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
- Beijing’s Parcel Pileup Shows Strain of Zero-Covid Exit — Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com said it would dispatch 1,000 workers to Beijing to clear a backlog of deliveries, adding to evidence that China’s exit from its zero-Covid policies has been bumpy.
- Japan to Build a More Powerful Military, Citing China as Its No. 1 Menace – Tokyo plans to spend 2% of GDP on defense and says its missiles will be able to hit other countries.
- U.S. Regulator Says It Has Access to Audit Papers of Chinese Companies – Recent inspection of accounting firms was conducted without input from Chinese authorities.
- U.S. Places Top Chinese Memory Chip Maker on Export Blacklist – Measure aimed at Yangtze Memory Technologies comes as U.S.-China technology tensions are on the rise.
- Chinese Property Bonds Are Suddenly a Huge Winner – Beijing’s policy changes on Covid and housing spark a big junk-debt rally.
The Financial Times
- Beijing succumbs to Covid after Xi lifts pandemic restrictions — China’s capital inundated with cases following government’s abrupt U-turn on virus containment strategy.
- Beijing death toll mounts as Covid sweeps through Chinese capital — Official count shows no fatalities in weeks but bodies have been seen at hospitals and crematoria.
- US regulators gain access to audits of Chinese companies — Deal allowing inspections eases threat of mass delistings of Chinese stocks from US exchanges.
- US adds 36 Chinese companies to trade blacklist — ‘Entity list’ changes are focused on limiting development of advanced chips in China.
- China’s zero-Covid retreat sparks wealth management product sell-off — Vicious circle as fund managers are forced to sell holdings to satisfy wave of redemptions.
- Opinion: Crunch time for TikTok in the US — Video app in limbo as political pressure builds in Washington to ban it. By Richard Waters
The New York Times
- Japan Moves to Double Military Spending, With a Wary Eye on China — The Japanese cabinet approved the first update to the country’s official security strategy in nine years, elevating Beijing over North Korea as the top threat.
- Biden Courts African Leaders, but Some Are Skeptical of Big Promises — President Biden faced a challenge in winning the confidence of a continent where the circumstances of its leaders vary so dramatically.
- US Cracks Down on Chinese Companies for Security Concerns — The Biden administration placed severe restrictions on trade with dozens of Chinese entities, its latest step in a campaign to curtail access to technology with military applications.
- An Alternate Reality: How Russia’s State TV Spins the Ukraine War — Leaked emails detail how Russia’s biggest state broadcaster, working with the nation’s security services, mined right-wing American news and Chinese media to craft a narrative that Moscow was winning.
Caixin
- Short on Staff, Some Chinese Hospitals Insist Covid-Infected Workers Get Back on the Job – Once a Covid case is detected, they’ve pivoted to a more lenient strategy to cope with the surge in medical demand.
- Senior China Provincial Media Official Probed for Corruption – Wu Hao, who is also a member of the bureau’s party leadership group, has been placed under review for suspected “serious violations of discipline and law.”
- China Considers More Property Market Support, Vice Premier Says — Liu He makes comment in remarks before a China-EU forum, where he also called for thawing the parties’ frozen investment accord.
- Volkswagen to Build All-Electric Tavascan Car in China — German auto giant’s Cupra brand plans to export the vehicle made in Anhui province to global markets.
South China Morning Post
- China’s technology, research talent pool large, but ‘not strong enough’, lags behind US — China is projected to produce over 77,000 STEM PhD graduates per year by 2025, compared to around 40,000 in the US, but it is still ‘not strong enough’, according to a Chinese economist.
- China and Japan in talks for trip by Japanese foreign minister — Yoshimasa Hayashi could become Tokyo’s first top diplomat to visit since 2019.
- WeChat kicks out ChatGPT apps after third-party services flourished on Tencent platform amid strong interest in China — Unofficial ChatGPT mini programs started springing up amid surging international interest even though OpenAI does not officially provide service in China.
- Hong Kong to send ‘thousands of officers’ to checkpoints along mainland Chinese border ahead of shift towards freer travel — Government sources say relevant departments preparing to test all customs checkpoint clearance systems, including those at high-speed rail terminus.
Nikkei Asia
- U.S. should brace for ’10-year’ chip curbs against China – Author of ‘Chip War,’ Chris Miller says globalization and free trade are not near death.
- China’s BYD enters luxury EV market with SUV priced up to $200,000 – Carmaker looks to tap growing class of wealthy Chinese consumers.
- China startup to mass-produce new supercapacitor material – Japan material supplier at risk of losing sales due to Caiqi’s graphene advance.
- FBI arrests Chinese student for harassing pro-democracy classmate – ‘I will chop your hands off,’ 25-year-old in Boston allegedly told victim.
Bloomberg
- China’s New Iron Ore Buyer Sets Off Biggest Shakeup in Years — China is about to upend the $160 billion iron ore trade with the biggest change in years as Beijing expands efforts to increase control over the natural resources needed to feed its economy.
- US to Push for Transparency on Chinese Loans to African Nations – Washington will also “try and figure out how these countries can get out of a crushing debt that oppresses their people,” said Jose Fernandez from the State Department.
- Opinion: China Thinks 50 Years Ahead. Can the US? – A new House committee might set policy on security, diplomacy, trade and cooperation — but only if it avoids partisanship. By James Stavridis
Reuters
- China’s U.S. audit capitulation is rare win-win — On Thursday, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board announced Beijing had granted it “unprecedented” access to double-check the onshore audits of New York-listed Chinese firms, a surrender by Beijing in a battle spanning over a decade.
- China reopening is mixed blessing for inflation — Like millions of Chinese emerging from years of isolation, the United States and Europe will greet China’s decision to relax Covid-19 rules with a mixture of hope and apprehension.
- As China seeks to live with the virus, COVID-control industries face decline – The U-turn has meant a change in fortunes overnight for those companies as well as firms involved in quarantining, COVID-tracking and movement-monitoring products and services.
Other Publications
- Politico: Biden launches ‘China House’ to counter Beijing’s growing clout – State deems the new section essential to avoiding blind spots in the U.S.-China relationship.
- Washington Post: Chinese lock themselves down, hoard medicine over fear of new covid wave – Families in major cities are shunning their newfound freedom and instead hunkering down with stockpiles of medications and home remedies, out of fear of a devastating exit wave of infections.
- The Economist: China is helping Zimbabwe to build a surveillance state – Oppressive regimes stick together.
- The Guardian: From zero-tolerance into the unknown – a visual guide to three years of Covid in China – In 2019, the world’s first Covid case was detected in Wuhan. This month China abruptly shifted away from efforts to eliminate the virus.
