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
- Pentagon Plans Vast AI Fleet to Counter China Threat — Defense Department seeks an array of air-, land- and sea-based autonomous systems to keep pace with adversaries.
- China Bans iPhone Use for Government Officials at Work — Restrictions on foreign devices are the latest step in Beijing’s campaign to reduce reliance on overseas technology and could hurt Apple’s success in the country.
- Everyone Is Bearish on China—Except Bond Investors — The dollar-bond spreads of Chinese companies have remained relatively stable.
- Russian and Saudi Oil-Production Cuts Flash Warning on Chinese Economy — Extension of supply cuts lifts crude-oil prices; Bonds, stock indexes retreat.
- BYD, China’s Tesla, Is Coming for the World — EV maker is about to become an export juggernaut and a threat to the world’s largest automakers.
- Opinion: Giving the West’s Auto Industry to China — BMW’s CEO warns that EV policies are harming Europe’s car makers. By The Editorial Board.
The Financial Times
- China and Japan push back against dollar strength — People’s Bank of China sets renminbi trading band higher than expected while Tokyo warns against yen’s decline.
- US to check on chips used in Huawei’s ‘Made in China’ smartphone — Mate 60 Pro sells out in China as public celebrate reports of domestic chip breakthrough despite years of sanctions.
- ‘A higher likelihood of a crisis’ — Gandalf stands by his forecasts.
- China’s demand dilemma could spell trouble for the world — The other G20 countries should signal consensus against Beijing running a big surplus.
- Opinion: China’s demand dilemma could spell trouble for the world — The other G20 countries should signal consensus against Beijing running a big surplus. By Robin Harding.
The New York Times
- Paul Krugman’s Economic Advice to China: ‘Live a Little’ — The Opinion columnist explains why the Chinese government needs to boost consumer spending to prevent an even worse economic situation.
- China’s Economic Pain Is a Test of Xi’s Fixation With Control — The slowdown is posing perhaps the most sustained challenge to President Xi Jinping’s agenda in over a decade in power. He now faces a tangle of difficult choices.
- Workers Use Excavator to Plow Through Great Wall of China — The pair, a 38-year-old man and 55-year-old woman, used an excavator to widen an existing gap and make a shortcut, the authorities said.
Caixin
- In Depth: Low-Carbon Transition Has China’s Shipbuilders Seeing Green — Global operators’ demand for lower-emission fleets is fueling a boom for Chinese shipyards.
- China’s Top Academics Told to Toe Party Line With Public Statements — Members must ensure their public statements are “in line with the general policy of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China”.
- Caixin Explains: Why China’s Solar Giants Are Getting Even Bigger — China already controls more than 80% of the global solar market, but the country’s largest panel makers are still doubling down on their investments.
South China Morning Post
- Alibaba’s Amap, supported by China’s GPS rival Beidou, expands global coverage to boost Belt and Road plan — The digital map now supports route planning and navigation in more than 200 countries and regions, according to Amap.
- Chinese firm launches satellite from mobile sea platform, testing potential tech for national space programme — Galactic Energy’s Ceres-1 rocket lifted off near Shandong province, sending four satellites into orbit as part of Internet of Things constellation.
- China, Saudi Arabia enter ‘new stage’ of financial cooperation as state-owned bank opens Riyadh branch — Bank of China (BOC), one of China’s four biggest state-owned banks, opened its branch in Riyadh on Tuesday amid growing economic activity between China and Saudi Arabia.
- TikTok’s first European data centre begins operations to address privacy concerns over China ties — The centre in Dublin, the first of three in Europe to be built to allay privacy fears stemming from the app’s China ties, is now operational.
- Opinion: India’s gain could be China’s loss in the great supply chain reallocation — Covid-19, geopolitics and labour market dynamics are driving firms and countries to look to new locations such as India, Mexico and Southeast Asia for diversification. By Ecaterina Bigos.
Nikkei Asia
- China approves AI chatbot releases but will it unleash innovation? — Tencent expected to reveal its Hunyuan large language model on Thursday.
- China must stop its citizens’ irrational harassment of Japan — Claims against Fukushima water release add to residents’ pain.
- ASEAN leaders meet Chinese Premier Li amid map controversy — Jokowi calls for ‘mutually beneficial’ cooperation at Jakarta summit.
Bloomberg
- Great Wall Said to Mull Selling Stake in $6 Billion Battery Unit — Great Wall Motor Co. is exploring options including selling its stake in Svolt Energy Technology Co. as the battery firm’s initial public offering in Shanghai may be delayed, according to people familiar with the matter.
- China Mulls Banning Clothes That ‘Hurt Feelings’ of Others — China’s public is expressing concern about a potential legal change that would allow for fines and even jail time for people who offend the government’s sensibilities by wearing the wrong clothing.
- China’s Infrastructure Spending Is Marred by Problems, Audits Show — Chinese provinces aren’t using the funds raised from infrastructure bond sales effectively, audit reports show, raising doubts about their ability to spur investment and growth in the economy.
- China Says Economic ‘Fundamentals’ Are Unchanged Amid Its Slowdown — The Chinese embassy in Washington pushed back against interpreting China’s economic slowdown as a sign the country is facing deeper issues, acknowledging the rocky nature of the nation’s post-Covid rebound but stressing optimism for its growth trajectory.
- Opinion: This Is the China New Normal. Get Used to It — The yuan is inexorably weakening, while the rest of the world seems unperturbed. Can this last? And we should all be improvising more. By John Authers.
Reuters
- Analysis: For foreign envoys in China, Xi’s G20 absence confirms worrying trend — Envoys face increasing difficulty getting access to Chinese officials and other sources of information on the world’s second-largest economy.
- Maldives election: could be key for China, India rivalry — While India has longstanding cultural, financial and security ties with the Maldives, China has in recent years invested in infrastructure projects as it builds closer ties.
- Floods from waning typhoon hit transport, force evacuations in China — Xiamen, a port city in Fujian province, has been pounded by rain for three days, breaking a record for the longest heavy rain in the city since such records began in 1953.
Other Publications
- Foreign Affairs: The Last Minarets of Yunnan — China’s Hui Muslims in the Cross Hairs of Xi’s New Nationalism
- ChinaPower: The 2023 BRICS Summit: A Mixed Bag for China — While China effectively championed BRICS expansion, missteps by the Chinese delegation detracted from the trip’s achievements.
- Rest of World: Why Chinese EV battery manufacturers are flocking to Hungary — They are drawn to the country’s access to European automakers, government subsidies, and favorable relations with China.
- Semafor: CEOs to meet in D.C. with eyes on China — Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo is among the most sought-after meetings for a key corporate gathering in Washington next week.
