David Rennie joined The Economist in 2007 as European Union correspondent and Charlemagne columnist, based in Brussels. From July 2010 to July 2012 he was British political editor and author of the Bagehot column, based in London. In the summer of 2012 he moved to Washington DC. He was Lexington columnist 2012-17, and Washington bureau chief 2013-2018. In May 2018 he moved to China as Beijing bureau chief and launched the Chaguan column on China in September 2018. He is the co-host, with Alice Su, of the Drum Tower podcast, launched in late 2022.

Previously he was on the foreign staff of the Daily Telegraph, with postings in Sydney (1998), Beijing (1998 to 2002), Washington DC (2002-05) and Brussels (2005-07). From 2006 until he joined The Economist, he was also a contributing editor of the Spectator magazine. He worked for the Daily Telegraph in London (1996-98), and the Evening Standard (1992-96). He won the 2010 UACES/Thomson Reuters “Reporting Europe” award. The Asia Society awarded the 2023 Osborn Elliott Prize for Excellence in Journalism on Asia to David Rennie and Sue-Lin Wong for their coverage of China. David Rennie is a contributing panelist on “1A”, NPR’s daily news talk programme, based at WAMU in Washington DC.

Mattie Bekink is responsible for the Economist Intelligence Corporate Network’s China strategy, including programme development and client engagement across China.

Ms Bekink has extensive experience in the public, private and policy sectors. Prior to joining The Economist Group, she was the Executive Director of the Fulbright Commission in the Netherlands. She also ran an eponymous consulting business, advising businesses, universities and non-profit organisations on China policy, strategy, public affairs, and CSR. Ms Bekink practiced law at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, has worked with the US-Asia Law Initiative at NYU Law School and the American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative China Program, and served in the legal department at General Motors China.

Ms Bekink has a BA in International Relations from Stanford University and a JD from the Georgetown University Law Center.

Weisi Xie is the Shanghai Director at the Economist Intelligence Corporate Network (EICN), and is responsible for engaging with top executives in the region on key economic and political issues as well as industry-specific analysis to support their businesses in the dynamic Chinese market.

Mr. Xie served as an Assistant Professor of Economics at Shanghai Jiao Tong University before joining EICN. As a trained trade economist, his teaching and research mainly focused on the fields of international trade, industrial economics and economic development, with a particular emphasis on China’s economy in a global perspective. He also possesses extensive expertise in the non-profit sector through work experience with think tanks and international organizations, including the Shanghai Institute for National Economy and the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Geneva, Switzerland, where he contributed to multiple government counseling projects and policy studies. His work has appeared in leading academic journals as well as major economic policy publications.

Mr. Xie has a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Colorado at Boulder, and a B.A. in International Business from Southwestern University of Finance and Economics.