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
- Chinese Propagandists Set Up Shop on Fringe Social-Media Site, Researchers Say — Network of pro-China accounts has burrowed into site known for tolerance of hate speech.
- Canada Appoints Judge to Probe Allegations of Foreign Interference in Elections — Claims of China-backed meddling in the 2021 vote have roiled Trudeau’s administration, which initially balked at calls for an inquiry.
- Apple Becomes the Biggest U.S.-China Pawn Yet — Few companies are safe if Apple isn’t immune to China retaliation.
- The $100 Billion Luxury Complex That’s Sitting Empty and Unfinished — China’s Country Garden had big ambitions for its luxury Malaysian high rises, but the development is regarded as a ‘ghost city’ nearly a decade after construction began.
- Delivery App Tweak Could Save 22 Billion Sets of Plastic Cutlery a Year, Study Shows — Research in China finds gentle nudges are a painless way to persuade users to cut down on consumption of single-use items.
- India Hosts G-20 Summit in Shadow of Geopolitical Rivalries — Leaders of China and Russia won’t attend, but U.S.-India ties will be on display.
The Financial Times
- China workers reveal extent of iPhone curbs — ‘We were told not to bring any Apple products’: US tech group loses $200bn in share value this week.
- Janet Yellen says China has ‘policy space’ to boost its economy — Treasury secretary indicates slowdown’s impact on US will be small as renminbi hits 16-year low against dollar.
- ‘We have to fight’: Europe’s carmakers dig in against China’s EV incursion — Big names accept the need to sharpen their competitive edge as overseas rivals swamp the Munich motor show.
- Biden pushes for bigger World Bank to combat China’s rising influence — US president seeks funding boost for multilateral lender as need to counter Beijing’s efforts becomes more urgent.
- Apple stock hit by China worries ahead of iPhone 15 launch — Beijing’s curbs on government iPhone use and resurgent Huawei could overshadow launch of new device.
- Opinion: It’s no longer a given that China will become the world’s largest economy — Markets need to recognise that the country is not reverting to its old economic and financial playbook. By Mohamed El-Erian.
The New York Times
- Storms Cause Major Flooding in Hong Kong and Nearby Cities — Rainstorms caused by remnants of Typhoon Haikui, which had been churning along the Chinese coast, submerged roads and homes, and set rainfall records.
- Toyota’s Dominance Threatened by Rise of Electric Vehicles — The world’s largest carmaker dominates the sales of hybrid cars but has been slow to sell all-electric vehicles, alienating some customers and hurting sales.
Caixin
- China Media Capital Raises $136 Million for Its First Carbon-Neutral Fund — Private equity firm plans to invest in lithium batteries, photovoltaics, hydrogen energy, LNG, core components, new materials and high-end equipment.
- Hong Kong’s Investment Arm Set to Start Funding Projects by Year-End — Chief Executive John Lee’s $7.91 billion HKIC plans to focus on fintech, AI, biotech and high-end manufacturing while promoting virtual assets.
- China Extends Gold Buying Spree to 10th Month — Central Bank expands holdings to 69.62 million ounces as part of efforts to reduce reliance on the U.S. dollar.
- Chinese Premier Takes Test Ride on Indonesia’s New High-Speed Railway — Visiting Jakarta for ASEAN Plus Three summit, Li Qiang steps aboard for demonstration of key Belt and Road project.
South China Morning Post
- South Korean leader Yoon says China should do more to address North’s nuclear threat — Yoon Suk-yeol asked for Beijing’s support to revive a trilateral summit with Tokyo, during a meeting with Chinese Premier Li Qiang in Jakarta.
- Chinese President Xi Jinping visits flood damaged crops and homes after Typhoon Doksuri threatened northern food bowl — In wake of heavy rainfall last month, Chinese president inspects rice crops and talks to citizens, offering sympathy and encouragement, says state media.
