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
- U.S. Arrests Two, Charges Dozens for Alleged Illegal U.S. Activities by Chinese Security Agents — China set up police station in New York and ran social-media propaganda scheme, complaints say.
- U.S.-China Tensions Over Taiwan Put Pressure on Europe — The EU is finding it harder to avoid taking a position on a potential military conflict.
- Chinese Economy Defies Naysayers — China’s first-quarter growth shows it is far from a spent economic force.
- China’s Consumers Give Economy a Post-Covid Boost — Retail sales outpaced investments as a driver of GDP growth in the first quarter.
- Tesla Faces a Tougher Road Ahead in China — As rivals jostle to showcase their latest EV models, Elon Musk’s company skips the country’s biggest auto show in years.
- Covid Emerged as Chinese Lab Faced Biosafety Issues, Senate Republican Study Finds — Report says vaccine research, other ‘circumstantial evidence’ point to laboratory leak as source of pandemic.
- Chinese Sportswear Giant Anta to Raise $1.5 Billion After a Strong Run — The homegrown company recently increased its market share at the expense of other big brands.
- G-7 Countries Claim Unity on China After Macron Comments — Blinken, French minister play down differences as group calls peace around Taiwan indispensable.
- China’s Economy Rebounds After Three Years of Zero-Covid Isolation — Retail sales rose more than 10% in March from a year earlier, hinting at increased consumer confidence.
- China’s Air Passenger Traffic Surged in First Quarter — Domestic airline routes saw 126 million trips in the first quarter, a 66.6% growth from a year ago.
- Watch: Prosecutors Say China Targeted the U.S. With a Fake Social-Media Scheme — U.S. prosecutors on Monday alleged that the Chinese government opened and operated a police station in New York, and that Chinese security officers used fake social-media personas from Beijing to discredit American policies and harass China’s critics.
The Financial Times
- Global stocks rally as Chinese growth data boosts sentiment — European shares rise over hopes that China’s economy will expand faster this year.
- G7 backs Taiwan after Macron’s comments sparked backlash — Beijing says group of industrialised nations has ‘maliciously smeared and discredited China’.
- Two charged in New York with running secret ‘police station’ for China — Federal prosecutors unveil cases over what they describe as Beijing’s ‘transnational repression’ schemes.
- China’s economy rebounds more than expected after Covid reopening — GDP expands 4.5% year on year in first quarter as Xi Jinping’s government seeks to restore business confidence.
- Michael Dell says customers are demanding less reliance on China — Tech company founder ‘intently focused’ on diversifying supply chains amid tension between Washington and Beijing.
- Chinese genetics company targets US despite political tensions — MGI Tech insists it can succeed even though parts of its former parent BGI Group have been blacklisted.
- Catholic envoy visits Beijing as China-Vatican tensions simmer — Deal over appointment of bishops appears to be fraying.
- Japanese carmakers’ China sales hit by sluggish EV rollout — Toyota and other Japanese brands struggle in top auto market, falling behind foreign rivals.
- Putin hails Russia’s military co-operation with China — President also praises countries’ economic partnership after Beijing throws Kremlin a lifeline.
- Ping An to demand HSBC boost dividend and commit to regular structural review — Chinese insurer and bank’s largest shareholder will tell lender at its AGM next month to spin off Asian business.
- The Dean of Shandong — a westerner’s defence of China’s political system — Daniel Bell gives a perceptive insider account of Chinese university life but is less than convincing in his support for authoritarianism.
The New York Times
- F.B.I. Arrests Two on Charges Tied to Chinese Police Outpost in New York — Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn charged the men with conspiring with the Chinese government and destroying evidence.
- With ‘Zero Covid’ Behind It, China’s Economy Starts to Recover — The economy grew 4.5 percent in the first three months of the year, a sizable pickup from the end of 2022, when the relaxation of pandemic prevention measures led to a wave of illness.
- Chinese Worker in Pakistan Is Arrested on Blasphemy Charges — The arrest of a foreigner under the country’s harsh blasphemy laws, which can lead to the death penalty, is rare and could strain an otherwise warming relationship between China and Pakistan.
