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 Aggressively Patrols Disputed Waters. Now the U.S. Coast Guard Is Moving In. — Ships have been pulled from Middle East to form more flexible expeditionary squadron.
- China Wants More Babies—So It’s Cracking Down on Chatbot Love Affairs — Beijing sets emotional boundaries between humans and machines.
- China’s DeepSeek Prepares to List Shares in Shanghai Next Year — AI developer needs more funds for costly research in race with Anthropic and other U.S. companies.
- China’s Economy Grows at Weakest Pace Since 2022 — China’s gross domestic product expanded 4.3% in the second quarter, as a dismal domestic economy offset surging exports.
- China Holds U.S. Seismologist on Espionage Charges — Youlin Chen’s research focused on nuclear testing by North Korea.
- Opinion: America Can Break China’s Choke Hold on Critical Minerals — As we did during Covid, the government is helping U.S. companies to meet national-security needs. By Peter Navarro.
The Financial Times
- Chipmaker CXMT seeks $10bn in largest China IPO since 2010 — Chinese group capitalises on boom in demand for AI memory chips.
- Ukraine to buy Chinese drone parts with EU funds — Brussels allows Kyiv to use part of €6bn tranche for items in short supply in Europe.
- BYD can take Toyota’s crown without the US market, says top executive — International operations chief at Chinese auto group signals European expansion will intensify.
- China and the new era of critical minerals diplomacy — Beijing’s export controls on rare earths and other niche metals are distorting markets and fuelling resource nationalism.
- EU readies crisis team for China rare earths stand-off — Crisis team will prepare for possible trade conflict when truce expires in October.
The New York Times
- China’s Chip Champion to Raise Billions in Race for A.I. Control — CXMT, a linchpin in China’s drive to develop homegrown artificial intelligence technology, is aiming to raise nearly $10 billion.
- China’s Economy Grows at Slowest Pace in Years — Economic growth of 4.3 percent in the second quarter, versus the same period last year, reflected a broad slump.
- U.S. Presses China to Free American Seismologist Accused of Spying — President Trump has urged Xi Jinping to release the scientist, Youlin Chen, the man’s family says.
Caixin
- China Can Shield Its Economy From the Iran War, Economist Says — China’s economy is likely to weather renewed disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz with limited damage.
- China Unveils Sweeping Health Care Plan to Curb Mega-Hospitals and Boost AI — The Chinese government has unveiled its 15th Five-Year Plan for National Health, a sweeping blueprint aimed at raising average life expectancy to 80 years by 2030.
- Online Broker Futu Sued in U.S. Over Undisclosed China Regulatory Risks — An investor has filed a securities class-action lawsuit in the U.S. against online brokerage Futu Holdings Ltd. and its top executives, alleging they concealed the regulatory risks of its Chinese mainland operations.
South China Morning Post
- Hong Kong police raid 2 indie bookstores, arrest several over national security — Have a Nice Stay bookshop in Prince Edward and Greenfield Book Store in Mong Kok targeted by national security police.
- Taiwan’s opposition TPP launches historic first trip to mainland China — The party aims to build goodwill and promote dialogue while supporting cross-strait peace, delegation leader says.
- How Beijing’s islands of control are reshaping the South China Sea — Ten years after the Hague’s tribunal ruling, Beijing’s island-building strategy has effectively eclipsed the 2016 decision, observers say.
Nikkei Asia
- China targets strategic sectors in Netherlands, report warns, citing ASML — Dutch technology and companies offer Beijing outsize influence over value chains.
- Amazon courts China sellers with US customs-friendly warehouses — New facility near Shanghai port follows Shenzhen center, with another coming soon.
- Taiwan orders dozens of sea drones to fend off China’s maritime squeeze — Government institute to build with US partner; ex-official says hundreds needed.
Bloomberg
- Apple Gets China Approval for AI Tools Powered by Alibaba, Baidu — The Cyberspace Administration of China included Apple’s generative AI services on a list of newly approved providers.
- China Party Mouthpiece Warns Against ‘Iron Curtain’ in World AI — China will promote the sharing of artificial intelligence advances while fighting attempts to monopolize the technology, according to People’s Daily.
- Small Amount of Nvidia AI Chips Sold to China Via US License — A “trivial” number of Nvidia Corp.’s H200 artificial intelligence chips have been shipped to customers in China after winning US approval.
Reuters
- ZTE among Chinese firms licensed to purchase Nvidia’s H200 chips, documents show — A unit of telecoms gear maker ZTE Corp and two other Chinese firms are among the latest entities to receive U.S. approval to purchase advanced AI chips from Nvidia.
- China turns to electric taxis to soften Hormuz oil shock — Across Chinese cities, taxi usage and ridesharing are booming.
- Cambodian tycoon was landlord to Chinese scammers — Documents found in the ruins of a bombed Cambodian scam hub tie the site to a casino and real-estate empire.
Other Publications
- The Economist: When China’s open-source AI is a trap — America’s quest for AI dominance is scary. China is not the solution.
- Foreign Affairs: China Is Sabotaging the World That Enables Its Rise — Beijing’s Risky Bet Against the West.
- The Diplomat: China Can’t Talk About Birth Rates Without Talking About Rural Pensions — The need to support elderly parents, particularly in rural areas, is an underappreciated factor in China’s declining birth rate.
- Variety: World’s First Imax In-Vehicle Entertainment System Set for China in Partnership With Goer Dynamics — Imax and Chinese audio-visual technology company Goer Dynamics have struck a strategic partnership to develop an in-vehicle entertainment system.
