No more upstaging Xi

Welcome to Balance of Power, bringing you the latest in global politics. If you haven’t yet, sign up here.China wants to change how it talks [View in browser]( [Bloomberg]( Welcome to Balance of Power, bringing you the latest in global politics. If you haven’t yet, sign up [here](. China wants to change how it talks to its people. After three decades, Beijing is [canceling a briefing]( by the nation’s premier at the close of its most important annual political meeting. It’s a big decision. The press conference at the National People’s Congress has become an important tradition, providing a rare chance each year for people to see a more candid, human side to the country’s No. 2. Past premier Li Keqiang used the event to joke with reporters and poke fun at his own strong provincial accent. He once even set off a nationwide debate on poverty after complaining that two-fifths of people didn’t earn enough to rent a room in a medium-sized city. His [sudden death]( less than six months ago may have reminded President Xi Jinping that it no longer pays to give even his handpicked deputies an opportunity to upstage him. Li’s passing triggered an outpouring of nostalgia for a different, more open China when the country’s economy was booming and many were feeling richer. No matter how carefully orchestrated the question and answer session has become over the years, the decision to scrap the briefing will cast a pall over the NPC for those already worried about the opacity of policy making — particularly when there’s so much uncertainty over just how China will get to the 5% growth target [expected to be announced tomorrow](. For some, this is the end of an era. The days when a senior official could directly engage with the media on everything from financial markets to minimum wages are firmly behind us. The premier’s role has been diminished and one of the few remaining channels to communicate directly on policy eliminated. That’s an important signal about just how Xi intends to run his government in his third term. — [Rebecca Choong Wilkins]( WATCH: Bloomberg’s Stephen Engle examines the economic priorities at this year’s NPC. Global Must Reads US Vice President Kamala Harris called for a six-week cease-fire [between Israel and Hamas]( as she prepared to meet with Benny Gantz, a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s war cabinet, in Washington today. The White House is facing [increasing political pressure]( from Democratic senators and voters to press for a halt to Israel’s offensive, as the death toll rises and the humanitarian crisis worsens. Palestinians attend prayers in front of the ruins of a mosque in Rafah on Friday. Photographer: Said Khatib/AFP/Getty Images Ukrainian authorities are bracing for a Kremlin-sponsored narrative that aims [to erode public trust]( in President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s democratic legitimacy as his five-year term comes to a close without new elections during wartime. Germany’s defense minister said Russian President Vladimir Putin is looking to divide Kyiv’s allies with a disinformation campaign, after the publication of a [leaked conversation]( about the possible deployment of German long-range missiles in Ukraine. Hard-liners tightened control of Iran’s parliament in elections marked by a record-low turnout, with all candidates requiring approval from an unelected body called the Guardian Council. The participation of just 41% of eligible voters [reflected growing political apathy]( after a crackdown on anti-government protests in 2022 and worsening living conditions under Western sanctions. Shehbaz Sharif faces an even more daunting task than when he first became Pakistan’s prime minister [two years ago](. He’s expected to be sworn in today, sitting [atop a shaky coalition](, needing to renew an International Monetary Fund loan by April and placate a powerful military that once exiled him, all after supporters of his jailed rival Imran Khan won the most seats last month. Mexico’s ruling Morena party candidate, Claudia Sheinbaum, kicked off her campaign for the presidency with a series of welfare proposals that [build on the legacy]( of the popular incumbent, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. Sheinbaum, who leads in polls for the June election, proposed her own aid program for women and school kids among some 100 pledges at her campaign launch in Mexico City’s main square at the weekend. Jeremy Hunt must negotiate a difficult balancing act in his annual budget on Wednesday, [under pressure to deliver]( eye-catching tax cuts to give a pre-election boost to his ailing Conservative Party, yet also hamstrung by the fragility of the UK’s public finances. Swiss voters backed a plan to raise pensions, the first time in the country’s history that social benefits [got an increase]( via plebiscite. Nikki Haley won the Republican primary in the District of Columbia yesterday, giving her [the first victory]( in the nominating contests of 2024 and slowing, albeit only moderately, Donald Trump’s march to the party’s nomination. Washington Dispatch As President Joe Biden prepares for his final State of the Union address before the November election, the US Supreme Court [today may rule]( on whether his likely Republican opponent can be kept off the ballot in Colorado. As Bloomberg’s Greg Stohr reports, the nation’s highest court took the unusual step of adding a new opinion day to its calendar. It never says beforehand what opinions will be issued on a given day, but the justices have taken up the Colorado case on an expedited basis. The state holds its Republican primary tomorrow. The Colorado Supreme Court ruled that Trump was ineligible to appear on the ballot because of his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot. It was the first to bar Trump under the insurrection clause of the Constitution’s 14th Amendment. The court subsequently put its ruling on hold — meaning Trump could appear on primary ballots — while the Supreme Court considers the issue. A state official in Maine and a judge in Illinois have also declared him ineligible, though those decisions also await action by the high court. During an argument session last month, liberal and conservative justices alike questioned whether the Colorado Supreme Court [had the power]( to exclude Trump on the grounds that he engaged in an insurrection. [Sign up for the Washington Edition newsletter]( for more from the US capital and watch Balance of Power at 5pm ET weekdays on Bloomberg Television. Chart of the Day The question of where you work from has become a cultural flashpoint. Nearly four years after pandemic-induced office shutdowns, whether to [work remotely or in the office]( is a source of increasing tension as bosses summon employees back and workers resist the loss of a popular perk. And Finally In 2019, protesters opposing Xi’s encroachment of Hong Kong would boycott Chinese-owned restaurants. Now a record number of its residents are flocking to the neighboring mainland city of Shenzhen for cheap food and a good time, accelerating an integration once rejected by the city’s freedom-loving youth. [Read here]( how Xi’s efforts to crush dissent in Hong Kong have weakened its distinct identity and instilled a new sense of political apathy. Travelers from Hong Kong at the Shenzhen Bay border crossing in Shenzhen, in January 2024. Photographer: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg Thanks to the 22 readers who answered our quiz on Friday and congratulations to Vasuki Shastry, who was the first name India as the country whose prime minister is promoting a resurgence in alternative medicines, touting the practices to a foreign audience. 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