Links for Wednesday, June 30, 2021

BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY:

Didi makes its New York debut
Ride-hailing giant Didi finally makes its New York debut today. The company had initially hoped to swing a whopping $100 billion valuation, but met strong resistance from investors.

• The company decided to settle on a $67 billion valuation. It’s a modest one given it is close to the same valuation set in a 2020 fundraising round.
• Takeaway: There is some reason to temper expectations. Didi is currently betting big on its international expansion and autonomous vehicles, all of which are not its core business.

Shein makes $2 billion in sales this month, breaks retail records
The fast fashion retailer Shein, which we covered two weeks ago, is continuing to grow its global reach at amazing speed.

• According to LatePost (in Chinese), the company made over $2 billion in monthly sales this month, double the amount from just the first quarter of this year.
• The company has 30 million daily active users and 120 million registered users.
• Context: Media interest in Shein is growing in the West and the pressure may eventually force Shein to be more public about its business practices, which have come under some scrutiny.

Alibaba and government to buy stake in embattled retailer
Suning, one of China’s biggest retailers, is potentially about to sell part of its shares to Alibaba and a provincial government in an effort to rescue it from financial distress, per Bloomberg.

• Suning’s financial pain began after an aggressive buying spree that saw the $8 billion company purchase assets ranging from Carrefour’s Chinese business to football club Inter Milan.
• CEO Zhang Jindong has since sold a 23% stake, worth $2.2 billion, to funds backed by the Shenzhen government.
• Alibaba might just be Suning’s knight in shining armor. In 2015, Alibaba paid $4.6 billion for a one-fifth stake in Suning.

Chinese tea giant sinks on Hong Kong debut
Nayuki, the bubble tea giant, debuted on the Hong Kong stock exchange today, but dropped as much as 14.8%, per Yicai Global.

• Founded in 2015 by a husband and wife, Nayuki operates more than 489 tea outlets in 66 cities across China. It is the second-largest bubble tea chain in the country at 19% market share in 2020.
• Nayuki is part of a wave of newly emerging Chinese consumer brands buttressed by young millennial consumers. Its first-day disappointment won’t mean much.

Major overseas coal project abandoned by ICBC
Biggest China bank abandons $3 billion Zimbabwe coal plan / Bloomberg (paywall)
“China’s biggest bank dumped a plan to finance a $3 billion coal-fired power plant in Zimbabwe, dealing a blow to coal developers in Africa that see the Asian country as the last potential funder of their projects.”

Another ratings agency downgrades Evergrande
China Evergrande downgraded at Moody’s despite debt progress / Bloomberg (paywall)
“‘Although Evergrande has been reducing its debt to improve its financial stability, the company still faces sizeable maturing debt and puttable bonds over the next 12-18 months,’ Moody’s said.”

Xpeng sets guideline price ahead of Hong Kong IPO
Tesla-rival Xpeng targets $1.8 billion in Hong Kong listing / Caixin (paywall)
The price of $21.25 is eight percent lower than Xpeng’s original initial offer price.

Great Wall Asset Management selling 70% of insurance venture
Tencent eyes controlling stake in Sino-Japanese insurer / Caixin (paywall)
Tencent is considering acquiring Great Wall Changsheng Life Insurance, a Sino-Japanese joint venture valued at 2.25 billion yuan ($350 million).

Biomed boom
Eight Roads Ventures launches $400 Chinese medtech investment fund / Caixin (paywall)
“Institutional investors are growing more interested in the country’s tech firms amid a national push for global technological supremacy.”
China cancer drugmaker surges 51% in Hong Kong trading debut / Bloomberg via Yahoo
“Hutchmed (China) Ltd., a cancer drug developer backed by billionaire Li Ka-shing, jumped in its first day of trade in Hong Kong about two years after it delayed a previous attempt to list in the city.”

Chinese-owned Agrichemical giant planning massive IPO
ChemChina seeking $10 bln in Syngenta IPO, likely world’s biggest float of 2021 / Reuters (porous paywall)
Syngenta, a swiss company acquired by ChemChina for $43 billion in 2017, is the world’s leading crop protection maker. The IPO is expected to value Syngenta at $60 billion.

