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
- Apple iPhone Sales Slump in China Amid Huawei’s Comeback — Apple’s smartphone sales in the world’s largest smartphone market dropped sharply, placing the company third overall behind local rivals, Vivo and Honor.
- Germany Detains Lawmaker’s Assistant in Fourth Suspected China Spying Arrest This Week — A prominent far-right politician’s parliamentary assistant has been arrested on suspicion of spying for China.
- The Doping Crisis Set to Test the Paris Olympics — The World Anti-Doping Agency faces a credibility fight over its handling of 23 Chinese swimmers’ failed drug tests.
- Nidec Corp. Posts Net Loss on EV-Motor Business Restructuring — Nidec Corp. reported a fourth-quarter net loss on restructuring expenses for its electric-vehicle traction motor business as severe competition disrupts the EV market in China.
- Chinese Bubble Tea Maker Slides in Hong Kong Trading Debut — Shares of Chinese bubble tea maker Sichuan Baicha Baidao Industrial slumped on lukewarm demand and comes ahead of planned listings by tea rivals Mixue Ice Cream & Tea and Guming.
- China’s Economy Is ‘Failing,’ U.S. Indo-Pacific Commander Says — The U.S. military commander in the Indo-Pacific said he didn’t believe the economic growth figures reported by China and described the country’s economy as failing.
- Chinese Villagers Jumped at the Deal of a Lifetime—Then It Turned Sour — The country’s real estate crisis has dealt a particularly harsh blow to homeowners in poorer regions, some of whom traded family homes for planned apartments that never materialized.
- U.S. Takes Aim at Chinese Banks Aiding Russia War Effort — Washington says Beijing’s dual-use trade has helped Moscow rebuild its war machine.
- China Finance Ministry Voices Support for Central Bank Bond Trading — China’s finance ministry has said it is in favor of the central bank resuming trading Treasury bonds, a move that would see the monetary authority dust off a rarely used tool in its policy kit.
The Financial Times
- US business group says policy ‘inconsistency’ hurting China investment — AmCham China highlights concerns about lack of regulatory clarity as Beijing seeks to shore up confidence.
- German staffer in EU parliament arrested on China spying charges — Employee working for German far-right party’s lead candidate accused of passing sensitive information to Beijing.
- Hong Kong’s biggest IPO of 2024 flops — Shares of Chinese bubble tea chain ChaPanda drop as much as 38% on first day of trading.
- TikTok fortune of billionaire Republican donor Jeff Yass threatened by Washington — Investor’s Susquehanna International Group owns estimated $40bn stake in parent company ByteDance as app faces potential ban.
- China’s ageing tech workers hit by ‘curse of 35’ — Discrimination against older employees particularly apparent in sector where executives openly state preference for youth.
- Saudi Aramco chief defends China’s role in green transition amid closer ties — Amin Nasser praises Beijing’s efforts to make solar panels and electric vehicles cheaper.
- Opinion: The White House knows that the global south has a point — Rich countries espouse active industrial policy at home while continuing to impose outdated policies abroad. By Rana Foroohar.
- Opinion: Hong Kong’s bubble tea IPO flop is a sign of the market times — Chabaidao’s experience reflects weak local investor sentiment. By Lex.
The New York Times
- Germany Arrests Far-Right Lawmaker’s Aide on Suspicion of Spying for China — The move came just hours after the authorities detained three other people suspected of passing secrets to Beijing.
- Slide Over, Auntie: Young Chinese Find Tasty Meals in Senior Canteens — The community canteens, offering huge plates for a dollar or two, have become popular among penny-pinching young professionals.
- San Francisco Mayor Gives Panda Diplomacy a Try — In a city still struggling to recover from the pandemic, Mayor London Breed hopes giant pandas will lift the spirits — and the economy — of San Francisco.
- Biden Official Calls for Investigation in Chinese Swimming Doping Case — The administration’s top drug official, Rahul Gupta, said he would bring up the handling of Chinese swimmers’ positive tests at a meeting of sports officials this week.
- Germany Arrests 3 Suspected of Passing Secrets to China — Sensitive naval data and a high-powered laser were obtained for China by three German citizens, according to prosecutors.
Caixin
- Nonbank Payment Providers Get Five Years to Comply With New Rules — Guidelines clarify issues of concern in the industry and detail measures for complying with the new rules.
- Japan Expects Flood of Chinese Tourists Over Labor Day Holiday — Related bookings have more than tripled year-on-year over the past week, according to travel agency data.
- Shanghai Supermarket Chain Goes Bust As Business Slows — China’s slowing economy is forcing many consumers to cut back while others are turning to e-commerce.
- Musk Hints Full Self-Driving Teslas Are Right Around the Corner in China — CEO says arrival of the software ‘may be possible very soon,’ without offering a timetable.