- Alibaba eyes B2B expansion in the US with Las Vegas event as rivals ByteDance and PDD also grow American e-commerce — With a two-day conference, month-long sale, and new platform features, Alibaba is pushing to expand in the US amid a slowing economy at home.
- Chinese EV battery maker Eve joins hands with partners including Daimler Truck to set up a US$2.6 billion US plant — Chinese electric vehicle (EV) battery producer Eve Energy ties up with three foreign partners, including Daimler Truck, to build a factory in the US, a move that stamps China’s authority in manufacturing key components for EVs.
Nikkei Asia
- Australia, Philippines beef up ties amid South China Sea tensions — Annual defense minister meeting planned as Prime Minister Albanese visits Manila.
- Alibaba looks to regain momentum with management shakeup — Internet giant faces headwinds from intense competition, Beijing’s watchful eye.
- Cambodia’s ‘scamdemic’ reputation scares off travelers from China — Tourism becomes collateral damage as authorities struggle to tackle online gangs.
Bloomberg
- Zoom Met With FTC, UK, EU Regulators About Competition With Microsoft Teams — Zoom Video Communications Inc. has met with regulators from the US, European Union and other jurisdictions to outline concerns about allegedly anticompetitive behavior by Microsoft Corp.
- Google Ex-CEO Eric Schmidt Influences AI Policy With $27 Billion Fortune — Schmidt has become an indispensable adviser to government, even as some of his investments have won federal contracts.
- US Rejects China’s Bid to Hold Climate ‘Hostage’ Over Chips — US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan denounced as irresponsible any bid to link action on climate change to access to semiconductors.
- US Calls on IMF to Reload and Refocus Amid China Pushback — The US called for reforms at the International Monetary Fund that will increase its lending firepower and refocus its efforts toward financial stability.
- TikTok’s New Amazon Copycat Is Full of Cheap Chinese Goods — The social app’s Shop marketplace, key to its growth strategy, is so far hard to navigate.
Reuters
- In U.S.-China AI contest, the race is on to deploy killer robots — Alongside Sydney Harbour, engineers are working on a submarine that will be powered by artificial intelligence and will have no human crew.
- Venezuela’s Maduro to visit China to re-engage amid China-West tensions — China, the world’s largest importer of crude oil, is Venezuela’s largest creditor and a major player in the country’s oil industry, which has the world’s largest proven reserves.
- Nanjing scraps home-buying curbs in China’s latest property boost — policymakers scramble to arrest a deepening crisis in the massive property sector, which is weighing on the world’s second-biggest economy.
Foreign Policy
- China Prefers Guns to Butter — As the economy declines, the CCP leans heavily on the army.
- China’s Youth Are Increasingly Grim About Their Future — “We are competing with each other in what has become a pure rat race.”
- Xi Prepares to Eat Economic Bitterness — To withstand threats from China’s economic troubles, Xi stays focused on security.
Other Publications
- POLITICO: Biden admin to China: Hands off our tech but we’ll take your tourists — Spending by Chinese visitors to the U.S. is still a fraction of what it was before the pandemic.
- The New Yorker: Did Authoritarianism Cause China’s Economic Crisis? — An erosion of trust between the government and its people now threatens the country’s decades-long boom.
- The Economist: The Belt and Road, as seen from China — A slowing economy saps public enthusiasm for big projects far from home.
- The Economist: Joe Biden’s visit to Hanoi is a signal to China — America and Vietnam have a shared interest in reining in aggression at sea.
- The Information: A Leading Chinese Nickel Producer Tries Its Luck in the U.S. — The Inflation Reduction Act was meant to keep companies like Huayou Cobalt out of the U.S. battery supply chain. But the company is attempting to break into the U.S. market anyway and qualify for IRA tax credits.
- Semafor: Taiwan’s ties with Eswatini hold out from China’s Africa push — China claims Taiwan as its own territory with no right to state-to-state relations and Eswatini is one of only 13 countries in the world to still maintain diplomatic relations with the island.
