FAMINE IN CHINA
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00:00China's luxury homes, cars, and high-end restaurants have all collapsed in recent years.
00:05China's luxury homes, cars, and high-end restaurants have all collapsed in recent years.
00:10China's luxury homes, cars, and high-end restaurants have all collapsed.
00:31The prosperous era has ended, all social classes are in decline.
00:36Dire living conditions of Chinese citizens exposed, reports of starvation deaths in Jiangsu,
00:41middle class returns to poverty.
00:45Are rural areas becoming sacrificial ponds?
00:48China encourages farmers to move to cities and buy houses to alleviate real estate crisis.
00:55Floods in the south and droughts in the north devastate major production areas, threatening
00:59China's grain output.
01:01Sinister hands reaching out to children?
01:04Shanghai establishes pediatric major organ transplant center.
01:09Step on board for today's show, dive into Decoding China, where you'll find all the
01:14essential information you need.
01:18China's luxury homes, cars, and high-end restaurants have all collapsed.
01:23The prosperous era has ended, all social classes are in decline.
01:27Have you noticed that suddenly, luxury cars are no longer selling in China, and some models
01:32that used to require a price increase are now being heavily discounted?
01:37Even Porsches have significant discounts.
01:40Currently, in China, luxury homes, cars, and high-end restaurants are all experiencing
01:45a downturn.
01:47Even in Shanghai, luxury home prices have plummeted.
01:51This is the home of a genuine Shanghai socialite.
01:54He owns multiple properties in Shanghai, including villas, old houses, and riverview apartments.
02:01The smallest of his properties, but still valued at over 4 million dollars, is a top-tier
02:06luxury home in Siyuan.
02:08His home is adorned with numerous expensive crystal chandeliers, and the furniture alone
02:13costs tens of thousands of dollars.
02:16The balcony is worth approximately 553,720 dollars.
02:21Now, this house is being sold with a 276,000 dollar price reduction.
02:28Greentown, Huangpu Bay in Huangpu District is a barometer for luxury homes in Shanghai.
02:33Recently, a 20th floor apartment of 331 square meters in Greentown, Huangpu Bay sold for
02:407 million dollars.
02:42Now, it has dropped by 2.7 million dollars.
02:46The homeowner is determined to sell, and the buyer is rational.
02:51Other upscale communities in Shanghai have also seen varying degrees of price drops.
02:56In Huangpu District, Zhonghai Jianwou Li's prices have fallen by 24%.
03:01In Huashan Ban No. 9, prices have dropped by 20%.
03:06In Minhang District, prices in Gubei No. 1 have fallen by 26%, and in Sui District, prices
03:12in Shanghai Bay have dropped by 18%.
03:15Luxury homes are facing severe devaluation.
03:18Why are luxury homes not selling?
03:22The answer is simple, there aren't enough wealthy buyers.
03:25Moreover, analysts point out that the main reason for the current stagnation in luxury
03:30home sales is the broken chain.
03:32Specifically, when housing prices start to fall, many middle-class families lack the
03:37risk tolerance because most of their wealth is tied to real estate.
03:41Furthermore, China's household leverage rate is as high as 63%, the highest in the world.
03:48This means many families rely on loans to buy homes, resulting in significant debt pressure.
03:54Previously, the real estate market thrived through continuous upgrades and replacements.
04:00For example, someone would sell an old, small apartment to buy an elevator apartment, then
04:05buy a more expensive, improved housing, and so on.
04:09But now, high-end property sellers are eager to cash out or repay loans, while lower-tier
04:14buyers are afraid to purchase due to the market downturn.
04:17It's not just luxury homes that are struggling to sell, luxury cars in China have also crashed.
04:24How severe is the price drop?
04:26The BMW i3 electric sedan has dropped by $2,350.
04:32The Audi A4L has dropped to $2,770.
04:37Mercedes-Benz is offering nearly $1,384 off across its entire range, and even the imported
04:44CLS model has joined the price reduction.
04:47Even Porsche has reduced prices.
04:50The Macan in Shenzhen has dropped by $6,200.
04:55As one of its most important markets, Porsche's sales in China for the first quarter were
05:0016,340 units, a year-on-year decrease of 24%.
05:05Bentley's sales in China plummeted by 18% year-on-year, while Lamborghini saw a drop
05:10of about 17%.