- Price War Over Electric Cars Erupts in China — The intense competition among the country’s huge number of start-up carmakers has unsettled what had been a pillar of the economy in the last few years.
- Opinion: In Taiwan, Friends Are Starting to Turn Against Each Other — The threat of Chinese aggression, and how to confront it, is dividing Taiwan’s society. To accuse someone of being a traitorous “Communist licker” or, conversely, of fanning tension by being dangerously anti-China has become the norm. By Lung Yingtai
Caixin
- In Depth: Long Tethered to Apple, Chinese Suppliers Seek New Options — Executives talk up automobile clients and cross border manufacturing as they stare down geopolitical risks and a consumer electronics slowdown.
- Citic Bank Promotes President Fang Heying to Chairman — Leader of risk management overhaul succeeds resigning Zhu Hexin; Liu Cheng named to fill Fang’s post as president.
- China’s GDP Grows 4.5% in First Quarter, Beating Expectations — The figure tops the 2.9% expansion in the fourth quarter, when the country was still sticking to its stringent ‘zero-Covid’ policy most of the time.
South China Morning Post
- Ping An calls for HSBC to separately list Asian arm in Hong Kong as it continues to push for restructuring — Ping An In, HSBC’s biggest shareholder, said the bank should remain a majority shareholder of a separately listed Asia business as part of a restructuring, similar to its majority stake in Hang Seng Bank.
- China’s chip output shows recovery in March amid US export restrictions on advanced tools — The latest economic data published by China’s statistics bureau points to a recovery in the national semiconductor industry, despite intensifying efforts by Washington to cripple the nation’s ability to produce advanced chips.
- China’s internet watchdog to boost tip-offs to stamp out ‘illegal’ political content — Top internet regulator pledges to clean up politically related content, ‘safeguard’ security of online opinion.
Nikkei Asia
- In China’s Shenzhen the migrants are back, the jobs aren’t — Local government offers temporary lodging to some, but anxiety is growing.
- Chinese cities court foreign investment for post-COVID recovery — Local officials travel abroad to draw capital for flagging economies.
- China’s once-sizzling startup boom loses its stride — State funds fill the vacuum as venture capital takes a step back.
Bloomberg
- Biden Costs EV Makers Some Customers Until the US Builds More Batteries — While rules aimed at decoupling supply chains from China will take time to meet, the Inflation Reduction Act offers plenty attractive perks.
- EU Calls for Coherent China Stance After Macron Sowed Doubts — European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called on the European Union to maintain a common position toward China after French President Emmanuel Macron sparked outrage by suggesting that the bloc should avoid being dragged into a dispute with Beijing by the US.
- US Charges 44 Over Chinese Harrasment of Dissidents Overseas — The US charged 44 defendants over an alleged Chinese campaign to harass its citizens in New York and around the country who espoused anti-government views, part of a broader effort to push back on Beijing’s efforts to target dissidents beyond its borders.
- Indonesia Woos VW to Offset China’s Dominance in Nickel Riches — Indonesia is urging Volkswagen AG to invest in its electric vehicle industry as the country seeks to counterbalance Chinese companies’ dominance over its nickel reserves.
Reuters
- Exclusive: China expected to lower fine on Ant Group to about $700 million — Chinese regulators are expected to fine Ant Group about a quarter less than the more than $1 billion initially planned and downgrade their charges against it, sources said.
- China’s electric car drive, led by BYD, leaves global brands behind — China’s auto market, the world’s largest, is accelerating toward an electric future – leaving established global brands stuck in the slow lane.
Other Publications
- Politico: White House nears unprecedented action on U.S. investment in China — The White House is briefing industry on coming rules to govern American investments in China. But some key details remain up in the air.
- Quartz: How China plans to get in on US subsidies for clean energy manufacturing — China’s playbook to win US subsidies includes building US factories, partnering with US allies, and deepening its supply chain ties.