South China Morning Post
- China leads improvements in fossil fuel engine efficiency to fill electric gap — With vehicle electrification expected to take 10-20 years, Chinese manufacturers are breaking energy-saving records in an old technology.
- South China Sea: as tensions mount, Wang Yi vows Beijing to be by Cambodia’s side no matter what — Wang Yi vows China will continue to invest more in Cambodian infrastructure and promote production capacity cooperation: foreign ministry.
- Opinion: Cross-border synergy with China can help US more quickly adopt EVs — Despite US fears about an overcapacity in Chinese green tech, China’s market share of solar modules and electric vehicles is smaller than that of other competitors. By Winston Mok.
Nikkei Asia
- U.S.-China relations ‘stable but fragile,’ AmCham chief says — “By stable, what I mean is the relationship isn’t continuing to deteriorate with tit-for-tat types of actions,” AmCham China Chair Sean Stein said during a conference call.
- Probe of PwC’s Evergrande conduct casts shadow on Big Four auditors — Regulators in the city have launched an investigation into PwC over whistleblower allegations about the firm’s handling of Evergrande, the world’s most-indebted developer, with over $300 billion in liabilities.
- China envoy calls on U.S. to define ‘national security boundaries’ — China’s ambassador to the U.S. has called out Washington for failing to engage in promised talks with Beijing about defining the “boundaries” of national security, despite what he described as an agreement by the two countries’ leaders to do so.
- Opinion: Security for Chinese workers in Pakistan will always be elusive — Like his predecessors, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has repeatedly promised China that he will protect its workers and investments in his country. By Ayesha Siddiqa.
Bloomberg
- Russia Hosts China, Iran Security Chiefs to Discuss Cooperation — Patrushev and Chen, the Chinese Communist Party Politburo member in charge of security and law enforcement agencies, met in St. Petersburg on the sidelines of an international conference of intelligence chiefs.
- China Condemns US’s Overcapacity Claim Just Before Blinken Visit — China launched its harshest attack to date on US complaints about industrial overcapacity, signaling that Secretary of State Antony Blinken may be in for some difficult conversations during his visit this week.
- China’s Surging Steel Exports Are Inflaming Global Trade Tension — China’s biggest wave of steel exports since a global glut in the mid-2010s is inflaming trade tensions across the world as the metal reaches a wider range of destinations.
- China’s Small Towns Boom as Megacities Lose Appeal With Brands — Zhao Xiaowei did what would have been unthinkable just a few years ago: He quit his Beijing barista job and returned to his northeastern rust-belt hometown for a better future.
- Opinion: Blinken Needs to Show China There’s a Way Out — There could be a real opportunity to mend strained ties between the two superpowers. But Beijing is feeling boxed in and that’s not helping. By Karishma Vaswani.
Reuters
- China acquired recently banned Nvidia chips in Super Micro, Dell servers, tenders show — While the U.S. bars Nvidia and its partners from selling advanced chips to China, including via third parties, the sale and purchase of the chips are not illegal in China.
- China can’t quit coal by 2040, researchers say, despite global climate goals — China will continue using coal despite a massive ramp-up in renewable generation, which will make up 88% of China’s power generation mix in 2050, the report predicts.
- China turns the heat up on cross-border investments in local govt debt, sources say — The move comes after offshore debt issuances by the local governments, who already owe more than $9 trillion, surged in recent months and touched the highest monthly volume in more than a year in January.
Other Publications
- Foreign Policy: The Strategic Unseriousness of Olaf Scholz — His latest trip confirms that Germany’s China policy is made in corporate boardrooms.
- Foreign Affairs: The Delusion of Peak China — America Can’t Wish Away Its Toughest Challenger.
- Foreign Affairs: China’s Alternative Order — And What America Should Learn From It.
- The Economist: Desmond Shum on how Xi Jinping beat down China’s red aristocrats — It took one of their own to do it, says the businessman and author.
- The Economist: How Chinese networks clean dirty money on a vast scale — These shadowy “banks” are becoming the financiers of choice for transnational criminal gangs.
- CSIS: Back in Stock? The State of Russia’s Defense Industry after Two Years of the War — This report examines Russia’s evolving defense industrial capabilities and limitations during the second year of the Russia-Ukraine war, and includes a case study on China to illuminate Russia’s evolving procurement patterns.
- Rest of World: TSMC’s debacle in the American desert — Missed deadlines and tension among Taiwanese and American coworkers are plaguing the chip giant’s Phoenix expansion.
- The Information: TikTok Plots Suit Over U.S. Ban Bill, Exec Tells Staff — TikTok plans to file a legal challenge if the White House signs a bill forcing a sale or ban of the app, according to an internal memo.
