie-up with Japanese spy drama Vivant after backlash in China
Japan's Sanrio apologised in statements on its website late on 28 October and on 29 October and ended its merchandise collaboration featuring Hello Kitty and other characters with TBS spy drama Vivant, along with all follow-up projects and promotions, saying the tie-up contained elements inconsistent with its corporate values and that it would strengthen review of future collaborations. The drama's second season shows Chinese agents torturing a Japanese operative, and Chinese state media including CCTV and the Global Times, as well as Chinese social media users, accused it of smearing China. Foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said on 29 October the drama again exposed forces in Japan that try to vilify China through cultural products and spread anti-China sentiment, which should alert the international community and "discerning people in Japan". The BBC and AFP reported that the TBS president said the show is entirely fictional and not intended to disparage any country; the BBC noted that China-Japan ties have been at their lowest in years since Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's Taiwan remarks last November, and that several Chinese brands dropped French footballer Kylian Mbappé this week over comments about Mao Zedong. Share · Copy
