Part 7/10:

Transitioning to economic matters, there is growing concern about China's economic management and transparency. This week, G Shenan, Chief Economist of SDIC Securities, was banned from speaking publicly after questioning China's GDP figures and economic policies at a Washington D.C. forum. G speculated that China's actual economic growth rate might be around 2%, significantly lower than the official 5%. Such comments, deemed contrary to the official narrative, reportedly infuriated Chinese leadership and prompted a crackdown on open discourse about economic conditions.