A blockchain payments system based on WeChat’s existing QR code identification technology makes a compelling business case for a characteristically Chinese blockchain. READ MORE

Chinese Visions of World Order is the best kind of edited volume; it gives the impression that its diverse array of contributions have been curated rather than commissioned. READ MORE

Chinese New Year is the world’s largest human migration, and most of those trips (as much as 80%) will likely be made by long-distance bus. But an increasing number of travelers will be cruising the country in comfort on China’s world-class high-speed rail network. Here’s how they’re doing it. READ MORE

The most likely motivation behind China’s maritime military buildup is the desire to ensure China’s own security, a desire sparked by fear and nurtured by two centuries of naval inferiority. READ MORE

According to official data, rural Shanxi and Guizhou provinces were the national growth champions, but doubts remain about the mismatch between provincial and national figures. READ MORE

Japan is eager to find export markets for its world-class high speed rail system, the famous Shinkansen bullet train, and Texas is the unlikely prime customer. READ MORE

The question of how far west to go—where to “draw the line” of American power in the Pacific—is the central question of Michael J Green’s magisterial history of American diplomacy in the Pacific. READ MORE

You can’t build a truly prosperous country on the back of a socially excluded underclass of migrant workers and rural poor. READ MORE