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 Xi to Meet Putin in Moscow Next Week — Visit is set to highlight China and Russia’s closer ties amid Ukraine war.
- China’s Foreign Minister Talks With Ukraine Counterpart as Xi Plans Moscow Trip — Ukraine’s Dmytro Kuleba says the pair discussed the principle of territorial integrity.
- Silicon Valley and Capitol Hill Build an Anti-China Alliance — Group to meet ahead of TikTok’s testimony before Congress.
- SVB’s Collapse Hits the Chinese Startups It Once Wooed — Many Chinese tech companies and venture firms are still trying to get their money out after an interruption in international transfers from the bank.
- China’s Communist Party Overhaul Deepens Control Over Finance, Technology — Shake-up reinforces party’s dominance over the government bureaucracy in policy making.
- TikTok Ramps Up Lobbying in Washington to Try to Avoid U.S. Ban — Social-media company is teaming up with Oracle to pitch a solution dubbed Project Texas.
- Wave of Stealthy China Cyberattacks Hits U.S., Private Networks, Google Says — Attacks represent new level of ingenuity and sophistication from China, according to researchers.
- China Suspends Deloitte’s Beijing Unit and Fines It — Auditor is punished for its work with one of China’s largest bad-debt managers.
- U.S., Taiwan Move Closer to Trade, Investment Agreement — Taipei officials welcome release of draft statements, with both sides signaling progress.
- China Cultivates Thousands of ‘Little Giants’ in Aerospace, Telecom to Outdo U.S. — Beijing’s aid to promising smaller firms aims to foster self-sufficiency in critical fields.
- Chinese Developer Evergrande Nears Landmark Restructuring Deal — The company is planning to extend its debt, convert a loan from its founder into shares.
- Surging Chinese Oil Demand Pushes Shipping Costs Sharply Higher — A burst of U.S. exports to China is driving up charter rates for world’s biggest crude tankers.
- U.S.-Bound Migrants Surge at Darien Jungle Crossing in Panama — People fleeing Haiti, Ecuador and even China make the perilous journey, portending a coming increase at U.S. border.
- New Zealand Bans TikTok From Parliamentary Devices, Citing Security Risks — Decision broadens backlash against the China-owned app among U.S. allies.
- For Chinese Leaders, Hair Color Is About More Than Style — Jet-black hair has been associated with vigor and energy since ancient times, making dyeing a necessity for powerful men.
The Financial Times
- China suspends Deloitte’s Beijing office over Huarong audit ‘deficiencies’ — Finance ministry says accounting firm failed to assess asset quality of bad-debt manager.
- German minister to visit Taiwan despite Berlin’s push for dialogue with Beijing — Planned trip by Bettina Stark-Watzinger next week would be first of its kind in 26 years.
- Xi Jinping to visit Vladimir Putin in Russia next week — Chinese leader to affirm strong ties with Moscow despite Ukraine invasion.
- US prosecutors probe ByteDance’s use of TikTok to track journalists — Chinese owner of popular app has come under increasing pressure over its use of data.
- Republicans urge White House to crack down on Russia-China nuclear co-operation — Letter follows reports Moscow’s state-owned nuclear energy company is providing highly enriched uranium to Beijing.
- Xi tightens party control of China’s government — Communist commissions will oversee civilian-military technology and financial regulation.
- UK joins EU, Canada and US in government device TikTok ban — British minister says it is prudent and proportionate to restrict use of Chinese-owned social media app.
- When Hong Kong stood still — Thomas Hale was on his way to China when the pandemic struck — and then for two and a half years he watched as a city defined by movement was shut off from the world.
- Hong Kong galleries thrive despite lockdowns and crackdowns — Dealers were expanding old spaces and opening new ones as the city’s art market surpassed London’s.
- Art Basel eyes Asia beyond Hong Kong for the future of its business — Executives see partnerships with regional fairs as a way of expanding its reach and revenues.
The New York Times
- Submarine Deal With U.S. and U.K. Sparks Debate in Australia — The agreement has raised concerns about the need for the costly plan and whether it could tether Australia to the United States.
- Japan-Korea Relations Improve, but Ties Are Still Fragile — Both sides face potential political snags, as well as a delicate balancing act in a region where the United States and China are competing for influence.
- Xi, Cast as Peacemaker, Wades Into Russia’s War in Ukraine — China’s top leader, Xi Jinping, is expected to meet with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia next week and speak with President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine.
- New Data Links Pandemic’s Origins to Raccoon Dogs at Wuhan Market — Genetic samples from the market were recently uploaded to an international database and then removed after scientists asked China about them.
- House G.O.P. Hunts for Evidence That Biden Family Deals Were Improper — The chairman of the House Oversight Committee released a memorandum asserting that President Biden’s relatives received payments from a business deal with a Chinese firm.
- TikTok Could Be a Hard Sell to Potential Buyers — The Biden administration is pushing TikTok’s Chinese owners to sell the app or face a possible ban. But there are many complications to finding a suitor.
- U.K. Bans TikTok on Government Devices — The move reflects fears in Britain and elsewhere in the West that the popular app’s Chinese ownership could share user information with Beijing.
