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
- After an Indonesian Submarine Sank, China Stepped In to Help Salvage It — Beijing has deployed ships for the operation, which involves fastening slings to parts of a submarine that lay at a depth of half a mile.
The Financial Times
- Bitcoin falls sharply after China signals cryptocurrency crackdown — Price drops to 3-month low as finance industry warned not to offer digital token services.
- Taiwan ally warns of pivot to China in quest for Covid vaccines — Honduras threat to switch diplomatic recognition to Beijing stokes concern in Washington.
- Huarong’s woes are a warning to lazy investors — Beijing’s drive for efficient markets means that corporate fundamentals now matter more.
- European show of support for US in Indopacific will remain limited — Countries differ in how openly they want to challenge China in increasingly tense region.
- Challenging China: Brexit Britain experiments with battleship diplomacy — The maiden voyage of an aircraft carrier is a pivotal moment in the UK’s bid to reconcile its economic, political and security priorities.
- Firm founded by son of China finance tsar invests heavily in tech — Skycus Capital holds stakes in companies affiliated with Tencent and JD.com.
- Pelosi urges diplomatic boycott of Beijing Olympics — US House Speaker adds pressure on China over claims of abuses against Uyghurs in Xinjiang.
The New York Times
- China Releases First Photos From Its Mars Lander — The country’s space agency said that the craft’s components, and those of the rover it would soon release, had “deployed in place normally.”
- Senate Weighs Investing $120 Billion in Science to Counter China — The legislation has drawn bipartisan support amid the coronavirus pandemic as Democrats and Republicans have become increasingly concerned about Beijing’s supply chain dominance.
- Apple’s Bargain in China — Apple touts its commitment to privacy and free speech. That’s why its China operation is so striking.
Caixin
- China Hits Cryptocurrencies With Double Whammy — Inner Mongolia intensifies crackdown on cryptocurrency mining while regulators ban financial institutions from providing related services to customers.
- Exclusive: Huarong Gets New President Amid Pressure on Bonds — China Great Wall Asset Management’s Liang Qiang named to fill post vacant since December as restructuring report contributes to bond sell-off.
- China’s Shipbuilding Giants Set to Combine — Global antitrust reviews clear merger of China State Shipbuilding and China Shipbuilding Industry to form China Shipping Group.
South China Morning Post
- Immunity induced by Sinopharm jab questioned after UAE offers booster shots — The immunity induced by Chinese firm Sinopharm’s Covid-19 vaccine has been brought into question after the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain said they would provide booster shots to people who completed the two-dose regimen six months ago.
- China must overhaul vast power grid if it’s serious about tackling climate change: analysts — One of the most pressing challenges for China to meet its pledge to cap carbon emissions this decade and pivot towards renewables is overhauling its electricity grid, the world’s largest, officials and analysts say.
- JD Logistics CEO takes an unlikely path into China’s Big Tech sector — As chief executive of JD Logistics, 38-year-old Yu Rui is poised to emerge as one of the most influential figures in China’s vast logistics services industry, as the company moves forward with the second multibillion-dollar initial public offering (IPO) on the Hong Kong bourse this year.
- US exports to China grow at ‘expense’ of Australia after Beijing’s trade ban — US exports to China of wine, cotton, log timber and wood have increased over the past year amid a block by Beijing on the same products from Australia, trade data shows.
Bloomberg
- China to Launch $4.9 Billion of REIT Products in Pilot — China has approved the country’s first batch of public real estate investment trusts, giving local governments another tool to finance infrastructure projects.
- Inconsistencies Spur Sri Lanka to Amend Bill on China-Built Port — Sri Lanka plans to amend a bill that will determine how investments into a $1.4 billion Chinese-built port city in Colombo are overseen, after the nation’s Supreme Court found inconsistencies in the proposed law.
- Biden Delays Revamp of Trump Blacklist for China Investments — President Joe Biden’s administration plans to delay by two weeks a ban on new U.S. investments in certain Chinese companies, as officials draft guidance to clarify a Trump-era policy that confused Wall Street, according to three officials familiar with the matter.
Reuters
- Uniqlo shirts blocked at U.S. border in January on China forced labour concern — TOKYO (Reuters) -Fast Retailing Co Ltd’s Uniqlo brand shirts were blocked at the United States border in January on concerns they violated a ban on cotton products produced in the Xinjiang region of China, where there have been reports of forced labour.
- Column: China snaps up a third of next year’s corn needs from U.S. exporters — The 2021-22 marketing year is still a few months away, but China within the last few days has secured nearly a third of its expected corn needs out of the United States for next season.
- China gives nod for 9 more ETFs to invest in HK tech shares – Caixin — China’s securities regulator has approved a fresh batch of nine exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that target technology shares listed in Hong Kong, financial media Caixin reported on Tuesday, potentially benefiting the battered sector.
Other Publications
- Nikkei Asian Review: As census numbers puzzle, China upgrades birth data by 1m per year — Questions over ‘mystery’ children grow with population set to shrink.
- Economist: Red planet—China’s Mars landing shows off its growing capabilities in space [Podcast] — Our podcast on the science and technology making the news.
- Foreign Policy: India Draws a Line in the 5G Sand — After last summer’s clashes with China, New Delhi may finally be ready to leave ambiguity behind—and side with the West.
- Axios: Beijing’s antitrust push poses a problem for Western regulators — The Chinese government’s anti-monopoly machinery presents a major challenge to U.S. and European regulators, a new book argues.
- Axios: Apple faces dilemma over Chinese censorship and surveillance — China is home to most of Apple’s manufacturing and accounts for a significant and growing share of its sales. At the same time, doing business in China requires the company to make significant concessions that run counter to the company’s positioning as a protector of the “human right” of privacy.
- POLITICO: European Parliament to vote on freezing China deal — Draft seen by POLITICO calls on EU to work with US on China, and to plan deals with Taiwan.
- The Atlantic: The Pro-Trump Culture War on American Scientists — Some are trying to turn the lab-leak theory into a potent political weapon.
- The Diplomat: Chinese Academics Are Still Bullish on China-UK Relations — Chinese scholars and think tanks are holding to cautious optimism, despite the recent souring in relations.
- The Diplomat: The BRI in EU-China Relations: Geostrategic Stakes — Insights from Benjamin Barton.
- AP News: Israel accuses Chinese state TV of ‘blatant antisemitism’ — Israel’s Embassy in China is protesting what it describes as “blatant antisemitism” on a program run by the overseas channel of state broadcaster CCTV discussing the ongoing violence in Gaza and elsewhere.
- AP News: Netflix series criticized online in China over Taiwan flag — Chinese nationalism on the internet has a new target: The popular Thai drama “Girl from Nowhere” distributed by Netflix.
