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
- Chinese Fintech Company Lufax Plans U.S. IPO — Even as some Chinese companies are opting to sell stock closer to home, Lufax plans to raise about $3 billion from a U.S. initial public offering, a person familiar with the situation said.
- China Uses the U.N. to Expand Its Surveillance Reach — In the name of ‘sustainable development,’ Beijing takes the lead in data collection efforts.
- There’s Clean Aluminum and Dirty Aluminum. Can Anyone Tell the Difference? — En+ Group, the world’s largest aluminum maker outside China, wants to get a financial benefit for the low-carbon metal it produces at its hydroelectricity-powered smelters in Siberia.
- Little-Known Investment Firm Centricus Circles TikTok With Long-Shot Bid — A low-profile investment firm is trying to entice the head of TikTok’s parent company with a long-shot alternative bid, as the popular video-sharing app remains caught in a standoff between the U.S. and China.
- Putin Loses His Footing in Russia’s Backyard — A series of crises in Russia’s neighbors is upending the Kremlin’s plans for deeper economic and defense ties with the former Soviet republics, leaving a vacuum for regional competitors such as China and Turkey to exploit.
The Financial Times
- Ant Group: list and desist — How will a looming US threat affect $35bn Hong Kong and Shanghai IPO?
- ‘This is a guy who is a thug’: how the US elite became hawks on Xi’s China — The tensions between Washington and Beijing reflect a fundamental shift in how America views the Asian superpower.
- Booming demand for Chinese assets boosts renminbi’s global role — Foreign investors abandon caution to snap up Chinese debt with encouragement of central bank in Beijing.
- Arm expects tough scrutiny in China over Nvidia deal — Long-serving chief Simon Segars says sale of UK company is likely to be held up by regulators.
Caixin
- Japan to Welcome Chinese Business Travel From Next Month — China will be removed from Japan’s list of banned countries from next month. Along with the Chinese mainland, restrictions will be lifted for 11 other countries and regions include Taiwan, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, Vietnam and Malaysia, according to the Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper.
South China Morning Post
- ‘China has been taking advantage of America for decades’: Pence holds Trump’s line during debate — United States Vice-President Mike Pence reiterated Donald Trump’s threats on China in the vice-presidential debate with Democratic challenger Kamala Harris on Wednesday night.
- Is Beijing trying to drain Taiwan’s air force? — Mainland China’s repeated military incursions into Taiwan’s air defence zone are meant to drain the island’s air force and establish the PLA as a regular presence in the area, observers said.
- Taiwan inspects Taichung port, tells shippers to abide by UN sanctions on North Korea — Taiwanese government officials inspected one of the island’s major ports on Thursday to check shippers were in compliance with United Nations sanctions against North Korea, after previously being implicated in breaking them.
- China’s carbon neutral goal could cost over US$5 trillion — China’s goal of reaching carbon neutrality by 2060 would require investments of more than US$5 trillion, which would include renewable power generation capacity, consultancy firm Wood Mackenzie said on Thursday.
- Coronavirus: UAE firm nears end of final trials of Chinese vaccine candidate — A United Arab Emirates company says it is nearing the end of phase three clinical trials of a Chinese Covid-19 vaccine candidate and hopes to manufacture it next year.
- New hygiene standards for Hong Kong tourism businesses aimed at getting out message city is safe to visit despite Covid-19 pandemic — The Hong Kong Tourism Board has launched a set of hygiene standards for businesses in the sector to build the city’s image as a safe travel destination during the coronavirus pandemic.
- Australia budget to bolster supply chains, domestic industry post-coronavirus and amid China turmoil — Australia’s new budget commits funding to help diversify supply chains and support domestic manufacturing as disruptions stemming from the coronavirus outbreak and continued trade frictions with China have reinforced the need for self-sufficiency.
- Huawei blocked from sponsoring defence summit in Nato’s Slovakia — Huawei Technologies was barred from sponsoring a defence summit in Nato member Slovakia after the country’s president briefly cancelled a speech over concerns the Chinese telecommunication company posed a security risk.
- Should Huawei consider selling smartphone brand Honor to survive US sanctions? — Huawei Technologies could consider selling its Honor smartphone business as a means to survive US trade sanctions, according to TF Securities International analyst Kuo Ming-chi, but other industry analysts are sceptical about the Chinese telecommunications giant pursuing such a strategy.