Buffett’s #2 praises Beijing’s reining in of Alibaba
Berkshire’s Munger says China right to clip Ma’s wings / Reuters via Yahoo
“The 97-year-old told CNBC in an interview alongside Berkshire CEO and billionaire investor Warren Buffett that the United States should take a leaf out of China’s book and ‘step in preemptively to stop speculation.’”

Major cities testing state digital currency
Beijing, Suzhou enable China’s digital yuan payments for subways / The Block
The subway system trial is “Beijing’s latest effort in widening the usage of the country’s central bank digital currency.”

SCIENCE, HEALTH, AND ENVIRONMENT:

Carbon traders “waiting for instructions” on delayed launch of market
China’s national carbon trading system is delayed / Sixth Tone
“No date has been provided as to when it may begin operating. ‘It’ll probably be postponed,’ an employee of the Shanghai Environment and Energy Exchange, where the trading will take place, told Sixth Tone. ‘We are waiting for instructions from the higher authorities.’”

China’s plans for space
China outlines space plans to 2025 / Space News
“Lunar, interplanetary and near-Earth asteroid missions, space station construction, a national satellite internet project and developing heavy-lift launch vehicles and reusable space transportation systems are noted as major projects for the period 2021-2025.”

Editor of Annals of Human Genetics quits over human rights boycott
Science journal editor says he quit over China boycott article / Guardian
“The editor of a long-established academic journal has said he resigned after his publisher vetoed a call to boycott Chinese science in protest at Beijing’s treatment of Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in Xinjiang.”

Lancet head denies U.S. pressured him to support lab leak theory
Lancet COVID-19 commission head denies China’s claims of U.S. pressure for lab leak theory / SCMP (paywall)
Jeffrey Sachs, the head of the Lancet COVID-19 Commission, denied claims that he is “being forced by the U.S. government to favour the theory that the pandemic started from a laboratory leak in Wuhan.”

POLITICS AND FOREIGN AFFAIRS:

Hong Kong under the national security law: Curbing dissent, migration, resistance
In one year, Hong Kong arrests 117 people under new security law / Reuters (porous paywall)
China’s tough Hong Kong law hushes media and activists in its 1st year / NPR
“Only about half of those arrested have actually been formally charged, however. Being arrested under the law alone is enough to halt a person’s activism.”
Hong Kong freedoms fade as security law muzzles dissent / AP News
“In private conversations, many in Hong Kong lament the loss of their freedoms, but life goes on. On the weekends, shopping malls are still crowded. People still line up for hours to get seats in popular dim sum and noodle restaurants or take weekend strolls on scenic Victoria Peak. On the surface, daily life hasn’t changed much.”
Revived U.S. bill proposes special status for Hongkongers threatened by national security law / SCMP (paywall)
“Another bipartisan attempt to give Hong Kong dissidents special refugee status in the United States has been proposed by U.S.lawmakers, reviving a bid that failed last year in the Senate when Ted Cruz blocked the effort.”
Hong Kong democracy supporters lead last resistance: Shop from like-minded businesses / WSJ (paywall)
“The network of vendors gives pro-democracy consumers a way to express their beliefs in a largely symbolic act of defiance, but also exposes those involved to risks.”
Jimmy Lai’s Next Digital to shut down amid China pressure / Bloomberg (paywall)
“Next Digital Ltd, which is owned by now-jailed media tycoon and activist Jimmy Lai, will cease operations on July 1, according to an internal memo seen by Bloomberg.”
In pictures: Tears and selfies at airport as Hongkongers bid a permanent farewell to troubled city / HKFP
National security law: welcome mats by Britain, Australia, Canada lure thousands who feel Hong Kong is no longer home / SCMP (paywall)
Veteran commentator Steve Vines to leave RTHK public radio show, amid reports TV show also faces axe / HKFP
Two arrested after Hong Kong police seize explosives and suspected firearms / HKFP
Hong Kong July 1 democracy demo ban upheld; police to adopt ‘zero tolerance’ and reportedly deploy 10,000 officers / HKFP
Hong Kong security law created a ‘human rights emergency’, Amnesty says / AFP via HKFP
Hong Kong Tiananmen vigil head Chow Hang-tung rearrested as police revoke bail ahead of Handover anniversary / HKFP

Corruption crackdown numbers
Four million Chinese officials punished for graft since 2012, watchdog says / Caixin Global (paywall)
“Some 4 million government and party officials across China have been punished for graft in the almost nine years since the launch of President Xi Jinping’s far-reaching nationwide anti-corruption dragnet, according to the country’s top watchdog.”

