China. A puzzle wrapped in an enigma surrounded by mystery ? ( As someone said once of something else.) Actually one of the changing realities is that more and more Chinese are travelling here so the opportunity to get some sort of direct insight what China really is thinking is actually increasing. As with almost all Chinese statistics the numbers in this area - and the rate of change - are pretty staggering

Nothing certain, they say - except death and taxes. If the future were more clear we would plan and prepare better wouldn't we ? Well here's a racing certainty UK plc should be considering.

So, lets just check that I've got this right, can we ?

The main outcome of the Budget is that retired people have had their pasty allowance reduced but to get ahead of the consequences of this change they are besieging service stations to stock up with said comestibles and that's what is causing all the queues ?

No ?

Reports back from Cannes reveal that England's cities mademuch of the need to boost global reach in their MIPIM pitches. Birmingham launched a strategy for securing investment from the unimaginably deep pockets of sovereign wealth funds in the middle and far east. All excellent stuff. The issue of course is that new world of globalisation is not a two way street - more an every which way street. Maybe the waywardness and unpredictability of this new world is nowhere better illustrated than with news of a $1.85 billion Chinese investment proposed for Athlone

Lord Adonis speaking at this week's debate on the Elected Mayor issue at the University of Birmingham made much of evidence from across the rest of the world of the vital significance of mayoral powers. He even observed that the next leader of China was likely to be a former mayor of Shanghai. A brief excursion into the thickets of Chinese local government s might just be instructive.

"It's none of your bloody business!" No - not you - didn't mean to offend. Just feeing mildly irritated by the tone of the new Start up Britain campaign. The strap line that runs 'There's a business in everyone. What's the business in you?' And (apart from sounding a little less than grammatical - should it be 'Which is the business in you ?' murmurs a passing pedant) it seems to beg for the surly reply I offered above, don't you think ?

Interest in China among media and commentators accelerates rather than abating. There are those held in awe by the economic 'miracle' and others emphatic that the whole thing teters on the verge of collapse under its own Internal contradictions. And whether the truth lies at one end of this spectrum of opinion or the other - or somewhere in between - what is the real and lasting implication of it all for us

Travel - we are regularly reminded - broadens the mind. Other parts may also be broadened. Notwithstanding the generosity of one's hosts a business trip abroad involves a certain amount of time in the hotel room and the impact of jet lag can mean sitting into the small hours seeking sleep with only the TV for company. In this way one's base may be broadened

Beijing seems almost ablaze at the moment with red and gold everywhere. The City is gearing up for the Spring Festival with Chinese New Year itself falling on Monday 23rd January. The colours symbolise the key things you'd probably want any New Year to bring - red for happiness and gold for prosperity. As you'll have worked out if you've seen some of the recent HSBC television advertising, Spring Festival is also a time for gifts - in red (and gold) envelopes. The restaurants are crowded with office and other parties and with people bearing armfuls of parcels all wrapped in red and gold. (There's a bit of a kicker in this tradition but we'll come to that in a moment.)

With regard to wealth and happiness though it seems that almost all of the rest of the world is looking in this direction for a gift in 2012. With China having largely kept the global economy afloat for a couple of years, the burning question is about a 'soft-ish landing' as their authorities try to curb credit availability and inflation after letting rip a little post 2008. The bite is fiercest in the property sector and in local government. City authorities as the principal land owners took advantage of a property sector flush with credit to dispose of land and initiate large scale infrastructure projects. These seem to be located at various points between the vital and the pure vanity. As the central bank tightened credit through 2010 a familiar tale of woe has emerged in the property sector, with prices falling, loans not performing, property companies going under and banks threatened.

The announcement of the final route for the HS2 line from London the Birmingham does indicate that the coalition Government is willing to take some big strategic decisions - locally, relief that the decision has been made is clear and the potential for job creation and associated investment is heartening - even if these are all some distance in the future