Caixin
- Former BOC Beijing Branch Head Under Corruption Investigation — Wang Jianhong caught up in graft busters’ dragnet targeting misconduct in the financial sector, where eight bankers have been punished already this year.
- Guo Wengui Adviser Sought by U.S. in $1 Billion Fraud Conspiracy — Alleged co-conspirator William Je is on the lam as American authorities bring criminal charges and outline their long-running international scam.
- Chinese Housing Prices in Major Cities Post First Increase in 18 Months — New home prices in 70 cities rose 0.3% year-on-year in February, adding to signs of recovery from a protracted housing slump.
- Price War Among China’s Automakers Threatens Profitability, Analysts Say — A spate of promotional offers by manufactures to sell vehicles has been spurred by policy changes.
South China Morning Post
- US regulators to meet Deloitte, EY in Hong Kong next week to prepare for summer inspections of audits of US-listed Chinese firms — Executives of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board will hold “preparatory meetings” with the two accounting giants ahead of inspections later in the year as they seek to assess their auditing of Chinese companies listed in the US, say people familiar with the matter.
- Baidu’s ChatGPT alternative gets positive reviews for handling of Chinese translations as search giant’s stock jumps — Baidu’s stock jumped 15 per cent Friday morning after reviewers praised Ernie Bot’s English-to-Chinese translations and real-time information.
- China’s US$21 trillion bond market limps back to normal as real-time data-feed ban is lifted — China’s onshore bond traders were once again able to access bond data feeds on Friday, after a sudden regulatory ban earlier this week roiled the nation US$21 trillion bond market.
- US-China trade ‘becoming less directly interdependent’ amid decoupling despite ‘misleading’ data — US exports to China increased last year, but the data is ‘misleading’ according to the Peterson Institute of International Economics and the ‘two economies are becoming less directly interdependent’.
Nikkei Asia
- In China decoupling, companies still rely on Chinese know-how — Experienced talent tough to replace at Tesla plant and other production hubs.
- EU seeks to diversify critical raw material supply away from China — Concerns grow over dependence on imports during pandemic, Ukraine war.
Bloomberg
- Deloitte Hit by Record China Fine, Suspension Over Huarong — China fines Deloitte an unprecedented 212 million yuan.
- Japan-South Korea Thaw Showed Shared Economic Pain Over China Amid US Pressure — The repairing of ties between Japan and South Korea comes amid falling returns in trade from China and ramped-up US efforts to corral its two allies deeper into a supply chain and security network amid rising geopolitical tensions.
- China Tech Giants Earnings Under Spotlight After SVB Turmoil — China’s biggest high-tech companies, which have weathered their own volatility in the last few years, may now be positioned to be the ones offering some relief to global investors amid jolts that have shaken the confidence of shareholders from Silicon Valley to Switzerland.
- Foxconn Finds EVs Are Harder to Build Than iPhones — The contractor’s dreams of building electric cars are running into the reality of recalls and fledgling partners in Lordstown.
Reuters
- Senior U.S. envoy to travel to Honduras as it considers China ties — A high-ranking envoy of President Joe Biden will travel to Panama and Honduras this month, the U.S. Department of State said on Thursday, days after Taiwan ally Honduras said it would establish formal diplomatic ties with China.
- Canada to drop mandatory COVID tests for travelers from China — Canada, like several other countries, had imposed temporary testing measures for travelers from the region in January, and data since then indicates that the COVID situation has improved, the health ministry said in a statement.
- China-Swiss stock link has flimsy foundations — A stock scheme linking China and Switzerland has attracted ire from an unexpected source: Beijing.
The Economist
- How life has changed along China’s border with South-East Asia — What was once a sieve is now secure.
- Why Chairman Mao’s victims are denied justice — As they grow old, witnesses to the Cultural Revolution speak out.
- Micronesia takes on China — The Pacific’s small states can pick a way through great-power pressures.
- The AUKUS pact is a model for Western allies — Pooling talent and resources is the only way to match China’s heft.
- Are Western companies becoming less global? — Being a multinational in a nationalist world.
Other Publications
- Politico Europe: ‘Hunting rifles’ — really? China ships assault weapons and body armor to Russia — Customs data obtained by POLITICO reveals direct shipments of Chinese assault rifles, as well as drone shipments and body armor routed via Turkey and the UAE.
- Vice News: Who Keeps Cutting Taiwan’s Undersea Internet Cables? — A Taiwanese archipelago has been knocked offline following repeated damages to its undersea cables. Taiwan suspects Chinese vessels are responsible.
- Force Distance Times: Little Giants, Single Champions: China’s Blueprint for Asymmetric Industrial Advantage — These programs offer unmatched, granular insight into where China has built industrial leverage, where its future efforts lie, the relevant companies behind those efforts, and, accordingly, relative US and Chinese industrial strengths. By Mary Hui
- The New Yorker: What Secrets Does the “Donald Trump of Beijing” Know? — The case against Guo Wengui could expose more about America’s politics than China’s. By Evan Osnos
