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 Censors End Crackdown on Covid-Policy Criticism—of a Certain Kind — Protesters, public-health experts targeted for country’s sudden about-face as infections explode, but leader Xi Jinping remains unscathed.
- U.S. Weighs New Precautionary Measures for Travelers From China — Beijing ends zero-Covid, prompting surge in flight bookings out of the country.
- Apple’s Best Bet Against China Might Be India — The South Asian country is shaping up as the right place for big electronics manufacturers.
- China Increases Trade in Asia as U.S. Pushes Toward Decoupling — The deepening ties are a result of China’s regional heft but also Washington’s spat with Beijing.
- China Approves Foreign Videogames in Latest Breather for Tech Giants — Beijing regulators approve ‘Pokémon’ and ‘Game of Thrones’ titles, ending a suspension on foreign videogames dating to June 2021.
- China’s EV Market Will Slow in 2023. That Still Leaves It Ahead. — Expiring subsidies will weigh on electric-vehicle sales, but China’s strength in EVs will prove durable.
- Chinese Auto Makers Plunge as Covid-19 Surge Prompts Delivery Cuts — Covid-19 infections have surged in China in recent weeks after Beijing pivoted from its zero-Covid policy.
- Stocks Finish Mixed as China Says It Will Open Borders — Investors hope the move by the world’s second-largest economy will support global growth.
- U.S. Bars Imports From Three Companies, Citing Possible Use of Forced Labor — Customs uses sanctions law to target three companies that the agency says use North Korean workers, who are assumed to be forced laborers unless proven otherwise.
- Video: China Hospitals Overwhelmed as Covid Cases Soar — Many big cities have run out of Ibuprofen and other fever medicine.
- Opinion: Beijing Makes a List and Checks It Twice — For Christmas, China imposed sanctions on me. Oh well, it’s the thought that counts. By Miles Yu
The Financial Times
- Exit from zero-Covid is no easy path for China — Forced to abandon its draconian policy, Beijing’s unconvincing narrative cannot hide its lack of preparation.
- China’s elite give Paxlovid to friends as demand soars for Covid drug — Pfizer’s antiviral ‘more coveted than Moutai’ as authorities restrict imports despite virus wave.
- Hong Kong abandons last Covid curbs to revive economy — Territory drops mandatory testing for arrivals as it follows Beijing’s exit from virus controls.
- Beijing changes tack on tackling property crisis — Defaults such as Evergrande’s froze the markets but new state-backed funds could release them.
- Financial trends: risky model will spawn new China crises — Fundamental problems will remain despite regulators’ moves to allow access to some presale housing funds.
The New York Times
- As China Drops Travel Rules, Wariness Rises Over its Covid Outbreak — Many welcomed Beijing’s plan to loosen quarantine rules for travelers, but concerns linger about the country’s Covid wave.
Caixin
- Shanghai’s Maternity Hospitals Struggle to Isolate Covid Patients — Pregnant women and new mothers in Shanghai hospitals are facing high cross-infection and childbearing risks after China’s sudden dismantling of “zero-Covid” left maternity wards in the city struggling to maintain normal operations with staff and medicine shortages.
- China’s Iron and Steel Producers Hit by Property Slump — Profits of ferrous metal smelting and pressing companies plummet 94.5% to $3.3 billion for the first 11 months of 2022.
- Interview: Yao Ming’s Vision for China’s National Basketball Team — Speaking with Caixin, Yao shared CBA’s plans to boost the national team’s competitiveness on the international stage, with goals set around the 2024 Paris Olympics.
South China Morning Post
- Hong Kong drops on-arrival PCR tests and vaccine pass, while city leader ‘disappointed in Japan’ over flight curbs — John Lee also weighs in on latest flight restrictions to Japan, says authorities will communicate with country’s consulate on matter.
- TikTok taps Harvard-educated executive, who previously served at Didi Chuxing, to lead app’s e-commerce product development — The new appointment reflects the increased focus of TikTok owner ByteDance in e-commerce as part of efforts to diversify revenue streams.
- Hong Kong-mainland China border ‘to reopen earliest January 10, business and family needs prioritised for those coming into city’ — Sources say there will be no quota for travellers crossing over to mainland from Hong Kong, but the flow from the other way will be limited in light of city resources.
Nikkei Asia
- China’s international travel recovery ‘unforecastable’ — COVID surge means any return to normality likely to be gradual.
- China to update espionage law with eye on Taiwan — Xi seeks to crack down on foreign involvement in unification issue.
Bloomberg
- Solar Price War May Help Spur China’s Renewable Energy Push — Solar equipment makers are in a fierce competition to cut wafer prices, providing some relief for China’s efforts to install a massive amount of renewable power and reach ambitious climate targets.
- South Korea Barely Mentions China in New Indo-Pacific Strategy — South Korea put out its first strategy report for the Indo-Pacific region, which hardly mentions China and signals Seoul is seeking a cautious balance between its biggest trade partner Beijing and main military ally, the US.
- $1.3 Trillion China Housing Crackdown Hasn’t Fixed Unaffordable Property Market — Even after the defaults and sales declines, prices remain high.
Reuters
- China slams Taiwan’s ‘cannon fodder’ conscription decision — China’s government criticised Taiwan on Wednesday for seeking to use the Taiwanese people as “cannon fodder” by extending compulsory military service from four months to one year starting in 2024.
- Australia grants extradition of former U.S. pilot over China military training – ABC — Australia has approved a request to extradite former U.S. Marine Corps pilot Daniel Duggan to the United States, where he will face charges that he trained Chinese military pilots, according to an Australian Broadcasting Corporation report on Wednesday.
Other Publications
- The Economist: What online-search data say about China’s latest covid wave — The surge dwarfs previous upticks.
- Grid News: 5 big questions China and Xi Jinping face in 2023 — It’s hard to recall a more tumultuous end to any recent year in China — and prognosticating about the country is never easy. Grid asked several experts for their thoughts about what awaits China in 2023 — or at least for the right questions to be asking.
