28/05/2020
WASHINGTON/NEW DELHI (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he had offered to mediate a standoff between India and China at the Himalayan border, where soldiers camped out in a high-altitude region have accused each other of trespassing over the disputed border.
“We have informed both India and China that the United States is ready, willing and able to mediate or arbitrate their now raging border dispute,” Trump said in a Twitter post.
The standoff was triggered by India’s construction of roads and air strips in the region as it competes with China’s spreading Belt and Road initiative, involving infrastructure development and investment in dozens of countries, Indian observers said on Tuesday.
Both were digging defences and Chinese trucks have been moving equipment into the area, the officials said, raising concerns about an extended standoff.
There was no immediate response from either India or China to Trump’s offer. Both countries have traditionally opposed any outside involvement in their matters and are unlikely to accept any U.S. mediation, experts said.
China’s ambassador to India, Sun Weidong, struck a conciliatory note, saying the two Asian countries should not let their differences overshadow the broader bilateral relationship.
“We should adhere to the basic judgment that China and India are each other’s opportunities and pose no threat to each other. We need to see each other’s development in a correct way and enhance strategic mutual trust,” he said, speaking in a webinar on China’s experience of fighting COVID-19.
“We should correctly view our differences and never let the differences shadow the overall situation of bilateral cooperation.”
The two countries are engaged in talks to defuse the border crisis, an Indian government source said. “These things take time, but efforts are on at various levels, military commanders as well as diplomats,” the source said.
The Chinese side has been insisting that India stop construction near the Line of Actual Control or the de facto border. India says all the work is being done on its side of the border and that China must pull back its troops.
Trump in January offered to “help” in another Himalayan trouble spot, the disputed region of Kashmir that is at the center of a decades-long quarrel between India and Pakistan.
But the U.S. offer triggered a political storm in India, which has long bristled at any suggestion of third-party involvement in tackling Kashmir which it considers an integral part of the country.
Source: Reuters
Posted in accused, adhere, air strips, ambassador to India, arbitrate, Asian countries, Belt and Road Initiative, bilateral cooperation, bilateral relationship, border, broader, China, Chinese, competes, conciliatory, Construction, countries, COVID-19, de facto border, decades-long, defences, development, differences, digging, diplomats, dispute, disputed, Dozens, equipment, high-altitude region, Himalayan, Himalayan border, India, Indian, indian government, Infrastructure, Investment, involving, judgment, Kashmir, Line of Actual Control, military commanders, moving, New Delhi, note, observers, opportunities, overshadow, Pakistan, quarrel, raging, ready, willing and able, roads, soldiers, spreading, standoff, to mediate, trespassing, trouble spot, trucks, Twitter, U.S. President Donald Trump, Uncategorized, United States, Washington |
Leave a Comment »
27/04/2020
BEIJING/SHANGHAI (Reuters) – China’s Inceptio Technology, a startup developing self-driving trucks, has raised $100 million in its latest funding round from logistics firm GLP, its key strategic investor G7 and other investors, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.
The proceeds from its series A funding round will be used to further develop its technologies and to start commercial trials, said the sources, who declined to be named as they were not authorised to speak to media.
The company, which aims to operate a freight network with autonomous driving trucks in China from 2022, has partnerships with Dongfeng Automobile Co Ltd (600006.SS), Sinotruk Hong Kong Ltd (3808.HK) and Foton (600166.SS).
The two-year-old firm is developing autonomous driving software and an in-car computing system while the truckmakers are responsible for the vehicles’ platforms.
Inceptio declined to comment. G7 and Singapore-based GLP did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Inceptio focuses on level 3 and 4 technologies. A level 3 vehicle will enable drivers to turn their attention away from driving but they still need to take over if the car encounters a problem, while with level 4 technologies, there is no human intervention in most circumstances.
The trucking industry is expected to an earlier adopter of autonomous driving technology compared to passenger vehicle makers as driving on highways is more predictable than on busy city streets.
German automaker Daimler (DAIGn.DE) and U.S. postal giant United Parcel Service Inc (UPS.N) have invested in self-driving trucks.
