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
- China’s Xi Projects Strength. His Constant Purges Reveal Insecurity. — He is reversing Deng-era reforms and pushing China toward full-blown totalitarianism, in one analyst’s view.
- China’s Strength in Semiconductors, Rare Earths Drives Export Surge — Global AI boom has provided a powerful tailwind for Chinese exports.
- U.S. Expands List of Chinese Tech Companies It Says Assist Beijing’s Military — Some well-known companies were added to the annually updated list, which designates them as a U.S. national-security risk.
- A New Front Is Opening in the Fight to Break China’s Rare-Earth Dominance — Brazil holds the world’s second-largest reserves and wants to become a processor of critical minerals—but it refuses to choose sides between Washington and Beijing.
- Opinion: Taiwan Needs U.S. Arms Now — Washington is dragging its feet on delivery, weakening deterrence and amplifying the threat from Beijing. By Seth G. Jones.
The Financial Times
- Pentagon restores Alibaba, Baidu and BYD to Chinese military groups blacklist — Three companies reinstated as U.S. national security risk after sudden removal in February.
- Chinese exports climb as AI boom fuels trade — Imports show strong growth as world’s second-biggest economy shakes off impact of energy shock.
- China’s ‘silver economy’ shines as birth rate plunges — Companies rush to develop products and services for rapidly ageing population.
The New York Times
- A Mayor, Her Boyfriend and China’s Mysterious Propaganda Machine — Eileen Wang pleaded guilty to acting as a foreign agent. But what could Beijing want from the mayor of a small California city known as the “Chinese Beverly Hills”?
- Videos Show Chinese Businesses Hawking North Korean Labor — On social media, Chinese entrepreneurs are touting cheap labor across the border, as trade between the two countries regains momentum.
- China Reasserts Itself, to Contain North Korea’s Tilt Toward Russia — On a rare visit to North Korea, China’s leader, Xi Jinping, projected unity but also sought to remind Kim Jong-un that he is the senior partner in their alliance.
Caixin
- China’s Unemployment Insurance Fund Slips Into Deficit as Jobless Claims Rise — Surge in payouts highlights the severity of China’s employment challenges, exposing structural gaps in the country’s social safety net.
- China Urged to Raise Tobacco Taxes as Health Costs Outpace Industry Revenue — Under the pressure of a rapidly aging population and a rising chronic disease burden, China is facing a stubborn challenge in curbing smoking rates.
- How China Plans to Pay for Its Urban Renewal Push — China is allocating a combined 257 billion yuan ($37.8 billion) in central budget funds and special sovereign bonds in 2026 to upgrade aging housing and infrastructure.
- China Begins Testing on $10 Billion Trade Canal to Southeast Asia — The 134-kilometer Pinglu Canal in Guangxi promises to slash shipping times, but a broader wave of provincial waterway projects is fueling concerns over mounting local debt.
- China Insurance Executive ‘Pigeon King’ Expelled in Corruption Case — Yu Ze, a former vice president of The People’s Insurance Co. (Group) of China Ltd., was found to have committed serious violations of law and party discipline.
South China Morning Post
- China debate reaches fever pitch in Brussels as EU’s crunch fortnight kicks off — Ahead of next week’s leaders’ summit, some are pushing for the bloc to end its ‘naivety’ and forcefully counter cheap imports.
- Spying in Xinjiang? No, I was reporting from China’s energy heartland — Senior reporter Dannie Peng visited Xinjiang in April to see first-hand how a vast industrial ecosystem is rapidly taking shape.
- Opinion: With the ‘Indo-Pacific’ label losing its lustre, China has an opportunity — As the relevance of anti-China groupings such as the Quad and Aukus fades, Beijing and its neighbours have more room for dialogue. By Winston Mok.
Nikkei Asia
- China’s solar panel giants bleed red ink on oversupply, price war — Next-gen perovskite cells offer bright spot as government pulls back support.
- U.S. asks China to resume rare-earth exports to Japan — Washington set to discuss topic at next week’s G7 summit.
- Chinese entrepreneur’s e-truck startup Windrose faces unpaid wage claims — Venture struggles to reach U.S. goals; founder concedes ‘mistakes’ but forges on.
Bloomberg
- Taiwan Mulls Curbs on AI Chip Exports to China to Align With U.S. — The proposed controls would restrict sales to all customers in China and enable Taiwan to prosecute AI chip smuggling as a criminal violation for the first time.
- China Preps $295 Billion Plan to Fund Nationwide AI Buildout — The plan aims to drive cutting-edge technologies, pool fragmented regional resources, and give enterprises broader access to high-performance computing.
- China’s Export Surge Tops Forecasts as AI Propels Trade Boom — China’s exports and imports expanded at a faster pace in May, topping forecasts as booming demand for artificial intelligence hardware offsets disruptions from the war in Iran.
- Chinese Diners Will Wait Five Hours for This Conveyor-Belt Sushi — Restaurant chain Sushiro has won the hearts of Gen Z consumers across China, driving its parent company’s stock price to new highs.
- Opinion: In Selling Arms, China Is Still No Superpower — China’s export ambitions hinge on just one country, Pakistan, which received 80% of its weapons imports from China in the 2021 to 2025 period. By Juliana Liu.
Reuters
- China’s global e-commerce push stalls as Iran war lifts costs, dampens demand — Surging jet fuel costs and weak demand from lower-income consumers in the West linked to the Iran war threaten profits for online platforms like Temu, Shein & AliExpress.
Other Publications
- Foreign Policy: China Is Making MAHA’s Favorite Drug — RFK fans and China hawks are on a collision course over peptides.
- Foreign Policy: China Is Providing AI That’s Literate in Africa’s Languages — Chinese models have become the overwhelming choice for African developers.
- The Economist: China is innovative. Its economy is a mess. Which will win out? — A question that will define the 21st century.
- Brookings: How the Iran war benefits China’s global ambitions — The Iran war has provided China with a powerful propaganda tool to cast doubt on Washington’s capacity to uphold commitments to Taiwan and other Asian allies.
- Rest of World: As the world embraces EVs, the U.S. hits the brakes — Canada and the EU opened their doors to Chinese electric cars this year while the U.S. watched from behind a tariff wall.
