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 Expects Air Travel to Accelerate Recovery in 2024 — International flights to and from China are expected to reach 80% of prepandemic levels by the end of 2024.
- China’s Military Shake-Up Raises Questions About Combat Readiness — Turnover in upper ranks of Beijing’s military and defense establishment comes as hot spots proliferate on China’s periphery.
- Thermo Fisher Says It Has Halted Sales of DNA Technology in Tibet — Human-rights groups say police can misuse the products; the move follows a similar ban in Xinjiang.
- China Removes Videogame Official After Planned Curbs Triggered Market Rout — Senior party regulator exits after proposals spooked investors and wiped $60 billion off game-company stocks.
The Financial Times
- China’s services sector picks up pace on optimism for economic recovery — Caixin survey shows fastest expansion in activity in five months, but divergence from official data points to mixed picture.
- Wang Chuanfu, the driving force behind BYD’s rise — The former professor has turned the Chinese carmaker into the world’s best-selling EV manufacturer within a decade.
- ‘Like Waiting for Godot’: investors hope for China turnaround in new year — Wall Street forecasters are keeping the faith that government measures will revive Chinese market.
- China steps up aid for regional banks as economic risks mount — Record $31bn in special-purpose bonds used to stabilise small lenders exposed to property crisis.
The New York Times
- U.S. Awards Chip Supplier $162 Million to Bolster Critical Industries — The Biden administration said its second grant under a new program would help Microchip Technology expand its facilities in Oregon and Colorado.
- Balloons Float Over Taiwan Before an Election. Experts See a Sign from China. — Some analysts see the objects as a calculatedly ambiguous reminder to voters that Beijing is watching.

Caixin
- In Depth: China’s Cash-Strapped Local Governments Struggle to Revive Land Sales — As China’s local governments struggle to increase their fiscal revenue, many have decided to scrap some controls on the price of land in an effort to kick-start sales.
- China’s Latest AI Restrictions Target Scientific Research — China’s Ministry of Science and Technology has banned the use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) to “directly generate” research project applications in newly released guidelines.
- Analysis: Why China’s Two Manufacturing PMIs Are Diverging — In the second half of 2023, a noticeable divergence emerged between the Caixin China manufacturing PMI and the official manufacturing PMI released by the National Bureau of Statistics.
South China Morning Post
- China, eager for exchanges, pledges return to pre-pandemic flight pattern — With international travel still a small fraction of what it was before the pandemic, China has announced its intentions to make trips simpler, cheaper and more frequent for those interested in paying the country a visit.
- China seeks European approval of C919, wants its home-grown jet to compete with Boeing and Airbus abroad — China’s aviation regulator will seek to work with its European counterpart to allow its ‘domestic civil aircraft to go abroad’, with the C919 narrowbody passenger jet so far only been certified by the Chinese authority.
- New refund policies from Alibaba’s Taobao and JD.com spark fears of customer abuse among merchants — Some merchants have raised concerns that consumers may look to exploit the terms of these ‘refund only’ policies, hitting their operations.
Nikkei Asia
- U.K. fund manager has no plans to invest in China ‘anytime soon’ — GDP-stock market disconnect makes China a ‘terrible’ investment destination.
- Asia’s data center landscape is red hot — and increasingly complex — New rules in China and Vietnam are creating uncertainty for the fast-growing sector.
- Space race to heat up in 2024 as Japan, China, India reach for the stars — Japan targets first-ever ‘pinpoint’ landing on moon in January.
Bloomberg
- Tencent Buybacks Hit Record as China Watchdog Roiled Markets — Tencent Holdings Ltd. bought back a record HK$10 billion ($1.3 billion) of shares in December and accelerated the pace even further this month after China’s gaming regulator surprised investors with a raft of new regulations that triggered a broad tech selloff.
- China’s Defense Purge Strikes at Heart of Xi’s Military Reforms — President Xi Jinping has spent the past decade trying to reform the nation’s military and root out corruption from its ranks. A widening purge in the very defense circles that he’s elevated is exposing that campaign isn’t complete.
- China Air Travel Recovery to Ramp Up With Push for More Direct US Flights — China’s international air travel market will extend its recovery, with the nation’s aviation regulator expecting the number of weekly flights to hit about 80% of the pre-Covid level by the end of the year.
Reuters
- Taiwan says will publish analysis of China’s alleged election interference post vote — Taiwan’s foreign minister says it is documenting its experiences with China’s alleged attempts to interfere in elections next week and will publish its analysis soon after the vote.
- China targets better integration of EVs, grids to manage power demand — China’s state planner has issued new rules on strengthening the integration of new energy vehicles with the electric grid, as the world’s biggest market for electric vehicles (EVs) aims to manage its power demand amid a transition to renewable energy.
- China to tackle safety risks after year of accidents, disasters — China said on Thursday it plans a three-year campaign to tackle problems hampering response times during disasters and accidents including production safety lapses in sectors like mining.
Other Publications
- Center for Strategic & International Studies: U.S.-China Relations in 2024: Managing Competition without Conflict — It will take active diplomacy and some good luck to keep ties from fraying in 2024. By Scott Kennedy
- Axios: Exclusive: Thermo Fisher halts DNA collection kit sales in Tibet — Biotechnology company Thermo Fisher Scientific has halted sales of DNA collection kits to Tibet after criticism from rights groups and pressure from Congress, the company tells Axios.
- The Economist: Millions of Chinese have embraced skiing — The country has seen a post-pandemic boom in winter sports.
- Associated Press: China’s BYD is rivaling Tesla in size. Can it also match its global reach? — A less flashy Chinese electric vehicle maker is fast closing the gap with Tesla, the longtime, market-leading pioneer.
- Council on Foreign Relations: Taiwan’s Early Warning for the Future of Tech — Taiwan faces online threats in the run up to its January 13 election. Companies, governments, and civil society need to work together to defend against the growing influence of digital authoritarianism in Taiwan and worldwide.
- Foreign Policy: Red states don’t want Chinese neighbors — Post-9/11 security justifications are being used to pass new Chinese Exclusion Acts.
- Rest of World: Why Tesla isn’t worried about BYD — Two companies, two visions of our EV future.
- The Guardian: Jimmy Lai lawyers file UN appeal saying there is evidence witness was tortured — Hong Kong media mogul’s team raises concerns over testimony of former democracy activist who was imprisoned in China.