Source: Reuters
Posted in $100 million, 2022, aims, attention, authorised, autonomous driving, autonomous driving technology, away from, busy, car, China, Chinese, circumstances, city streets, comment, commercial, Company, compared, computing system, DAIMLER (DAIGn.DE), declined, developing, Dongfeng Automobile Co Ltd, drivers, driving, earlier adopter, encounters, expected, firm, focuses, Foton, freight network, funding, funding round, further develop, G7, German automaker, GLP, Highways, human intervention, immediately, in-car, Inceptio Technology, investors, key strategic investor, latest, level 3 and 4, level 3 vehicle, level 4 technologies, logistics firm, Makers, media, most, named, partnerships, passenger vehicle, predictable, problem, proceeds, raised, respond, responsible, round, self-driving truck, self-driving trucks, series A, Sinotruk Hong Kong Ltd, software, sources, speak, start, startup, take over, technologies, to operate, to requests, trials, trucking industry, truckmakers, trucks, turn, two-year-old, U.S. postal giant, Uncategorized, United Parcel Service Inc (UPS.N), used, vehicles’ platforms, while, will enable |
Leave a Comment »
23/04/2020
SHENYANG, April 23 (Xinhua) — With trucks standing bumper to bumper and large cranes loading containers on the train, work returned to normal at a logistics base in northeast China’s Liaoning Province.
The base, where the China-Europe freight trains are set to depart in Shenyang, the provincial capital, has seen stable departures since early April as the novel coronavirus epidemic ebbs away.
With the global supply chain being affected by restrictions in air, land, and port travel due to the global pandemic, China-Europe railway has been playing a more important role, experts say.
“The train was operated by staff in different sections, which means it does not require cross-border personnel health inspections, giving it advantages during the pandemic,” said Shan Jing, an industry insider who wrote a book on China-Europe freight trains.
In March, a total of 809 China-Europe freight trains carrying 73,000 containers were sent across China. Both numbers hit a monthly record.
At the Shenyang logistics base, trains depart to travel through Russia, Belarus, Poland and finally reach Germany in around 18 days. As of April 13, a total of 130 trains carrying 11,200 standard containers had departed from the base.
“The province sends a stable number of five trains each week,” said He Ruofan, a business manager with the Shenyang branch of China Railway Container Transport Corp., Ltd, operator of the trains.
The stable operation has made the route a top choice for many Chinese enterprises, said Yao Xiang, a manager with logistics group Sinotrans’s northeast company.
“Many shipping routes have been canceled, and the rest are more and more expensive amid the epidemic,” said Yao, noting the price for air cargo surged 5 to 10 times the normal price as flights decreased from China to Europe.
With increasing departing trains, returning trains on the route have also been increasing, Yao said.
Among the 130 trains that have been sent from the Shenyang base so far this year, 33 returned, carrying construction materials, car parts, mechanical equipment, and daily products.
“These goods provide supplies to large companies like BMW and Michelin’s Shenyang factories,” Yao said.
Medical supplies have also been sent to hard-hit Europe to fight against the coronavirus pandemic.
As of April 18, a total of 448,000 pieces of medical supplies weighing 1,440 tonnes had been sent to European countries via the route, according to China State Railway Group Company, Ltd.
“China-Europe freight trains have shown great service capabilities during the epidemic,” said Shan, the industry insider. “It serves as a new choice for European enterprises, and I believe more people will come to realize the importance of the route.”
Source: Xinhua
Posted in affected, air, air cargo, April, away, Belarus, BMW, bumper to bumper, canceled, car parts, Carrying, China Railway Container Transport Corp., Ltd, China State Railway Group Company, Ltd, China-Europe freight trains, Construction, containers, Coronavirus pandemic, cranes, dairy products, different, early, ebbs, equipment, Europe, European countries, experts, factories, fight, Germany, global pandemic, global supply chain, help, important role, land, large, Liaoning province, loading, logistics base, materials, mechanical, medical supplies, normal, northeast China's, novel coronavirus epidemic, operated, pieces, playing, Poland, Port, provincial capital, railway, restrictions, route, sections, sent, Shenyang, shipping routes, Sinotrans's, stabilize, stable departures, staff, standing, tonnes, Train, travel, trucks, Uncategorized, weighing |
Leave a Comment »
19/09/2019
CHANGCHUN, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) — High emissions, out-of-date passenger cabs, gas-guzzling — heavy-duty trucks often leave a clunky image in people’s minds.
Yet Jiefang, the first auto brand to come from Changchun-based FAW, the cradle of China’s automotive industry, has reversed the stereotype with its latest J7 trucks.
With a streamlined body and a full-vision cab equipped with a one-piece dashboard, the J7 truck provides enough space for both the driver and passengers to walk freely in the compartment.
Since its launch in late November last year, Jiefang J7 trucks have gained a reputation with its European-level performance and reliability and price advantage over imported trucks.
The Chinese truck maker has developed seven generations of truck products in six decades, with a combined production of over 7 million units.
