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
- Tesla to Recall Over 1.6 Million EVs in China Over Autosteering, Door Latch Concerns — Tesla is recalling more than 1.6 million electric vehicles in China in another blow to the company’s ambitions for the Chinese market.
- Trump’s Businesses Got Millions From Foreign Governments While He Was President — Democrats say Trump violated Constitution by accepting at least $7.8 million from China, Saudi Arabia and other countries for leases and hotel stays.
- Shares in European Drinks Makers Drop on China Investigation — Shares in European drinks makers tumbled on Friday after the Chinese government launched an anti-dumping investigation into brandy imported from the European Union in an escalation of trade tensions.
- Chinese Company That Sparked Fears of Financial Contagion Falls Into Bankruptcy — A key subsidiary of Zhongzhi had missed multiple debt payments.
- How to Bottom Fish for Chinese Stocks in 2024 — It has been a wet few years on the high seas of China’s markets. This year there might be more opportunities—if investors know where to look.
The Financial Times
- Chinese shadow lender Zhongzhi files for bankruptcy — Property market woes have spread to financial sector and hit savers after bad loans to developers.
- China targets French brandy imports in escalating trade spat — Investigation comes four months after Brussels complains of flood of Chinese electric cars.
- Becoming Taiwan: in China’s shadow, an island asserts its identity — As elections loom, Taiwanese of all generations are forging a new vision of their past — and future.
- Baidu’s bet on AI could make or break China’s fallen tech group — Issues with leadership and strategic mis-steps raise doubts but generative AI gives hope for comeback.
- China launches new blue-chip stock index to push growth sectors — More diversified CSI A50 index gives greater emphasis to priority industries such as renewables and chips.
- Citigroup plans launch of China-based investment bank — US lender’s move comes as rivals become more cautious in second-largest economy.
- China spent millions at Trump properties while he was president — Saudi Arabia among foreign states that spent heavily at ex-president’s hotels, Democrats find.
The New York Times
- Tech Executive Sold Banned Chinese Products to State Agencies, U.S. Says — The owner of a technology company persuaded New Jersey public safety officials to spend at least $35 million on security equipment, a federal complaint says.
- Trump Received Millions From Foreign Governments as President, Report Finds — House Democrats released evidence that he took in at least $7.8 million from foreign entities while in office, engaging in the kind of conduct the G.O.P. is grasping to pin on President Biden.
Caixin
- Leaks on the Rise at China’s Mining Waste Dumps — China has seen a “marked increase” in environmental emergencies involving tailings ponds, according to the country’s top environmental watchdog, underscoring the difficulties authorities face in regulating these mineral waste dumps.
- Regulator Denies Quant Trading to End on Futures Market — China’s top securities regulator has denied rumors that quantitative trading might come to an end on the domestic commodity futures market, as speculation swirled earlier this week that related transaction costs would go up.
- China’s Cancer Deaths Jump by Over 20% in 15 Years, Study Says — Cancer deaths in China increased by 21.6% to nearly 2.4 million in 2020 from 2005, according to a recent study co-conducted by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
South China Morning Post
- China’s ‘king of software’, Wang Wenjing, steps down as president of enterprise management systems firm Yonyou amid mounting losses — The senior management shuffle at Yonyou reflects the firm’s effort to turn around its business after about two years of stagnant revenue growth.
- China’s primary sector workforce sees first increase in decades as migrants back on the farm — For the first time in decades, the share of China’s workforce employed in raw materials industries has gone up – a consequence of a weak job market and a return of rural migrants to their homes.
- China unveils new artificial intelligence guidelines for scientists and bans use in funding applications — The guidelines say AI cannot be credited as a co-author and any use of the technology for research purposes must be clearly labelled.
Nikkei Asia
- Alibaba-backed lidar maker RoboSense dips in Hong Kong debut — Questions grow over how many self-driving cars will use costly sensors over cameras.
- Huawei cuts North America PR staff as hopes for U.S. breakthrough fade — Chinese tech giant sheds PR, government relations jobs amid focus on home market.
- Country Garden’s sales in 2023 less than half previous year’s — Sharp dip in December points to ongoing woes for Chinese developer.
Bloomberg
- Top China Diplomat Warns of Decoupling Risk Even as Ties Improve — China’s top diplomat warned the US that decoupling would be “self defeating” as the country set out to implement a recent agreement made between their leaders.
- China Top Sportswear Maker Li Ning Slumps Anew to Start 2024 — China’s leading sports apparel maker Li Ning Co. has started 2024 the same way it ended 2023: on the wrong foot.
- Foxconn Expects Sales to Fall as iPhone Doubts Grow — Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. warned of its fourth consecutive decline in quarterly sales after a 5.4% slide in the last three months of 2023 suggested consumer electronics demand remains muted.
- Huawei Qingyun L540 Laptop Teardown Reveals 5nm Chip by TSMC, Not China’s SMIC — Huawei Technologies Co.’s newest laptop runs on a chip made by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., a teardown of the device showed, quashing talk of another Chinese technological breakthrough.
- China’s Coal King Is Catching Up With Its New Battery Champions — China’s battery giants are at the forefront of the global energy transition, but on the stock market they’re being outshined by the dirtiest fossil fuel.
Reuters
- Exclusive: Iran’s oil trade with China stalls as Tehran demands higher prices — China’s oil trade with Iran has stalled as Tehran withholds shipments and demands higher prices from its top client, tightening cheap supply for the world’s biggest crude importer, refinery and trade sources said.
- Exclusive: China pushes equity fund launches to support stock market -sources — Beijing has informally asked some money managers in China to prioritise the launch of equity funds over other products like bond funds, four sources with direct knowledge of the matter said, as authorities scramble to revive its lagging stock market.
- BlackRock appoints Hua Fan as head of China, succeeding Tony Tang -sources — BlackRock Inc has appointed Hua Fan, formerly general manager of its majority-owned China asset management unit, as head of China, two sources with knowledge of the matter said.
Other Publications
- The Globe and Mail: Federal Court expands definition of espionage in decision to bar Chinese student from Canada — A Federal Court judge has concluded that a Chinese engineering student is a potential spy and cannot enter Canada in a ruling that broadens the definition of espionage and has potentially wide consequences for foreign researchers.
- Axios: Scoop: Biden preparing to keep many of Trump’s China tariffs — The Biden administration is moving toward keeping many of former President Trump’s controversial tariffs on some $300 billion in Chinese imports in place, and aims to increase duties on electric vehicles and some critical minerals, three sources familiar with the matter tell Axios.
- CNBC: China’s property ‘inventory overhang’ could take more than 10 years to correct, economist says — China is facing the prospect of a long-drawn correction in its property sector, with the overhang in the housing inventory likely to take more than 10 years to clear, according to Hao Hong, chief economist and partner at GROW Investment Group.
- Associated Press: A competition Chinese chess player says he’s going to court after losing his title over a defecation — A competitor in Chinese chess says he has sued the national association in China for mental distress after he was stripped of a title for drinking alcohol and defecating in the bathtub of his hotel room at a recent competition.
- Council on Foreign Relations: Taiwan’s 2024 Presidential Election: Analyzing Ko Wen-je’s Foreign Policy Positions — Ko Wen-je claims that he can chart a third way, simultaneously boosting Taiwan’s defenses while restarting communication with China. It is unclear, however, whether China would accept his overtures. By David Sacks
- MIT Technology Review: The race to produce rare earth materials — China has dominated the market for rare earth elements, but US scientists and companies are scrambling to catch up.
