Links for Tuesday, July 14, 2020

BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY:

• China’s economy to grow 2.5%?
  China’s economy seen growing 2.5% in second quarter as lockdowns end, stimulus kicks in: Reuters poll / Reuters
  China’s imports and exports rebound as coronavirus fades in world’s second-largest economy / WSJ (paywall)

China’s appetite for meat and other agricultural goods helped Chinese imports of U.S. goods to jump by 11.3% in June from a year earlier, after a 13.5% drop in May, data from Beijing’s General Administration of Customs showed Tuesday. The Chinese buying helped to narrow Washington’s trade deficit with Beijing from a year earlier, though Chinese exports to the U.S. also improved, rising 1.4% in June from a year earlier after a 1.3% decline in May.

• Despite political tensions, China and Australia are still in business
  Didi to march into 20 new Australian cities next month / Caixin (paywall)
  “The Beijing-based company, which entered the Australian market in mid-2018, will extend its Didi Express service to 20 new cities from August 10, including Canberra and Adelaide, according to an emailed statement Tuesday.”
  Australia exports to China remained strong in May despite rising political tensions / SCMP
• A gloomy year for retail and cinema
  Suning.com predicts over $20 million in losses in first half of 2020, says Carrefour China remains profitable / Caixin (paywall)
  “Suning.com, the buyer of French retailer giant Carrefour’s Chinese business, attributed losses to lack of consumer demand as the Covid-19 pandemic caused an economic downturn in China.”
  China’s Wanda Film warn a loss / Reuters
  “China’s largest cinema chain operator Wanda Film said on Tuesday it expects to report a net loss of 1.5 to 1.6 billion yuan (214 to 228 million dollars) in the first half of this year, after the coronavirus kept its cinemas shut for almost the entire period.”
• No dollar peg punishment for Hong Kong
  Trump aides rule out ending Hong Kong dollar peg as punishment / Bloomberg (porous paywall)

Aides at the White House and State department had weighed the possibility of limiting Hong Kong banks’ access to U.S. dollars as a way of striking back at Beijing, Bloomberg News reported last week. But they dropped the idea after advocates could not gather enough support, with those against the move concerned that it would be difficult to implement and could end up hurting the U.S., according to people familiar with the matter.

• Xi’s “New infrastructure” push in Guangdong
  5G focus for China’s Guangdong as manufacturing hub pledges to build 20 hi-tech industrial estates by 2022 / SCMP
  “According to the action plan released last week by the provincial industry and information department, the new estates will be developed into industrial clusters which would each aim to create products worth up to 100 billion yuan (US$14 billion)…”
  Context on The China Project: ‘New infrastructure’ — China’s race for 5G and networked everything has a new catchphrase
• Trump administration to end Chinese auditing deal
  Trump administration to soon end audit deal underpinning Chinese listings in U.S. – official / Reuters
  “The Trump administration plans to soon scrap a 2013 agreement between U.S. and Chinese auditing authorities, a senior State Department official said, a move that could foreshadow a broader crackdown on U.S.-listed Chinese firms under fire for sidestepping American disclosure rules.”
• Listings in Shenzhen and Shanghai
  First companies get nod for registration-based IPOs in Shenzhen / Caixin (paywall)
  Chinese aluminum smelter completes backdoor listing in Shenzhen / Caixin (paywall)
  Underwater robotics maker sublue speeds toward STAR board listing with new funding / Caixin (paywall)
  First companies obtain regulatory approval for IPOs under new ChiNext system / Reuters
• China’s economic recovery may be a bad omen for the U.S.
  Our path to “new normal” in employment? Sobering clues from China and recovery scores for U.S. industry / Harvard Ash Center
  “The U.S. National jobs reports for May and June exceeded expectations, and for many, this signaled that April was the true peak of American job losses and real recovery may be underway. Yet mounting evidence suggests that a job recovery is a long way off and that many jobs may not return.”
• BP, Mercuria deliver oil directly to Shanghai
  BP, Mercuria first global firms delivering oil into Shanghai contract: sources / Reuters
  “BP delivered 3 million barrels of Iraqi oil to the Shanghai International Energy Exchange (INE) this month, becoming the first major global trader to make a physical delivery since China launched the futures market in 2018…”
• Struggling Trip.com raises funds through convertible bonds
  Online travel leader trip.com to issue $500 million in convertible bonds / Caixin (paywall)
  “U.S.-listed top Chinese online travel agent Trip.com Group has announced plans to raise up to $500 million through the sale of convertible senior notes outside the U.S., as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to take a toll on the tourism industry.”
• How McDonald’s elbowed its way into Beijing
  In the 1990s, McDonald’s fought the Chinese Communist Party…and won / Timeline
  The Contemporary China Centre Blog has posted images of the first McDonald’s mainland venture on Twitter.
• Jack Ma divests billions amid Alibaba boom
  Jack Ma sells $8.2 billion of Alibaba shares — good news for philanthropy or bad news for tech companies? / Caixin
  Jack Ma’s (Mǎ Yún 马云) “divestment follows in the footsteps of several top executives at China’s tech and e-commerce giants including Tencent and Pinduoduo, even as the companies’ share prices rose sharply as the COVID-19 pandemic drove consumers online.”
• Luckin gets a new CEO after corruption scandal
  Luckin names new chairman and CEO in power shakeup / TechNode

