Links for Wednesday, August 4, 2021

BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY:

China sets new targets for state companies to “buy Chinese”
The Chinese government issued new procurement rules in May that required state companies to buy 100% locally for items such as X-ray machines and magnetic resonance imaging equipment, per Reuters.

• Given U.S. restrictions of critical technologies like semiconductors to private Chinese companies, it’s understandable the government wants its companies to source locally.
• For more on the causes of China’s self-reliance surge, see Dan Wang’s newest piece in Foreign Affairs.

Another Asian market for online education
As China’s online tutoring firms tank, India’s are cashing in. According to the WSJ, the Indian online-learning platform Unacademy raised $440 million and is now valued at $3.4 billion.

• Funding came from SoftBank’s Vision Fund and Singapore’s state investment fund Temasek.
• India’s tech shares are also surging, which suggests investors are rethinking where the market opportunities are in Asia after the tech crackdown.

Self-driving truck startup bags $270 million
Inceptio, a California-based self-driving truck startup, received $270 million from a Series B funding round led by JD Logistics, Meituan, and battery maker CATL, per Yicai Global.

• Other participants include electric vehicle startup NIO and venture capital firm IDG Capital.
• Inceptio has already developed three heavy-duty truck models capable of Level Three autonomous driving with Dongfeng Motor and China National Heavy Duty Truck Group. Deliveries should start before the end of the year.
• Unmanned vehicles are great for optimizing efficiency: The logistics industry may thus be the first to make extensive use of autonomous driving technologies.

Beijing wants manufacturing, not tech
China wants manufacturing — not the internet — to lead the economy / WSJ (paywall)
“President Xi Jinping would beg to differ. In his estimation, technology comes in two varieties: nice to have, and need to have.”
“By contrast, Mr. Xi thinks the country needs to have state-of-the-art semiconductors, electric-car batteries, commercial aircraft and telecommunications equipment to retain China’s manufacturing prowess, avoid deindustrialization and achieve autonomy from foreign suppliers.”

China softens tone, tries to curb Tencent sell-off
Tencent sinks after China denounces online gaming / WSJ (paywall)
“Shares of Tencent Holdings Ltd. and rivals fell Tuesday after a state-owned Chinese newspaper criticized online gaming as ‘opium for the mind,’ fueling investor concerns that the companies’ popular games could be swept up into a broader regulatory crackdown.”
Tencent bounces back after state media soften tone on gaming / Bloomberg (paywall)
“Chinese media including the Communist Party’s flagship newspaper toned down their criticism of the games industry on Wednesday, helping Tencent Holdings Ltd. and its peers recoup some of their losses from a market rout a day earlier.”
Chinese state media tone down criticism of video game industry / Reuters

COVID-19 outbreak renews scrutiny on frozen food
China’s COVID-19 outbreak sparks renewed scrutiny of frozen food / Bloomberg (paywall)
“The latest COVID-19 resurgence in China is putting imports of frozen food back under intense scrutiny as authorities act on a controversial claim that it’s possible to contract the virus from food packaging.”

Kuaishou pulls video app Zynn out of the U.S.
ByteDance rival Kuaishou to shut down video app Zynn / Reuters
Kuaishou pulls plug on video app Zynn after fleeting U.S. success tanks amid controversy / Caixin

Disoriented investors search for their next move
Charles Li’s next act: Investing in small businesses / Caixin Global
Shocked investors scour Xi’s old speeches to find next target / Bloomberg (paywall)
China century missing in world’s most-valued equity / Bloomberg (paywall)
Tech stocks fuel Hong Kong reprieve rally as China money returns / Bloomberg (paywall)
Banks from HSBC to Citi shrug off China risks, embrace H.K. / Bloomberg (paywall)
China stocks are better shelter than Hong Kong in Xi’s clampdown / Bloomberg (paywall)
Indian shares close at record highs as financial, bank stocks rally / Reuters
China clampdown concerns spurred record ADR trading / Reuters
Fear carries the day in China tech as bargain hunters waver / Bloomberg (paywall)

China tightens supply chains as threats loom
Harris to tackle supply crunches in trip to China’s doorstep / Bloomberg (paywall)
China typhoons create latest supply-chain threat as ports shut / Bloomberg (paywall)
China takes aim at auto chip dealers with global supplies low / WSJ (paywall)
“China’s top market watchdog said it is investigating auto chip dealers that it suspects are driving up prices during the global chip shortage.”
China supply chains: Hubei takes lead in appointing bank executives to boost financial support for key industries / SCMP (paywall)
“There’s a plan in motion, orchestrated by China’s central bank, to tighten up and improve supply chains across key industries in response to Beijing’s call to maintain economic stability ahead of a slowdown that may be inevitable in the coming months.”

Alibaba growth slows over tech rout
Alibaba posts lower profit as Chinese tech giant boosts spending / WSJ (paywall)
Alibaba misses revenue estimates as ecommerce growth slows, regulatory crackdown persists / Reuters

Esquel gets bid to remove Xinjiang unit from U.S. forced-labor sanctions list
Nike’s former supplier Esquel Group scores a rare win in a bid to remove Xinjiang unit from U.S. forced-labor sanctions list / SCMP (paywall)

China will supply latest iPhones
Apple works with Chinese suppliers for latest iPhones – Nikkei / Nikkei Asia via Reuters
“Apple Inc is working with more Chinese suppliers to produce its latest iPhones, Japan’s Nikkei newspaper said on Wednesday, as a tech feud stemming from a trade war with the United States prompts Beijing to strengthen domestic firms.”