The first home-grown Jiefang truck rolled off the assembly line three years after FAW broke ground on July 15, 1953, in Changchun, capital of northeast China’s Jilin Province. It was the first motor vehicle produced by China.
Jiefang CA10, the first-generation truck, soon became the main force in China’s road transportation and had various civilian variants such as ambulances, refueling trucks, water tankers, dump trucks and lift trucks.
In its 30 years of production until 1986, CA10 trucks set an output record of 1.28 million units, which was almost half of China’s total production during that period.
Industry insiders say Jiefang is like a totem to the Chinese automotive industry and has nurtured many management and engineering talent for the country.
Hu Hanjie, chairman of the FAW Jiefang Automotive Co., Ltd., said independent innovation never stops at Jiefang, which places a high priority on its technological strategy to ensure a market-leading position.
As some domestic truck manufacturers partner with established global brands to grab market share, Jiefang was all alone. However, it held its R&D forces, core technology and time-honored brand tightly in its hands, Hu added.
The company leads the industry in setting a world-class standard warranty of three years with no mileage limit and has amazed its industry peers with an extended oil drain interval as high as 100,000 km for engines, gearboxes and rear axles of its trucks.
Jiefang also developed many customized truck products to suit multiple road and weather conditions across the country and is exploring new frontiers like self-driving and smart logistics. It plans to put self-driving vehicles into commercial operation on expressway by 2023.
“Jiefang has witnessed and made contributions to China’s development and will have a brighter future as the country prospers,” Hu said.
Source: Xinhua
Posted in ambulances, Changchun, Chinese truck maker, core technology, dump trucks, engines, European-level performance and reliability, FAW Jiefang Automotive Co., Ltd, gearboxes, independent innovation, Jiefang, Jiefang CA10, Jiefang J7 trucks, jilin province, lift trucks, New leap forward, oldest auto brand, R&D forces, rear axles, refueling trucks, road transportation, self-driving vehicles, totem, trucks, Uncategorized, water tankers |
Leave a Comment »
CHINDIA ALERT: You'll be living in their world, very soon 
Chinese self-driving truck startup Inceptio raises $100 million – sources
BEIJING/SHANGHAI (Reuters) – China’s Inceptio Technology, a startup developing self-driving trucks, has raised $100 million in its latest funding round from logistics firm GLP, its key strategic investor G7 and other investors, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.
The proceeds from its series A funding round will be used to further develop its technologies and to start commercial trials, said the sources, who declined to be named as they were not authorised to speak to media.
The company, which aims to operate a freight network with autonomous driving trucks in China from 2022, has partnerships with Dongfeng Automobile Co Ltd (600006.SS), Sinotruk Hong Kong Ltd (3808.HK) and Foton (600166.SS).
The two-year-old firm is developing autonomous driving software and an in-car computing system while the truckmakers are responsible for the vehicles’ platforms.
Inceptio declined to comment. G7 and Singapore-based GLP did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Inceptio focuses on level 3 and 4 technologies. A level 3 vehicle will enable drivers to turn their attention away from driving but they still need to take over if the car encounters a problem, while with level 4 technologies, there is no human intervention in most circumstances.
The trucking industry is expected to an earlier adopter of autonomous driving technology compared to passenger vehicle makers as driving on highways is more predictable than on busy city streets.
German automaker Daimler (DAIGn.DE) and U.S. postal giant United Parcel Service Inc (UPS.N) have invested in self-driving trucks.
Source: Reuters
Posted in $100 million, 2022, aims, attention, authorised, autonomous driving, autonomous driving technology, away from, busy, car, China, Chinese, circumstances, city streets, comment, commercial, Company, compared, computing system, DAIMLER (DAIGn.DE), declined, developing, Dongfeng Automobile Co Ltd, drivers, driving, earlier adopter, encounters, expected, firm, focuses, Foton, freight network, funding, funding round, further develop, G7, German automaker, GLP, Highways, human intervention, immediately, in-car, Inceptio Technology, investors, key strategic investor, latest, level 3 and 4, level 3 vehicle, level 4 technologies, logistics firm, Makers, media, most, named, partnerships, passenger vehicle, predictable, problem, proceeds, raised, respond, responsible, round, self-driving truck, self-driving trucks, series A, Sinotruk Hong Kong Ltd, software, sources, speak, start, startup, take over, technologies, to operate, to requests, trials, trucking industry, truckmakers, trucks, turn, two-year-old, U.S. postal giant, Uncategorized, United Parcel Service Inc (UPS.N), used, vehicles’ platforms, while, will enable | Leave a Comment »