Taken for a ride: why China is leaning on Didi

<p>Just after the ride-hailing giant made a splashy stockmarket debut, Chinese regulators <a href="https://www.economist.com/business/2021/07/05/didis-removal-from-chinas-app-stores-marks-a-growing-crackdown?utm_campaign=the-intelligence&amp;utm_medium=podcast&amp;utm_source=third-party-host&amp;utm_content=show-notes" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">came down hard</a>. Why is the country crimping its tech champions? There is something missing at many American embassies around the world: American ambassadors. We ask why <a href="https://www.economist.com/united-states/2021/06/24/america-says-its-back-but-where-are-its-ambassadors?utm_campaign=the-intelligence&amp;utm_medium=podcast&amp;utm_source=third-party-host&amp;utm_content=show-notes" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">so few</a> are in post, and what risk that poses. And the not-so-simple task of <a href="https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2021/06/21/how-many-oceans-are-there?utm_campaign=the-intelligence&amp;utm_medium=podcast&amp;utm_source=third-party-host&amp;utm_content=show-notes" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">counting</a> the Earth’s oceans.</p><p>For full access to print, digital and audio editions of <em>The Economist</em>, subscribe here <a href="http://www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer</a></p> &#10;&nbsp;<br /><hr><p style='color: grey; font - size: 0.75em; '>See <a style='color: grey; ' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for privacy and opt-out information.</p>