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 Rounds Up 31,000 Suspects in Sweeping ‘Pig-Butchering’ Crackdown — Beijing is trying to stamp out online scams run from lawless enclaves across its border.
- More Good News for One of China’s Ailing Developers — A day after Sunac China began a $10 billion offshore-debt restructuring, the real-estate giant said it had secured a roughly $490 million loan to fund construction of a project in Shanghai.
The Financial Times
- Chinese police arrest tech founder on suspicion of running casino — DouYu chief was taken away by authorities in October after probe of alleged porn and gambling on streaming service.
- Nvidia says growth elsewhere will outweigh drop in China sales — US chipmaker forecasts higher than expected revenues on strong demand for its AI processors.
- Hong Kong food tech start-up challenges Japanese bento market — Former Sony chip designer hopes to shake up takeaway lunch service with automatic vending machine.
The New York Times
- Why China and Boeing Still Need Each Other — A thaw in relations between the U.S. and China may help the manufacturer sell more planes — and finally deliver aircraft ordered years ago.
- Nvidia Triples Quarterly Revenue, but Sales in China Are a Concern — Demand for the company’s A.I. chips remains high, but it said new U.S. export restrictions would hurt it sales to countries like China.
- At BRICS Summit, Countries Diverge Slightly on Israel and War in Gaza — They called for the release of all civilians who are being illegally held captive, as well as a humanitarian truce that would lead to a cessation of hostilities.
Caixin
- Five Things to Know About China’s Unusual Sovereign Bond Issue — The Chinese government took a rare and unexpected decision in October to issue 1 trillion yuan ($141 billion) of additional sovereign bonds in the fourth quarter to finance infrastructure spending, widening the budget deficit as a percentage of GDP for 2023 to a record high of 3.8%.
- Boss of Game Livestreamer DouYu Detained by Police — Chinese game livestreaming platform DouYu International Holdings plunged as much as 10% Tuesday morning after the company disclosed the detention of its chairman.
- Former Deputy Provincial Party Chief Gets 14 Years for Graft — Zhang Jinghua, former deputy party chief of East China’s Jiangsu province, has been sentenced to 14 years in prison for accepting almost 50 million yuan ($7 million) in bribes, according to Wuhan Intermediate People’s Court.
South China Morning Post
- Who’s on China’s new Central Financial Commission, and what will the Communist Party watchdog do? — The Communist Party’s Central Financial Commission has been convened, with Premier Li Qiang at the helm, to oversee finance more directly and get ahead of potential sources of economic risk.
- China’s digitalisation push seeks ‘digital energy’ to spark vital tech, economic growth in Greater Bay Area — China’s southern province of Guangdong pledged to build a so-called Digital Bay Area amid efforts to create a driving force for high-quality economic and social development.
- Video game streamer Douyu confirms CEO’s arrest in China after weeks of speculation about gambling content — Chinese police say they have arrested a 39-year-old man on suspicion of opening a casino, a day after the New York-listed live-streaming platform said that founder Chen Shaojie was arrested.
Nikkei Asia
- China’s market rebound fails to reassure skeptics — Foreign investors remained haunted by previous losses, analysts say.
- Tesla and Apple to attend China supply chain expo — Beijing stresses U.S. participation in push to prevent decoupling.
- Nvidia triples revenue on AI boom but China sales to drop ‘significantly’ — Chip giant seeks export license; new products for China possible in ‘coming months’.
Bloomberg
- Chinese EV Battery Maker CATL Said to Explore Hong Kong Listing — China’s Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. is studying a potential second listing in Hong Kong, according to people familiar with the matter.
- China Puts Country Garden on Draft List of Builders to Support — Country Garden Holdings Co. and Sino-Ocean Group have been included on China’s draft list of 50 developers eligible for a range of financing support, according to people familiar with the matter, signaling a pivot by Beijing to help some of the nation’s most distressed builders.
- Fewest Japanese Firms on Record Planning to Expand in China — Japanese companies planning to expand their business in China have fallen to a record low, as geopolitical tensions and a slow economic recovery continue to weigh on the world’s second largest economy.
Reuters
- Exclusive: China to name finance veteran Zhu as new forex chief – sources — China is set to appoint Zhu Hexin, a veteran banker and chief of state-run financial conglomerate CITIC Group, as the new head of its foreign exchange regulator, four people familiar with the matter said, amid growing headwinds for the economy and markets.
- Evergrande chairman’s two luxury mansions seized by creditor – local media — Two luxury homes in Hong Kong owned by the chairman of embattled property developer China Evergrande Group (3333.HK), Hui Ka Yan, have been seized by a creditor, local media outlet HK01 reported on Wednesday.
- China-linked fund seeks ouster of Australia rare earths miner’s chairman — A China-linked fund that is a major shareholder in Australia’s Northern Minerals has filed a motion to oust the rare earth developer’s chairman after the fund’s move for a higher stake was rejected on national interest grounds early this year.
Other Publications
- Human Rights Watch: China: Mosques Shuttered, Razed, Altered in Muslim Areas — The Chinese government is significantly reducing the number of mosques in Ningxia and Gansu provinces under its “mosque consolidation” policy, in violation of the right to freedom of religion, Human Rights Watch said today.
- Washington Post: A growing global footprint for China’s space program worries Pentagon — As its satellites crowd the skies, China has built ground stations in more than a dozen countries, with two more underway in Antarctica.
- Foreign Policy: Why Xi Was All Smiles With Biden — The Chinese president’s strong-arm diplomacy hasn’t worked.
- Council on Foreign Relations: China’s Current Account Surplus Is Likely Much Bigger Than Reported — The IMF needs to focus on China’s external account in its surveillance. The reported current account surplus appears to be significantly too low.
- Center for Strategic & International Studies: Tracking China’s Naval Modernization at Key Shipyards — Recent commercial satellite imagery shows significant progress on China’s third aircraft carrier, a new Type 075 amphibious assault vessel, and several other vessels.
- MIT Technology Review: This Chinese map app wants to be a super app for everything outdoors — Amap is not satisfied with just giving you directions. It wants to offer you everything from real estate listings to car rentals.
- The Guardian: ‘Breakthrough battery’ from Sweden may cut dependency on China — Northvolt, Europe’s only large homegrown electric battery maker, has said it has made a lower cost, more sustainable battery designed to store electricity which does not use lithium, nickel, graphite and cobalt.
