Links for Monday, November 16, 2020

BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY:

• Gambling — another investigation into China’s Big Tech
  Major internet companies implicated in gambling crackdown / Caixin (paywall)
  A government campaign against illegal online gambling has found that the organizers rely on major internet companies to market and operate their services. Caixin mentions Baidu, Tencent’s messaging apps QQ and WeChat, Ant Group’s payment service Alipay, ecommerce site Pinduoduo, and courier companies such as “New York-listed ZTO Express, Shanghai-listed YTO Express and STO Express.”
• Official economic indicators strong in October
  China’s economic recovery stays on track, indicators show / Caixin (paywall)
  “The labor market also improved as China’s surveyed urban unemployment rate eased to 5.3% in October from 5.4% the previous month… Newly created urban jobs reached nearly 10.1 million in the first 10 months, hitting the annual target of 9 million ahead of schedule.”
  China’s strengthening recovery cements status as global outlier / Bloomberg via Yahoo
  China’s fourth-quarter economic growth will accelerate from third quarter: stats bureau / Reuters
• TikTok divestment deadline moved to November 27
  TikTok has 2 more weeks to unload U.S. operations, regulators say / Nikkei Asia (porous paywall)
  TikTok tries to run out clock of Trump presidency / Bloomberg (porous paywall)
• “Beer and baijiu lead alcohol market as industry rebounds from pandemic downturn”
  Chinese premium brewers and distillers toast return of nightlife / Nikkei Asia (porous paywall)
• Agriculture: China buys U.S. product 
  U.S. crop prices are rising, and China is buying / WSJ (paywall)
• BMW partner, indebted state-owned firm, faces bankruptcy
  Creditors of parent of BMW’s Chinese JV partner apply for company restructuring / Reuters
• Company behind cosmetics and skincare brand Perfect Diary to IPO in New York
  Budget beauty specialist spruces up for $600 million U.S. IPO / Caixin (paywall)
• Troubled Baoshang Bank continues death spiral even after state takeover
  Insolvent Baoshang Bank won’t pay up on $1 billion bond / Caixin (paywall)
• More narrow relief for Huawei supply chain
  Qualcomm joins list of firms approved to sell older chips to Huawei / Caixin (paywall) 
• Commercial open-source software
  Zilliz raises $43 million as investors rush to China’s open-source software / TechCrunch
• Online shopping here to stay in post-pandemic China
  JD’s revenue beats in sign Chinese consumers moved online / Bloomberg (porous paywall)

SCIENCE, HEALTH, AND THE ENVIRONMENT:

• Northern China smog: 54 cities issue air pollution alerts
  Dozens of cities issue smog warnings as winter haze descends / Caixin (paywall)
• Meat packaging COVID-contamination claims
  China finds coronavirus on frozen meat, packaging from Latin America, New Zealand / Reuters
  China finds coronavirus on packaging of Saudi shrimp / Reuters
  Shanghai to start testing ‘high-risk’ cold storage food imports for coronavirus / Reuters
  China’s sweeping COVID controls put frozen food importers on ice / Reuters
  China turns its attention to frozen foods in battle to eliminate virus threat, but experts remain skeptical / CNN
  New Zealand’s Ardern says no COVID on meat exports; checking Chinese claims / Reuters

POLITICS AND CURRENT AFFAIRS:

• Zambia’s debt crisis
  What happens if Zambia defaults on its debt to China and other lenders? / China-Africa Project
  Analysts differ on what happened in Zambia and China’s role in the burgeoning debt crisis / China-Africa Project
  Debt crisis? What debt crisis? In China, there’s no coverage or commentary about Zambia / China-Africa Project
• U.S. moves against Chinese companies and state organizations
  China says U.S. should stop unreasonably suppressing Chinese firms / Reuters
• Belt and Road bumps in Pakistan
  Pakistan to pacify Belt and Road opposition with more projects / Nikkei Asia (porous paywall)
• Repression of citizen journalists
  Citizen journalist facing jail in China for Wuhan COVID reporting / Guardian
• Europe and China
  Germany walks tightrope between China and rest of Indo-Pacific / Nikkei Asia (porous paywall)
  “Berlin puts focus on ‘shared values’ while leaving door open for Beijing.”
  EU must assert autonomy in face of U.S.-China dominance, says Macron / Guardian
  European public opinion on China in the age of COVID-19: Differences and common ground across the continent / IFRI
• Harsh new Trump admin moves against China? 
  Trump administration will attempt to box Biden administration in on China policies / CNN
  Trump plans last-minute China crackdown / Axios
  A harder U.S. line? Potential Pentagon chief floated idea to sink China fleet in 72 hours / SCMP (porous paywall)
• Uyghurs in exile, in danger
  Malaysia stands firm on not deporting Uyghurs, risking Beijing’s anger / SCMP (porous paywall)
• The Catholic Church in Hong Kong
  Pope Francis said to be in final stage of selecting new Hong Kong bishop / SCMP (porous paywall)
• Hong Kong after the national security law
  The rise and fall of Martin Lee and his dream of a democratic Hong Kong / WSJ
  Hong Kong police arrest man for money laundering after crowdfunding for protest sentencing / HKFP
  Chinese ambassador to the UK summoned to the FCDO / UK Government

SOCIETY AND CULTURE:

• Lifesaver consul
  British diplomat leaps into river to save drowning woman in China / Guardian
  Stephen Ellison, 61, British consul general in Chongqing, “has been hailed as a hero after he dived into a river to save a drowning Chinese woman in a rescue that was filmed and then went viral on social media in China and the UK.”
• Out-of-control pets?
  Yunnan County bans dog walking over rising pet-related incidents / Sixth Tone
• Virtual pop stars
  China’s first virtual idol variety show “Dimension Nova” sees digital pop stars do battle / Radii China
• Ice hockey
  While training continues, China’s prized women’s hockey players are in Russia / NYT (porous paywall)
  “With the 2022 Winter Games 15 months away, at a time teams would normally be paring their rosters, the North American imports aren’t in the Beijing training bubble.”