Links for Monday, October 3, 2022

Archaeology
Major breakthroughs at 4 archaeological sites in China offer window into early days of Chinese civilization / SCMP (paywall)

Google Translate stops serving China
Google Translate app no longer accessible in mainland China / SCMP (paywall)
Google pulls plug on Translate app for China in ongoing retreat / Straits Times

National Day in Hong Kong
Hong Kong leader promises revival on China’s National Day / AP
“Hong Kong’s leader promised Saturday to revive its struggling economy following a campaign to crush a pro-democracy movement as China’s ruling Communist Party marked its 73rd anniversary in power under strict anti-virus controls.”

Gandhi finally gets a birthday celebration in COVID-zero China
Gandhi Jayanti celebration returns to China’s Chaoyang Park after 2 years / India Today
“Two years after the COVID halted life in China, Gandhi Jayanti was celebrated at the Chaoyang Park on Sunday.”

Another muted Golden Week holiday under COVID zero
China spends holiday ‘lying flat’ amid heavy travel restrictions / Sixth Tone
Fewer trips for China’s Golden Week amid quarantine fears / AP
China dashes travel blitz hopes for Golden Week / Nikkei Asia (paywall)

Illegal hare hunting in England and its ties to China
How hare coursing is used for betting in China / BBC
“As the hare-coursing season gets under way in Wiltshire, officers have revealed how the illegal activity is used for betting in China.”

Russia, Ukraine, and China
Russia vetoes UN resolution on Ukraine annexation, China abstains / Al Jazeera
Russia doesn’t need China or other foreign powers’ help in Ukraine / SCMP (paywall)

More on the popular movie that disappeared in China
Chinese fans of popular movie ‘Return to Dust’ wonder what happened to it / WSJ (paywall)

Xi’s diplomacy boosted by state media ahead of Party congress
‘Xiplomacy’ gets rare stage time / China Media Project
“Xi Jinping’s legacy foreign policy phrase got a slight boost last week with prominent coverage in the CCP’s flagship newspaper. But make no mistake — it has been a rough year.”

Fact-checking false photo from the bus crash
Old photo falsely linked to fatal China quarantine bus crash / AFP
“A graphic image showing dead bodies on a roadside was shared hundreds of times in Chinese-language posts that claim it was shot at the scene of a bus crash that killed 27 people on their way to a COVID-19 quarantine facility in China’s southwestern Guizhou Province.”

China’s glitzy skylines and a light pollution problem
Reclaiming China’s night skies / Sixth Tone
“Over the past 20 years, gaudy light shows have taken over skylines nationwide. But darkness is its own kind of beauty.”

ByteDance caves in to pressure over grueling work culture
TikTok owner ByteDance to expand leave offering to China employees in work culture shift / SCMP (paywall)
“TikTok owner ByteDance said it is giving employees more paid leave, after China’s most valuable unicorn faced repeated criticisms over its workplace culture and treatment of staff.”

Shenzhen eyes a booming esports industry
Shenzhen to support local esports industry with $1.38 million / TechNode
“Southern Chinese city Shenzhen announced draft measures to grow the local esports industry on September 23. According to the draft, which is now open to public feedback for one month, the Shenzhen government will offer financial support for esports projects worth up to RMB 10 million ($1.38 million) each.”

China pours money into the metaverse
China’s local governments are spending millions on the metaverse / Sixth Tone
“Major cities and provinces have announced multi-million dollar initiatives that will try to attract talent with housing and other benefits.”

Few people go to movie theaters in COVID-zero China, but the ones who do are watching Homecoming
China’s domestic box office sales slump as National Day holiday begins under shadow of COVID / SCMP (paywall)
“Revenues on the first day of the weeklong holiday fell by around $50 million while the number of long-distance journeys also dropped sharply.”
China’s National Day Holiday weekend box office registers 70% slump, ‘Homecoming’ dominates / Variety
Blockbuster set in Africa dominates Chinese box office over National Day weekend / China-Global South Project (paywall)
“Africa is once again the backdrop for a glossy, big-budget Chinese patriotic blockbuster that dominated this weekend’s National Day holiday box office with $37 million in ticket sales.”