Hong Kong slaps $1.5 million fine on UBS
Hong Kong fines UBS $1.5 million for compliance failures / Caixin Global

SCIENCE, HEALTH, AND ENVIRONMENT:

An ancient panda in Hong Kong
World’s oldest zoo panda turns 35 / CNN

New dinosaur
New impressions of predatory dinosaur found in SW China named after renowned Doraemon character / People News Chronicle

Wayward elephants coaxed by drones and bananas
China coaxes its wayward elephants home using drones and banana treats / AFP via SCMP (paywall)

Is Delta a real challenge for China’s COVID playbook?
After months as a COVID-19 success story, China tries to tame Delta / NYT (paywall)
“The government has imposed lockdowns and is testing and tracing aggressively to fight a new outbreak. Experts say it is time for the country to rethink its approach to the virus.”
Delta variant arrives in Wuhan after more than a year with no COVID-19 / WSJ (paywall)
China reports most new COVID-19 cases since January amid Delta surge / Reuters
Delta outbreak tests China’s COVID-19 strategy / NYT (paywall)

POLITICS AND FOREIGN AFFAIRS:

Meng Wanzhou extradition case enters final stage
Huawei CFO’s U.S. extradition case begins final weeks of hearings in Canadian court / Reuters

IOC probes Mao badges as China media blurs them
I.O.C. seeks answers after two Chinese athletes wore Mao pins during the medal ceremony. / NYT (paywall)
“The International Olympic Committee said it was investigating a potential breach of Olympic regulations after two cyclists from China wore pins bearing the silhouette of Mao Zedong in a medal ceremony.”
Chinese state media censor images of gold medalists’ Mao badges / Radio Free Asia
I.O.C. suspends protest probe into grieving Saunders, Mao case continues / Reuters

China tightens passport approvals amidst COVID-19 surge
China tightens passport approvals amid surge in COVID-19 cases / Sixth Tone
“China has tightened scrutiny over issuing and renewing passports to stop ‘non-urgent and unnecessary’ cross-border travel in the wake of fresh COVID-19 outbreaks that have spread to several parts of the country.”
国家移民管理局：严防疫情输入 从严审批签发公民出入境通行证件-新华网 / Xinhua

Will Taiwan suffer Hong Kong’s fate?
Is Taiwan next? / NYT (paywall)
“Then the Chinese Communist Party (C.C.P.) turned its attention to Hong Kong. Many people worried Taiwan would be next.”

More Chinese than EU applicants to U.K. universities
Chinese applicants overtake EU as Brexit raises U.K. student fees / Bloomberg (paywall)
“Chinese applicants to U.K. universities now outstrip the total number of would-be students from the European Union, highlighting the impact of Brexit and the sector’s growing reliance on China even as relations cool between London and Beijing.”

Activist jailed in Anhui, another charged in Hunan
Court in China’s Anhui jails rights activist over foreign funding / Radio Free Asia

Authorities in the eastern Chinese province of Anhui have jailed [Zhōu Wéilín 周维林] a rights activist and citizen journalist for three-and-a-half years on public order charges for getting overseas funding and providing information to human rights groups…

“He posted on Twitter, and he also wrote reports for Weiquanwang on topics relating to local petitioners,” [his lawyer] told RFA.

China charges ‘Ink Girl’ supporter with subversion as room for dissent narrows further / SCMP (paywall)
“A Chinese activist who has spent the last eight months in detention has been charged with subversion in another sign of the shrinking space for dissent in China.”

Beijing bemoans the BBC
Chinese embassy in U.K. ‘firmly opposes’ BBC’s reporting on ‘Chinese Taipei’ Olympic team — statement / Reuters
China protests against BBC’s statement on treatment of journalists covering Henan flooding / SCMP (paywall)
China lodges representations with BBC over flood reporting / Reuters

Hong Kong under the National Security Law
Hong Kong museum commemorating 1989 Tiananmen victims reopens online / Reuters
University of Hong Kong chiefs ban from campus all student leaders involved in controversial motion mourning police attacker / SCMP (paywall)

South China Sea disputes
Beijing and Asean’s long-awaited South China Sea code of conduct inches forward / SCMP (paywall)
U.S., Indonesia commit to South China Sea defense in ‘strategic dialogue’ / Reuters
South China Sea: British warships ‘didn’t sail near’ Chinese artificial islands / SCMP (paywall)
Germany’s South China Sea adventure exposes divisions in Berlin / SCMP (paywall)
As U.S. launches huge Indo-Pacific drill, what’s the message to China? / SCMP (paywall)

U.S. veteran accused of being a “Chinese spy,” faces government retribution
Is the U.S. trying to smear this veteran as a Chinese spy? / Daily Beast
A veteran accused of being a Chinese spy claims “the [U.S.] government is trying to strip him of his citizenship — and send him back to the People’s Republic, where he could face a whole different kind of exposure.”
Comment from Pei Li on Twitter:

Dude’s participation in a 2-week compulsory military training in uni, which is a must-have for all Chinese undergraduate student[s], now is used as evidence to his connection to Chinese military and CCP? Wow. I might have overestimated the research ability of [the] FBI.

SOCIETY AND CULTURE:

How to turn Kris Wu rape case into propaganda
Kris Wu scandal: Chinese state media wants to ‘raise the bar’ for becoming a celebrity / What’s on Weibo

Sport: Hong Kong rugby competition canceled again over COVID-19
Hong Kong Sevens canceled for second year as organizers turn to April 2022 – ‘the potential risk of exposure was just too great’ / SCMP (paywall)

Overworked junior staff at Chinese universities
My years as a member of China’s academic underclass / Sixth Tone
A scholar mulls over her struggle as “contract faculty” in China’s education system.