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
- China’s Population Stalls With Births in 2021 the Lowest in Modern History — The number of newborns fell for a fifth straight year, to 10.62 million, barely outnumbering deaths.
- China GDP Grew 8.1% in 2021, Though Momentum Slowed in Fourth Quarter — China’s GDP grew just 4% in the fourth quarter compared with a year earlier.
- Beijing Reports Omicron Infection Three Weeks Ahead of Winter Olympics — A domestically transmitted case of the highly infectious Covid-19 variant prompts a series of prevention measures.
- Beijing Says International Mail Is Possible Culprit in First Omicron Case — Official says Omicron detected in mail from sender in Canada; researchers say risk of spread from surfaces remains low.
- The Quest to Identify a Westerner Called ‘The Most Famous Face in China’ — The thin, gray-bearded man featured in Chinese mattress ads world-wide carried no name, drawing curiosity, theories—and a surprising denouement.
- Prosecutors Recommend Dropping Case Over China Ties Against MIT Scientist — Possible reversal comes as Justice Department reviews its initiative to counter Chinese government activities in U.S.
- China Probes a Sam’s Club Store Over Food-Safety Issues — Local regulator’s investigation into Walmart-owned store comes as China steps up scrutiny into U.S. retailer.
The Financial Times
- China rate cut: Winter Olympics helps push economy downhill — Beijing’s zero-Covid policy trades GDP growth for international prestige ahead of the Games.
- China’s GDP growth slows as Covid restrictions and property woes hit demand — Central bank cuts lending rate as economy expands 4% year on year in fourth quarter.
- China’s zero-Covid policy challenges manufacturers and supply chains — Lockdowns and restrictions risk causing greater disruption than during earlier waves of the pandemic.
- Zero-Covid policies threaten Hong Kong’s place in the world — Record numbers are leaving and companies report problems recruiting as the city’s pandemic measures and political crackdown bite.
- Chinese food: inflationary climate heralds a new ice age — Frozen products may be the best way for the government to achieve greater food security.
- China and Russia test the limits of EU power — The EU needs to respond to economic coercion or its geopolitical ambitions will be cruelly exposed.
The New York Times
- China Birthrate at Historic Low — China’s population, the world’s largest at 1.4 billion, may soon start shrinking, according to new data. Some experts say it already has.
- China’s Economy Is Slowing, a Worrying Sign for the World — Economic output climbed 4 percent in the last quarter of 2021, slowing from the previous quarter. Growth has faltered as home buyers and consumers become cautious.
- Supply Chain Woes Could Worsen as China Imposes Covid Lockdowns — American manufacturers are worried that China’s zero-tolerance coronavirus policy could throw a wrench in the global conveyor belt for goods this year.
Caixin
- China Reins in Ant’s Yu’e Bao and Other Giant Money Market Funds — CSRC proposed new rules for funds with more than $31.49 billion of assets and 50 million investors, imposing limits aimed at reducing risk.
- In Depth: How China’s Health-Care Mutual Aid Industry Folded in Just Three Years — Shutdown of Ant’s Xiang Hu Bao brings down the curtain on an appealing idea that just wasn’t sustainable as participants inevitably got older and sicker.
- In Depth: China’s Property Slump Pushes Real Estate Agencies to Remake Their Business — The slump in the country’s seemingly invincible market has taken toll on property brokers, which have suffered mass layoffs and falling revenue since the second half of 2021.
- BYD’s $61 Million Chile Lithium Deal Hits the Rocks — Just two days after the deal was sealed, a court has stepped in after appeals from communities in the lithium-rich Atacama region.
South China Morning Post
- Winter Olympics organisers stop ticket sales after Omicron coronavirus variant found in Beijing — Tickets for the Beijing Winter Olympics Games will not be sold to the public and only selected spectators will be invited to attend on supervised trips, event organisers said on Monday.
- China challenges Britain over Huawei ban after reports intelligence services found no security threat — China has challenged the UK to justify its ban on Huawei Technologies amid claims British intelligence had “planted people” in the Chinese telecoms giant and concluded there was no national security threat.
- Tencent’s 2022 strategy indicates a downsizing of vast tech empire to ride out China’s regulatory storm, fuel new growth — Chinese internet giant Tencent Holdings may opt for more divestments and pursue fewer acquisitions this year, according to analysts, in the wake of Beijing’s tightened regulation of the country’s Big Tech companies.
Bloomberg
- China’s Technical EV Specs Are an Interesting Regulatory Insight — From autonomous driving to consumer rights, it pays to read the fine print.
- China Says Rail-Borne Trade With North Korea Has Restarted — China says trade via a railroad link with North Korea has restarted, giving a much-needed boost to Kim Jong Un’s battered economy as the neighbors restored a service Pyongyang cut about a year and a half ago due to pandemic fears.
- Australia’s Opposition Toughens China Stance Ahead of Elections — Australia’s opposition leader Anthony Albanese said the government needs to respond to Beijing in a way that is strong but also diplomatic, toughening his stance on China in the lead up to the 2022 elections.
- China’s $1 Trillion Wealth Fund Loses Quant Trading Team Leader — The team leader for quantitative stocks trading at China’s $1.2 trillion sovereign wealth fund has resigned, joining a growing list of departures among the firm’s investing professionals, according to people familiar with the matter.
Reuters
- China’s digital yuan wallets swell but usage lags — China’s digital currency has debuted on app stores with fanfare, with online wallets for the electronic yuan seeing mass adoption in the two weeks since a public launch, yet its actual use in transactions has been far less impressive.
- Macau casino operators gain billions as govt keeps licences at six, Sands China soars — Shares of Macau’s top casino operators racked up as much as HK$65.53 billion ($8.42 billion) on Monday – or 15% of their market value – as the government of the world’s largest gambling hub retained the limit on casino licences to six.
- Cinda, under Beijing pressure, scraps $944 million investment in Ant unit – sources — China Cinda Asset Management Co Ltd scrapped a deal to buy a 20% stake worth about $944 million in fintech giant Ant Group’s consumer finance arm because of pressure from state authorities, people with knowledge of the matter said.
Other Publications
- Buzzfeed News: This Clothing Company Has Close Ties To Xinjiang, Where Forced Labor Is Rampant — Amid rising tensions and the approaching Beijing Olympics, the US banned Xinjiang cotton last year. But Hugo Boss still took shipments from Esquel, which gins cotton in Xinjiang.
- The Washington Post: In high-profile case against MIT’s Gang Chen, prosecutors seeking to drop charges — Federal prosecutors are expected to soon seek dismissal of charges against a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology accused of failing to disclose research ties to China, according to three people familiar with the matter.
- Associated Press: Beijing to offer Olympic tickets to ‘selected’ spectators — Beijing had already announced that no fans from outside the country would be permitted at the events, and had not offered tickets to the general public.
- Protocol: Will there be China tech IPOs to watch in 2022? — After the DiDi chaos, Chinese companies are cautiously looking to return to the capital market.
