Highlighted Links for Tuesday, October 25, 2022

Below are links to other noteworthy reports published in the last 24 hours from and about China.

BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY:

• The chips aren’t falling into place
  Beyond chips, U.S. lawmakers urge tougher line on Chinese deals / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
  Samsung and SK Hynix face China dilemma from U.S. export controls / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
  Intel CEO calls new U.S. restrictions on chip exports to China inevitable / WSJ (paywall)
  On The China Project today: Your phones and cars aren’t going to work the same after new U.S. rules on selling chips to China.

• China hits record imports of Russian energy
  China imported record amount of russian natural gas, coal / Bloomberg (paywall)
  “China imported record quantities of Russian liquefied natural gas and steelmaking coal in September, as total purchases of energy products topped $50 billion since the invasion of Ukraine pushed Moscow to expand sales to its strategic ally.”
  Infrastructure bottlenecks hamper Russia’s booming coal exports to China / Reuters

• EVs in China: Tesla slumps as competition grows
  Tesla revenue growth in China slows amid rising competition / TechNode
  “Tesla’s revenue grew by 64.8% year-on-year to $5.13 billion in the third quarter of 2022, although that number was significantly lower than the 78.5% growth seen during the same period in 2021, according to a securities filing published on Monday.”
  Tesla cuts prices in china in sign of slowing demand / NYT (paywall)
  Xpeng Motors to launch robotaxi testing in 2023 / TechNode
  “Xpeng Motors plans to test its highly autonomous vehicles for public transport in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou as early as 2023, Wu Xinzhou, the company’s vice-president of autonomous driving, said on Monday at a press event.”
  Toyota to debut electric sedan powered by BYD batteries in China / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
  “Toyota Motor will soon release its first electric sedans in China, expanding its lineup in the world’s largest market for electric vehicles.”

• #MeToo ensnares manager at Meituan
  Meituan fires manager after sexual harassment allegation / Sixth Tone
  “China’s food delivery platform Meituan has reportedly fired a senior manager after he was accused of sexually harassing a female trainee, details of which were published and widely shared on social media platforms Monday.”

• China needs almost $25 trillion to reach carbon zero, BNY says
  China will require quarter of the $100 trillion in investments for world to reach net zero goal by 2050: BNY Mellon / SCMP (paywall)
  “The world needs $100 trillion in investments to decarbonise and reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050, with China requiring nearly a quarter of the green investments, according to a report from BNY Mellon Investment Management and Fathom Consulting.”

• Zijin Minings spends billions to buy up ore
  Zijin Mining plans $1.4 billion bond as it buys up metal used in green transition / Caixin (paywall)
  “China’s Zijin Mining Co. Ltd. plans to issue a 10 billion yuan ($1.4 billion) convertible bond to fund its acquisitions of gold and molybdenum ore mines, according to a Sunday exchange filing.”

• Australian wine withers in China
  Australian wine exports to China plunge 92% as tariffs and COVID disruptions decimate market / SCMP (paywall)
  “Australian wine exports to mainland China plunged by 92% to A$21 million ($13 million) in the year ended September 30, while shipments to Hong Kong dropped by 21%, new data shows.”

• Game on for Microsoft
  Microsoft powers up search for Chinese gaming hits in race against Sony / Reuters
  “Microsoft is stocking up on Chinese video game content to emulate Sony’s success with ‘Genshin Impact,’ sources said, solidifying China’s transition from a land only of players to a hub of blockbuster developers.”

• Growing market for smart glasses
  China’s consumer-facing smart glasses market heating up / Pandaily

• Fosun fights back against property gloom and doom
  China’s Fosun aims to sell $11 billion of assets in next year / Bloomberg (paywall)
  “One of China’s largest non-state conglomerates told analysts that it’s targeting to sell as much as $11 billion of assets within the next 12 months, amid efforts to bolster both its balance sheet and investor confidence.”

• Is livestreaming the new LinkedIn in China?
  China’s blue-collar workers find jobs over livestream / Rest of World
  “Chinese livestream apps have become an unlikely destination for blue-collar workers searching for jobs.”

• Top execs at WM Motor get salaries slashed in half
  WM Motor to cut executive salaries in half as financial woes mount / Pandaily
  “After WM Motor founder Freeman Shen’s annual salary of 1.2 billion yuan ($164 million) aroused heated discussion, the Chinese second-tier electric vehicle maker is now reportedly carrying out large-scale salary reductions, including a 50% cut in executive pay.”

