Links for Friday, December 18, 2020
Notable China news from around the web.
MORE NEWS FROM AROUND THE WORLD
BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY:
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Trumpโs TikTok ban seems dead; Walmart adopts Chinese model
Walmart is bringing livestream shopping to TikTok on Fridayย / CNBC
โThe retailer announced it will host a one-hour livestream Friday on TikTok, where users can shop for Walmart fashion items featured by TikTok creators without having to leave the app.โ -
The humbling of Alibaba and Tencent
Chinaโs Ant stops online bank deposits on Alipay to conform with regulationsย / Yicai
โMembers of the public will no longer be able to deposit funds with banks that use Alipay, the worldโs largest mobile payment platform run by Chinaโs Ant Group, as the fintech giant moves to better align its business with regulatory requirements.โ
Ant Group pulls products that could pump cash into risky regional lendersย / Caixin (paywall)
The good old days are gone for Chinese tech giantsย / TechNode -
Tencentโs growing reach into global pop music
Tencent doubles stake in Universal Music Groupย / New York Post ย
โChinese internet giant Tencent is doubling its stake to 20% in Universal Music Group, the home of entertainers like Ariana Grande, Lady Gaga, Billie Eilish, Drake, and the Beatles.โ ย -
Solar and wind power IPO
China Three Gorgesโ new energy arm approved for $3.8 billion IPOย / Caixin (paywall)
China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) approved the IPO application of the state-owned firm, which specializes in solar and wind power generation. -
Electric and autonomous vehicles
Xpeng delivers first EVs to Norway in slow-going Europe entryย / Caixin
Pony.ai gets green light to test self-driving trucks in Guangzhouย / Caixin -
Despite tensions, Xiaomi still going strong in India
Xiaomi leads Indian smartphone market thanks to strong online pushย / Caixin -
Internet of Things
Chinese IoT platform rootcloud raises $122m Series C led by IDG Capitalย / Caixin -
Internet on planes
China Eastern, China Telecom scour the skies for new income with internet tie-upย / Caixin (paywall) -
Economy still rocky
Chinaโs top policy panel says government will continue โnecessary supportโ for economyย / SCMP (porous paywall)
Chinese leaders pledge to continue policy support to maintain economic recoveryย / Straits Times ย
China says economic recovery ‘not yet solid’ after COVID-19 pandemicย / AFP via CNA
SCIENCE, HEALTH, AND THE ENVIRONMENT:
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COVID-19 vaccinations
China to vaccinate 50 million people with its COVID-19 shotsย / WSJ (paywall)
โChina plans to inoculate 50 million people with two experimental homegrown COVID-19 vaccines before Februaryโs Lunar New Year holiday season, leading up to vaccinations for the broader public by spring.โ
POLITICS AND CURRENT AFFAIRS:
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Yet another journalist detained
Du Bin, Chinese journalist, is detained in Beijingย / NYT (porous paywall)
โChina intensified its clampdown on independent reporting, the authorities detained a journalist who recently worked on books that were critical of Communism and the Chinese Communist Party, the journalistโs friends and family said on Friday.โ
See also on The China Project: Bloomberg News staffer detained, Jimmy Lai charged on vague national security grounds as Beijing stifles news media. -
Coal shortage or environmental measures?
Chinese city that supplies worldโs Christmas lights turns off own street lampsย / Yicai
Amid coal crunch, cities limit power to businesses, factoriesย / Sixth Tone
How China’s coal industry is fighting to survive in a greener worldย / Japan Timesย -
Critics and fans of EU investment deal
China says EU investment deal in final stage, hails progressย / Bloomberg (porous paywall)
EU should not rush investment deal with Chinaย / EU Observer -
South China Sea tensions
U.S. Navy to adopt ‘more assertive posture’ against China and Russiaย / Guardian
โThe Pentagon has warned that US maritime forces will become more forceful in responding to acts of aggression, expansionism, and breaches of international law, citing Beijing in particular.โ -
Repression of Uyghurs
The people Chinaโs detaining, spying on and forcing into internment campsย / LA Times (porous paywall) ย -
Dodgy business at the World Bank
World Bank says managers pressured staff to alter global business rankingsย / WSJ (paywall)
โWorld Bank management pressured staff members to manipulate data used in its flagship report on business competitiveness, resulting in improvements in Chinaโs and Saudi Arabiaโs global rankings.โ -
COVID-19 censorship
Citizen journalist Zhang Zhan to face court over coronavirus coverageย / SCMP (porous paywall) -
โAttackingโ Australia
Here are the ways China has attacked Australian goods importsย / Bloomberg (porous paywall)
On The China Project: Australia-China relations: A short history of a downward spiral -
โI didnโt changeโฆthe Chinese actually changedโ โ former Mongolian president
When you live next to an autocracyย / Atlantic (porous paywall)
โNow a harsh and high-profile critic of Beijingโs recent efforts to stamp out the Mongolian languageโฆin Inner Mongolia,โ Tsakhia Elbegdor, former Mongolian president, โand his country offer an extreme example of the difficulties facing nations that are heavily reliant on Beijing.โ
SOCIETY AND CULTURE:
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LGBT+ community and Chinese law
Precarious progress: Advocating for LGBT equality in Chinaย / OutRight Action International ย
A report on the โrelationship between law and the lives of LGBT people in China.โ -
Tai chi
Chinese tai chi enters Unesco intangible cultural heritage listย / Xinhua
โWith tai chi, China now has 42 intangible cultural heritage items on the list.โ -
Livestreaming culture
A Chinese Eat, Pray, Love: Grannyโs road trip gives her the freedom sheโs always cravedย / SCMP (porous paywall)