- China faces ‘difficult trade-off’ as WTO leadership race heads into final round — The field of candidates to lead the World Trade Organization (WTO) was cut to two on Thursday, in a historic move that means the Geneva-based body will get its first female director general.
- Foreign wealth management giants poised to tap China’s US$3.7 trillion market as new rules promise to cut risk — A shake-up of the rules around wealth management in China designed to eradicate risks that previously plagued the sector has helped smooth the way for foreign players keen to tap the enormous market, according to Europe’s biggest asset manager.
Bloomberg
- White House Curbs on Chinese Payment Apps Pose Risk to Ant — The Trump administration’s potential restrictions on two Chinese payments giants would reverberate far beyond politics, potentially affecting multibillion-dollar deals, shaking up international commerce and even shaping the evolution of the global financial system.
- BMW On Track to Meet 2020 Financial Targets, CFO Peter Says — BMW AG is on track to meet its full-year targets after a recovery in auto sales led by China helped the manufacturer weather the coronavirus pandemic.
- China’s App Store Fees Make Apple’s Look Cheap — Some game makers are pushing back.
- China Inc. Set for Biggest U.S. IPO Year Since 2014 Despite Spat — Chinese companies are choosing to make their market debuts in the U.S., even as Beijing and Washington spar over everything from trade and coronavirus to audit access.
- China’s Financial Markets Set for Calm Start After 8-Day Break — Chinese financial markets will trade for the first time this month on Friday and for once, investors can look forward to a relaxed start.
- China’s Solar Stocks Are Surging After Xi’s 2060 Carbon Pledge — China’s massive renewable energy industry has seen shares soar since President Xi Jinping announced the country aims to go carbon neutral by 2060.
- Chinese Debt Renegotiations Could be Long and Unpredictable — Countries could face years of negotiations to rework their debt with China as a growing number of loans run into trouble following decades of aggressive lending by the world’s largest official creditor.
- How Would Biden Deal With China If Elected President? — Susan Shirk, research professor and chair of the 21st Century China Center at the University of California – San Diego, discusses how Democratic nominee Joe Biden would deal with the tensions between the world’s two largest economies if he wins the presidential election. Shirk speaks with Yvonne Man and Haslinda Amin on “Bloomberg Markets: Asia.” (Source: Bloomberg)
- U.S. Explores Curbs on Ant Group, Tencent Payment Systems — The Trump administration is exploring restrictions on billionaire Jack Ma’s Ant Group as well as Tencent Holdings Ltd. over concerns that their digital payment platforms threaten U.S. national security, according to people familiar with the matter, a move that risks infuriating China and disrupting what could be the world’s largest initial public offering.
- Ant and Tencent Aren’t the China Threats Imagined by U.S. Hawks — Washington’s hard-liners are starting to look desperate as they uncover China threats that don’t really exist.
- Why Is China Disqualifying Its Olympic Athletes? — A national drive for physical fitness has led to some bizarre consequences — and hints of dissent.
- U.K. Lawmakers Ask Johnson to Consider Faster Huawei 5G Ban — A committee of U.K. lawmakers called on the government to consider banning China’s Huawei Technologies Co. from fifth-generation wireless networks two years earlier than the current 2027 plan.
- Billionaire Packer Says He Didn’t Consider Ho Ban in Melco Deal — Crown Resorts Ltd.’s billionaire shareholder James Packer pushed for a tie-up last year between Australia’s biggest casino operator and Hong Kong-based Melco Resorts & Entertainment Ltd.
- Kissinger Warns U.S. and China Must Set Limits to Avoid a Blowup — Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger said the U.S. and China must establish rules of engagement for their increasingly tense competition or risk recreating the uncertainty that characterized global politics leading up to World War I.
- U.S. Explores Restrictions on Ant Group, Tencent Payment Systems — The Trump administration is exploring restrictions on billionaire Jack Ma’s Ant Group as well as Tencent Holdings Ltd. over concerns that their digital payment platforms threaten U.S. national security, according to people familiar with the matter, a move that risks infuriating China and disrupting what could be the world’s largest initial public offering, Bloomberg News reports.
Reuters
- UK parliament committee says Huawei colludes with the Chinese state — The British parliament’s defence committee said on Thursday that it had found clear evidence that telecoms giant Huawei had colluded with the Chinese state and said Britain may need to remove all Huawei equipment earlier than planned.
