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 EV Makers Saw Europe Tariffs Coming, and Many Already Have a Plan — Faced with new hurdles, some electric-car brands open factories or form joint ventures in the continent as others withdraw.
- BYD Shares Rise After Milder-Than-Peers EU Tariffs — Shares of BYD jumped on investors’ optimism that the world’s largest electric-vehicle maker would maintain its competitive edge despite planned additional tariffs from the European Union.
- A New Chinese Megaport in South America Is Rattling the U.S. — The Peru project could speed trade with Asia and plant Beijing’s flag in Washington’s neighborhood.
- Can China’s Export Machine Run Without the West? — Beijing looks to developing markets after facing new tariffs in the U.S. and Europe.
The Financial Times
- Shares of Buffett-backed BYD jump after EU unveils lower than expected tariff — Stock of Tesla’s China rival rises as much as 9% following Brussels’ announcement of electric vehicle import duties.
- What the EU’s tariffs on EV imports mean for China — Brussels’ duties heighten trade tensions with Beijing but are unlikely to stop the advance of Chinese-made electric cars.
The New York Times
- In China’s Backyard, America Has Become a Humbler Superpower — The United States no longer towers over the Asia-Pacific, dictating terms to its allies. Instead, it’s offering to be a teammate and share responsibilities.
- Driverless Cars in China: How Safe Are They? — Computer-aided driving has official support and public acceptance, but state media seldom reports crashes or safety incidents, and online posts are censored.
- China Is Testing More Driverless Cars Than Any Other Country — Assisted driving systems and robot taxis are becoming more popular with government help, as cities designate large areas for testing on public roads.
- What to Know About Europe’s Extra Tariffs on Chinese Electric Cars — The tariffs had been expected for months, but many European automakers warned that they would drive up prices for consumers and set off a trade war with China.
Caixin
- Bankrupt Sichuan Trust Seeks Investors to Bring Business Back — A qualified investor needs to have capital of 3 billion yuan, total assets for the last year of 50 billion yuan and net assets of 20 billion yuan.
- Executive at ICBC’s Beijing Branch Investigated for Suspected Graft — The probe into Ying Weiyun, a vice president of the branch, is likely linked to a former head of the state-owned lender’s personal finance department, sources say.
- Chinese Customers Sold on ‘Elixir of Youth’ Despite Expert Warnings — The global popularity of nicotinamide mononucleotide, or NMN, a product with supposed ‘anti-aging’ properties has soared, with China now the biggest source of materials used to make it and the largest customer.
- CATL Overtakes LG as Top EV Battery Supplier for Markets Outside China — Contemporary Amperex Technology’s share of non-Chinese markets rose to 27.4% of installed capacity for the first four months of 2024, while its South Korean rival’s slipped to 25.7%.
- Subsidies and Price Cuts Drive China’s Car Sales Recovery in May — Government incentives and competitive pricing strategies have reignited consumer interest, despite ongoing challenges in the fuel vehicle market.
South China Morning Post
- PLA sends 3 advanced Type 055 destroyers for training exercise in South China Sea — The drill to ‘test the effectiveness of various combat methods’ came amid heightened tensions with the Philippines in the disputed waters.
- China vows new-energy regulations to optimise industry, while still refuting ‘overcapacity’ — Beijing will help guide the green sector that has come under increasing fire from the West, and the threshold for market entry will be raised with higher standards.
- Chinese spy agency issues warning after ‘secret’ military books sold for less than US$1 — State security ministry educates public about anti-espionage law, citing case of retiree who bought military documents from recycler.
- China overlooks Milei’s rhetoric, hands Argentina US$35 billion lifeline — Weeks of market turbulence ends as crucial currency swap renewal is agreed, giving Buenos Aires economy room to breathe.
- China’s central bank backs Beijing’s property destocking plan as housing sales crawl — China’s central bank has backed the government’s plans to absorb the nation’s unsold homes and fix an inventory overhang which a data provider said could take as long as 18 months to work through.
Nikkei Asia
- Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road leaves Malaysia with a ‘ghost’ island — The excitement of Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road convinced a developer to build an island and city off the coast of Malaysia. Now China’s property sector woes have left investors in unbearable financial straits.
- AI drug researcher XtalPi lists in Hong Kong amid U.S.-China rivalry — QuantumPharm, a Chinese AI-driven drug research company known as XtalPi and backed by Tencent, began trading in Hong Kong on Thursday.
- U.S. tops China as ASEAN’s largest export destination — Nikkei Asia compiled data for ASEAN’s 10 members based on statistics from the bloc’s secretariat, individual governments and local media reports.
Bloomberg
- How G-7 Nations Plan to Counter Rising Clout of Russia and China — As the US and its allies seek to regroup on Ukraine aid, new partnerships backed by China and Russia are becoming more influential.
- China Issues Travel Warning for Palau Following Hack Accusation — China’s foreign ministry has issued a travel alert for Palau, days after the tiny Pacific archipelago accused Beijing of being involved in a cyberattack in which more than 20,000 government documents were reportedly stolen.
- Fintech Giant Ant Group Spends Record $2.9 Billion on Research — Ant Group Co. spent a record 21.2 billion yuan ($2.9 billion) on research last year as the fintech giant increased its investment in technology including artificial intelligence.
- Opinion: US and China Are Forgetting What Red Lines Are For — From Ukraine to Taiwan, the superpower rivals are sending each other the wrong messages. By Minxin Pei.
- Opinion: China and Russia Are Beating the US in Africa — A new strategy for Washington should center on giving four “anchor” countries preference in economic and military support. By James Stavridis.
Reuters
- European dairy, pork producers wary of Chinese retaliation for EV tariffs — The EU was China’s second-largest source of dairy products with at least 36% of the total value of imports in 2023, only behind New Zealand, according to Chinese customs data. Australia was the No. 3 exporter.
- US expands Russia sanctions, targets chips sent via China — Among the steps, the U.S. Treasury said it was raising “the risk of secondary sanctions for foreign financial institutions that deal with Russia’s war economy.”
- China pushes rival Ukraine peace plan before Swiss summit, diplomats say — After China said it was not going to the Lucerne summit, Zelenskiy accused Beijing of helping Moscow undermine the meeting, an accusation China’s foreign ministry denied.
Other Publications
- BBC: Dan’s the man: Why Chinese women are looking to ChatGPT for love — A jailbreak version of ChatGPT is becoming popular with women who prefer it to real world dating.
- Semafor: The challenge with Chinese investment in Ethiopia’s industrialization push — Ethiopia’s state-backed bid to drive industrialization and transform its economy has had plenty of support from Chinese investors and operators.
- The Guardian: China’s maritime militia: the shadowy armada whose existence Beijing rarely acknowledges — They look like simple fishing boats but are capable of swarming in huge numbers to help Beijing stake its territorial claims in the South China Sea.
- The Economist: How worrying is the rapid rise of Chinese science? — If America wants to maintain its lead, it should focus less on keeping China down.
- The Economist: China’s currency is not as influential as once imagined — Its share of international reserves has stalled.
- Foreign Affairs: China’s Do-Nothing Strategy in the Middle East — Beijing Needs a Safe Red Sea—but Wants Washington to Deliver It.
- Foreign Policy: What Africa Can Learn From China’s Rise — The continent’s human capital is its greatest resource.