05:12There are several reasons for the significant price reductions in luxury cars.
05:17In recent years, the middle class has seen their assets shrink the most, with employment
05:22and income severely affected.
05:25Industries like finance, education, gaming, and the internet are all sluggish, and the
05:29real estate and stock markets have also hit the middle class hard.
05:34As a result, they have cut back on luxury car purchases, leading to a sharp decline
05:38in luxury car sales.
05:41Misfortunes never come singly, another high-end industry in China is currently experiencing
05:46a steep decline, high-end restaurants.
05:49A search for expensive Western cuisine or high-end Western cuisine on social media shows
05:54that in 2024, well-known Western restaurants across the country are closing down one after
05:59another.
06:00Famous food writer Xiao Kuan stated that the wave of closures has just begun.
06:05It's not just happening in Beijing and Shanghai, this trend will gradually spread to major
06:09mainstream cities.
06:12According to the 2024 Retail Business Trend Report by Cushman and Wakefield, compared
06:16to 2022, the new lease area for high-end fine dining in Shanghai across various subcategories
06:22significantly decreased in 2023.
06:25This suggests that investors and brands have become more cautious when opening new high-end
06:29dining establishments.
06:32How frugal have current consumers become?
06:35According to data from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, although the number of tourists
06:39during the May Day holidays surged this year, the per capita consumption was only 565 yuan
06:45â approximately $78, equivalent to just 83% of that in 2019.
06:52During economic crises, the dual scarcity of material and spiritual resources forces
06:56people into the fourth consumption era.
06:59In this era, demand for luxury and trendy products decreases, while the emphasis on
07:04product quality and comfort increases.
07:08With the dire living conditions of Chinese citizens exposed, reports of starvation deaths
07:12in Jiangsu middle class returns to poverty.
07:16Recently, the dire living conditions of the lower class in China have been continuously
07:20exposed online, with reports of people even starving to death.
07:25The middle class is also experiencing a downgrade in consumption and a return to poverty while
07:30the government has begun aggressively targeting private enterprises, plunging Chinese society
07:35into a vicious cycle.
07:37On the social media platform X, a video was posted on the 24th indicating that a man in
07:42Unit 2 of Building 19 in Zhanghuayuan, Shizhou, Jiangsu, starved to death.
07:48The footage shows police and medical personnel at the scene carrying away a young man.
07:54Netizens noticed that the man's arms were extremely thin, suggesting he had not eaten
07:58for a long time.
08:00Another video circulated on the 25th shows a sick father refusing treatment because he
08:04couldn't bear the medical costs, with his daughter kneeling and begging, I don't want
08:08to live without you.
08:10Another father-daughter pair had a similar situation, with the daughter clinging tightly
08:14to her father, who wanted to leave the hospital.
08:18In another instance, a mother insisted on continuing her stall business despite being
08:22ill, with her son angrily smashing the stall out of distress.
08:27Another mother, ill and unwilling to seek medical treatment, had her son kneeling by
08:31the roadside, pleading.
08:34And countless other tragic scenes continue to emerge.
08:38The economic downturn in China has affected not only the lower class but also the middle
08:42class who are experiencing a downgrade in consumption or falling back into poverty.
08:48According to a recent report by BBC Chinese, Shanxi businessman Sun Junli, over a decade
08:53ago, had 20 stores across mainland China with an annual revenue of 50 to 60 million yuan
08:59around 8.2 million US dollars.
09:02During the three years of the pandemic, her business deteriorated, forcing her to sell
09:06her assets and her business entirely.
09:10She was also summoned, detained, and blacklisted for defaulting on wages for over 30 employees.
09:16She noticed a change in customer habits.
09:19The same group of people who used to come twice a week now come only twice a month or
09:23once every two months.
09:26Even with promotions and discounts, sales did not improve, which she attributed to people
09:30having no money.
09:32And many other entrepreneurs have found themselves in similar situations.
09:37According to the Ministry of Finance, personal income tax in the first four months of this
09:41year decreased by 7% year on year, in the first two months, nationwide personal income
09:46tax revenue fell by 15.9% year on year.
09:50Recently, news that the Chinese Communist Party government plans to retroactively investigate
09:5530 years of corporate taxes has left many private business owners anxious.
10:01This move has been widely interpreted as a sign that the government is running out of
10:04money and has started targeting private enterprises for revenue.
