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
- Chinese Student Visas to U.S. Tumble From Prepandemic Levels — Global competition, strained political ties lead to drop that hits revenue at big and small colleges and universities.
- Beijing Court Rejects High-Profile #MeToo Appeal Amid Heavy Police Presence — Zhou Xiaoxuan has been pressing allegations against a state TV personality for four years; supporters turn out in rare gathering.
- China Fumes as Somaliland Refuses to Unfriend Taiwan — Few African regions have the nerve to say no to China. Independence-minded Somaliland is one.
- Foxconn Predicts Better Year Ahead but Flags Slowing Smartphone Demand — World’s biggest iPhone assembler’s quarterly profit rose 12% on solid smartphone sales.
The Financial Times
- SMIC/Tudor Brown: east-west tech tensions point NED to the exit — Chinese chipmakers are facing growing pressure from both the US and at home.
- China hits Big Fund chip executives with corruption probes — Several managers linked to semiconductor investment fund are under investigation.
- What the collapse of Missfresh means for China’s tech sector — The grocery delivery company was valued at $3bn only a year ago.
The New York Times
- China Vows More Drills, but Taiwan Is Undeterred — China’s drills have hardened Taiwan’s understated approach to navigating a big-power rivalry over its political future.
Caixin
- In Depth: Bailouts Multiply as Pressure Mounts to Stabilize China’s Housing Market — Rescuing individual projects may defuse mortgage boycott but further action may be needed to restore confidence, analysts say
- China’s Climate Envoy Blames U.S. for Beijing’s Decision to Halt Climate Talks — “China hasn’t punished the world and developing countries. Instead, the U.S. has,” the report said, citing Xie.
South China Morning Post
- China accelerates Mongolia investment to ‘facilitate’ Russia trade link and secure energy, commodities — Mongolia and China signed ‘cooperation documents’ after Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited Ulaanbaatar earlier this week, with Beijing keen to access vital natural resources and smooth commerce with Russia.
- ‘Highly unacceptable’: Taiwan rejects Beijing’s ‘one country, two systems’ plans for unification — Island says it is absurd for Beijing to promote its so-called peaceful unification scheme while surrounding Taiwan with war games.
- China trade: US’ Xinjiang ban looms large even as textile, garment exports surge to record US$33 billion in July — China’s export of textiles and garments hit a historical high of US$33.22 billion in July despite the Uygur Forced Labour Prevention Act effectively banning US imports of all products from Xinjiang.
Bloomberg
- Top China Chipmaker Defies US Sanctions With Earnings Beat — Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp.’s net income beat analysts’ estimates after advances in technology helped cushion the impact from US sanctions.
- China Backs $640 Million Sudan Rail Revamp Amid Economic Crunch — Sudan secured Chinese backing to begin a $640 million restoration of its railway network, pressing ahead with the ambitious project despite an economic crisis worsened by last year’s coup.
- Ex-Arm Boss Resigns From SMIC’s Board as US-China Tensions Rise — Tudor Brown, the former president of Arm Ltd., has resigned from the board of Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp., stepping away from the Chinese chipmaker that has been hit with US sanctions.
- China’s Provinces Vow to Meet GDP Targets Despite Growth Slump — Several Chinese provinces pledged to meet their growth goals for the year even as top leaders downplayed the national target of “around 5.5%” after repeated Covid outbreaks and a property market slump.
Reuters
- South Korea, China clash over U.S. missile shield, complicating conciliation — China and South Korea clashed on Thursday over a U.S. missile defence shield, threatening to undermine efforts by the new government in Seoul to overcome longstanding security differences.
- Taiwan rejects China’s ‘one country, two systems’ plan for the island — Taiwan rejects the “one country, two systems” model proposed by Beijing in a white paper published this week, the self-ruled island’s foreign ministry said on Thursday.
- HSBC oversold risks of $35 bln Asia spin-off, investor Ping An thinks – source — Details of Ping An’s internal discussions come after HSBC on Aug. 1 itself pushed back against the Chinese investor’s proposals while reporting its half-year earnings. Ping An has not confirmed or commented publicly on the break-up proposal.
Other Publications
- The Atlantic: When Biden Went to China — His engagement with Beijing in 1979 was shaped by U.S. superpower rivalry with the Soviets. Today, his Cold War adversary is China itself.