Five Things You Need to Know to Start Your Day: Asia

Musk postpones his trip to India. The Fed explores a new way of economic forecasting. Bitcoin’s “halving” happens. Here’s what you need to know today.

China’s becoming something of a punching bag in the US election, but it’s resisting any hasty moves that could backfire. Beijing’s restraint was on display last week after President Joe Biden blasted China as “xenophobic” and vowed to triple tariffs on Chinese steel and aluminum exports. On the same day, Washington opened a probe into its rival’s shipbuilding sector, causing stocks of Chinese firms in that industry to tumble, while Congress fast-tracked efforts to force TikTok to divest from its Chinese parent ByteDance. China’s response to all this has been relatively muted. But there’s more to come. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit China this week and convey the gravity of US concerns regarding Chinese companies’ support for Russia’s war machine — while also making sure the relationship with Beijing doesn’t go off the rails again.