10:09This is akin to killing the goose that lays the golden eggs as it will likely cause more
10:13businesses to close, leading to higher unemployment and worsening living conditions for more people.
10:19Knife Sellers Appear With Shocking Predictions
10:22A recent online report stated that on June 25, a knife seller appeared in a region of
10:27China, declaring, if in three years the price of pork does not exceed 40 yuan per 0.5 kilogram
10:32and rice does not exceed 6 yuan per 0.5 kilogram, I will not come to collect the money for the
10:38knives.
10:39It is said that knife sellers first appeared during the Song Dynasty.
10:44Many of their predictions often came true.
10:47For example, in the Qing Dynasty in Zhejiang, a knife seller left a prediction when he sold
10:52knives on credit, saying you would come to collect the debt when the price of rice dropped
10:56from 80 yuan per liter to 18 yuan.
10:59At the time, everyone thought he was joking.
11:02However, to everyone's surprise, during the Guangxu era reforms, the court indeed lowered
11:07the price of grain to 18 yuan per liter.
11:10According to official data, on June 25, the retail price of Beijing japonica rice in supermarkets
11:16was 2.92 yuan per 0.5 kilogram and fresh pork was 16.21 yuan per 0.5 kilogram.
11:24If the knife seller's prediction comes true again, it would mean a doubling of rice prices
11:28and pork prices increasing by nearly 2.5 times.
11:32By then, many ordinary people might find it difficult to afford rice and meat.
11:38China seems to be moving in the direction the knife seller predicted.
11:42Recently, prices for what are called the three essentials for the poor, including instant
11:46noodles, pickled mustard greens, and cola, have soared.
11:51What used to cost 9 yuan now costs 13 yuan, an increase of over 40%.
11:57Prices for essential consumption items like water, electricity, gas, gasoline, and high-speed
12:02rail tickets had already seen significant increases.
12:05Now, with reports of people starving to death and business owners driven to despair by taxes,
12:11one wonders how far away we are from a large-scale rebellion similar to those at the end of the
12:16Ming dynasty.
12:18Are Rural Areas Becoming Sacrificial Ponds?
12:21China encourages farmers to move to cities and buy houses to alleviate real estate crisis.
12:27Despite the Chinese Communist Party authorities implementing the most aggressive real estate
12:32stimulus policies in May, the impact has been minimal.
12:35Recently, governments in various regions, such as Fengying in Anhui, Nanting in Jiangsu,
12:41and Nizhou in Hubei, have introduced policies to encourage farmers to abandon their homesteads
12:45and move to cities to buy houses, sparking negative reactions on Weibo.
12:50Farmers who voluntarily give up their homesteads within designated land adjustment areas and
12:54move to cities to buy houses can receive a one-time purchase incentive of 50,000 yuan
12:59about 6,900 US dollars.
13:02Many people have criticized these policies, if the vast rural population is relied upon
13:06to absorb the excess real estate in cities, this calculation is too optimistic.
13:12A one-time subsidy of 50,000 yuan isn't even enough for a down payment in many areas.
13:17Ultimately, they are extending their claws towards the most vulnerable groups.
13:22What will they eat and spend in the city?
13:25Farmers do not have stable incomes, nor do they have pensions to ensure their retirement.
13:30What are they thinking?
13:31This is cutting off their future.
13:34Liang Xiaohua, an employee at Qinchuanchuan Law Firm in California, USA, stated that historically,
13:40the CCP has often targeted farmers, such as ensuring food supplies for city residents
13:44during famine years, while many rural people starved.
13:48This policy reflects the same mindset.
13:51After the CCP established its regime, it confiscated land through brutal land reforms, first claiming
13:56to distribute it to farmers, only to reclaim it soon after as collective property.
14:01Therefore, although farmers can build houses on homesteads, they only have usage rights
14:06and cannot buy, sell, or rent the land.
14:08Moreover, once villagers sell their homes, they cannot reapply for homesteads.
14:14With China's economy declining and unemployment rates soaring, farmers without homesteads
14:18may find themselves homeless if they fail to succeed in the cities.
14:22Additionally, there are concerns about how farmers will make a living in the cities and
14:26the urban social welfare system's capacity.
14:29This policy also contradicts the authorities' so-called rural revitalization policies.
