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
- What the U.S.-China Trade Agreement Means for Markets — The deal goes much further than investors thought possible. They also liked that it showed Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in control of trade policy.
- Surprise U.S.-China Trade Deal Gives Global Economy a Big Reprieve — The de-escalation gives both sides breathing space to find a way to preserve a trading relationship that was threatening to grind to a halt.
- Apple Considers Raising iPhone Prices, Without Blaming Tariffs — The company wants to avoid appearing to attribute price increases to U.S. tariffs on goods from China, where most Apple devices are assembled.
- CATL Plans to Raise Around $4 Billion in Listing — The Chinese battery giant is planning to raise as much as US$4.0 billion in the year’s biggest listing in Hong Kong.
- Bessent Hails ‘Productive’ U.S.-China Trade Talks — The Treasury secretary cited progress and promised more details Monday. Beijing said the two sides agreed to start a formal negotiation process.
- Asian Stock Markets Rise on Signs of Progress in U.S.-China Trade Talks — Officials from the U.S. and China concluded the weekend’s high-stakes trade talks, with Washington touting progress toward a deal.
- Taiwan’s New Strategy: Make China Fear the Pain of an Invasion — Taiwan’s so-called porcupine strategy aims to deter a Chinese invasion—or at least stall it until U.S. support arrives.
The Financial Times
- World’s largest EV battery maker CATL to raise at least $4bn — Chinese company’s Hong Kong offering set to be biggest listing globally this year.
- China and US agree to slash tariffs — Deal to reduce duties for next 90 days marks the first sign of tension easing between the two economic superpowers.
- US claims ‘substantial progress’ after trade talks with China — Markets rise and gold weakens as American and Chinese officials seek to de-escalate tensions.
- How Xi sparked China’s electricity revolution — Beijing’s aggressive pursuit of energy self-sufficiency could give it the upper hand in the trade war with the US.
- Taiwan TV drama to give public a visceral vision of war with China — Controversial series ‘Zero Day’ is first to realistically depict a Chinese invasion of the democratic but divided island.
- Chinese companies purge supply chain of foreign parts amid US trade war — Beijing’s self-reliance drive accelerates as groups seek out local suppliers in response to tariffs.
- Latin America wary of US trade backlash as it builds relations with China — Colombian plan to join Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative triggers threat from Washington.
- China and US kick off high-stakes trade talks in Geneva — Meeting between He Lifeng and Scott Bessent comes a day after Donald Trump said he was open to cutting tariffs.
- Trump signals openness to cutting China tariffs ahead of Geneva talks — US president suggests reduction to 80% as Beijing announces increase in global exports.
- Yamaha looks for sax appeal among China’s ageing population — Instrument maker hopes growing retiree interest in saxophones and guitars will offset decline in piano sales.
- China’s J-10 ‘Dragon’ shows teeth in India-Pakistan combat debut — Skirmish is first test of Beijing’s military hardware against advanced western technology.
- Trump says 80% tariff on China ‘seems right’ ahead of trade talks — US president stakes out position as Treasury secretary heads to Geneva for negotiations.
- US-UK trade deal squeezes China supply chains — Diplomats say pact’s provisions on strategic sectors is template for Washington.
The New York Times
- U.S. and China Reach Deal to Temporarily Slash Tariffs — The 145 percent U.S. tariff on Chinese goods will come down to 30 percent for 90 days, while the two sides continue talks aimed at resolving their differences.
- China Courts Lula and Latin America After Trump’s Tariff Shock — President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of Brazil is visiting Beijing this week, and China’s Xi Jinping will also meet top officials from other Latin American and Caribbean nations to emphasize their ties.
- Global Stocks Jump After U.S. and China Cut Tariffs — A temporary reduction in punishing tariffs, agreed after weekend talks between American and Chinese officials, signaled a de-escalation in the trade war between the world’s two largest economies.
- U.S. Says ‘Substantial Progress’ Made in Trade Talks With China — Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the details would be announced on Monday after two days of negotiations in Geneva.
