Links for Wednesday, January 20, 2021

BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY:

• Major hedge fund pulls out of Hong Kong
  Hedge fund Elliott pulls out of Hong Kong / FT (paywall, or see Reuters summary)
  “U.S. hedge fund Elliott Management is closing its Hong Kong office, becoming one of the first large financial institutions to shutter operations in the territory since it entered a period of civil unrest and political tension in 2019…a person close to Elliott said the decision to wind down operations in Hong Kong was first taken in early 2018 and was not driven by more recent political or legal changes in the region.”

• Alibaba shares jump after Jack Ma appears on video
  Jack Ma makes 1st public appearance via video link since Alibaba came under tougher scrutiny / Global Times
  Alibaba shares jump on Jack Ma’s first appearance in 3 months / TechCrunch via Yahoo Finance
  Alibaba founder Jack Ma (马云 Mǎ Yún) has not been seen in public since October, when he gave a speech critical of China’s financial regulators that some blame for the suspension of the IPO of Alibaba’s fintech spin-off, Ant Group. He reappeared earlier today in a video promoted by state media of the billionaire taking part in a “rural teacher-themed social welfare event.” 

• Future regulatory trouble ahead for Ant Group and Tencent?
  China plans online payment rules that may hit Ant, Tencent / Bloomberg (porous paywall)
  Why China plans to tax the booming digital economy / Caixin

• Huge New York IPO for China’s biggest vape company
  China Inc. tests Biden stance on listings with $1.2 billion IPO / Nikkei (porous paywall) 

• Cryptocurrencies: Haven of last resort for affluent Chinese?
  Chinese investors flocked to cryptocurrencies amid techwar / TechNode
  “Over the last year, affluent Chinese have flocked to blockchain-based digital assets as an investment — and a safer place to stash their money.”  

• More money for electric and smart cars
  Tencent and Automaker Geely team up on autonomous vehicle tech / Caixin
  WM Motor rolls out new self-parking electric car powered by Baidu tech / Caixin 

• More money for food transport and delivery
  Cold-chain logistics startup Xianshenghuo bags $93 million in new funding / Caixin 

• International travel demand still way down
  Airlines in reverse with capacity cuts from Europe to China / Bloomberg (porous paywall)  

• A censored Github for China
  China wants to build an open-source ecosystem to rival Github / Rest of World 

SCIENCE, HEALTH, AND THE ENVIRONMENT: 

• Conspiracy theories and vaccine nationalism
  China pushes conspiracy theories to discredit Western vaccines, muddy coronavirus origins / Washington Post
  Chinese media criticise Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine, tout local shots / Reuters 

• New and rare wildlife species
  Survey finds new frog type in Zhejiang / Shanghai Daily
  Rare leopard spotted in SW China nature reserve / China.org.cn  

• Another damn Yangtze dam
  China environmental groups slam plan to dam key lake on Yangtze River / Reuters

• Endangered wildlife trade on leading video apps
  Chinese short-video platforms hosting videos promoting endangered wildlife trade, report says / Caixin (paywall)

POLITICS AND CURRENT AFFAIRS:

• Top state media story today: Winter Games propaganda
  Xi stresses advancing Beijing 2022 preparation with perfection (Chinese version here) / Xinhua

• London vs. Beijing on Hong Kong
  British government blasts Beijing over threat to stop recognizing Hong Kong BN(O) passports / SCMP
  “London has reacted angrily to Beijing’s threat to stop recognising the British National (Overseas) passport as a valid travel document, a proposed reprisal against the Western nation for offering Hongkongers a pathway to citizenship.”

• Rights prize for detained lawyer
  Rights Lawyer Yu Wensheng nominated for human rights prize as health suffers in detention / China Digital Times
  Chinese human rights lawyer Yu Wensheng in poor health after years in jail, wife says / SCMP

• EU deal — will China honor commitments to eliminate forced labor?
  China’s pledge on forced labor saved investment deal: EU envoy / Caixin via Nikkei Asia
  “China and the European Union were just a week away from missing the year-end target for their sweeping new investment accord when China made a key concession on accepting international conventions on forced labor, EU Ambassador to China Nicolas Chapuis told Caixin in an interview.”

• A new vehicle to supply troops on China’s border with India
  China’s military uses new all-terrain vehicle to get supplies to troops in Tibet / SCMP (porous paywall) 

SOCIETY AND CULTURE:

• Tattoos and traditional Chinese painting
  Mountain, water, and ink / Neocha
  Beijing-based tattoo artist Chén Jié’s 陈洁 “works are a departure from conventional tattoo styles, with an aesthetic that more closely resembles Chinese ink-wash paintings.”

• When your only child dies
  Their only child gone, ‘shidu’ parents shun China’s kid-centric society / Sixth Tone

• Child abuse at schools 
  Teacher accused of molesting students sentenced to 14 years in prison / CGTN