Guo Shuqing Talks Financial Regulatory Crackdown With People's Daily; Trump And Xi Have A Call, FBI Arrests Suspected PRC Mole; US Congress May Go After CCP Influence Operations

Happy Wednesday, still under the weather so apologies in advance for any incoherence and today's brevity

The Essential Eight

1. Banking Regulator Guo Shuqing Talks About The Financial Regulatory Crackdown With The People's Daily

The takeaway: The crackdown is only going to intensify.

People's Daily has an interview with CBRC head Guo Shuqing on the "battle" to prevent and reduce major financial system risks-打好防范化解重大金融风险攻坚战（权威访谈）--时政--人民网 

China must bring household debt under control, banking regulator says | South China Morning Post:

In an interview published in Monday’s People’s Daily, the official mouthpiece of the ruling Communist Party, Guo Shuqing, chairman of the China Banking Regulatory Commission, said it was necessary for China to “lower corporate debt ratio and to curb the leverage ratio of households”.

While tackling financial risk has been a hot topic for some time – and one of President Xi Jinping’s headline goals for his second term in office – Guo has never before raised the …