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
- Empty Buildings in China’s Provincial Cities Testify to Evergrande Debacle — The property giant borrowed heavily to develop in out-of-the way places like Lu’an.
- U.S. Wants New Trade Talks With China, but Will Keep Tariffs — Policy outlined by U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai builds on Trump’s foundation.
- Cotton Prices Surge to Highest Level in a Decade — China buys up U.S. supplies of crop, even as Trump-era import ban limits use of Chinese-grown fiber.
- China Leaps Ahead in Effort to Rein In Algorithms — Beijing is building a system intended to ensure that internet platforms’ automated processes are fair, transparent and in line with Communist Party ideology.
The Financial Times
- Beijing vs bitcoin: why China is cracking down on crypto — Supporters champion a digital currency beyond the control of a central authority — but an authoritarian government is putting that idea to the test.
- China’s CPTPP application expected to receive cool response — Nations in region will fear economic repercussions of Beijing’s move to join trade pact.
- China property sector woes intensify after mid-sized developer defaults — Fantasia misses payment as Evergrande keeps investors hanging on share trading suspension.
- China unloads Australian coal despite import ban amid power shortage — Factories face energy rationing, threatening economic growth and global supply chain.
- Seoul watches on as US corrals allies to counter China — South Korea struggles to chart a course that will mollify both Washington and Beijing.
The New York Times
- Another Chinese real estate developer misses a payment. — Fantasia Holdings Group, which specializes in luxury properties, missed a final payment on a dollar-denominated bond, prompting investors to sell shares and bonds of other Chinese real estate companies.
- The End of a ‘Gilded Age’: China Is Bringing Business to Heel — Executives sit in jail, tech companies are being reined in and the biggest developer is teetering. It’s the beginning of a new era for China’s economy.
Caixin
- Hopson Development Plans to Buy Stake in Evergrande’s Property Management Unit — The deal, which could value the property services division at $5.1 billion, is part of efforts by the debt-riddled Chinese developer to improve its cash position.
South China Morning Post
- China, US eye further talks with Yang Jiechi set to meet Jake Sullivan — China’s top diplomat Yang Jiechi will hold talks with US national security adviser Jake Sullivan in Switzerland this week, according to sources familiar with details of the meeting.
- China’s mobile network operators to push nationwide roll-out of new 5G messaging service — China’s three major mobile network operators are expected to soon roll out a nationwide 5G messaging service, integrating video, audio and electronic payment functions, that could potentially compete with Tencent Holdings’ ubiquitous, multipurpose super app WeChat.
- Huawei, ZTE win China Mobile contract for converged 5G and 4G network, leaving out foreign suppliers — Chinese telecoms equipment giants Huawei Technologies Co and ZTE Corp have secured the rights to build the converged 5G and 4G core network for China Mobile, the world’s largest wireless carrier by subscribers, illustrating domestic carriers’ commitment to infrastructure suppliers that face challenges in overseas markets.
Bloomberg
- China To Shelve Anti-Sanctions Law in Hong Kong, HK01 Says — China will not impose an anti-sanctions law on Hong Kong for now, local news organization HK01 reported, a seemingly unusual backtrack from Beijing on a move that had alarmed businesses in the Asian financial hub.
- China Orders Banks to Ramp Up Funding to Boost Coal Output — China ordered its banks to ramp up funding to coal and energy companies, another step in its efforts to ease a power crunch and ensure supplies this winter.
- China Bans Loans to Speculate in Commodities, Some Luxury Goods — China is probing the banking and insurance industries’ money flows into the commodities market to crack down on speculation, regulator says in a statement Tuesday, Bloomberg News reports.
- Hong Kong Values China Above International Business, Lam Says — Hong Kong’s ties with mainland China are more important than international business and global travel connections, according to the Asian financial hub’s leader.
Reuters
- Japan signals more active role on China’s tough stand on Taiwan — Japan’s new government signalled on Tuesday a more assertive position on China’s aggressive posture towards self-ruled Taiwan, suggesting it would consider options and prepare for “various scenarios”, while reaffirming close U.S. ties.
- French senators to visit Taiwan amid soaring China tensions — A group of French senators including a former defence minister will visit Taiwan this week, the island’s foreign ministry said on Tuesday, with the visit coming at a time of soaring tensions between Taipei and Beijing and despite China’s opposition.
- Taiwan president warns of ‘catastrophic’ consequences if it falls to China — Taiwan falling to China would trigger “catastrophic” consequences for peace in Asia, President Tsai Ing-wen wrote in a piece for Foreign Affairs published on Tuesday, and if threatened Taiwan will do whatever it takes to defend itself.
Other Publications
- Nikkei Asia: Pakistan and China unveil ambitious plan to develop Karachi coast — Problematic Gwadar possibly out of favor, but experts say new project hard to implement.
- Foreign Affairs: The Fight Against China’s Bribe Machine — The Pitfalls of Conducting U.S. Foreign Policy Through the Courts.
- Council on Foreign Relations: Making Sense of China’s Pledge to Stop Building Coal-Fired Power Plants Abroad — China’s decision to stop funding coal plants abroad is an important step, but real progress will require phasing out coal at home.
- Associated Press: Beijing Olympics open in 4 months; human rights talk absent — When the IOC awarded Beijing the 2008 Summer Olympics, it promised the Games could improve human rights and civil liberties in China. There is no such lofty talk this time with Beijing’s 2022 Winter Olympics.
- Politico: U.S. extends an ‘olive branch’ to China on trade — Katherine Tai’s speech is the capstone of a review of Trump’s trade policies toward China and sets the tone for Biden’s plans to press Beijing on tariffs.
