Something Crosses My Mind
by Wang Xiaoni
(translated by Eleanor Goodman)
CU Press

The cover image by Xu Bing of Chinese poet Wang Xiaoni's new collection, Something Crosses My Mind, shows fields of crops - a hint at what's within.

Descriptions of nature and agriculture permeate this collection, which resonates with a beautiful, powerful simplicity. Water buffalo, oxen, wheat, and "rice-gleaner[s] a bent to the ground" ( November's Rice-Gleaners) are the stuff of these pages. But then Wang spent seven years as a labourer in the countryside during the Cultural Revolution.

China’s shop rents have slid back to 2018 levels as subdued consumer spending continues to weigh on the retail sector, with analysts expecting the pressure to persist for another one to two years.

In the second half of 2025, average rents across 100 major commercial streets in 15 key mainland cities fell to 24 yuan (US$3.50) per square metre per day — the lowest level since the second half of 2018 — according to a report published on Monday by independent real estate research firm China Index Academy.

The pace of decline accelerated compared with the first half of the year, with rents slipping 0.8 per cent for 2025 overall, a steeper fall than in 2024.

“Slower growth in catering revenue, compounded by competition from high-quality shopping malls, has put most commercial streets under pressure and pushed rents lower,” the academy said.

“I think rents will remain under pressure over the next year or two … unless the economic outlook improves,” said Raymond Cheng, an independent property analyst.

Chinese consumers have been spending cautiously and saving more amid uncertain job prospects and a prolonged property downturn that has eroded household wealth tied up in real estate.