SCIENCE, HEALTH, AND THE ENVIRONMENT:

• Beijing’s latest outbreak appears contained
  Beijing free of ‘high-risk’ areas as second virus wave recedes / Caixin (paywall)
  “Beijing authorities have declared the city free of high-risk areas for the coronavirus, paving the way for further rollbacks of disease control measures as the Chinese capital’s latest hotspot fades.”
• The COVID outbreak in Hong Kong
  University of Hong Kong dismisses allegations from former employee that Beijing covered up outbreak / SCMP
  Coronavirus outbreak grows as Hong Kong confirms 48 new infections / HKFP
• Infected pig herd raises alarms
  Foot-and-mouth disease found in South China pig herd / Sixth Tone

FMD is “the most contagious of all infectious diseases in animals,” according to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. Symptoms in infected animals include fever and blister-like sores in the mouth, between the hooves, and elsewhere. FMD is rare and not particularly serious in humans, but it can reduce productivity in livestock and disrupt international trade.

• Fishing: China impounds $28M vessel over illegal catch purchase
  China impounds USD 28 million fishmeal processing vessel for buying illegal catch / Seafood Source
  “China has impounded a fishmeal processing ship in its own waters for illegally buying small fish, in a move that reflects what has been happening in West African waters.”

POLITICS AND CURRENT AFFAIRS:

• Beijing labels Hong Kong democrat primaries “illegal”
  Hong Kong primaries: China declares pro-democracy polls ‘illegal’ / Guardian

Late on Monday Beijing’s top representatives in Hong Kong labelled the primaries “illegal” and accused organisers of colluding with foreign powers in a “serious provocation” of Hong Kong’s electoral system and to seize the private data of voters.

“The goal of organiser Benny Tai and the opposition camp is to seize the ruling power of Hong Kong and … carry out a Hong Kong version of ‘colour revolution’,” said a spokesman for the Liaison Office, whose chief is also in charge of implementing the national security laws.

• ‘Serious provocation’: Beijing blasts Hong Kong democrat primaries after initial results reveal / HKFP
  China condemns Hong Kong democrats’ ‘foreign’ linked primaries / Bloomberg (porous paywall)
  U.S. preparing to suspend extradition treaty with Hong Kong / Foreign Policy
  “The pending decision—which former officials and congressional aides told Foreign Policy could be made in a matter of weeks—is just the latest escalation in tensions between the United States and China. U.S. President Donald Trump said in May that the administration would begin altering the United States’ relationship with Hong Kong—including the extradition treaty, export controls, and trade relations—as it fell under tighter control from Beijing.”
  Most U.S. business chamber members surveyed concerned about Hong Kong security law, over half feel ‘less safe’ / HKFP
  Hong Kong’s national security laws are designed to make the media self-censor / Guardian
  Tom Grundy, the founder of Hong Kong Free Press, writes:

As journalists in Hong Kong, things can seem equally hopeless – there is no longer such a thing as a “slow news day” and it often feels like we are just documenting the rearrangement of deckchairs on the Titanic. However, since citizens have no voice at the ballot box, and with a media landscape dominated by pro-establishment titles, there is even more motivation for us to bear witness, act as a watchdog and hold the powerful to account.

