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
- Gloom Falls Over One of China’s Most Successful E-Commerce Giants — After quarters of triumphs, Temu owner PDD tamps down investors’ enthusiasm with a list of challenges.
- BYD’s First-Half Profit Rose on Strong EV Sales Despite Slowing China Demand — BYD and other Chinese EV makers have been aggressively expanding overseas amid a continuing price war in a crowded home market.
- A Time Bomb Is Threatening Economies Across Asia — Double-digit unemployment is holding back tens of millions of young people, raising urgent questions for a swath of fast-growing nations.
- Meituan More Than Doubles Profit Despite Tough Competition — The company, a dominant player in the Chinese food-delivery market, has been facing fierce competition.
The Financial Times
- Prudential reports stalling growth in Hong Kong — Life insurer says it has taken steps to reposition business in anticipation of ‘macroeconomic headwinds’ in China.
- Chinese EV maker Xpeng unveils $22,000 car with self-driving features — Carmaker acquired project from ride-hailing giant Didi as it retrenched during Beijing’s tech crackdown.
- China bond bulls warned of bubble risk over debt supply — People close to Chinese central bank highlight impact of plans to issue almost $400bn more this year.
- Opinion: China’s debt divide is hurting its economy — Beijing’s refusal to surrender control to local government or take on more responsibility is key to the country’s challenges. By Robin Harding
The New York Times
- Trump Campaign Stokes China Fears to Lure Michigan Voters — JD Vance, the Republican vice-presidential nominee, waded into a fight over plans by Gotion, a Chinese battery plant, to build a factory in Michigan.
- Harris and Trump Embrace Tariffs — Both Democrats and Republicans are expressing support for tariffs to protect American industry, reversing decades of trade thinking in Washington.
Caixin
- In Depth: China’s Used-Car Dealers Face a Bumpy Ride as Price Wars Intensify — China’s second-hand car market is growing rapidly as more motorists take to the road. Industry players have little to celebrate, however, as the fledgling sector is still like the Wild West while profit margins are shrinking.
- Didi Invests $94 Million in Smart Cockpit Developer — Didi Global Inc. is investing 670 million yuan ($94 million) in an affiliated firm of digital mapping company NavInfo Co. Ltd. and has moved its team responsible for smart cockpit development to the venture, as the Chinese ride-hailing giant takes another step away from carmaking to streamline its business.
- Charts of the Day: Beijingers Spurn Eating Out Amid Sluggish Economy — Beijing’s major food and beverage (F&B) companies saw their combined profits slump almost 90% year-on-year in the first half of the year, government data show, underscoring the weak state of consumption in China’s big cities amid the country’s patchy post-Covid recovery.
South China Morning Post
- Report outlines Xi’s push for fair competition and more ‘just’ global sports order — Calling China ‘an important force for change’, it marks the first time Xi Jinping Thought on sport has been laid out.
- China’s Nvidia wannabe, Tencent-backed AI chip start-up EnFlame, flags IPO intention — The Shanghai-based unicorn has begun the so-called tutoring process, compulsory for IPO applicants in China.
- Sensetime’s generative AI growth pushes revenue up 21% in first half — Revenue for the Chinese AI giant reached US$244.3 million for the first six months of 2024, but traditional AI revenue has more than halved.
Nikkei Asia
- Japanese politician gets ‘positive’ Chinese response on visa-waiver issue — Delegation led by ruling LDP heavyweight looks to smooth short-term travel.
- Sports brands in China turn in uneven performance despite Olympic year — From Anta and Li Ning to Nike, gold medals not enough to ease consumption worries.
- JD Vance slams Democrats for allowing Chinese battery plant in Michigan — Gotion’s $2.4bn investment targets IRA subsidies, vice presidential candidate says.
Bloomberg
- Protests in China on the Rise Amid Housing Crisis, Slowing Economy — Protests in China are on the rise as the effects of a slowing economy rattle citizens and Beijing refrains from taking bolder steps to shore up growth.
- Li Auto Misses Estimates as China EV Competition Squeezes Profit — Beijing-based Li Auto Inc.’s profit missed analysts’ forecasts despite a recovery in sales as price cuts across the automaker’s product lineup put pressure on earnings.
- China’s War on Pollution Adds Two Years of Life But There’s Much More to Do — The average Chinese citizen can expect to live two years longer thanks to the country’s push for cleaner skies, according to the University of Chicago.
Reuters
- China, US discuss new round of talks between Biden and Xi, CCTV reports — Top Chinese and U.S. officials discussed holding fresh talks between their heads of state in the near future, Chinese state media said on Wednesday, after China’s top diplomat, Wang Yi, met U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan in Beijing.
- Two more Chinese airlines to start flying China-made COMAC C919 jet — Air China and China Southern Airlines will become the second and third Chinese carriers to fly China’s homegrown COMAC C919 passenger jet after receiving their first planes on Wednesday, state-run Chinese Central TV (CCTV) said.
- Food delivery giant Meituan defies China consumer pullback with revenue beat — Chinese food delivery giant Meituan (3690.HK) posted a bigger than expected 21% rise in second-quarter revenue on Wednesday, defying a slowing Chinese economy.
Other Publications
- Associated Press: A top White House official says US and China are working to avoid conflict at talks in Beijing — The United States and China are working to ensure the competition between them does not veer into conflict, a top White House official said Tuesday as the two sides started talks on a relationship that has been severely tested during President Joe Biden’s term in office.
- The Economist: Britain’s unusual stance on Chinese electric vehicles — Unlike America or Europe, Britain is welcoming the cheap cars—for now.
- Washington Post: Opinion: How Rep. Mike Gallagher, a rising GOP star, was driven out of politics — Could the forces that pushed him out soon be eclipsed? By David Ignatius
- POLITICO: Vance warns of China’s influence during Michigan rally — Vance’s rally Tuesday was the first of a series of events in Rust Belt swing states that he and Trump are visiting this week.
- Foreign Policy: The U.S. and China Should Consider Partnering in Space — The benefits could outweigh the risks—and allow the superpowers to leave competition to earthly problems.
- Rest of World: When EV startups shut down, will their cars still work? — As Chinese EV makers close, drivers of “smartphones on wheels” say software updates and maintenance are in jeopardy.
- The Guardian: Hit game Black Myth: Wukong faces backlash after telling players not to discuss ‘feminist propaganda’ — Streamers were given list of topics to avoid also including news and politics, Covid-19 and China’s game industry.