14:34Lan Xu, a current affairs commentator living in the US, stated, using a 50,000 yuan subsidy
14:40to encourage farmers to move to cities and buy houses actually means that most of the
14:44money for the house purchase still has to come from the farmers themselves.
14:48If the house price drops by 50,000 yuan due to a slight market fluctuation, the farmers
14:53will not be so foolish.
14:55So, this policy is unlikely to succeed.
14:59During the real estate boom, many rural lands were forcibly demolished.
15:03People now worry that the local government's new policies to return homesteads will again
15:08forcibly take farmers' lands.
15:10Lian Xiaohua commented, now we are in a clear period of economic decline where all kinds
15:15of conflicts are emerging and without better solutions, the state resorts to forced suppression
15:20and exploitation.
15:21The CCP always assumes that the lower classes have no power to resist.
15:26However, this requires a certain degree, and when it reaches a tipping point, the so-called
15:30quantitative change leads to qualitative change, which will result in an uncontrollable situation.
15:36But when this will happen is unknown, and the process involves continuous exploitation.
15:41Previously, youth unemployment in cities soared, leading to mobilization for youth to return
15:47to the countryside.
15:48Now, with the real estate industry on the brink of collapse, local governments are mobilizing
15:53farmers to absorb the surplus.
15:56It seems rural areas are always seen by the CCP as a solution, yet rural China itself
16:01faces numerous challenges, including labor force loss, low income, land imbalances, and
16:06environmental pollution.
16:10Floods in the south and droughts in the north devastate major production areas, threatening
16:14China's grain output.
16:16This summer, southern China is suffering from severe floods due to heavy rain, while
16:20northern China is experiencing drought and lack of rain.
16:24All major grain-producing regions in the north and south are affected, threatening grain
16:28production.
16:29Jiangxi and Hunan are major early rice-growing areas in China.
16:33While the southern grain-producing areas are hit by heavy rain, northern grain-producing
16:37areas have issued drought warnings.
16:40The Hong Kong Mingpao published an editorial on June 24, stating that floods in southern
16:45China and drought in the north are particularly severe this year.
16:49Hunan Province, the second-largest grain-producing province in the country, produces a quarter
16:54of China's wheat and is a major producer of rice, corn, and soybeans.
16:58The drought comes at a critical time for summer planting, which began on a large scale on
17:03May 28, mainly for corn.
17:05By June 13, most areas had seen over 60 days without effective rainfall, and extreme high
17:11temperatures over 40 degrees Celsius occurred earlier than usual, affecting a larger area.
17:17Farmland has become scorched earth, and farmers lack water for irrigation.
17:21As of June 15, about 10 percent of Hunan's autumn crops, totaling 10.168 million mu,
17:27about 680,000 hectares, were affected by drought.
17:31Nationally, the area for summer grain planting accounts for one quarter of the yearly total,
17:36and in the north, autumn grain production accounts for three quarters of the annual
17:40yield.
17:41The drought in the north has affected wheat production and delayed corn planting in some
17:45areas.
17:46While high temperatures are expected to continue, rain in other parts of the region may provide
17:50much-needed moisture for newly planted crops but also increases the risk of flooding.
17:56The China Meteorological Administration said on Monday that heavy rains are expected in
18:00Heilongjiang Province, a major grain-producing region in the northeast.
18:05According to hydrological and meteorological forecasts from the Yangtze River Commission,
18:09the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River will experience a period of concentrated
18:13heavy rainfall over the next 10 days.
18:16As a result, floods exceeding warning levels may occur at Zhejiang Station, Hukou Station,
18:21Luan River, and Shuiyang River in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River and
18:25its tributaries.
18:27UN experts have pointed out that extreme weather disrupts agricultural systems, posing complex
18:32challenges to economic stability.
18:35Climate change increases the cost of agricultural planting, destroys farmland infrastructure,
18:40disrupts crop transportation and distribution networks, causes supply chain interruptions,
18:45market shortages, and drives up food prices, exacerbating inflation.
18:50Research from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research in Germany shows that by 2035,
18:55climate change may cause global food prices to increase by 1% to 3% annually, and by 2060,
19:01food prices could rise by 4.3% annually.
19:06Sinister Hands Reaching Out to Children?
19:09Shanghai Establishes Pediatric Major Organ Transplant Center
19:13According to a report by Fudan University's Shanghai Medical College News Network, on
19:17May 31, the hospital held the Pediatric Major Organ Transplant Center Inauguration Ceremony
19:23and Organ Transplant Forum on May 21.
