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 Releases Australian Journalist Detained on Suspicion of Disclosing State Secrets — Cheng Lei’s release marks latest improvement in ties between Beijing and key U.S. ally.
- Sales Slow at Louis Vuitton’s Owner as China Sputters — Luxury-goods retailer struggled to lure Chinese consumers back to its stores.
- U.S., in Chip War with China, Extends Some Allowances for Asian Allies — South Korea’s Samsung, SK Hynix get ‘verified end user’ status for China-based operations, while TSMC expects another one-year waiver.
- China Auto Sales Rose in September on Promotions, Holiday Travel — Demand was higher ahead of October holidays and more sales promotions as automakers tried to hit quarterly sales goals.
- IMAX China Falls After Buyout Is Voted Down — IMAX China Holding shares were volatile in morning trading after shareholders rejected a $124 million buyout proposal, ensuring shares will remain listed in Hong Kong.
- Country Garden Services’ President Resigns — The chairwoman of Country Garden Holdings, one of China’s largest property developers, owns a majority stake in Country Garden Services.
The Financial Times
- Australian journalist released from Chinese detention — CGTN news anchor is reunited with family after three years as tensions ease between Canberra and Beijing.
- Chinese EV maker Xpeng suspends executive over alleged corruption — Suspended vice-president oversaw supply chain procurement.
- India arrests employee of Chinese phonemaker vivo — New Delhi’s state agencies have also targeted mobile phone companies Oppo and Xiaomi in the past 18 months.
- Taiwanese semiconductor suppliers target Europe’s next-generation factories — Chemical companies in Asia have cornered cutting-edge chipmaking market as EU supply chain atrophied.
The New York Times
- China Releases Australian Journalist Three Years After Arrest — Cheng Lei, a host for China’s international broadcaster, was arrested in Beijing at a time of rising tensions with Australia. Her release signals a warming.
- ‘Whichever Is Cheaper’: Inside China’s New Thrift Economy — Beijing hopes spending can spur growth, which has been dragged down by slowing real estate sales and exports. But shoppers are gravitating to discounts.
Caixin
- Exclusive Interview: Lou Jiwei on Tackling a Greying China — China’s post-pandemic economic recovery is already facing short-term headwinds, but demographic changes such as a low birth rate and a rapidly aging society pose long-term challenges for policymakers.
- XPeng Suspends Supply Chain Chief in Internal Graft Crackdown — Chinese electric-car maker XPeng suspended its supply chain chief as part of an internal crackdown on corruption.
- Trending in China: ‘Lenient’ Punishment of Corrupt Retired Official Sparks Anger — Netizens in China are outraged about what they view as lenient punishment handed down to a 76-year-old retired official, who was not criminally indicted after he was found to have accepted bribes.
South China Morning Post
- Beijing tells China’s poor that help is coming, as leaders order wider social security net amid rising economic toll — China’s State Council also puts the onus on local governments to bolster support for those most in need, including the poor and elderly, while also vowing to keep them warm this winter.
- ‘Very promising’: Chinese herbal medicine trial offers new hope in memory loss treatment — Australian phase 2 clinical trial of Sailuotong shows memory and executive function improvements in people with mild cognitive impairment.
- More people are living in flood-prone areas despite risks from climate change with biggest increase in China, study finds — Settlements in flood zones more than doubled worldwide in the three decades to 2015, with the biggest expansion in China.
Nikkei Asia
- EU struggles to limit China’s involvement in sensitive tech areas — Heavy reliance on Chinese trade and investment hinders ‘de-risking’ efforts.
- Chinese electric vehicle maker WM Motor files for bankruptcy — Company blames COVID, quiet capital market and rising raw material prices.
- U.S., EU to support African railway development to counter China — West eyes mineral-rich corridor in Angola, DRC, Zambia as Belt and Road slows.
Bloomberg
- VW Partner Xpeng Says Corruption Probe Won’t Affect Business — A probe into Xpeng Inc.’s head of procurement won’t disrupt business or production processes, the Chinese electric-vehicle maker said, confirming a local media report of a corruption investigation at the company.
- China Budget Revision Would Mark ‘Sea Change’ in Fiscal Strategy — A rare mid-year revision to China’s national budget to juice the economic recovery with more stimulus would signal top leaders are moving away from a growth model that has piled ever more debt on local governments.
- China’s CATL, BYD Dominate EV Battery Market as Demand Grows — Chinese companies are expanding their share of the US and European electric-car battery markets thanks to lower prices, cementing their domination of the industry globally.
Reuters
- China saves billions of dollars from record sanctioned oil imports — China has reaped savings this year of nearly $10 billion through record purchases of oil from countries under Western sanctions, according to Reuters’ calculations based on data from traders and shiptrackers.
- China to host Belt and Road forum in Beijing Oct 17-18 — China will host its third Belt and Road Forum next week, its foreign ministry said on Wednesday, a President Xi Jinping signature event that President Vladimir Putin is due to attend on a rare trip abroad.
- Exclusive: Self-driving startup Plus splits US and China operations amid tensions — Self-driving truck startup Plus has split its Chinese and U.S. operations and struck a deal in which a key shareholder, China’s Full Truck Alliance, will focus on the China unit.
Other Publications
- The Economist: How economists have underestimated Chinese consumption — Although removing strict covid-19 controls should have helped lift that percentage a bit, improvements in Chinese data analysis could lift it rather more.
- Foreign Affairs: China Goes on the Offensive in the Chip War — Not only is the Chinese government doubling down on cutting-edge processors, it is also becoming more competitive in legacy chip manufacturing and chip design.
- Center for Strategic & International Studies: A Window of Opportunity to Build Critical Mineral Security in Africa — The value of trade between China and Africa has risen from $10 billion in 2000 to a record $25 billion in 2021—over quadruple the increase between the United States and Africa.
- The Age: ‘Holding my kids in the spring sunshine’: Cheng Lei home after release from Chinese jail — Cheng Lei, the Australian journalist detained on national security charges by China, has returned to Australia, ending a three-year ordeal that put her at the centre of a bitter diplomatic dispute between Canberra and Beijing.
- The Guardian: ‘Happy rebirth!’: Chinese women shake off taboos around divorce to celebrate freedom — As the divorce rate in China rises, attitudes to separations are changing, with young women now throwing parties to mark the end of married life.
