Good Morning. Welcome to The Wire’s daily news roundup. Each day, our staff gathers the top China business, finance, and economics headlines from a selection of the world’s leading news organizations.
The Wall Street Journal
- China’s Auto Champion Geely Will Rev Up Portfolios — As China’s car market grows for the first time in years, its top homegrown auto brand—planning to merge with Volvo Cars—stands to benefit.
- Chinese Home Buyers Paid Huge Deposits but Now Worry They’ll Be Left With Nothing — Financial stress at an upmarket developer is rattling Chinese families who paid big deposits for unbuilt homes—showing the risks in presales, one of the sector’s favorite funding tools.
- Jack Ma’s Ant Group Pushes Ahead With ‘Project Star’ Listing Plans; Investors See Big IPO Gains — When Ant Group goes public later this year, the Chinese financial-technology behemoth will likely earn a stratospheric market valuation that would place it at the top of companies listing globally for the first time.
- Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg Stoked Washington’s Fears About TikTok — Mark Zuckerberg emphasized that Chinese internet companies posed a threat as he worked to fend off U.S. regulation of Facebook.
- Lawsuit Claims U.S. WeChat Ban Is Unconstitutional — A users group that says it isn’t affiliated with Tencent, the popular app’s Chinese owner, filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration seeking to block an executive order that would bar transactions with WeChat.
The Financial Times
- Chinese managers apply to launch first Hang Seng Tech index ETFs — The new index includes Chinese tech giants such as Tencent, Alibaba and Meituan.
- Taiwan’s ‘bandit phone king’ hit by US crackdown on Huawei — Tsai Ming-kai’s MediaTek among chipmakers left reeling by ban on sales to Chinese group.
- Huawei and ZTE slow down China 5G rollout as US curbs start to bite — ‘De-Americanisation’ adds to Chinese carriers’ cautious investment stance.
- Learning from China’s unequal recovery — Beijing has focused more on helping businesses than workers.
- US-China: is Huawei ‘too big to fail’? — Washington’s latest sanctions have been likened to a ‘death sentence’ on the telecoms group but some say that is premature.
The New York Times
- TikTok to Challenge Trump Administration Over Executive Order — The popular video app, which is owned by a Chinese internet company, said it had been deprived of due process when President Trump moved to block it in the United States.
Caixin
- China Is Approaching Its Limit on Bad Small Business Loans — Banking regulator says value of outstanding nonperforming loans to small businesses rose 9.25% to 400 billion yuan over the first half.
- In Depth: How Chinese Developers Became Entangled in LA Bribery Case — Billionaire Huang Wei’s Shenzhen New World Group and Yuan Fuer’s Shenzhen Hazens allegedly paid millions of dollars to indicted LA Councilman Jose Huizar.
- Ant Group Expected to File for Blockbuster HK IPO Next Week — Fintech unit of Alibaba and parent of Alipay plans to file soon for dual listing in Shanghai with offering set for September or October and likely to raise around $30 billion.
- China PBOC’s Fund to Become Huishang Bank’s 2nd-Largest Shareholder — Deposit Insurance Fund will inject $1.28 billion into Hong Kong-listed Huishang, which took over assets of failed Baoshang Bank in regulatory cleanup of Tomorrow Holding debacle.
- As China Looks to Improve Food Security, Wheat Imports More Than Double — Purchases of the staple grain from overseas in the first seven months jumped 116% to 4.28 million tons.
- China’s Busiest Coal Railway Line Suffers Second Derailment in Seven Days — Four cars of a train on the Daqin line went off the tracks due to heavy rains in Hebei province.
- Meituan Dianping Reports Better-Than-Expected Earnings — Chinese food delivery platform’s second-quarter sales rose 8.9% while profit more than doubled amid gradual recovery from effects of pandemic shutdowns.
- Pinduoduo Stock Tumbles After Mixed Earning Report — Second-quarter loss narrowed to the smallest since the Chinese e-commerce site went public in 2018, but revenue gain missed Wall Street estimates.
- Online Educator Koolearn’s Generosity Goes Unappreciated by Investors — Online learning may be all the rage in China during these Covid-19 times. But cutthroat competition has meant that it’s hardly a lucrative pastime for the bumper crop of companies offering such services.
- 360 Finance Posts Rosy Quarterly Earnings — Chinese digital consumer finance firm 360 Finance reported that second-quarter revenues ballooned 50% year-on-year to 3.3 billion yuan ($473 million).
South China Morning Post
- China working with Azerbaijan on belt and road transport route even as Baku restricts investment — China is actively pursuing investment in Azerbaijan through the Belt and Road Initiative to take advantage of its strategic position in central Asia, experts said, even as Baku maintains rigid limits on foreign capital inflows, thwarting Chinese efforts to invest in the service sector.
- Rise of Chinese AI and quantum computing threatens American military tech, says report for US Congress — The days of the PLA lagging well behind the US in military technology are long gone, says analyst. However, China’s strength decreases the further the conflict arena is from the mainland.
- China’s banks must innovate to help small businesses weather ‘complex and severe’ economic environment — People’s Bank of China governor Yi Gang has urged banks to support smaller companies through innovations in financial services and products to help nurse them through the “complex and severe” economic situation facing the country.
