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
- Baidu’s Apollo Go Robotaxis Stall in China’s Wuhan — Wuhan police said preliminary findings indicated that the incidents were caused by a system failure.
- U.S. Court Ruling Keeps Mao Documents Out of China — The diaries of an aide to former Chinese leader Mao Zedong can remain at Stanford University, a federal judge ruled.
- Huawei Profit Rises on Auto Business Expansion — Net profit rose 8.7% in 2025 from a year earlier. The fastest growth came in what Huawei calls its intelligent automotive solution business.
- Opinion: China Keeps Trying to Punish Tokyo — Trump can help an ally by stopping in Tokyo on his way to Beijing. By The Editorial Board.
The Financial Times
- Chinese government bonds emerge as lone war haven — Yields on China’s debt are down marginally since the start of the conflict while those of other major economies have risen.
- Iran war gives Chinese exporters chance to grab global market share — Ample oil reserves and renewables growth make manufacturing sector more resilient than rivals.
- UK submarine captain steps down after link to Chinese spy case — Navy previously conducted investigation into senior officer to examine potential blackmail risk.
- Huawei comeback loses pace as cloud and phones falter — Chinese tech conglomerate reports slowest revenue growth in three years.
- Geely to use Volvo Cars’ plants over building overseas factories — Move is in contrast to rival BYD, as founder warns of “very serious” overcapacity in global car industry.
The New York Times
- The Fall of a Cambodian Money-Laundering Giant — The former chairman of a financial group was brought to China in handcuffs, the latest high-level capture in a widening investigation into organized crime.
- Robot Taxis Stop in Traffic in Chinese City, Stranding Travelers — The authorities in Wuhan, the site of one of the world’s largest experiments in self-driving cars, cited a “system failure” after widespread reports on Tuesday evening.
Caixin
- U.K. Moves to Seize $108 Million in London Property From Chinese Fugitive — Su Jiangbo, sought by Chinese police for allegedly operating a massive cross-border gambling network, used shell companies to amass a sprawling real estate portfolio in London.
- BOC Hong Kong Pushes Digital Yuan Wallet Upgrade After Policy Shift — Move follows China’s shift to pay interest on digital yuan, as officials explore higher limits and broader use cases.
- BASF’s Bet on China Could Pay Off as Gulf Crisis Reshapes Global Chemical Market — The German giant’s $10 billion Zhanjiang complex underscores a shift toward Asian growth markets as the war strains global supply chains and erode Europe’s competitiveness.
- Chinese Airlines to Hike Fuel Surcharges as Iran War Fallout Hits Home — Carriers will raise domestic fees by 500% from April 5 as Middle East tensions push jet fuel prices higher, adding pressure to an industry still in the red.
- China E-Scooter Makers Post 2025 Profit Surge on Higher Prices — Leading manufacturers like Yadea and Ninebot reported robust revenue growth last year as new safety regulations and a shift toward premium, intelligent features drove up average selling prices.
South China Morning Post
- China’s science awards system is plagued by shadowy practices. Can reforms fix it? — Beijing has rolled out new rules for investigating violations in scientific activities. So why are critics still pessimistic?
- China doubles down on chemical plant expansion with tech breakthrough amid Iran war — Ethylene glycol plant in Xinjiang is equipped with tech that includes green electricity coupling, carbon capture and storage.
- Opinion: The surge of global business interest in China’s ‘harbour of stability’ — For all its structural challenges, China offers something the West no longer seems to: policy continuity and a sense of stability. By Chris Pereira.
Nikkei Asia
- Pakistan brings China into Iran mediation, unveils 5-point plan — Document highlights Beijing’s diplomatic clout; doubts linger about its motives.
Bloomberg
- Delayed Trump-Xi Summit Gives Fresh Grievances Room to Grow — Every week that passes without a face-to-face meeting gives fresh grievances time to accumulate, testing both sides’ ability to keep ties steady between the world’s top economies.
- US Allows Kazakhstan to Continue Transit of Russian Oil to China — A waiver was extended until March 19, 2027, following consultations with the US Treasury, the ministry’s spokeswoman Asel Serikpayeva said.
- Opinion: There’s Method to China’s OpenClaw Madness — The fad could leave China’s AI industry with more token demand, more real-world experimentation, and more live training data for open-source models trying to catch US rivals. By Catherine Thorbecke.
Reuters
- How China can survive without the Strait of Hormuz — The world’s largest importer of oil through the Strait of Hormuz is, paradoxically, also one of the best placed to weather the waterway’s closure.
Other Publications
- The Economist: Is China covering up a violent attack at a Beijing market? — News outlets put a premium on making the country seem harmonious.
