Highlighted links for June 7, 2023

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

BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY:

China’s exports tumble
China’s trade slowdown points to global woes / WSJ (paywall)
“Exports and imports both fell in May, the latest sign that China’s post-Covid recovery is losing steam.”
China’s exports tumble in May as global demand falters / Reuters
“China’s exports shrank much faster than expected in May while imports extended declines with a grim outlook for global demand, especially from developed markets, raising doubts about the fragile economic recovery.”
China trade: exports tumble in May, adding to economic woes as global economy slows / SCMP (paywall)
China’s exports tumble further as global demand falters / Al Jazeera
“China’s exports have shrunk faster than expected in May and its imports have fallen, albeit at a slower pace, amid a struggle to find demand abroad and sluggish domestic consumption.”

Slow economic recovery
Silence of China’s central bank adds to risks facing economy / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
“Chinese growth continues to produce downside surprises, complicating efforts to hit the government’s annual target of a roughly 5% expansion in gross domestic product. Consumer prices are feeling disinflationary pressure, if not outright deflation” but the head of China’s central bank “…have been little heard from of late even as a growing chorus of economists urge the PBOC to forcefully support demand.”

Electric vehicles
China’s Greater Bay technology claims EV battery breakthrough / Caixin (paywall)
“A Chinese battery startup claims to have overcome one of the key sticking points for electric car owners — the loss of power capability and range in cold climates.”
China’s EV juggernaut is a warning for the West / WSJ (paywall)
Competitive pressure and creativity have made Chinese-designed and -built electric cars formidable competitors.
U.S. tensions could sap Chinese EV-battery makers’ global ambitions / Caixin (paywall)

Local debt
China’s troubles about debt / FT (paywall)
“​​China is laden with municipal debt — about 156 trillion yuan of it according to Goldman Sachs, a lot of it held off of balance sheets via financing vehicles (local government financing vehicles/“LGFVs”) favored by local government — and had a shoddy 2022 from local government revenues. This has led to a couple of close calls.”

CEOs keep quiet as they try to please both the Chinese and American governments
For Musk and other foreign CEOs visiting China, silence is golden / Reuters
“A veritable parade of overseas CEOs including Tesla’s Elon Musk and Goldman Sachs’ David Solomon have made their way to a reopened China in the last few months.”

The Sequoia decoupling
U.S.-China venture capital ties weaken further / WSJ (paywall)
“Sequoia Capital’s plan to separate from its China arm reflects a growing pullback of American firms from the country.”
Sequoia faces up to the new U.S.-China reality / WSJ (paywall)
“The storied venture-capital firm’s split speaks volumes about how quickly bilateral trust has evaporated.”

Forex
China’s foreign exchange reserves dropped in May on weak yuan / WSJ (paywall)
“The decline may have come from capital flows out of the country, thanks to a weakening yuan amid disappointing economic data.”

U.S. sanctions
Chinese, Hong Kong, Iranian firms sanctioned for allegedly aiding Iran missile program / WSJ (paywall)
The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned six entities and seven individuals. The Chinese entities are: Zhejiang Qingji, Hong Kong-based Lingoe Process Engineering, Qingdao Zhongrongtong Trade Development, Beijing Shiny Nights Technology Development, and Hong Kong Ke.Do International Trade.
U.S. sanctions group of people and firms from Iran, China and Hong Kong tied to Iran ballistic program / AP

A push for advanced manufacturing
China’s Vice-Premier Zhang Guoqing, a one-time weapons executive, targets country’s manufacturing sector / SCMP (paywall)
“Vice-premier Zhāng Guóqīng 张国清, who once headed a weapons supplier, has weighed in on China’s advanced manufacturing for the first time, signaling the role he will take in the sector for the next five years.”

Real estate woes
China property liquidation risk heightened by delisting threat, says S&P / Reuters
“Some of China’s distressed property developers face the risk of being delisted, which would reduce their options for restructuring and make them more vulnerable to liquidation, S&P Global Ratings said on Wednesday.”
Don’t bet on strong medicine for Chinese housing / WSJ (paywall)
”Some additional policy support now looks likely. But a lackluster recovery is still the most probable outcome.”

Guo Wengui
U.S. trial for exiled Chinese businessman Guo Wengui set for April 2024 / Reuters
“The exiled Chinese businessman Guō Wénguì 郭文贵 will face trial starting April 8, 2024 on U.S. charges of leading a more than $1 billion fraud.”

Working from home in Hong Kong
Go back to the office? No thanks, say Hongkongers who prefer work-from-home arrangements for flexibility and lifestyle balance / SCMP (paywall)
“The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated changes in the workplace, with remote working becoming common. Attitudes among workers shifted too, with more caring about their well-being and having flexibility.”

SCIENCE, HEALTH, AND ENVIRONMENT:

Reforestation
Why does China seem insatiable with trees? / Beijing Channel
“The development of China’s tree planting policy [and] a set of stat to show how serious, and successful China has been about planting trees.”

Monkeypox
Beijing reports two monkeypox cases / Caixin (paywall)
“Beijing has reported two cases of monkeypox, making it the second city on the Chinese mainland to confirm at least one human infection of the contagious disease commonly found in Africa.”

Durian harvest
Durian fans sniff a price drop as China readies its own harvest / Sixth Tone
“With the domestic durian harvest still far short of meeting annual consumption requirements, experts caution that an impact on prices will take time.”

