Bloomberg BusinessWeek, Aug 13, 2018 (II)

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(1) Daniela Wei and Bruce Einhorn with Dong Lyu, China's Exports Are Homeward Bound.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/a ... -are-homeward-bound
("China furniture exporters sold $29.2 billion in goods to the U.S. last year. The $200 billion round of tariff proposals will have the biggest impact on their industry, according to Deutsche Bank AG. They face levies of 10 percent or even 25 percent")

Note:
(a) summary underneath the title in print: Mainland businesses hit by US tariffs hope domestic consumers will pick up th eslack
(b) Print and online version are the same.
(c) About the photo whose caption is "Chinese millennials are eating more seafood."  To an outsider like me, the Chinese language is odd in a sign: "果蔬 FRUITS AND VEGETABLES."  In Taiwan it will be 蔬果.

(2) Kevin Hamlin, No Joy in the Country of Happiness.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/a ... nti-poverty-efforts

Note:
(a) summary underneath the title in print: China is succeeding in Lifting people out of poverty, but not all are grateful
(b)  Print and online version are the same.

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(3) Rachel Adams-Heard, Heat and Dust, But Also Wi-Fi.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/a ... camps-of-west-texas

Quote:

"There's not much to look at except dirt, mesquite, and sagebrush around the 10 acres of flat, almost treeless land near Goldsmith, Texas [population 257 in 2010 census; located about 27-mile air distance west of Midland], where Aries Residence Suites runs a housing complex used by itinerant oil workers [a 'man camp' in the subtitle].

(Oil price has returned to $70 from $30 a barrel.) "The Permian Basin, a more than 75,000-square-mile expanse of sedimentary rock that straddles Texas and New Mexico, is drawing billions of dollars in new investment from Exxon Mobil, Chevron, BP, and others. Oil production [in Permian Basin alone; see note (c)] is set to double as a result, to reach 5.4 million barrels a day in 2023, according to estimates by researchers IHS Markit Ltd. That would top the output of any country in OPEC except Saudi Arabia [currently Iraq is 2nd largest oil producer in OPEC, with output about 45% of Saudi Arabia; Russia is not a member of OPEC].

"Companies are scrambling to find people to do everything from operating drilling rigs to driving trucks. Wages have reached such lofty levels that even unskilled laborers can earn $100,000 a year. * * * While the industry desperately needs more workers, few are willing to relocate full-time to the sparsely populated rural areas in which the drilling takes place. Many jobs are an hour's drive or more from the nearest supermarket or bar\Temperatures can linger above 100F for days, and the absence of trees means no natural shade for workers pulling 14-houe days.  

"The expenses of maintaining a small community in the middle of the desert can add up

Note:
(a) summary underneath the title in print: Man champs on the Permian Basin are splurging on creature comforts as the battle for oilfield personnel heats up
(b) Unfortunately, the outlines of print and of the online version are similar but there is significant editing. The quotations are from print. There is no need to read the rest (other than the quotations).
(c) United States Remains the World's Top Producer of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hydrocarbons. EIA, US Department of Energy, May 21, 2018
https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=36292
("The United States has been the world's top producer of natural gas since 2009, when US natural gas production surpassed that of Russia, and the world's top producer of petroleum hydrocarbons since 2013, when US production exceeded Saudi Arabia's [which is No 2, somewhat higher than Russia's]. Since 2008, US petroleum and natural gas production has increased by nearly 60%.  For the United States and Russia, total petroleum and natural gas hydrocarbon production, measured in energy content, is almost evenly split between petroleum and natural gas, while Saudi Arabia's production heavily favors petroleum")
(i) The term "measured in energy content" means "British thermal units." See Figure 1 in this press release. But Figure 2 shows the rankings and gaps are similar when measured by barrels a day.
(ii) British thermal unit
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_thermal_unit
(Its counterpart in the metric system is the calorie; 1 BTU = 252 to 253 cal (calories) )
(d) pull (vt): "PERFORM, CARRY OUT  <pull an all-nighter>  <pull guard duty>"
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pull

(4) Peter Martin and Alan Crawford, Xi's Summer of Discontent.

Quote:

"China watchers say studying the workings of the [Chinese[ Communist Party is like trying to review a play by watching only the audience's reaction. By that gauge, signs of upheaval are reverberating around Beijing during what's fast becoming Xi's summer of discontent

"If this is China's moment, [Chinese] officials ask, how is it the new superpower [China] seems so lonely?

"China has begun to ease up on its swagger, starting with the propaganda system. State media were told to downplay the Made in China 2025 industrial initiative to become the world's foremost power in 10 important industries, including artificial intelligence and pharmaceuticals, a plan the US has identified as a key threat. They [state media] were also instructed to avoid talking about China's greatness (the Chinese title of one recent blockbuster movie translates as 'My country is awesome' 厉害了，我的国 [English titleAmazing China]).

"While Xi may have lost some of his ability to inspire confidence among his people, he's more capable than ever of inspiring fear. His anti-corruption campaign has netted more than 1.5 million officials. And there are no outwardly visible signs of organized opposition to him in the party.

Note:
(a) summary underneath the title in print: Months after becoming leader for life, China's president is seeing cracks around his veneer
(b) The term "winter of discontent" came from Shakespeare.
(c) There is no need to read the rest, which is familiar to us.