Chinese firms punished in U.S. over ties to Iran oil
U.S. penalizes Chinese companies for aiding Iran’s oil exports / NYT (paywall)
“The move suggests a more aggressive approach by the Biden administration after talks to revive a 2015 nuclear deal faltered.”

Former executive of Shandong Hi-Speed Group goes radio silent
Ex-Shandong Hi-Speed exec drops out of contact / Caixin (paywall)
“Another former senior executive of Shandong Hi-Speed Group dropped out of contact, stirring speculation that the sprawling state-owned conglomerate faces an expanded investigation of controversial investments under the leadership of fallen former Chairman Sun Liang.”

BYD beefs up
BYD sales hit fresh record as Chinese consumers embrace hybrids / Bloomberg (paywall)
“BYD Co. notched up a seventh consecutive monthly sales record for electric and hybrid vehicles in September, selling just over 200,000 units for the first time, and comfortably beating clean car global behemoth Tesla Inc. for deliveries in the third quarter.”
BYD auto’s best-selling EV models / Pandaily
China’s EV star and Tesla rival BYD unveils Europe expansion / FT (paywall)

Is card collecting the next big thing in China?
eBay looks to cash in on trading cards boom in China / Ping West
“According to eBay’s ‘State of Trading Cards’ report, China is one of the fastest-growing markets for card collection.”

China’s Citic knocks out Goldman and Wall Street bulls on global Iistings
China giant edges out Goldman as world’s top share sale arranger / Bloomberg (paywall)
“A surge in China’s initial public offerings propelled Citic Securities Co. to the top spot in the global league tables for equity issues, giving the state-backed brokerage a taste of global recognition.”

China lacks fighter jet pilots to fly its three aircraft carriers
Chinese navy struggles to find enough pilots for 3 aircraft carriers / SCMP (paywall)
“China’s navy, the world’s second-most powerful — with two aircraft carriers commissioned and another launched in June — is struggling to meet increased demand for qualified ship-borne fighter jet pilots, analysts said.”
Earlier on The China Project: China’s third aircraft carrier is its most advanced yet.

TSMC is still the world’s chip champion
TSMC remains world’s largest contract chipmaker / Taipei Times
“Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) remained the world’s largest contract chipmaker in the second quarter of the year with a 53.4 percent share of the global pure-play foundry market, the Taipei-based market information advisory firm TrendForce Corp said in a research report on Tuesday.”

It’s more expensive to insure an electric car than a traditional one in China
China’s flood of new electric cars cost 20% more to insure than fuel-powered cars / CNBC
“In general, the insurance premium for new energy cars — which includes electric — is about 20% higher than it would be for comparable traditional fuel-powered cars.”

Gloom in the factory and on the market floor
Asia’s factories paint uneven recovery picture in September / Bloomberg (paywall)
World shares mostly lower as recession fears deepen / AP

The race for hydrogen-powered cars
China’s state-backed hydrogen vehicle industry struggles to find its feet / Caixin (paywall)
“The announcement this week that global auto giants Toyota Motor and Hyundai Motor will start selling hydrogen fuel-cell passenger cars in China later this year has jolted the fledgling sector.”

Insurance companies and pension schemes
China drafts tough rules for insurers to join national personal pension scheme, sources say / Caixin (paywall)
“China has drafted tough requirements that insurance companies would need to meet to participate in the state-backed personal pension scheme, industry sources with knowledge of the matter told Caixin, with analysts estimating that only fewer than 30 firms would be eligible.”

An industry of illegal online gaming
Play hard, work hard: How black-market games discipline their staff / Sixth Tone
“Private game servers — running unauthorized copies of popular online games — are highly profitable, provided operators can find gamers willing to exploit themselves.”

Richard Liu settles rape lawsuit out of court
China JD.com founder Liu settles U.S. rape civil suit / Reuters
Chinese #MeToo case settled in U.S. court / NYT (paywall)
Chinese tech billionaire Richard Liu settles sexual-assault case in Minnesota / WSJ (paywall)
JD.com founder and billionaire Liu settles U.S. rape civil suit / CNBC
JD.com founder settles lawsuit for alleged rape / Tech in Asia
China ecommerce billionaire Richard Liu settles alleged rape case / Forbes
Chinese billionaire Richard Liu settles US rape allegation / AP
JD.com’s Richard Liu settles lawsuit with his rape accuser / Caixin (paywall)