China’s plant-based meat industry slows down as the hype fades
China’s plant-based meat industry falters after initial hype / Sixth Tone
“The meat alternatives have failed to break through the mainstream in China, amid a slowing down of the industry globally.”

Renewable energy
How a floating hydrogen farm has moved China closer to clean renewable energy / SCMP (paywall)
“A team of Chinese researchers has moved a step closer in the quest for clean, renewable energy by converting seawater into hydrogen and oxygen.”

POLITICS AND FOREIGN AFFAIRS:

Anti-corruption campaign targets ‘conspiracies’ and tobacco regulators
Chinese anti-corruption watchdog says crackdown will continue / SCMP (paywall)
“China’s top anti-corruption watchdog has signaled there will be no let up in its campaign as it vowed to crack down on political conspiracies.”
Tobacco graft crackdown nets another retired executive / Caixin (paywall)
“The list of disgraced officials brought down by China’s sweeping anti-corruption crackdown on the state tobacco monopoly continued expanding as yet another former senior executive in southwestern China’s Yunnan province came under investigation.”

Taiwan presidential election
Taiwan presidential contender says he wouldn’t meet China’s Xi without an agenda / Reuters
Ko Wen-je (柯文哲 Kē Wénzhé), the “head of a small Taiwanese political party who is rising in the polls in his bid for the presidency said on Wednesday that he would not meet Chinese President Xí Jìnpíng 习近平 just for the sake of it and that there must be a clear aim for such talks.”

Fiji
Fiji reconsiders security ties with China amid Pacific tensions / AP
“Fiji’s leader indicated Wednesday his nation is reconsidering its security ties with China at a time that geopolitical tensions in the Pacific are rising.”

Indonesia
Indonesia’s delayed China-funded rail project beset by fresh problems / Reuters
“Indonesia’s transport ministry and three consultants have pushed back on a China-funded consortium’s plan to start full commercial operations of the country’s $7.3 billion first high-speed train service in August, an internal document shows.”
Indonesia’s China-funded high-speed railway hit with fresh problems / SCMP (paywall)
“Indonesia’s transport ministry and three consultants have pushed back on a China-funded consortium’s plan to start full commercial operations of the country’s US$7.3 billion first high-speed train service in August, an internal document shows.”

Laos
Laos’ tourism-driven economic recovery hinges on China / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
“Laos’ economy is recovering from a pandemic slump as the opening of a passenger railway link with China helps bring back tourists, but the country risks becoming more reliant on its northern neighbor as a result.”

Egypt
How Egypt is drawing Chinese investors with the Suez Canal shortcut to Europe – and other lures / SCMP (paywall)
“A growing number of Chinese investors are turning to Egypt for a shortcut to international markets thanks to the Suez Canal, the country’s generous tax incentives and its location at the junction of Asia, Africa and Europe.”

Europe and Taiwan
Most Europeans would want to stay neutral in a US-China war over Taiwan, study finds / SCMP (paywall)
“A majority of Europeans would prefer their countries to stay neutral if the United States and China go to war over Taiwan, a new study has revealed.”

U.S.-China competition and tensions
Blinken looks to travel to China for talks in coming weeks — U.S. official / Reuters
“U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to China for talks in the coming weeks, an official said on Tuesday, months after Washington’s top diplomat scrapped a planned trip over a suspected Chinese spy balloon that flew across the U.S.”
Blinken to visit China for talks in coming weeks: U.S. official / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
Antony Blinken to visit China this month in sign of easing tensions / FT (paywall)
Senior US, Chinese diplomats hold ‘candid’ talks to avoid escalation of tensions / AP
“Senior diplomats from China and the United States held “candid and productive” talks in Beijing and agreed to keep open lines of communication to avoid tensions from spiraling into conflict, officials said Tuesday.”
Senior China, U.S. officials meet in Beijing to discuss mending frayed relations / Caixin (paywall)

The Quad
Japan, Australia, U.S. to fund undersea cable connection in Micronesia to counter China’s influence / AP
“Japan announced Tuesday that it joined the United States and Australia in signing an agreement on a $95 million undersea cable project that will connect East Micronesia island nations to improve networks in the Indo-Pacific region where China is increasingly expanding its influence.”

U.K. and Chinese tech
U.K. to remove Chinese-made surveillance equipment from sensitive government sites / Reuters
“Britain has committed to the removal of Chinese-made surveillance equipment from sensitive government sites as part of its latest plans to address national security concerns related to China.”

China praises UN aviation body’s position on Taiwan
Beijing welcomes ‘correct position’ on Taiwan by UN civil aviation body / SCMP (paywall)
“China’s foreign minister has told the head of the United Nations civil aviation body that Beijing appreciates its ‘correct position’ over Taiwan, and urged the agency to continue to support the one-China policy.”

SOCIETY AND CULTURE:

Sports
Pro wrestlers return to China as global bouts resume after pandemic / Reuters
“Not only presidents and chief executives are making their way to China to reconnect after three years of border closures, but also international professional wrestlers, who returned this week after the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Two Chinese players handed life bans for match-fixing / Reuters
“Chinese playersLiáng Wénbó 梁文博 and Lǐ Háng 李行 have been handed lifetime bans for match-fixing by the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA), the governing body said on Tuesday.”
2 Chinese snooker players banned for life in match-fixing scandal / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
‘Embarrassing’: 10 Chinese snooker players banned For match-fixing / Sixth Tone