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.
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The Wall Street Journal
- Student’s Death in China Spurs Questions About Surveillance — Social-media posts demanding that local authorities release video footage set off outrage online.
- Alibaba Posts First Loss Since Going Public After Antitrust Fine — Chinese e-commerce company says it will invest future profits into warding off competition.
The Financial Times
- Ride-hailing companies become new target of Chinese regulators — Groups warned against price fixing and monopolising data ahead of expected IPO by Didi Chuxing.
- Iron ore sinks from record high on concerns over China crackdown — Authorities take steps to cool rally in prices for important steel-making ingredient.
- Chinese companies’ dollar bonds hit as Beijing tightens credit — Concerns grow among offshore investors as more than $100bn in debts due this year.
- Cross-border deals need broad skills in time of trade war and pandemic — The US-China tariff tensions and remote working made negotiations delicate.
The New York Times
- China’s Ambitious Plans in Space: The Moon, Mars and Beyond — An upcoming Mars landing is one of many high-profile missions on the country’s schedule as it seeks to challenge American dominance of space exploration.
Caixin
- U.S. Audit Watchdog Moves Closer to Enforcing Law That Could See Chinese Firms Delisted — Proposed rules would make it easier to determine whether regulators have been unable to complete an audit.
- TikTok Owner Drops Alibaba Cloud Outside China — ByteDance’s decision led to sharp slowdown in revenue growth for one of the e-commerce giant’s most promising newer businesses in its latest reporting quarter.
- China Rips 90 Apps From App Stores for Data Violations — Top telecom regulator cites violations of users’ rights in ongoing crackdown on tech companies’ handling of user data.
- China Tells SOEs to Inspect Overseas Compliance Risks — Government-owned businesses face increased scrutiny and sanctions in the U.S. and elsewhere, prompting SASAC order.
- Tesla Wannabe Xpeng Reports Shrinking Losses as Deliveries Explode — Tesla rival Xpeng saw losses narrow in the first quarter as it notched up strong gains in deliveries, signaling that the Chinese startup is gaining a solid foothold in the world’s largest market for new-energy vehicles.
South China Morning Post
- India’s Covid-19 drug makers see Chinese raw material prices soar — India’s drug manufacturers have seen the price of some raw materials they import from China skyrocket in recent weeks, industry groups say, as the country struggles to contain a second wave of Covid-19.
- China’s latest population data revealed: a visual explainer — China’s population growth is slowing, with families shrinking and fertility rates falling.
Bloomberg
- Hong Kong Freezes Jimmy Lai’s Assets, Citing Security Law — Hong Kong will freeze the assets of media tycoon and pro-democracy activist Jimmy Lai under its controversial national security law, the latest move to crack down one of the prominent opposition figures.
- China Loan at Risk as Nigeria Faces New Claim Over Power Deal — A Nigerian company that lost out on a contract to build a multibillion-dollar hydropower plant has filed a $400 million arbitration claim against the nation’s government, further hampering its plans to access Chinese financing for the project.
- China Vows Retaliation Against Journalists Unless U.S. Relents — China threatened further retaliation against U.S. journalists, in a sign of growing frustration with the Biden administration over a high-profile diplomatic dispute.
- JD Logistics $3.5 Billion IPO Said to Draw SoftBank, Temasek — JD Logistics Inc. has attracted SoftBank Vision Fund and Temasek Holdings Pte as cornerstone investors in its Hong Kong initial public offering, people with knowledge of the matter said, as the warehousing and shipping firm is set to kick off one of the year’s biggest share sales in the city.
- China Orders Didi, Meituan to Rectify Ride-Hailing Abuses — China’s antitrust watchdog ordered Didi Chuxing, Meituan and eight other leaders in on-demand transport to halt practices from arbitrary price hikes to unfair treatment of drivers, expanding a crackdown on the country’s internet giants.
- Iron Ore Tumbles as China Steel Hub Warns Mills to Control Surge — Iron ore’s slump from a record accelerated as China ramps up efforts to control a dizzying surge in prices.
Reuters
- Morgan Stanley cautions against Chinese ADRs as delisting looms — Morgan Stanley on Friday cautioned on Friday against exposure to U.S.-listed Chinese tech firms after the U.S. accounting watchdog moved a step closer to removing non-compliant Chinese companies from American exchanges.
- U.S. will not leave Australia alone to face China coercion -Blinken — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Thursday that the United States would not leave Australia alone in the face of economic coercion from China, and that such behavior toward U.S. allies would hamper improvement in U.S.-Sino relations.
Other Publications
- AP News: US vows to stand by ally Australia against China — The Biden administration vowed Thursday to stand by Australia in its worsening trade and other disputes with China.
- POLITICO: U.S. diplomats: Send vaccine overseas now or China, Russia will win out — Exasperation among diplomats reflects global pressure on the U.S. to begin sharing some of its Covid-19 vaccines.
- Axios: By the numbers: How countries are faring on COVID vaccinations — About 150 million vaccine doses were administered globally over the past week, the highest weekly total yet and a jump from 130 million last week.
- Foreign Policy: Poll: Biden Gets High Marks for Foreign Policy — A survey of academics shows early and overwhelming support for the U.S. president, but he will be tested by China, Russia, and national security issues.
- Nikkei Asian Review: The right way to confront China — Biden administration should show world why it is better to partner with US.
- Nikkei Asian Review: China replaces Shenzhen leaders as housing prices soar — Overheated real estate market risks keeping companies and workers away from tech hub.
- Nikkei Asian Review: US won’t leave Australia alone to face China: Blinken — Beijing’s economic bullying of allies will harm Sino-American relations, secretary says.
- Economist: Time to fix the way governments tax multinational companies — The answer lies in reducing incentives to shift profits to havens.
- Economist: The coming global economic boom could have a sting in the tail — Supply shortages are acute in America.
- Economist: China’s football troubles reflect broader issues within the economy — Slow growth and politics take their toll.
- Economist: Why more young Chinese want to be civil servants — They are looking for security in a volatile time.
- Economist: China is in danger of being humiliated at the winter Olympics — Its ice-hockey team has been drawn against Canada and America.