G20 meeting
China-U.S. relations: Washington and Beijing set out competing visions of international cooperation at G20 meeting / SCMP (paywall)
“The United States has told the G20 foreign ministers that ‘effective and accountable’ international institutions are needed as Beijing pointedly warned against empty calls for multilateralism and ‘vaccine hoarding’ by richer countries.”

Taiwan and U.S. talk trade
Taiwan tells U.S. it hopes to sign free trade deal / Reuters (porous paywall)
“A statement issued by the U.S. Trade Representative’s office pledged deeper U.S. collaboration with Taiwan on trade and investment but stopped well short of committing to negotiations on a full-fledged free trade deal.”

More confidence in Joe Biden, less confidence in Xi Jinping
Fewer have confidence in China’s Xi than U.S.’s Biden: Pew survey / Al Jazeera
“Positive views of the U.S. among advanced economies are improving since President Joe Biden took office, while negative views of China and its [General Secretary] Xi Jinping – who has been in the job since 2013 – continue to hover near historic highs.”

Centenary preparations
Traffic shut down, security tight in Beijing ahead of Communist Party centenary / SCMP (paywall)
“Vehicles and pedestrians have been banned from the Tiananmen Square area since Monday, and a further seven routes affecting about 70 sq km (27 sq miles) of the downtown area were closed on Wednesday afternoon, the city’s Public Security Bureau said.”
China’s Communist Party to celebrate 100th birthday in show of pomp and power / Reuters (porous paywall)
“State media has revealed little about the event amid heightened security and secrecy in the Chinese capital, but a flyby of fighter jets and helicopters is expected. Party elders and retired leaders typically appear on major occasions.”
At 100, China’s Communist Party looks to cement its future / AP News
“For China’s Communist Party, celebrating its 100th birthday on Thursday is not just about glorifying its past. It’s also about cementing its future and that of its leader, Chinese President Xi Jinping.”

Where are the women in power?
China’s ruling party one-third female 100 years after founding / Bloomberg (paywall)

• “Some 28.8% of the Communist Party’s more than 95 million members were female as of this month, the party’s Organization Department said Wednesday in a statement posted on a website of the official Xinhua News Agency. That compares with 23.3% a decade ago.”
• “Still, only one woman, Vice Premier Sun Chunlan, currently sits on the Communist Party’s 25-member Politburo. And no woman has ever held a seat on the more powerful Politburo Standing Committee.”

Gen Z in the CCP
Finding relevance in the Communist Party among China’s Gen-Z / Reuters (porous paywall)
A growing cohort of young members show “an increasingly nationalistic pride in China’s success, and in the opportunities that membership affords, several members and political analysts say.”

SOCIETY AND CULTURE:

Breakthrough at Wimbledon, despite loss
Zhang of China makes breakthrough despite loss at Wimbledon / AP
“The first man to represent China in the main draw at Wimbledon during the Open era was eliminated in the opening round Tuesday.”

Provinces shift toward public, not private education
Chinese provinces curb private schools, encourage public education / Sixth Tone
“Multiple Chinese provinces are prohibiting the expansion and establishment of private primary and secondary schools in a bid to create a more equitable education for all.”
“While Hunan and Jiangsu will cap the number of students attending private academic institutions, Sichuan has stopped approving such facilities altogether.”

A $25.8 million celebrity lawsuit
A-list actress Zhao Wei’s husband sued over $25.8 million debt / Caixin Global (paywall)

China’s queer pronouns
他/TA/X也: What pronouns do Chinese queer people use? / Radii China
“Instead of the female radical tā (她), in 2015, an intersex information platform called The Missing Gender (雙性人) 0.972 suggested using the English letter X as a genderfluid radical to create a new pronoun: X也.”

The highest hotel in the world
J Hotel Shanghai tower: World’s highest hotel opens in China / CNN
The J Hotel in Shanghai “occupies the top floors of the Shanghai Tower — which at 632 meters (about 2,000 feet) is the tallest building in all of China.”