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
- Apple iPhone Assembler Tried to Ease Worker Fears About Covid—It Led to a Tighter Lockdown — Bid to continue production despite outbreak depended on lessening anxiety about a virus China’s government portrays as deadly threat.
- Why Hong Kong’s Makeover Will Founder — Hong Kong has achieved stability at a steep cost to its economy and freedoms, and the prospects for improvement look weak.
- Renault to Separate EV Unit in Sweeping Overhaul — French car maker to pair up with China’s Geely in combustion-engine venture.
- Nvidia Offers Alternative Chip for China to Clear U.S. Export Hurdles — The advanced chip has lower bandwidth to comply with restrictions and replaces its banned A100 that is widely used by Chinese AI giants.
- Gap Sells Its China Business After 12 Years — Sale to e-commerce retailer Baozun for up to $50 million comes as retailers struggle under China’s Covid zero-tolerance policy.
- Video: Comac’s C919, Challenger to Boeing and Airbus, Debuts at China Airshow — Aviation experts say it’ll be years before Comac can take significant global market share.
The Financial Times
- Germany set to block Chinese chip deal — Ban on sale of factory highlights pressure to control access to semiconductor technology.
- Apple’s bargain with Beijing: access to China’s factories — and consumers — iPhone maker now more profitable than local tech giants but is vulnerable to supply shocks.
- Pressure remains on Xi Jinping to kick China’s coal habit — A shift towards renewables could help the president achieve his geostrategic goals.
- Hong Kong takes on Singapore for Asia’s crypto crown — City seeks to attract retail investors by shifting towards clear rules.
- Tiger Global losses mount after whipsawing tech valuations — Flagship fund is down 54.7% this year while ‘crossover’ vehicle has fallen 44%.
The New York Times
- Kenya Discloses Part of Secret Railway Contract With China — The publication of details of a 2014 loan agreement for a cross-country train fulfilled a campaign vow by President William Ruto and revealed Beijing’s tough terms.
- Apple Built Its Empire With China. Now Its Foundation Is Showing Cracks. — Lawmakers’ objections to an obscure Chinese semiconductor company and tough Covid-19 restrictions are hurting Apple’s ability to make new iPhones in China.
- WTA Chief Talks Money, China and Why Tennis Needs More Female Coaches — Even without China’s “zero-Covid” policy, Steve Simon said that unresolved concerns about Peng Shuai would keep women’s tennis away from Shenzhen and a lucrative 10-year-deal to stage the Finals.
Caixin
- China’s GPS Challenger Now Ships on Almost Every New Phone Sold in the Country — Policymakers tout their efforts to make the BeiDou system the centerpiece of a domestic navigation market worth half a trillion yuan as they renew international push.
- Inner Mongolia Chief Justice Arrested for Graft — China’s top prosecutor has ordered the arrest of Hu Yifeng, former president of the high court in North China’s Inner Mongolia autonomous region on charges of accepting bribes.
South China Morning Post
- Nvidia offers new GPU chip tailored for Chinese market as it vows to comply with US export regulations — Nvidia’s new A800 graphic processing unit (GPU) is an alternative to its A100 chip that the US government has barred from sale to Chinese clients without approval.
- China’s state firms needed to provide ‘economic foundation’, but pressure mounting due to ‘hidden losses’ — Beijing has promised its ‘unwaveringly’ backing for China’s state-owned companies and the private sector, but both sectors are struggling amid the slowing economy.
- Beijing’s national security office buys Hong Kong villa for US$64.7 million — The office of Beijing’s national security arm in Hong Kong has spent a record HK$508 million (US$64.7 million) for a luxury villa in Kowloon Tong.
Bloomberg
- China’s Industrial Machine Chokes With Commodity Demand in Doldrums — At a time when the government is touting the potential of the domestic market, all the evidence is that local consumption is moribund.
- Germany Poised to Block Chip Facility Sale to Chinese Owner — German chipmaker Elmos Semiconductor SE said the economy ministry is likely to block the sale of its wafer facility to a Swedish subsidiary of China’s Sai MicroElectronics Inc. after previously indicating the deal would be approved.
- Nvidia to Sell New Chip in China It Says Meets US Export Ban — Nvidia Corp., the most valuable chipmaker in the US, has begun producing a processor for China that conforms to new rules aimed at limiting that country’s access to artificial-intelligence computing.
Reuters
- China cancelled EU leader’s video address at opening of major trade expo — The pre-recorded video by Charles Michel was meant to be one of several from world leaders and heads of international organisations, including Chinese President Xi Jinping, at the opening of the China International Import Expo (CIIE) on Friday, three European diplomats told Reuters.
- BioNTech executive says it is too early to predict China vaccine approval — A BioNTech executive on Monday confirmed that the company is in discussions with Chinese authorities over regulatory approval of the German biotech firm’s COVID-19 vaccine for use by expatriates in China but the outcome was uncertain.
Other Publications
- Rest of World: “Please give me a chance”: WeChat users are handwriting apologies to get their banned accounts back — The Tencent app is so essential to life in China that banned users will go to great lengths to be reinstated.
- The Guardian: China taking ‘aggressive’ steps to gut Canada’s democracy, warns Trudeau — The prime minister’s comments come after a news report that Beijing had funded a ‘clandestine network’ of candidates in 2019.
- Global News: Canadian intelligence warned PM Trudeau that China covertly funded 2019 election candidates: Sources — Chief among the allegations is that CSIS reported that China’s Toronto consulate directed a large clandestine transfer of funds to a network of at least eleven federal election candidates and numerous Beijing operatives who worked as their campaign staffers.