• Apple’s newest iPhone isn’t selling
  Apple is cutting back production of iPhone 14 Plus due to weak demand – TrendForce / Channel News Asia

SCIENCE, HEALTH, AND ENVIRONMENT:

• Spain-sized emissions from China’s overseas coal plants
  Emissions from China-invested overseas coal plants equal to whole of Spain – research / Reuters
  “Carbon dioxide emissions from China-invested power plants overseas now stand at an estimated 245 million tonnes per year, about the same as the annual energy-related CO2 emissions from Spain or Thailand, new research showed on Tuesday. The majority of the China-financed generation capacity in the planning stages now will employ low-carbon energy sources, the Boston University research said, indicating that a recent pledge to end overseas coal-financing is having an effect.”

• How fields of mountain flowers bloom to survive
  Rhododendron ecology mystery solved in Hengduan Mountains / Cosmos
  “The rhododendron species all flower at different points in the year, meaning they don’t compete with each other for pollinators.”

POLITICS AND FOREIGN AFFAIRS:

• Xi’s third term: National security and increased tensions with the West
  Assessing the consequences of China President Xi’s power consolidation / Bloomberg (video)
  China’s new guard bodes change for Beijing’s interaction with the West / WSJ (paywall)
  China’s limitless presidency means limited diplomacy / FT (paywall)

• Fresh blood in the upper echelons of the CCP
  A younger generation is now the majority in Communist Party’s elite body / Caixin (paywall)
  “[M]ost of the full members of the Communist Party’s 20th Central Committee are officials born in the 1960s, as opposed to the previous Central Committee dominated by leaders born in the 50s, according to an official membership list released after the weeklong Party Congress.”

• Running of the rich from Xi’s China
  China’s wealthy activate escape plans as Xi Jinping extends rule / FT (paywall)
  “Rich citizens fearing high taxes and personal safety move capital out of country and arrange residences overseas.”

• Taiwan on edge after Communist Party congress
  Xi Jinping’s Party purge prompts fears of greater Taiwan invasion risk / Guardian
  “Xi Jinping’s purging of political rivals and elevation of loyalists to the top ranks of the Chinese Communist party has raised fears that his now unfettered and unquestionable power could increase the risk of an attack on Taiwan.”
  China’s reshuffled military leadership highlights Taiwan focus / SCMP (paywall)
  Taiwan’s Tsai says no backing down to Chinese aggression / AP
  German lawmakers oppose China military threats toward Taiwan / AP

• Cracking down on media in Hong Kong in the national security era
  Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai found guilty of fraud over use of Apple Daily’s headquarters / HKFP
  “The founder of defunct pro-democracy tabloid Apple Daily has been found guilty of fraud over operating a consultancy firm at the newspaper’s headquarters.”
  Screening of Taiwanese documentary axed at Hong Kong film festival after censors request removal of protest scenes / HKFP

• Pressure grows on U.K. over forced labor from Xinjiang
  U.K. court to hear Uyghur demands to ban Xinjiang cotton / AP
  “A Uyghur organization and a human rights group are taking the U.K. government to court to challenge Britain’s failure to block the import of cotton products associated with forced labor and other abuses in China’s far western Xinjiang region.”

• Crackdown on pilot poaching heats up between China and U.S., U.K., and Australia
  Former U.S. military pilot who worked in China arrested in Australia, faces extradition / Reuters
  “A former U.S. military pilot and flight instructor who worked in China was arrested in Australia and faces extradition to the United States, Australian court documents and company records show.”

• Germany lets China take a smaller slice of port terminal
  Germany unlikely to block China port deal but offer smaller stake -sources / Reuters
  “Germany may allow China’s Cosco to take a smaller stake than originally planned in a Hamburg port terminal, in what a ministry source on Tuesday described as an ‘emergency solution’ to approve the deal but mitigate the impact.”

• Man detained over fake health code
  Chinese man detained for creating fake ‘Iron Man’ health code / Sixth Tone
  “The man, surnamed Dou, has been given a 10-day detention over the blue ‘Iron Man’ health code and for causing confusion online with the non-existent code, local authorities in Yining said Monday.”

SOCIETY AND CULTURE:

• Taiwan museum attracts more visitors amid China tensions
  Why people are flocking to a symbol of Taiwan’s authoritarian past / NYT (paywall)
  “At a museum dedicated to Taiwan’s not-so-distant authoritarian past, Taiwanese see China’s present, and a dark vision of one possible future under autocratic rule.”

• Liberal arts degrees don’t pay well, but tech does
  Careers stalled, China’s liberal arts grads learn to code / Sixth Tone
  Liberal arts graduates are learning to code, as pivoting careers to programming has “surged in the last two years, both for higher pay and for prestige.”

• Obituary for a famous Chinese archaeologist
  Shi Xingbang, pioneering Chinese archaeologist who helped excavate Terracotta Warriors and was crucial for Three Gorges Dam, dies at 99 / SCMP (paywall)
  “Shi Xingbang, one of the forefathers of China’s vibrant world of archaeology, passed away last Friday at the age of 99.”