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
- Ray-Ban Maker EssilorLuxottica Logs Higher Sales Amid North America, China Growth — North America revenue rose 7.8%, its best quarter of the year.
- China Tries to Play the Role of Peacemaker in Ukraine — U.S. and Europe would view Beijing’s proposal skeptically given its close ties to Moscow.
- Baidu Plans to Make Its AI Chatbot Free — Baidu’s Hong Kong-listed shares climbed as much as 12% on Thursday.
The Financial Times
- China’s construction of coal-fired power plants reaches highest in a decade — Report of 94.5GW of capacity being added last year undermines vow to start reducing carbon emissions by 2030.
- Alibaba says it will be Apple’s AI partner in China — Ecommerce group’s advances in artificial intelligence have boosted its shares more than 40% this year.
The New York Times
- Ex-N.Y. Official Accused of Working for China Faces Bribery Allegation — Linda Sun, a former aide to Gov. Kathy Hochul and Gov. Andrew Cuomo, is also accused of violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act, according to a superseding indictment.
Caixin
- Shanghai Welcomes China’s First Harry Potter Theme Park to Open in 2027 — Boy wizard to bring his magic to China attracting up to 2.5 million tourists a year.
- Apple, Alibaba Join Forces to Bring AI to iPhones in China — Alibaba shares surge as Apple picks its AI partner in China.
- China’s Plan to Let the Market Set Wind and Solar Prices — Beijing orders all provinces to establish market-based pricing mechanisms by the end of this year.
- After Actor’s Kidnapping, Beijing and Bangkok Do More to Battle Scam Gangs — Thai authorities issue arrest warrants and cut off power to parts of Myanmar known to host traffickers.
South China Morning Post
- As dialogue resumes, will warmer ties increase China-UK economic engagement? — First UK-China Strategic Dialogue meeting in nearly seven years could help to create climate for further investment.
- With DeepSeek, China’s economic growth suddenly seems tied to AI — Tech innovation has rapidly become key to boosting labour productivity that will be necessary to sustain China’s economic momentum.
- ‘They’re hiring less’: China’s ‘iPhone City’ falls quiet as market rivalry intensifies — The giant iPhone assembly plant in Zhengzhou has cut back on hiring as Apple loses market share in China and Foxconn shifts production overseas.
Nikkei Asia
- DeepSeek reignites investor interest in China tech stocks — Dozens of companies announce partnerships despite unclear profitability.
- Vietnam to take Chinese loans for $8.3bn railway linking nations — Hanoi looks to China for funding and technology to upgrade network.
Bloomberg
- China’s Bond Rally Hits Roadblock as Popular Trade Hands Losses — The yield on 30-year bonds slumped 10 basis points below the overnight interbank rate this week, the biggest discount since December 2013.
- BlackRock Fund Gives Up China Towers After Missing Loan — It’s the latest sign that China’s yearslong property downturn has swept up even the world’s largest financial institutions.
- Apple’s Stock-Market Performance Is Increasingly Made in China — The country is both a significant market and key production hub.
- U.S. Bitcoin Miners Disrupted by Chinese Supplier Under Scrutiny — Recent shipments of machines made by Beijing-based Bitmain Technologies Ltd. to US clients have been delayed due to heightened Customs and Border Protection scrutiny.
Reuters
- DeepSeek gives China’s chipmakers leg up in race for cheaper AI — Previously, many Chinese AI chip companies did not directly challenge Nvidia.
- Alternative Chinese terminals emerge to take in sanctioned tankers, sources say — A handful of newer Chinese terminals recently began receiving oil tankers sanctioned by the U.S., according to five sources and shipping data.
Other Publications
- The Economist: Which goods are most vulnerable to American tariffs on China? — Our number-crunching shows which trade flows could be hard to replace.
- WIRED: China’s Salt Typhoon Spies Are Still Hacking Telecoms, Now by Exploiting Cisco Routers — Despite high-profile attention and even US sanctions, the group hasn’t stopped or even slowed its operation, including the breach of two more US telecoms.
