Chinese mining companies dominate the Congo’s critical mineral production, but a nasty dispute at a cobalt mine shows the country is starting to drive a harder bargain.
When Dr. Sage Ngoie Mbayo arrived at the gate of the Tenke-Fungurume Mine (TFM), on June 10, he only had one goal: to smooth things over.
The mine is one of the crown jewels in the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s impressive mineral treasure chest. It alone contributes 14 percent of the world's supply of cobalt, a critical input to electric vehicle batteries. But since August 2021, TFM has been locked in something of a tug-of-war between the Congolese government and a state-backed Chinese
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For much of the past two decades, Europe's luxury market has counted on the ferocious appetite of Chinese consumers to bolster its bottom line. But foreign luxury brands are facing a reckoning in China. Not only is China’s economy entering a more uncertain phase, giving consumers pause, but homegrown designers and labels are also gaining ground. The questions now are which European brands can still rely on China, and how China's domestic designers can capture a share of the pie.
The Treasury’s top international official gives an inside-the-room account of the latest talks between Treasury Secretary Yellen and the Chinese leadership, including the U.S.’s efforts to get Beijing to address overcapacity and economic imbalances, how...
A podcast about how the two nations, once friends, are now foes.
Hear why things are so complicated now. Host Jane Perlez, former New York Times Beijing bureau chief, talks with diplomats, spies, cultural superstars like Yo Yo Ma, and more to understand why the dangers are so high, and why relations went awry.