Paul Donovan, chief economist of UBS, published insulting remarks on his official website, caused strong dissatisfaction in China's financial circles and netizens.
According to an earlier screenshot from netizens, the report on inflation was released on June 12. Titled "Inflation is Very Normal," the author is Paul Donovan, chief economist who graduated from Oxford University and worked at UBS for 26 years.
Screenshot via LinkedIn
Donovan is the chief economist at UBS Global Wealth Management and is responsible for identifying key economic trends and explaining them, according to his LinkedIn page. He has been working at UBS for more than 26 years. Donovan is the chief economist at UBS Global Wealth Management, and according to his LinkedIn page, he is responsible for forecasting and interpreting key economic trends. He has been with UBS for over 26 years.
▲ Chinese netizens call for official apology from UBS after it issues racist report on China’s inflation (via Global Times)
The main text of the article lists the inflation situation in the United States, China and Japan in turn. The first paragraph writes that inflation in the United States is a normal situation; the third paragraph is written in Japan in terms of machine tool production.
And this part of the middle of China is a bit uncomfortable to read. The first is to say that China's inflation is caused by swine fever. Next, ask yourself: Is there a relationship? "It matters if you are a Chinese pig."
Screenshot via UBS
Some netizens think that if you are a very common hypothetical sentence form, here is the Chinese pig and not a person, there is no need for glass heart.
Screenshot via Weibo
But more netizens said that a little culture can know the racial connotation behind the phrase "Chinese pig", which is a clear reference to mulberry scolding. And the use of such terms in serious reports is even more inappropriate.
More netizens angrily said that UBS should be added to the "unreliable entity list":
Foreign netizens also noticed the incident, quoting this sentence from UBS in the report and tweeting.
Someone commented:
UBS, once again insulting the whole country...
That's the world-class view...
At present, the report has been withdrawn from the official website of UBS.
However, you can still see the cache address by searching directly for the title.
Screenshot via Google
The original text can also be seen on the world-news-monitor.com website:
截图 via world-news-monitor
As of press time, UBS has not responded to global times' request for comment.
UBS, the first fully licensed foreign-invested securities firm in China, has become the first foreign bank to increase its stake to gain majority control of a securities joint venture in China in December 2018. In December 2018, UBS became the first foreign securities company to obtain a full license in China, becoming the first foreign bank to increase its stake and obtain a majority stake in a Chinese securities joint venture. The Switzerland-based bank earlier received approval from the China Securities Regulatory Commission to increase its shareholding in its securities joint venture in China, and UBS Securities Co has increased its shareholding from 24.99 percent to 51 percent. The Swiss-based bank also received early approval from the Securities Regulatory Commission to increase its stake in a securities joint venture in China. UBS Securities has increased its shareholding from 24.99% to 51%.
Just a second before the homepage was about to be released, UBS sent an apology statement, the full text of which is as follows:
We apologize unreservedly for any misunderstanding caused by these innocently intended comments by Paul Donovan. We have removed the audio comment from circulation. To be clear, this comment was about inflation and Chinese consumer prices rising, which was driven by higher prices for pork.
We sincerely apologize for any misunderstanding caused by Paul Donovan's unintentional comments. To be clear, this comment is about inflation brought about by rising pork prices and rising chinese consumer prices.
In addition, UBS's public relations department also revealed that Paul Donovan would later record an audio of an apology.
Do you think it is the netizens who have a glass heart, or that this economist really has a tendency to insult China?
Global Times reporters Zhao Jueheng, Zhang Hongpei, Chen Qingqing
Source: Global Times, UBS, Weibo, Twitter
Integration: A Jun