- U.S. warns China against Taiwan attack, stresses U.S. ‘ambiguity’ — The U.S. national security adviser warned China on Wednesday against any attempt to take Taiwan by force, saying amphibious landings were notoriously difficult and there was a lot of ambiguity about how the United States would respond.
- Column: China’s import boom heralds deeper rift in aluminium: Andy Home — China’s recovery is proving faster and more powerful than anywhere else. China’s smelters are responding by lifting production, even while output in the rest of the world is sliding. If history is repeating itself, it will mean a further polarisation of the global aluminium market into two parallel universes – China and the rest of the world.
Xinhua
- Interview: China’s import expo “terrific platform” for connectivity — business leader — The China International Import Expo (CIIE) is a platform for companies around the globe to create connectivity, a senior executive from U.S. industrial conglomerate Honeywell has said.
- China’s holiday box office nears 3.7 billion yuan — China’s box office revenue in the first seven days of the eight-day National Day holiday grew to more than 3.69 billion yuan (about 542 million U.S. dollars), according to the country’s film ticketing and data authority.
- China’s steel mills see profits drop in first 8 months — China’s major steel companies saw their profitability down in the first eight months, the latest data showed.
- China strives to build more competitive mulberry silk industry — China strives to build a more competitive mulberry silk industry by 2025, according to a government action plan.
- China’s service outsourcing industry posts steady growth — China’s service outsourcing industry reported stable growth in the first eight months of 2020, according to the Ministry of Commerce.
- Foreign trade of Tianjin’s Binhai New Area up 6.5 pct in Jan.-Aug. — Foreign trade of Binhai New Area of north China’s port city of Tianjin rose 6.5 percent to 354.12 billion yuan (about 52.2 billion U.S. dollars) in the first eight months of this year, local authorities said.
- Land-sea freight trains in Chongqing hit record high — Yuzhou customs in southwest China’s Chongqing Municipality cleared 2,419 foreign-trade containers carried by 141 trains via the land-sea freight route in August, with a year-on-year increase of 45.72 percent and 71.95 percent respectively, hitting a record high.
- Shanghai’s FDI inflow up 5.9 pct in Jan.-Aug. — Foreign direct investment (FDI) into Shanghai, in actual use, grew 5.9 percent year on year to 13.88 billion U.S. dollars in the first eight months of this year, local authorities said.
- Chinese automaker Geely’s sales up in September — Chinese automaker Geely Automobile Holdings Limited on Thursday reported a year-on-year sales increase for September.
- China’s major internet firms log higher revenue — China’s internet and related sectors maintained a double-digit growth in business revenue and research development in the first eight months of this year, official data showed.
Other Publications
- Defense News: With DoD’s fleet of 2045, the US military’s chief signals he’s all-in on sea power — To compete with China’s plans to be a first-rate military power by 2049, the United States must grow its fleet to more than 500 ships by 2045, and more than 355 ships by the mid-2030s, Esper announced, confirming a report last month from Defense News.
- OilPrice: Energy Deals Are Creating A Powerful Alliance Between China And Russia — The importance of China to the Russian economy and the ruling elite’s political future cannot be underestimated. At the same time, while China’s growing technological prowess is bringing it into the western sphere, it will remain heavily reliant on Russia’s energy and mineral wealth for decades to power its industries.
- Nikkei Asian Review: China’s film censors and their bosses are becoming more demanding — Exaggerated patriotism increasingly a theme in sports and other subjects.
- The Atlantic: The U.S. Used to Write the Rules—Now China Does — America is wantonly abandoning international institutions. China is quietly stepping into the vacuum.
- The Economist: How the digital surge will reshape finance — Thanks to covid-19, more people than ever are banking and making payments online.
- The Economist: What Ant Group’s IPO says about the future of finance — The giant Chinese fintech upstart is expected to raise more than $30bn, eclipsing Saudi Aramco’s debut last year.
- The Economist: Ant and fintech’s coming of age — Once listed, Ant, which was formed in 2004, could have a similar value to JPMorgan Chase, the world’s biggest bank, which traces its roots to 1799. Ant’s rise worries hawks in the White House and enthralls global investors. It portends a bigger transformation of how the financial system works—not just in China but around the world.
- Foreign Policy: Harris, Pence Battle Over Foreign Policy — VP candidates return to America’s role in the world in a restrained debate.
