Links for Friday, September 18, 2020

BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY:

• Japanese firms pessimistic on profits
  Japanese firms in China buffeted by U.S. tensions, pandemic, survey finds / Caixin (paywall)
  “More than half of surveyed Japanese companies operating in China expect their profits to fall more than 10% this year,” according to a survey by the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry in China.
• Jouav looks to list on STAR Market
  China’s second-string drone-maker files for $60 million IPO / Caixin (paywall)
• Pharmaceutical deal approved
  GNC wins bankruptcy court approval for sale to Chinese sponsor / Bloomberg (porous paywall)
• BYD invests in revamped, older battery technology
  China’s EV champion bets big on a different flavor of battery / WSJ (paywall)
• Upcoming Hong Kong IPOs
  U.S.-listed Chinese delivery firm ZTO Express plans to raise up to $1.6 billion in Hong Kong secondary listing / Caixin
  Chinese companies race to list in Hong Kong before Ant’s mega IPO / Asian Nikkei Review
  China’s Ming Yuan launches up to $800 million Hong Kong IPO: term sheet / Reuters
  Jack Ma’s Ant Group wants tech analysts to help cover its stock / Caixin
  JD Health may file $1 billion Hong Kong IPO by end-month / TechNode
• Diabetes is big business
  DCP Capital invests over $283 million in Shanghai-listed insulin maker / Caixin
• Department of dodgy dealings
  Money-launderers use Chinese online shopping sites to funnel cash offshore / FT (paywall)
• Baidu and autonomous vehicles
  More than 100,000 riders have used Baidu robotaxis / TechNode
  Baidu CEO talks up ‘smart transport’ as search giant continues to bank on self-driving cars / Caixin

SCIENCE, HEALTH, AND THE ENVIRONMENT:

• The race for a vaccine
  Chinese researchers to test double doses of CanSino’s coronavirus vaccine candidate / Reuters
  China’s Sinovac to test coronavirus vaccine candidate in teenagers, children / Reuters
• Biosecure farms
  A 12-story pig farm: Has China found the way to tackle animal disease? / Guardian

POLITICS AND CURRENT AFFAIRS:

• China responds to U.S. official visit to Taiwan
  Taiwan scrambles jets as 18 Chinese planes buzz during U.S. visit / Reuters
  On The China Project yesterday: U.S. increases high-level Taiwan contacts as Pentagon plans large weapons sale.
• Taiwan arms deal would be second-largest ever by U.S.
  U.S. plans $7bn arms deal with Taiwan as China ratchets up military threat / FT (paywall)
  “The deal would be worth $7bn, according to a person familiar with the discussions inside the administration. That would make it the second biggest package of weapons provided to Taiwan by the US following an $8bn arms deal agreed last year.”
• Australia-China tensions
  China says Australia turning away Chinese firms will dent confidence / Australian ABC
• Biden identifies Russia as more direct threat than China
  Joe Biden calls Russia an ‘opponent,’ China a ‘competitor’ during town hall / New York Post
• The balance of poverty alleviation and propaganda
  China’s anti-poverty drive is not disinterested charity / Economist (porous paywall)
  For more context, see a recent Sinica Podcast: Poverty eradication by 2020: A reality check.
• The decline of Europe-China relations
  Europe and China’s ‘virtual summit’ / ChinaFile
• The disappearing foreign press corps
  The Washington Post’s Beijing bureau chief leaves China – PM / ABC Australia
• And then the One China people came for the Taiwanese bird-watchers
  British bird group issues gag order over Taiwan-China issue / Reuters
• U.S. clothing companies and Uyghur forced labor
  Apparel group says broad ban on China’s Xinjiang cotton impossible to enforce / Reuters
• India-China border dispute
  Uneasy Ladakh locals watch India-China spat at close range / Nikkei Asian Review
• Corruption in Inner Mongolia
  Eight officials face charges for helping murderer avoid prison / Caixin
• New U.K. ambassador and the cult of Xí Jìnpíng 习近平
  Incoming UK ambassador to China Caroline Wilson slammed by activists after posing with Xi Jinping book / HKFP

SOCIETY AND CULTURE:

• Tackling sexual abuse at schools
  China to build national sex offender database for use by schools / Sixth Tone
  “Schools and education bureaus will also be required to check the database before hiring new staff or issuing teaching licenses, respectively.”
• Students and COVID-19 restrictions
  Jiangxi tells schools not to restrict students’ movements / Sixth Tone
  “Students nationwide have been complaining of not being allowed to leave their campuses after schools and universities introduced new rules for preventing coronavirus infections.”
• Neglect of rural teachers
  Teachers petition local governments to release withheld wages / Sixth Tone
  “Many teachers, mostly in remote regions, have lodged complaints on a state media outlet’s message board, demanding better working conditions, competitive salaries, and uninterrupted pensions.”
• Jeremy Lin back to NBA
  Basketballer Jeremy Lin — dream chaser or delusional? Netizens divided as star leaves CBA for NBA / Caixin