Candid assessments of the Chinese and global economic environments are rare from leading mainland figures. China’s sustained economic strength is the message in government statements and the trade war with the United States is portrayed as a challenge that can be overcome. Huawei founder Ren Zhengfei’s memo to staff painting a gloomy picture of a world heading into recession has therefore garnered wide online interest. There is good reason; his call for cautious spending is much-needed in such uncertain times. The message was for internal distribution within Huawei, not public consumption. But given the challenging economic environment the mainland and…