- Retailers suspend Ring Fit Adventure pre-orders in China the day after sales started for the hit Nintendo Switch game — The hit Nintendo Switch game Ring Fit Adventure is finally available in China, but the country’s largest e-commerce platforms suspended pre-orders less than two days after pre-orders started. The game went up for pre-order at midnight on Thursday, but the option was removed the following day.
- Hong Kong events industry pleads for a lifeline as pandemic wipes out trade shows, putting thousands of jobs at risk — Exhibition planner Joe Wong Chu-kong’s heart sank when the annual Hong Kong Book Fair was cancelled two days before it was due to open last month.
- China to use Yangtze River Delta development to showcase ‘dual circulation’ economic strategy — Chinese President Xi Jinping has vowed to use a development plan for the prosperous Yangtze River Delta region to showcase his “dual-circulation” strategy, which will focus on making the domestic economy more resilient while continuing to support exports.
- Taiwanese plane maker AIDC to open region’s first F-16 fighter jet centre with Lockheed Martin — A Taiwanese plane maker will on Friday open a maintenance centre for F-16 fighter jets in collaboration with US defence contractor Lockheed Martin, the first such facility in the Indo-Pacific, as tensions across the Taiwan Strait remain high.
- US-China relations: Beijing condemns financial sanctions on Hong Kong — China’s banking and insurance regulator has declared the United States’ financial sanctions on Hong Kong organisations and officials accused of eroding the city’s autonomy as “lacking legality”.
- Hong Kong’s Citybus, New World First Bus sold for HK$3.2 billion to consortium led by private equity fund — Infrastructure firm NWS Holdings has agreed to sell one of Hong Kong’s largest franchised bus operations – Citybus and New World First Bus – for HK$3.2 billion (US$410.2 million), saying the objective of the deal is to save jobs in a coronavirus-hit business environment.
- US authorities give Hong Kong exporters some breathing room over switch to ‘Made-in-China’ labels — Exporters sending goods made in Hong Kong to the United States will be allowed a longer transition period for changing labels to “Made in China”, according to authorities.
- Defaults in China’s US$4.1 trillion corporate bond market could hit record high this year as recovery remains fragile — China’s fragile economic recovery is ushering in a dangerous new phase for the nation’s US$4.1 trillion corporate bond market.
- China has most of world’s biggest brokerages as deregulation, stock rally, merger prospect fuel upsurge — China now boasts more of the world’s top investment banks than any other country, as a slew of reforms aimed at deregulating the sector, a surge in share prices and hope of industry consolidation send market capitalisations soaring.
Bloomberg
- China Risk May Overshadow Emerging Markets Eyeing Vaccine Hopes — The final week of August may prove key for emerging markets attempting to erase this year’s losses as investors fret that rising U.S.-China tension will overshadow optimism about vaccine developments.
- Trump Scrutiny Stymies China-Focused Venture Fundraising — The Trump administration’s increased scrutiny of college endowments and pension funds backing Chinese firms is creating more roadblocks for venture funds looking for the next big tech winner.
- Hong Kong Stocks Climb on Report Virus Cases in Single Digits — Shares of Hong Kong-based companies climbed, with a gauge reaching its highest in five months, after local media reported the number of new coronavirus cases fell to single digits for the first time since July.
- Tencent Said to Near Deal to Take Gaming Firm Leyou Private — Tencent Holdings Ltd. is close to taking Leyou Technologies Holdings Ltd. private in a deal that would value the Chinese gaming firm at about $1.3 billion, according to people familiar with the matter.
- Debutant Soars 2,932% on China’s Already Sizzling Tech Board — A medical instrument manufacturer surged as much as 2,932% on its debut on China’s ChiNext board on Monday, among a flood of new offerings trading under revamped rules that remove daily price limits for new stocks.
- U.S. Order on H.K. Goods Labeled ‘Uncivilized’ by Official — The pending U.S. order to change the labeling on goods manufactured in Hong Kong to say “Made in China” is unreasonable and uncivilized, said Edward Yau, the city’s commerce and economic development secretary.
- China Investors Predict Record Defaults in Risky End to 2020 — China’s fragile economic recovery is ushering in a dangerous new phase for the nation’s $4.1 trillion corporate bond market.
- EM Review: Stock Rally Paused as Fed, Trade Weigh on Sentiment — A month-long rally in emerging-market stocks came to a halt last week as the Federal Reserve expressed concern about the path of the recovery, while renewed tension between the U.S. and China weighed on risk appetite. Even so, signs of progress toward a coronavirus vaccine limited declines. Developing-nation currencies and bonds were mixed.
- Alibaba Investors Swap U.S.-Listed Shares for Hong Kong — Several of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.’s biggest investors have converted billions of dollars in U.S. shares for Hong Kong stock in part to avoid potential U.S. sanctions and de-listings of major Chinese technology companies.
- As World Wavers on Free Trade, Africa Embraces It: QuickTake — Amid trade tensions between the U.S., China and Europe, and the U.K.’s fraught departure from the European Union, African leaders are moving in the opposite direction to establish the world’s largest free-trade zone.
