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
- Canada Anticipates Progress in China Talks to Resolve Trade Row — Trade irritants regarding canola and electric vehicles will be discussed during Prime Minister Mark Carney’s visit to Beijing this week.
- Lynas Could Gain From China’s Curbs on Rare Earths Supply to Japan — A diplomatic row is creating opportunities for Lynas Rare Earths, the world’s biggest rare-earths miner outside of China.
- The Battle Over Who Runs the Panama Canal Ports Is About to Be Decided — Panama’s Supreme Court is winding up deliberations in a lawsuit that could void a Chinese company’s license to operate the ports and hand President Trump a win.
- An Isolated Iran Finds China’s Friendship Has Limits — Beijing has provided Tehran with an economic lifeline, but offers little more.
The Financial Times
- Microsoft warns that China is winning AI race outside the west — DeepSeek’s technology is being rapidly adopted across Africa and beyond, tech group’s research shows.
- What will China do now? — Beijing must decide if it will conduct business as usual in the wake of the US’s ousting of Maduro in Venezuela.
- Local brands weaken European luxury groups’ grip in US and China — Shoppers in the industry’s biggest two markets opt for domestic alternatives to long-dominant old guard.
The New York Times
- Former U.S. Navy Sailor Gets Nearly 17 Years in Prison for Spying for China — Jinchao Wei sold technical manuals for American warships to a Chinese intelligence officer who had recruited him on social media.
- Why China Is Suddenly Obsessed With American Poverty — State media, embracing the gaming phrase “kill line,” is asserting China’s political superiority over the United States, deflecting focus on China’s own economic challenges.
- China’s ‘Dr. Frankenstein’ Thinks Time Is on His Side — He Jiankui spent three years in prison after creating gene-edited babies. Now back at work, he sees a greater opening for researchers who push boundaries.
Caixin
- China, EU Reach Breakthrough to End EV Tariffs — The offers should include minimum import prices along with annual volume caps.
- Humanoid Robot Startup X Square Nets Big-Name Backers in $143 Million Raise — The investment marks the latest sign of investor enthusiasm for China’s fast-evolving “embodied AI” sector.
- China Overhauls State Investment Rules in Push for Tech, Efficiency — The move aims to bring discipline to a sector plagued by redundant projects, inefficient regional competition and investments misaligned with Beijing’s policy goals.
South China Morning Post
- Opinion: Can Europe rebuild its strength to trade with China without fear? — To break the pattern of trade escalations with Beijing, Brussels must move beyond tariffs and invest in its own competitiveness. By Hao Nan.
- China’s fight against corruption is a battle we can’t afford to lose, Xi Jinping warns — President tells China’s top anti-graft watchdog that corruption is a ‘stumbling block’ that is hampering the country’s development.
- Supertankers sailing to pick up Venezuelan oil for China make U-turn: ship data — The Xingye and Thousand Sunny, which have not been the subject of sanctions, head back to Asia after weeks of idling in the Atlantic.
Nikkei Asia
- China Labubu factory uses underage labor, rights group says — Pop Mart supplier in Jiangxi underpays staff, exceeds legal overtime limits.
- Opinion: China is already the economic Goliath it does not want to be seen as — Beijing should evolve from export-led growth and focus on services at home. By Henny Sender.
- China condemns Trump threat of tariffs on Iran’s trade partners — Beijing rejects Washington’s efforts to assert ‘long-arm jurisdiction’.
Bloomberg
- The UAE and China Lead List of Those at Risk From Trump’s Iran Tariff —China and the United Arab Emirates are Iran’s largest trading partners.
- Chinese Startup Making Tech to Rival Neuralink Said to File for Hong Kong IPO — BrainCo develops bionic limbs and non-invasive technologies for human brains.
Reuters
- Volkswagen drops to third in China sales as fast-growing Geely Auto overtakes — Legacy foreign automakers ceding share to local rivals.
- Canadian prime minister visits China after nearly a decade of tense relations — Carney’s visit aims to improve trade and security ties with China amid tensions with United States.
- G7, other allies discuss ways to reduce dependence on Chinese rare earths — Price floor for rare earths, new supply partnerships discussed at U.S. Treasury.
Other Publications
- Time: Amid China-Japan Spat, Both Countries Court South Korea — Experts have suggested that Beijing sees this as an opportunity to make clear its red lines.
- Wired: Trump Declared a Space Race With China. The US Is Losing — If you want to put people back on the moon, don’t gut the agency in charge of getting them there.
- The Guardian: China pressing European countries to bar Taiwan politicians or face crossing a ‘red line’— Exclusive: Chinese officials are using a ‘highly specific’ interpretation of EU rules to suggest Taiwanese figures should not be granted visas, officials say.
- Toronto Star: China urges Canada to break from U.S. influence as PM Carney visits Beijing — China’s state media is calling on the Canadian government to set a foreign policy path independent of the United States — what it calls “strategic autonomy.”
- Rest of World: BYD burns profit chasing global dominance over Tesla — The Chinese EV giant reported a 33% drop in third-quarter profit while ramping up overseas expansion and R&D spending.
