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 Makes First Call to Ukraine’s Zelensky Since Russian Invasion — Conversation follows Chinese leader’s meetings with Putin, as Beijing seeks a greater role in peace efforts.
- TikTok Ban in Montana Faces Speed Bump as Governor Seeks Changes — Gov. Greg Gianforte is requesting amendments to the bill to broaden it to all social-media apps that provide certain data to foreign adversaries.
- Back From the Brink, Chinese Developer Resumes Buying Land — Country Garden’s purchase signals confidence in a recovering Chinese housing market.
The Financial Times
- Xi holds long-awaited phone call with Zelenskyy — Ukrainian leader says conversation with China’s president was ‘long and meaningful’.
- China stocks shed $550bn in value as doubts overshadow growth — Investors are sceptical about the strength of the country’s economic recovery.
- One in five cars sold in 2023 will be electric, says IEA — Forecast shows worldwide demand for battery-powered models has risen to record levels.
- US and Philippines sink ship in South China Sea war games — Ferdinand Marcos Jr presides over joint drills that seek to counter China’s strategy of area denial.
- Tencent accelerates investment in overseas gaming studios — Chinese tech group targets European assets as it seeks to diversify away from domestic market.
- India and China play down the big demographic news — New Delhi and Beijing give little weight to long-projected population crossover.
- China’s ‘wolf warrior’ envoy threatens Xi’s plan to woo EU — Challenge to sovereignty of ex-Soviet states undermines efforts to portray Beijing as peacemaker in Ukraine.
- US-China rift looms over Japanese companies — Tensions between Washington and Beijing add to concerns over rising Chinese competition in world’s largest auto market.
- China’s wealth management sector reels from ‘crisis of confidence’ — Retail investors sell in panic after ‘risk-free’ investments tumble in value.
The New York Times
- China Detains Taiwan-Based Publisher in National Security Investigation — Li Yanhe’s publishing company put out books that often cast a critical eye on China’s ruling Communist Party. He disappeared while on a trip to China.
- Facing China, the Philippines and U.S. Join in Biggest Military Drill Yet — After years of saying it would not choose sides, the Philippines is now asserting a need to stand up to China’s territorial moves in the South China Sea.
Caixin
- Chinese City to Pay Civil Servants in Digital Yuan — Changshu, in eastern China, will begin paying its civil servants and employees of state-owned enterprises in e-CNY from May.
- China Maps Out Plan to Bolster Foreign Trade — State Council vows streamlined visas, faster international flight resumption and better services for trading companies in push to bolster exports.
- British Airways Resumes Service to China After Two-Year Hiatus — U.K. flag carrier reinstates daily London-Shanghai passenger flight for the first time since late 2020.
South China Morning Post
- China’s controversial property tax appears to clear major hurdle, but questions remain on start date — The implementation of a national household registration system after a decade-long effort could usher in a property tax that would help alleviate local-level government debt pressure and narrow the wealth gap.
- BYD poised to surpass VW as China’s top car brand as budget EV triggers ‘buying spree’ among millions, analyst says — The Warren Buffett-backed company cut the price of its Seagull model below the level that already attracted 10,000 pre-orders in 24 hours.
- Former leader of defunct Confederation of Trade Unions in Hong Kong withdraws Labour Day rally application after ‘being taken away’ — Wong was not arrested but had suffered emotional breakdown, To writes on social media.
- Hong Kong’s Audit Commission demands city libraries step up efforts to root out books ‘manifestly contrary’ to national security — Examining library books for national security risks was an ‘ongoing’ process, says Leisure and Cultural Services Department.
Nikkei Asia
- Companies unnerved by China detentions, says U.S. business group — American Chamber head Michael Hart notes it still rare for expatriates to be held.
- China ramps up rare-earth production to meet EV, wind power demand — Beijing raises cap amid rising demand and worry over risk to U.S. imports.
- Huawei scraps expensive precision maps in self-driving cars — Chinese tech companies seek alternative navigation systems.
Bloomberg
- China Approves Spy Law as Xi Focuses on National Security — China approved a newly revised anti-espionage law as President Xi Jinping seeks to bolster national security amid a range of tensions with the US.
- British Chip Firm With CIA Ties Sees Future in US or China — A British chip-making startup funded by the CIA’s venture capital firm says that if the UK government doesn’t come up with a supportive semiconductor strategy, it may shift its operations abroad.
- China Police Group Creates Fake Social Media Accounts, Targets Dissidents — Group of police officers tasked with sowing discord over George Floyd, Covid origins, South China Sea.
- Binance.US Crypto Exchange Has Tech Workers in Shanghai China — Binance.US, the digital-asset platform owned by crypto billionaire Changpeng “CZ” Zhao that was created to serve American clients, has a significant tech workforce in China.
Reuters
- China approves wide-ranging expansion of counter-espionage law — Chinese lawmakers passed a wide-ranging update to Beijing’s anti-espionage legislation on Wednesday, banning the transfer of any information related to national security and interests and broadening the definition of spying.
- Micron case causing concern for US companies in China, business chamber says — Leaders from a top U.S. business lobbying group said on Wednesday that Beijing’s probe against U.S.-based chipmaker Micron Technology Inc marked a “major concern” for other companies operating in the country.
- Biden should sanction Huawei Cloud, other Chinese firms – senators — A group of nine Republican senators on Tuesday urged the Biden administration to impose sanctions on Huawei Cloud and other Chinese cloud service providers.
Other Publications
- The Economist: Fearing China, Australia rethinks its defence strategy — It wants to deter Chinese threats by projecting power deeper into Asia.
- The Washington Post: The latest tool in China’s influence campaign: Police on social media? — China’s Ministry of Public Security and a major Chinese cybersecurity company appear to be involved in an influence campaign aimed at casting the United States as an irresponsible cyber power, according to a report Wednesday by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute.