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
- As Pelosi Leaves Taiwan, China’s Military Looms Larger — Drills spurred by visit could intrude into island’s claimed territorial waters and signal Beijing’s ability to blockade.
- On China’s Internet, Fury at Pelosi’s Visit to Taiwan Turns to Frustration — Many called for a forceful response but had to settle for fruit sanctions and footage of missile launches after the House speaker’s departure.
- China Launches Live-Fire Drills, Missiles Around Taiwan After Pelosi Visit — Ship, plane and missile drills encircle island and come close to key ports in what amounts to temporary blockade.
- China’s Military Exercises Around Taiwan Put Major Shipping Lanes at Risk — Beijing has warned ships to avoid the areas of the live-fire exercises, which are set to take place Thursday through Sunday.
- As China Tightens Controls on Social Media, Some Users Seek Refuge Under the Radar — Many quit the country’s dominant sites, citing new requirements to confirm their identities and display their IP locations.
- Pro-Beijing Online Campaign Targets U.S.-Based Xinjiang Researcher, Cybersecurity Firm Says — Activity was part of larger effort using more than 70 suspected phony news websites in 11 languages, all tied to a Chinese public-relations firm.
- Big Tech Is the West’s Surprise Weapon in Competition With Russia, China — Ukraine’s trust in Amazon, Microsoft, Google contrasts with Western ambivalence toward companies’ reach.
The Financial Times
- China unleashes wave of military drills around Taiwan after Pelosi trip — Naval and air exercises on unprecedented scale aimed at punishing Taipei for US House Speaker’s visit.
- South Korean president snubs Nancy Pelosi as China tensions rise — Seoul accused of trying to placate Beijing after US House Speaker’s controversial visit to Taiwan.
- ‘Take down Pelosi’s plane’: Chinese social media users react to Taiwan visit — Hawkish sentiments diverge from official line over US House Speaker’s trip to Taipei.
- SoftBank raises $22bn in moves to sell down Alibaba stake — Forward sales would mark end of an era for Japanese tech investor that grew from early bet on Chinese ecommerce giant.
- UK parliament closes TikTok account a week after launch — Move comes after MPs and peers hit by sanctions from China raised concerns that Beijing used social media app as spyware.
The New York Times
- Taiwan: China’s Military Exercises Could Help It Practice an Attack — A day after Nancy Pelosi’s trip, China has begun military drills near Taiwan. They appear to be designed as a trial run for sealing off the island.
- As China Plans Drills Circling Taiwan, U.S. Officials Fear a Squeeze Play — Administration officials say they are hoping China’s military exercises last only a few days, but they are discussing their options if the movements expand into something more.
- Welcomed by Taiwan, Pelosi Leaves Rising Tensions With China in Her Wake — In a high-stakes visit to Taiwan, Ms. Pelosi offered assurances of American support. Taiwan now faces the prospect of Chinese military drills that could violate what it says are its territorial waters.
- Why America’s Chinese Tech Ban Didn’t Stick — Lessons from how the U.S. (poorly) handled Chinese phone and internet technology.
- On Pelosi’s Taiwan Trip, Europe Largely Stays Out of the Fray — Europe does not support the independence of Taiwan and recognizes Beijing as the seat of Chinese power. So European leaders were mostly quiet about Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan.
Caixin
- Pony.ai’s Self-Driving Cabs Hit the Streets in Beijing — The service was made available to general passengers in one corner of suburban Beijing on Wednesday.
- Starbucks’ Revenue in China Plunges Amid Covid Curbs — In the fiscal third quarter, the Seattle-based coffee giant took in $545 million in its second-largest market, where nearly 16% of its stores are located.
- Air China Plans $2.2 Billion Share Placement to Expand Fleet — Funds from as many as 35 selected investors will go to buy 22 new planes and supplement operating capital.
South China Morning Post
- Chinese internet giant Tencent withdraws free meals to contract employees in line with cost-cutting moves as growth stalls — The internet giant, long known for generous perks given to employees, has been slashing expenses since its revenue growth stalled in the first quarter.
- Alibaba net income halves, revenue flat in June quarter as weaker consumption, economic headwinds hit China — Alibaba Group Holding reported better-than-expected earnings for the June quarter, even as weakened consumption and economic headwinds in China crimped the profitability of the world’s largest e-commerce retailer.
- China debt: foreign investors cut Chinese bonds, dumped equities in July, IIF says — Chinese debt witnessed outflows of around US$3 billion last month, according to the Institute of International Finance (IIF).
- How the tight bond between Alibaba and Ant has weakened under regulatory pressure from Beijing — The close bond between Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba and its fintech affiliate Ant Group is unravelling at an accelerated pace as the latter seeks the greenlight from regulators to relaunch its initial public offering.
Nikkei Asia
- China smartphone shipments slump toward 10-year low — Consumer shift toward thrift compounds structural weakness in demand.
- China’s top venture capital companies flock to Singapore — Companies using city-state as base to target rest of Southeast Asia.
- Hong Kong’s little-known AMTD Digital tops Alibaba in market cap — Stock seen as bubble ready to pop with price-to-earnings ratio of 6,000.
Bloomberg
- Fake Marco Rubio Letter Part of Pro-China Campaign, Report Says — Multiple news websites and social media accounts that claim to be independent have links to a Chinese public relations firm, according to the security firm Mandiant Inc. Some of them have allegedly published fabricated content, including a fake letter from a US senator.
- US Crackdown on Chinese Solar Means Sales Recovery Ruled Out — Giant solar producers in China are ruling out any recovery in panel exports to the US as a recently enacted law targeting forced labor has stalled negotiations between US project developers and some foreign manufacturers.
- White House Lobbies Democrats Against Bid to Deepen Taiwan Ties — The Biden administration is lobbying Democratic senators to put the brakes on a bill that would alter US policy toward Taiwan, including by designating it as a major non-NATO ally, according to people familiar with the matter.
- The Dark Side of Xi Jinping’s $920 Billion Venture Capital Push — China is having second thoughts about its state-sponsored industrial policy.
Reuters
- China warns that its temperatures are rising faster than global average — China’s average ground temperatures have risen much more quickly than the global average over the past 70 years and will remain “significantly higher” in the future as the challenges of climate change mount, a government official said.
- Biden to sign bill to boost chipmakers, compete with China Aug. 9 – White House — The legislation aims to alleviate a persistent shortage that has affected everything from cars, weapons, washing machines and video games.
- China’s memory upstart YMTC edges closer to rivals with 232-layer chip — Chinese chipmaker Yangtze Memory Technologies Co Ltd (YMTC) on Wednesday announced new memory chip technology that would help it catch up with rivals Micron and SK Hynix.
Other Publications
- Foreign Policy: Xi’s Great Leap Backward — Beijing is running out of recipes for its looming jobs crisis—and reviving Mao-era policies.
- The Economist: Nancy Pelosi has left Taiwan. The real crisis may be just beginning — A trip intended to support a beleaguered democracy may end up tightening its encirclement.
- The Washington Post: Pelosi’s trip was more controversial in Washington than Taipei — Do we know what those actually in Taiwan thought of Pelosi’s trip? If the risk of conflict created by the trip was so high, with so little potential gain to show for it, the Taiwanese government’s extremely welcoming public reaction has been curious.
