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
- Puma Brings in Chinese Sportswear Maker as Top Shareholder — In $1.8 billion deal, Nike rival Anta takes a stake in another venerable Western brand.
- Tesla Ends 2025 With Lower Sales in Europe, While China’s BYD Powers On — Tesla registrations fell 27% to 238,656 units, compared with 187,657 for BYD.
The Financial Times
- The Chinese company that went from contract shoemaker to betting on Puma — Anta’s €1.5bn deal for a 29% stake in the German sportswear brand is a big step towards fulfilling its global ambitions.
- Government plans to tighten scrutiny of Chinese influence in UK — Sir Keir Starmer seeks to bolster registration scheme while still deepening Sino-British relations.
- Opinion: How China pulled off a great tech reversal — Beijing has long pursued an industrial strategy aimed at acquiring global technology. By Kyle Chan.
- Opinion: UK sofa retailer emerges as unlikely winner from Trump’s trade war — London-listed DFS appears to be benefiting from U.S.-China trade tensions and the rerouting of goods into Europe. By Lex.
The New York Times
- Chinese Pandas Leave Japanese Zoo — As Japan and China feud, an animal long used in Chinese diplomacy has been summoned back home.
- UK Seeks Trade With China Without Triggering Trump’s Fury — Prime Minister Keir Starmer hopes to boost his country’s lagging economy with a trip to Beijing. But he must carefully navigate between two superpowers.
Caixin
- How a Lakeside Banquet Reinforced Confidence in Baolide Among China’s Tech Elite — A private banquet at Qiandao Lake helped sustain investor confidence even as financial pressure quietly built.
- Chinese Companies’ Overseas Push Drives Demand for Localized Finance — As manufacturers deepen supply chains in Southeast Asia, banks are racing to offer multi-currency services tailored to local regulations, Standard Chartered says.
- Profits Rise at Chinese Banks as Revenue Growth Stalls — Lenders report higher 2025 net income despite flatlining revenue, aided by sharp cuts to provision coverage ratios.
- Chinese Mainland Buyers Drive Sharp Rise in London Home Ownership, Report Says — The borough of Tower Hamlets, where China’s controversial proposed new embassy is planned, led the increase.
South China Morning Post
- Why Hong Kong is turning to Shanghai to build a gold hub — As Hong Kong and Shanghai deepen cooperation in the gold market, officials are hailing the agreement as ‘the dawn of a new chapter.’
- China’s consumer spending push faces major challenge — debt-averse households — Beijing has renewed its focus on boosting domestic demand in recent months, but households are cutting debt at the fastest pace in years.
- China tightens rail approvals as Xi warns on overbuilding, waste and ‘operational’ trouble — Intercity lines face stricter break-even rules, as the central government cracks down on ‘back-door’ metro projects and looks to curb redundant infrastructure spending.
Nikkei Asia
- Japan-China tensions drive high-tech mineral prices to record highs — Tokyo worries Beijing could further restrict exports of ‘dual-use’ resources.
- China solar panel material suppliers join forces to stem supply glut — Chinese companies account for 95% of global capacity for polysilicon.
- China furniture seller Markor slammed by nation’s real estate slump — Retailer attempts turnaround by acquiring AI device cable supplier.
Bloomberg
- Evergrande Property Said to Expect Binding Offers by This Month — Private equity firms including Trustar Capital are evaluating whether to move ahead with a bid for Evergrande, sources said.
- Silver’s Rally Fueled by China Buying and Supply Tightness — Prices in Asia’s largest economy are trading at a premium to comparable rates in London.
- China Turns to Cheaper Brazil Soybeans After Meeting U.S. Pledge — State-owned companies have appeared to refrain from taking U.S. cargoes, sources said.
Reuters
- Fearing China clash, Japan asks fishermen to avoid flashpoint islands — The requests signal an abrupt shift after years in which Tokyo tacitly accepted such trips.
- Exclusive: German firms’ China investments driven to four-year high by U.S. trade wars — The figures show how the Trump administration’s aggressive trade policies have pushed firms in Europe’s top economy to shift their focus to China as an alternative.
- African nations now send more money to China than they receive in new loans — China’s role as a leading financier to developing nations has shifted over the past decade, with new loans to poorer countries falling sharply while debt repayments continue to rise.
Other Publications
- The Economist: China fears a flood of unemployed workers in rural areas — Fading ambition may pose a bigger problem.
- Rest of World: While politicians shape U.S.-China relations, their families turn to the stock market — Politicians’ spouses and children are buying and selling stocks in TSMC, Alibaba, and Tencent.
- Brookings: Three potential pathways for U.S.-China relations under Trump — This discontinuity in Trump’s approach to the U.S.-China relationship begs the question of what effect it will have on the relationship’s trajectory in the coming years.
- CFR: The Trump Administration’s Cyber Strategy Fundamentally Misunderstands China’s Threat — The adoption of an offense-first strategy will not diminish Beijing’s campaigns, and it coincides with a significant deterioration of cyber defenses that have kept U.S. networks and Americans safe, writes Matthew Ferren.