- Chinese Coal Miner to Make Unusual Foray Into Solar Production — Mid-tier Chinese coal miner Shanxi Coal International Energy Group is planning a significant investment in the competing business of making high-tech solar power cells.
- China’s Crypto Currency May Challenge U.S. Dollar Peg in Hong Kong — Major battle in the U.S.-China financial cold war could be fought over a decades-old currency peg.
- Trump Team Reassures Apple, Others on Using WeChat in China — The Trump administration is privately seeking to reassure U.S. companies including Apple Inc. that they can still do business with the WeChat messaging app in China, according to several people familiar with the matter, two weeks after President Donald Trump ordered a U.S. ban on the Chinese-owned service.
Reuters
- China will step up technology innovation to drive growth: President Xi — China will step up technology innovation to drive high-quality growth through mobilizing national resources and bringing in world class research teams, President Xi Jinping said on Monday, according to the state TV.
- Exclusive: Foxconn, other Asian firms consider Mexico factories as China risks grow — Taiwan-based electronics manufacturers Foxconn and Pegatron are among companies eyeing new factories in Mexico, people with direct knowledge of the matter said, as the U.S.-China trade war and coronavirus pandemic prompt firms to reexamine global supply chains.
- Chinese banks to post first first-half profit drop in over a decade amid pandemic pain — Some of China’s largest banks are set to post their first drop in first-half profits since the global financial crisis, hit by a surge in bad debt and higher loan-loss provisions due to the coronavirus pandemic, analysts and official data indicate.
- China plans new real estate financing rules — China will institute new rules in real estate financing, its central bank said on Sunday.
- China approves BlackRock, Temasek and CCB joint wealth venture — China has approved a wealth management joint venture between U.S. asset manager BlackRock Inc , Singapore state investor Temasek Holdings (Pte) Ltd and China Construction Bank Corp (CCB) , as China gradually opens up its financial sector to international firms.
- China’s unlicensed asset management firms still a threat, central bank executive says — Some unlicensed asset management companies are still operating in China, causing a “serious threat to financial stability”, a top official of China’s central bank on Saturday.
- Chinese EV maker XPeng looks to raise up to $1.11 billion in U.S. IPO — Chinese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer XPeng Inc said it hopes to raise up to $1.11 billion in its initial public offering (IPO) in New York, seeking to ride the enthusiasm for EVs even as U.S.-China relations remain strained.
Xinhua
- Feature: Chinese restaurant adjusts to outdoor dining in COVID-19 pandemic — “The restaurant’s turnover is only two to three percent of what it was before the COVID-19 pandemic. Rent, utilities and staff salaries have to be paid as usual,” Chen Shanzhuang, owner of a Chinese restaurant named Golden Imperial Palace in New York City, told Xinhua.
- Japanese convenience store brands eager to tap potential of China market — Japanese convenience store chains are bullish about the Chinese market and seek to adjust their business strategies to better meet the evolving demands of Chinese consumers.
- Xinhua Headlines: China’s booming duty-free market spurs luxury consumption — China’s duty-free retail market possesses huge potential as people’s consumption capacity has increased amid widening market scope. Duty-free stores provide more channels and opportunities for international brands to enjoy the dividends in China’s big market.
- Interview: China contributes significantly to world economy amid COVID-19 pandemic: economist — China’s contributions to the world economy have proven significant amid the COVID-19 pandemic, a leading Bangladeshi economist told Xinhua in a recent interview.
- China approves 7 new IPO applications — China’s top securities regulator has approved the initial public offering (IPO) applications of seven companies.
- China greenlights two sci-tech innovation IPOs — China’s securities regulator has approved the registration for the initial public offerings (IPOs) of two companies on the science and technology innovation board.
- China’s consumer finance firms report growing client base — China’s consumer finance firms reported a steady expansion in their client base as small-sum and convenient loans continued to gain popularity, according to an industry report.
- Guangdong carbon market closes higher — Carbon emissions allowances closed at 28.12 yuan (4.07 U.S. dollars) per tonne Friday, 0.07 percent up from Thursday, at China Emissions Exchange (Guangzhou), the largest local carbon market in China.
- Aussie miner Fortescue defies global pandemic to post record profit — Australian mining giant, Fortescue Metals Group, posted a record profit for the previous financial year, on the back of sustained demand from Chinese buyers throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the company revealed Monday.
Other Publications
- Nikkei Asian Review: China locks onto Australian farm imports as relations fray — China has further restricted imports of Australian agricultural products as bilateral relations deteriorate in the wake of Australia’s call for an independent investigation into the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Nikkei Asian Review: Reliance on Chinese protective gear soars in pandemic’s wake — Nation’s share tops 80% of global imports despite efforts to break dependence.
- Nikkei Asian Review: China’s flooding slams rare earth, fertilizer and other industries — Weeks of flooding along the Yangtze River, China’s longest waterway, has crippled commodity production, weighing on an economy that has been shaking off the coronavirus downturn.
- Foreign Policy: Chinese Acquisitions of Western Firms Threaten National Security — If the invisible hand won’t produce buyers at home, governments will need to step in.