• Record floods continue to tear through China
  China has just contained the coronavirus. Now it’s battling some of the worst floods in decades / CNN
  “Since June, devastating floods have impacted 38 million people — more than the entire population of Canada. Some 2.24 million residents have been displaced, with 141 people dead or missing, the Ministry of Emergency Management said Monday.”
  Record floods raise questions about China’s Three Gorges Dam / Reuters
  “Critics say the historically high water levels on the Yangtze and its major lakes prove the Three Gorges Dam isn’t doing what it was designed for.”
  In Pictures: China faces worst floods in 30 years / Al Jazeera
  Yangtze flood passes peak in eastern China but no time to relax / SCMP
• South China Sea updates
  The South China Sea, Southeast Asia’s patrimony, and everybody’s own backyard / U.S. Department of State
  “By claiming ‘indisputable sovereignty’ over an area larger than the Mediterranean and trampling the rights of others, Beijing threatens the existing order that has given Asia decades of prosperity. That order has been based on freedom and openness, ideas that Beijing opposes.”
  Chinese ships intruded into Malaysian waters 89 times in four years, report says / Reuters
  “Malaysia has sent six diplomatic protests to China over encroachment in its waters, including one in 2017 in response to a Chinese note asserting its claim to the South Luconia Shoals, a fishing ground off the Malaysian state of Sarawak, the National Audit Department said in the report.”
• Japan’s new white paper scolds China for pandemic politics
  Japan’s defense white paper takes aim at China’s actions during pandemic / The Japan Times
  “Japan said Tuesday it is closely monitoring attempts by China to boost its global clout, asserting that Beijing has been dispatching medical professionals and providing face masks and assistance to other countries in response to the coronavirus pandemic so as to advance its own interests.”
  Japan accuses China of pushing territorial claims during COVID-19 pandemic / Reuters
  China provocations hasten Japan’s military revival / WSJ (paywall)
• Xinjiang propaganda and birth control policies
  China’s Xinjiang policy: Less about births, more about control / Atlantic
  Mei Fong writes, “Instead of saying, ‘Yes, they violated human rights, but…,’ sometimes we just need to say ‘They violated human rights.’ Egregiously. Appallingly. Full stop.”
  Threat of lawsuit shows China ‘losing the battle’ in propaganda war over Xinjiang: Adrian Zenz / RFA
  China says U.S. warnings over Xinjiang hurt global supply chain / Reuters
• China sanctions Lockheed Martin
  China says to sanction Lockheed Martin over Taiwan arms sale / Reuters
  “China will put sanctions on Lockheed Martin (LMT.N) for involvement in the latest U.S. arms sale to Chinese-claimed Taiwan, China said on Tuesday, adding tension to its troubled relationship with the United States.”
• New book explores China’s “invisible hand” in foreign elites
  New book examines Neil Bush’s China links / Axios
  “China’s leaders have sought to ensure the U.S. doesn’t treat China like an enemy, no matter how hard Beijing works to undermine democratic institutions and interests around the world.”
• Beijing feigns ignorance on gay conversion therapy
  Darius Longarino on Twitter: “China’s response today to U.N. Independent Expert’s report on conversion therapy globally, including in China: ‘China opposes all forms of discrimination and violence, including discrimination, violence, and intolerance based on sexual orientation and gender identity.’ But……”
• Hong Kong’s sex workers’ manifesto
  Sex workers discuss ‘Restore Tuen Mun’ / Lausan
  “Written by a coalition of sex workers and allies, this article is a response to the deeply misogynistic and anti-sex worker slant of the Tuen Mun protest.”
• China’s new list of “former people”
  Xǔ Zhāngrùn 许章润 and China’s former people / China Heritage

“In the vaunted ‘New Epoch’ of Xí Jìnpíng 习近平, the five main problematic social groups, or ‘black categories’, are rights lawyers, underground religious activists, dissidents, internet leaders (influencers), as well as various vulnerable groups. Perhaps ‘upright professors and outspoken educators’ will become another category in the country’s ever-expanding list of Former People.”

SOCIETY AND CULTURE:

• Anorexia in China
  Hunger games / World of Chinese

Anorexia nervosa is the deadliest mental disorder in the world, according to the U.S. National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders. Around 18 to 20 percent of those who suffer from it die within 20 years due to organ failure or suicide…Despite its lethality, the disorder remains largely misdiagnosed and misunderstood in China, where mental disorders, especially eating disorders, are still a novel concept.