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 Tech Distress Grows as U.S. Chip Sanctions Bite — Washington’s restrictions on sale of advanced technology to Beijing appear to be working—for now.
- China’s Economic Recovery Weakens as Growth Concerns Linger — Fresh data on the manufacturing and services sector reinforce picture of a stalled recovery.
- While Everyone Else Fights Inflation, China’s Deflation Fears Deepen — Some economists see parallels between China and Japan, where growth stagnated and prices fell for years.
- China-Founded Rivals Shein and Temu Ramp Up War for American Shoppers — The online sellers are fighting in U.S. courts, alleging dirty tricks as they duel for workers and suppliers back in China.
- Small Investors Are a Big Problem in China — Amateur stock pickers in the country are nervous—and that has been a major drag on stock prices.
- Beijing Is Still Too Confident About China’s Economy — Even after second-quarter malaise, Beijing still seems inclined to stick to half measures. That could be a historic mistake.
The Financial Times
- Weak Chinese factory activity puts pressure on Beijing to support economy — Sputtering manufacturing recovery spurs calls for more concrete policy measures to revive growth.
- Renminbi on course for best monthly rise since January — Currency increases 1.5% against dollar in July after months of falls.
- Luxshare’s wins with Apple make it Foxconn’s biggest challenger — Chinese contract manufacturer is sole assembler of Vision Pro mixed-reality headset.
- ‘Absolute loyalty’: Xi turns anti-corruption focus to China’s military — Senior officers in nuclear weapons division under scrutiny as president strengthens party’s control over armed forces.
- EU car industry can withstand cheap Chinese EVs, Le Maire says — French finance minister backs new subsidies that will take into account producers’ emissions.
- France’s Eramet blames lack of EU funds for deeper partnership with Chinese — Company says mining groups need more support to develop critical resources for electric car batteries.
- Chinese feminists flock to see ‘Barbie’ — Cinemas increase showings of Greta Gerwig blockbuster in market dominated by action films and patriotic tales.
The New York Times
- At Least 2 Dead in Heavy Rains and Flooding in Beijing — Landslides and flash flooding threatened outer districts of the city, and more than 5,000 residents were evacuated from their homes, the authorities said.
- China Details Plans to Stimulate Consumer Spending — The central government listed measures aimed at prodding people to open up their wallets, but absent was how much it will spend to support the stimulus plan.
- U.S. Hunts Chinese Malware That Could Disrupt American Military Operations — American intelligence officials believe the malware could give China the power to disrupt or slow American deployments or resupply operations, including during a Chinese move against Taiwan.
Caixin
- Cover Story: China’s Property Crisis Contagion Spreads to State-Backed Developers — Despite China’s government throwing just about everything in its policy basket at the real estate crisis, the sector continues to deteriorate, with sluggish sales, a growing list of unfinished projects, and mounting debt repayments.
- China Provincial Audit Finds Covid Facilities Left Abandoned, Unusable — An audit by Hainan province has revealed how some temporary medical facilities and other resources used to fight the Covid-19 pandemic and worth hundreds of millions of yuan have been abandoned.
- China Appoints Telecom Boss to Head Newly Created Data Regulator — Liu Liehong, chairman of the state-owned telecom giant China Unicom, was named to head the country’s newly created National Data Bureau, according to information released Friday by the State Council.
South China Morning Post
- China GDP: Guangdong, Henan among provinces to fall short of national average in first half of 2023 — Over half of mainland China’s 31 provincial-level jurisdictions fell short of recording economic growth above the national average of 5.5 per cent in the first half of the year, underlining the problems faced by Beijing to aid the post-Covid recovery.
- Intel’s new Chinese chip innovation centre is a collaboration with a Shenzhen district, deepening ties amid US scrutiny — The US chip giant partnered with the Nanshan district government and local tech firms on a centre focusing on AI, chip applications and edge computing.
- China’s AI chip champion Cambricon downsizes autonomous driving unit as it struggles to make a profit — Cambricon Technologies, one of China’s top artificial intelligence chip developers, has laid off nearly half the workers at its self-driving chip unit as the company struggles to break even.
Nikkei Asia
- U.S. investors still have appetite for delisted China stocks — Off-exchange trade gives companies like Didi, Luckin a way to stay in America.
- Tencent, Douyin press play on esports ahead of Asian Games — China’s government, companies see golden opportunities in thriving industry.
- China aims to spur property purchases by current homeowners — Mortgage rates and down payments when moving in big cities to be lowered.
Bloomberg
- China’s Cabinet Urges Cities to Roll Out Property Policies — China’s State Council called on cities to start introducing policies to ensure the healthy development of their property markets, as top policymakers seek ways to help the economy.
- China Curbs Drone Export After US Says It Aids Russia War Effort — China slapped restrictions on the export of drones and certain components used in their manufacture, a move that could hurt production abroad of the aerial vehicles including types employed by armed forces in the Ukraine war.
- US, Europe Are Growing Alarmed by China’s Rush Into Legacy Chips — US and European officials are growing increasingly concerned about China’s accelerated push into the production of older-generation semiconductors and are debating new strategies to contain the country’s expansion.
- China Cancels TEDx Event Over Foreign Influence Concerns — Authorities in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou canceled a TEDx event over what the organizers said was concern about foreign influence.
Reuters
- China curbs exports of drone equipment amid U.S. tech tension — China on Monday announced export controls on some drones and drone-related equipment, saying it wanted to safeguard “national security and interests” amid escalating tension with the United States over access to technology.
- China’s State Council issues measures to expand consumption — China’s State Council on Monday issued measures to restore and expand consumption in the automobile, real estate and services sector, aiming to give full play to the “fundamental role” of consumption in economic development.
- Biggest hurdles to China entry into trans-Pacific trade pact are political — China should be able to meet standards set out in a major trans-Pacific trade pact, trade experts say, forcing members to make a politically uncomfortable decision on whether to let Beijing join a deal created to counter its growing influence.
Other Publications
- Associated Press: Our bears are real, a Chinese zoo says, denying they are ‘humans in disguise’ — A zoo in eastern China is denying suggestions some of its bears might be people in costumes after photos of the animals standing like humans circulated online.
- The Information: The Electric: Pushback to China’s EV Juggernaut — China dominates the electric vehicle, battery and critical metals industries. In recent weeks, though, policymakers in other countries have begun to push back.
- Politico: Italy intends to leave China’s Belt and Road Initiative, defense minister says — Italy intends to leave the Chinese Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) “without doing damage” to its relationship with Beijing, Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto said.
- Washington Post: Air Force maverick who warned of war with China sticks to his guns — Gen. Michael A. Minihan, lauded by hawks in Congress, has disturbed some in the Pentagon with his fiery prognostications of a looming conflict.
