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
- How Far Is China’s Slowdown Spreading? Ask a Dairy Farmer 6,000 Miles Away — Weak demand among Chinese consumers for milk is rippling out to the rolling hills of New Zealand.
- China Strips Missing Defense Minister of Government Posts — Beijing didn’t announce a replacement for Li Shangfu, who hasn’t been seen in public for two months.
- The Corporate Retreat From Hong Kong Is Accelerating — The commercial hub’s ties to mainland China, which global companies once considered an asset, have become a liability.
- WPP Fires Employee Detained in China, Launches Investigation Into Bribery Charges — Advertising giant says GroupM unit is suspending trade with any organization it understands to be part of the police inquiries.
- China Shut the Door on Two Online Brokers. Then Their Stock Prices Boomed. — Futu and Up Fintech have been unexpected beneficiaries of higher U.S. interest rates.
- Mitsubishi Motors to End Car Production in China — The Japanese automaker will restructure its joint venture with Guangzhou Automobile Group and Mitsubishi Corp.
The Financial Times
- Taiwan presidential frontrunner blasts China over Foxconn probe — Lai Ching-te hits back at Beijing’s investigation of Apple supplier ahead of election.
- Hong Kong universities under pressure as academics head for exits — Shrinking freedom and fears of falling foul of sweeping security law push researchers to leave Chinese territory.
- US chip curbs stymie efforts by China surveillance group to diversify — Hong Kong-based AI company SenseTime faces ‘end of the road’ for data centre ambitions.
- China’s EV sector burns bright but cannot offset property’s woes — The ‘high-quality consumption’ Beijing seeks requires difficult structural reforms.
- WPP-owned agency sacks Shanghai-based executive facing bribery claims — Dismissal follows police raid of GroupM China’s offices and questioning of executive and two former employees last week.
The New York Times
- China Dismisses Defense Minister Amid Swirl of Speculation — The unexplained dismissal of Gen. Li Shangfu, the Chinese military’s top diplomat, has come after two top commanders in the country’s rocket forces were replaced.
- How Columbia Sportswear Is Loosening Its Ties to Asia — Confronted with the U.S.-China trade war and disruptions in the shipping industry, the company is shifting some production to Central America.
Caixin
- In Depth: China Banks Jump on AI Bandwagon to Cut Costs — Banks in China are turning to artificial intelligence (AI) to save on labor costs and improve efficiency, but the transition faces both technical and regulatory hurdles, according to experts in the field.
- China Removes Defense Minister Li Shangfu, State Broadcaster Says — Li Shangfu, China’s defense minister, has been removed from his post, the state broadcaster CCTV reported Tuesday.
- China Delivers Emergency Humanitarian Aid to Gaza — China has delivered emergency humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza and will continue to provide material assistance to them as needed, China’s top diplomat said, as the death toll in the Israel-Hamas war climbs to over 6,000 people.
South China Morning Post
- China’s ex-foreign minister Qin Gang stripped of last remaining state title — Move is fresh blow for once-rising political star after removal as foreign minister a month ago. He has not been seen in public since late June.
- Li Shangfu axed as defence minister in second China leadership shock — US-sanctioned general’s fall follows weeks of speculation over his absence from public view since August. State television also reported that Li and former foreign minister Qin Gang have been removed as state councillors.
- China-Africa relations: IMF report says Chinese loans are not main debt burden in sub-Saharan region — Beijing the largest bilateral official lender to countries in Africa but share in sub-Saharan overall sovereign debt still relatively small, according to report.
Nikkei Asia
- Number of China’s wealthy falls amid property crisis, Hurun finds — Bottled water king Zhong Shanshan tops rich list for third straight year.
- Billion-dollar airport whets Cambodia appetite for Chinese investment — As Siem Reap facility opens, PM Hun Manet looks for more Belt and Road money.
- New China-focused ETF puts ‘America first’ in investment screening — Core Values Alpha fund uses scorecard to avoid U.S. sanctions, security, human rights issues.
Bloomberg
- Xi Steps Up Economic Support With New Debt Issuance, PBOC Visit — Chinese President Xi Jinping stepped up support for the world’s second-biggest economy, issuing additional sovereign debt, raising the budget deficit ratio and even making an unprecedented visit to the central bank.
- China Names Lan Fo’an as Finance Minister to Tackle Debt Risks — China named Lan Fo’an as finance minister to replace Liu Kun, giving him responsibility for implementing a plan to diffuse local government debt risks.
- Chinese Appliance Giant Midea Group Files for Hong Kong Listing — Midea Group Co., China’s largest home appliance maker, has filed for a Hong Kong listing that could be among the city’s biggest in recent years.
Reuters
- China to choose fiscal muscle over big reforms to revive economy — China is set to unleash fresh fiscal stimulus to shore up its economic recovery, drawing on a well-used playbook that relies heavily on debt and state spending but falls short on the deeper reforms called for by a growing number of analysts.
- Canada says China-linked ‘Spamouflage’ campaign targeted lawmakers, PM Trudeau — The Canadian government said on Monday it detected a China-linked “Spamouflage” campaign that involved bots posting disinformation and propaganda on the social media accounts of members of parliament, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
- China’s Great Wall Motor is first EV maker to respond to EU anti-subsidy probe — China’s Great Wall Motor said it had formally submitted responses to the European Commission’s anti-subsidy investigation of Chinese-made electric vehicles (EVs), while calling for a fair and open trade environment.
Other Publications
- Associated Press: California governor visits China and says his state will always be a partner on climate change — The governor of California opened a week-long trip to China on Monday with an assurance that his state will always be a partner on climate issues no matter how the U.S. presidential election turns out next year.
- Politico: Former Calif. Gov. Jerry Brown on what’s changed with China — California Gov. Gavin Newsom is forging ties with China during a particularly volatile time in the state’s long history of climate diplomacy.
- Foreign Affairs: What America Wants From China — Despite all the speeches, press conferences, and panel discussions, policymakers have not directly answered an essential question: What is the outcome they seek in this competition?
- Center for Strategic & International Studies: China’s New Graphite Restrictions — China is leveraging its dominance of the global critical minerals and raw materials supply chain to respond to expanded economic security policies in the West.
- The Guardian: China local governments launch crackdown on dogs after child was mauled — Social media posts showed landlords breaking into people’s houses and forcibly taking away their dogs.
- Rest of World: China’s biggest gay dating app wants to beat Grindr — Facing censorship and competition at home, Blued has plans to build the world’s largest gay social platform.