- Another Casualty of the Trade Wars? Burgers Made With Brazilian Beef — Americans are eating record amounts of Brazilian beef. Now, tariffs and trade wars could push up U.S. prices and send more of it to China.
- US and China Meet for First Time Since Trump Imposed Tariffs — The outcome of the trade negotiations, which will continue on Sunday, could determine the trajectory of the global economy.
- This Is the Trade Conflict Xi Jinping Has Been Waiting For — For years, the leader of China has planned to make the world dependent on its exports and know-how. But the strategy has costs for his own country.
- Opinion: Are Trump’s Tariffs Trying to Solve a Problem That Doesn’t Exist? — A Harvard economist argues that a decline in manufacturing jobs is not what ails the United States. By Jason Furman.
Caixin
- China’s Decade-Long Quest to Ease the Pressure on Pupils From an Exam That Shapes Their Life — Around 14 million students across the country are expected to take this year’s Gaokao in early June.
- China, EU Could Keep Clean Tech Partnership Alive in Other Countries, Economist Says — This cooperation would likely unlock unprecedented financing for developing nations, AIIB’s Erik Berglöf says.
- China-U.S. Air Cargo Plummets After End of Duty-Free Loophole — Air freight rates between the two countries, once buoyed by the explosive growth of e-commerce, are now in free fall.
South China Morning Post
- Chinese nationalism surges across social media as viral video mocks downed Indian jets — Controversial influencer sparks social media fervour with Indian song parody remix over recently reported J-10C downing of French Rafale by Pakistan fighter pilots.
- Amid US chip sanctions and climate pressure, China builds mighty ocean simulation system — Clarity offered by ultra-high-resolution ocean ‘microscope’ will help scientists better predict extreme weather events, Xinhua report says.
- Tencent-backed StepFun aims to stand out in China’s AI race with multimodal models — Players in China’s AI industry are struggling to differentiate their products after DeepSeek’s success triggered a surge in reasoning models.
- AI will be the mainstay of Alibaba’s business in next 3-5 years, chairman Joe Tsai says — Tsai and chief people officer Jane Jiang Fang answer questions from the staff, including the impact of the US-China trade war on the company.
- Temu points Chinese sellers to Middle East, Latin American markets amid US tariff woes — US tariffs are prompting Chinese merchants to seek alternative markets, but some sellers remain hopeful that the worst is soon behind them.
Nikkei Asia
- ‘China here, China there’: Cambodian city reshaped by Chinese money — Manufacturing influx brings competition for labor and energy.
- China escalates tactics targeting Japan’s control over Senkaku islands — Recent helicopter incursion may show intent to defend territory Beijing claims.
- Tabletop games industry fears losing big under Trump’s China tariffs — Multibillion-dollar business highlights difficulty of bringing manufacturing to US.
Bloomberg
- ‘Buy America’ Sweeps Across Global Markets After China-US Talks — With the temporary truce between the US and China kicking off another equity rally, American stocks are now trading like Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” shock never happened.
- Chinese Elite’s Favored Car Brand Is Getting a Modern Makeover — Hongqi has ferried around Xi Jinping and other high-ranking officials. Now it’s after a bigger share of the nation’s booming EV market.
- Opinion: Trump and Xi Tone Down a Senseless Trade War — Prohibitive tariffs cost millions of jobs on both sides of the Pacific. This 90-day truce is a good start. By Shuli Ren.
Reuters
- This US-owned factory in China made toys bound for Walmart. Tariffs put it on life support — Huntar CEO Jason Cheung is pursuing a long-shot effort to move his operation to Vietnam before the company his dad founded years ago runs out of money.
- Reactions to US-China tariff cuts — This weekend’s meetings were the first face-to-face interactions between U.S. and Chinese officials since U.S. President Donald Trump returned to power and launched a global tariff blitz.
- China’s recovery in crude oil imports is more bearish than bullish — The question is how long Chinese buyers will remain wary of buying Iranian oil, or, how long it will take them to find ways to work around the latest sanctions and resume importing from Tehran.
Other Publications
- ChinaFile: How Will the Trump Presidency Change EU-China Relations? — Can European countries maintain a lasting political and economic relationship with China?
