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
- Pentagon Labels More Chinese Companies as Military in Nature — Defense Department adds Tencent, Cosco, CATL and Comac to its list.
- Chinese Vessel Cuts Taiwan Internet Cable in Apparent Sabotage — Service largely unaffected in episode highlighting vulnerability of vital global infrastructure following Baltic Sea incidents.
- Earthquake Near Tibet Holy City Kills Scores — Magnitude-7.1 quake in southwestern China was also felt in neighboring India, Nepal and Bhutan.
- Opinion: Trump Can Keep America’s AI Advantage — China is trying to catch up. The U.S. needs proactive development efforts and strong export controls. By Dario Amodei and Matt Pottinger.
The Financial Times
- Tencent and CATL added to Pentagon list of companies working with China’s military — Shares of WeChat owner and EV battery maker fall after U.S. defence department discloses designation.
- Tencent and CATL consider legal action over inclusion on Pentagon blacklist — Tech giant and biggest EV battery maker say designation as Chinese military companies is a ‘mistake.’
- China’s biggest football club kicked out of league as financial woes mount — Guangzhou FC’s struggles relate to collapse of property developer China Evergrande.
- The contradictions of Xi Jinping — Two incisive studies of the Chinese president reveal a complex figure who is all too aware of the capricious nature of power.
- Opinion: Why China’s industrial giants won’t be damaged by the latest U.S. blacklisting — Being placed on the Chinese military blacklist does not carry specific penalties or immediate bans. By Lex.
The New York Times
- Taiwan Suspects a Chinese-Linked Ship of Damaging an Internet Cable — The Taiwanese Coast Guard said seven Chinese nationals were aboard a ship suspected of causing the damage.
- What We Know About HMPV, the Virus Spreading in China — While cases are climbing in China, the situation is very different from what it was when Covid-19 emerged five years ago, medical experts say. HMPV is common and decades old.
- U.S. Adds Tencent to Chinese Military Companies Blacklist — Tencent’s shares plunged nearly 10 percent after it was designated a military company. The Chinese battery manufacturer CATL was also added to the list.
- 7.1-Magnitude Earthquake Strikes China’s Tibet Region Near Nepal Border — Chinese state media said at least 95 people had died in the 7.1-magnitude quake near one of Tibet’s holiest cities. It was felt in neighboring Nepal.
Caixin
- Chinese Merchants Plow Cash Into Overseas Warehouses Amid Global E-Commerce Boom — The trend has top-level support, with government agencies calling for even more investment.
- Geovis Insighter’s IPO Lifts Off in Style After Chang Guang Satellite’s Listing Crash — Geovis Insighter intends to spend IPO funds on an aerospace measurement and control service center.
South China Morning Post
- China’s powerhouse province renews ‘common prosperity’ pledge for 2035 — Political mission to narrow China’s wealth divide, thought to have fallen out of favour, makes appearance in Zhejiang’s long-term plans.
- U.S. cloud services firm Akamai to cease CDN operations in China by June 2026 — Partners Tencent Cloud and Wangsu Science & Technology to ‘ensure smooth transition’ for Akamai’s content delivery network users in China.
- Shanghai draws S Koreans in droves as China’s visa-free entry entices travellers — Even some less-visited places around Shanghai are gaining popularity, but the language barrier, pollution and internet censorship may still deter some visits.
Nikkei Asia
- China’s 3rd semiconductor ‘Big Fund’ starts spending $47bn war chest — New fund aims to draw outside money to boost chip industry in preparation for Trump.
- China releases draft rules on cross-border personal data transfer — Beijing hopes to assuage concerns of foreign companies with transparent laws.
- China’s Honor to enter Indonesian market amid iPhone ban — Smartphone maker says it will build all handsets sold in Southeast Asian nation locally.
- Taiwan foreign minister vows to work with Trump on ‘democratic supply chain’ — Lin Chia-lung warns against China’s ‘salami tactics,’ seeks Japan trade deal.
Bloomberg
- TikTok Ban Thrusts Apple, Google Into U.S.-China Geopolitical Fray — Penalties could quickly climb into the billions, and the onus is on the companies to follow the law.
- Chinese Hackers Target Philippine President, Steal Military Data — Some stolen documents related to dispute over South China Sea.
- Nippon Steel’s Thwarted Bid Sets Up Tougher Rivalry With Chinese Mills — The potential battlegrounds range from Southeast Asia to India and Brazil.
Reuters
- Cracks appear in China stocks’ fragile bull case — The blacklisting of Tencent and CATL is a case in point.
- Tesla supplier Panasonic Energy says cutting China supply for U.S. business a ‘No.1 objective’ — Trump’s pledge to raise tariffs on imported Chinese goods has forced companies around the world to reassess their manufacturing processes.
Other Publications
- The Atlantic: The Global Outrage Machine Skips the Uyghurs — China grandstands about Gaza while repressing a Muslim community within its own borders. Hardly anyone seems to notice.
- The Economist: Oriana Skylar Mastro makes a case for paring America’s nukes — The political scientist explains why beefing up is bad China strategy.
- Foreign Policy: Tariffs Are a Scalpel, Not a Hammer — Trump can make his favorite trade tool work, if he picks the right targets.
- Foreign Affairs: Know Your Rival, Know Yourself — Jude Blanchette and Ryan Hass write about rightsizing the China challenge.
- Associated Press: In freezing temperatures, swimmers in China plunge into a river for health and joy — Even as the mercury dropped below freezing, enthusiasm soared among about a dozen hardy swimmers during an annual ritual in northeast China’s ice city of Harbin.
