Xi inspects Chongqing; GDP; Taiwan

Apologies for taking a personal day Tuesday. I had to make an unscheduled trip out to Arizona to help my ailing dad and a couple of flight delays blew up my schedule.

The GDP data Wednesday was slightly better than expected. How ugly the underlying numbers really are may be besides the point in the near term. The economy looks to have stabilized, as expected.

Xi went on an inspection tour of Chongqing this week, putting Chongqing Party Secretary Chen Min’er in the spotlight. The propaganda rollout of the tour is just beginning and so I should have more to say about it in the next issue. The most interesting things I have seen so far: Hu Chunhua joined the trip, leading to some speculation that Xi was showing off two potential “successors” (Hu Chunhua and Chen Min’er), and Xinjiang chief Chen Quanguo joined the symposium Xi chaired in Chongqing.

Thanks for reading.