19:26The report stated that since the hospital was approved for heart, liver, and kidney
19:30transplants in August 2022, it had performed 102 organ transplant surgeries by May 17 of
19:36this year, causing public concern.
19:39This has led to questions about potential wrongdoing.
19:42Former Director of the Virus Laboratory at the US Army Research Institute, Lin Xiaoxu,
19:47commented,
19:48The CCP is now pushing organ transplants as a highly profitable industry under the guise
19:52of saving lives, but in reality, it is forcibly seizing organs from the public.
19:57The establishment of a so-called Pediatric Major Organ Transplant Center indicates that
20:02the government is no longer satisfied with adult organs and is now targeting teenagers
20:06and children.
20:08Former Beijing lawyer and chairman of the Federation for a Democratic China in Canada,
20:13Lai Jianping, added,
20:14Such an institution will only exacerbate the black market for organs and increase the evil
20:18acts of stealing and forcibly harvesting organs.
20:22Since 2000, the rapidly developing organ transplant industry in China has been accused of large-scale
20:27forced organ harvesting, primarily from Falun Gong practitioners and other prisoners of
20:32conscience.
20:33On July 6, 2006, former Canadian Secretary of State for the Asia-Pacific region David
20:39Kilgour and international human rights lawyer David Mattis released a report confirming
20:43allegations of forced organ harvesting from Falun Gong practitioners by the CCP.
20:48Wang Jiyuan, head of the World Organization to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong,
20:53stated,
20:54We have more and stronger evidence proving the existence of forced organ harvesting.
20:59This evidence spans from the central government to local levels across China.
21:03It shows that the highest authorities ordered and used the Political and Legal Affairs Commission's
21:08610 Office System to control the entire state apparatus in carrying out a state crime of
21:12genocide against a group.
21:14This has been ongoing for over 20 years and continues to this day.
21:18The goal is to eradicate this belief, Falun Gong's belief in truthfulness, compassion,
21:23and forbearance.
21:25The bipartisan Falun Gong Protection Act, H.R. 4132, introduced by Representative Scott
21:30Perry with 18 co-sponsors, passed by a voice vote on June 25.
21:35It is the first U.S. legislative bill addressing Beijing's brutal suppression of the faith
21:39to advance through the chamber.
21:41Falun Gong, a meditation discipline based on the principles of truthfulness, compassion,
21:47and tolerance, has been the subject of a relentless campaign in Communist China designed to eradicate
21:52the faith.
21:53For the past 25 years, adherents of the practice, numbering up to 100 million in 1999 according
21:59to estimates at the time, have faced lengthy imprisonment, torture, forced labor, and forced
22:04organ harvesting.
22:06The Falun Gong Protection Act, which still needs Senate approval, calls for an immediate
22:10end to the persecution.
22:12If signed into law, it will require the United States to shun any cooperation with China
22:17in the organ transplantation field and to deploy targeted sanctions and visa restrictions
22:21to address the persecution of Falun Gong on the international stage.
22:25Mr. Perry said on the House floor on June 25 that having to discuss the issue of systematic
22:30forced organ harvesting in 2024 is itself very frightening.
22:35Forced organ harvesting, a form of mass murder, this is something like what we saw with Joseph
22:40Mengel, but it's happening today, he said.
22:43In China, if you've got the money, there is no waiting list for you to get an organ.
22:48There's a ready supply of these organs.
22:51The Falun Gong Protection Act would also mandate sanctions on Chinese officials, military
22:56leaders, or others who are knowingly responsible for or complicit in, or have directly or indirectly
23:01engaged in, the involuntary harvesting of organs in China.
23:05Anyone on the sanctions list would be unable to enter the United States or engage in US-based
23:09transactions and would have their current visas revoked.
23:13The bill also carries a civil penalty of up to $250,000 and a criminal penalty of $1 million
23:19and 20 years in prison for offenders.
23:22Over the past two years, three US states have enacted laws banning health insurers from
23:26funding organ transplant surgeries in China, while the US Congress, UN-affiliated experts,
23:32and the European Parliament have publicly decried the gruesome practice.
23:36In 2023, the House overwhelmingly passed its first bill addressing forced organ harvesting
23:41in general.
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