The neighbors hate China’s new map

• On August 28, China’s Ministry of Natural Resources released a new version of its national map, which it has regularly done so since at least 2006 in an effort to “eliminate ‘problem maps.’”
• “This latest attempt to legitimize China’s purported sovereignty and jurisdiction over Philippine features and maritime zones has no basis under international law, particularly the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS),” Philippines’ Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Ma. Teresita Daza said in a statement today.

China’s new map clearly depicts the “nine-dash line” — a territorial claim to most of the South China Sea based on a map published in 1947 by the Republic of China government of the KMT, which was then based in Nanjing.

• In July 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague passed down a landmark ruling in favor of Manila, which stated that Beijing’s territorial claims were groundless.
• But a growing number of Chinese vessels have sailed within, and sometimes beyond, the nine-dash line over the past few years, often igniting fierce objections from the six neighboring countries which also lay claim to those waters.

Cue fierce backlash from China’s neighbors.

• Earlier today, Malaysia rejected the map based on China’s “unilateral maritime claims” to almost the entire South China Sea, “which extends into Malaysian maritime area,” its Foreign Ministry said in a statement. “The map has no binding effect on Malaysia.”
• Vietnam “resolutely rejects any claims in the East Sea by China that are based on the dashed line,” Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Pham Thu Hang said in a statement today.
• The map also reiterated China’s claim over Taiwan and its outlying islands, which fall within the scope of the U-shaped line, drawing protests from Taipei.

The map also stakes claim over disputed territories along China’s land border with India: On August 29, India became the first country to lodge a “strong protest” with China over the new map, which shows the northeastern state of Arunachal Pradesh and the contested Aksai Chin plateau as part of China’s territory. Click here for all the details.

Nadya Yeh

Xí Jìnpíng 习近平 has still not confirmed if he will attend the G20 Summit in India, New Delhi has stated. Reports have indicated that Xi will likely skip out on the meeting, after he led last week’s BRICS summit — the members of which include Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa — intended to counterbalance U.S.-led Western groupings.

Baidu and ByteDance launched their artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots to the public today, after the two Chinese technology giants were among a handful of AI startups that received regulatory approval from Beijing. Chinese companies have been racing to be the first to launch a rival to Microsoft’s OpenAI chatbot — though have struggled to live up to their hype.

Anyone with a Chinese phone number will be able to access Baidu’s Ernie Bot for free, starting today. The Doubao chatbot, which was released by ByteDance on August 18, and the Zidong Taichu 2.0, released in June by the Institute of Automation at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, are reportedly also included in the first batch of approvals.

China and Nicaragua signed a free trade agreement today, Chinese state media reported, as the two countries continue to deepen economic ties since the Central American country switched its allegiance to Beijing from Taiwan in 2021.

Japan plans to raise its defense spending to a record 7.7 trillion yen ($52.67 billion) for the 2024 fiscal year, its defense ministry announced today, as it seeks to counter rising military threats from China and North Korea. The Japanese government plans to double its defense spending to 2% of its GDP by 2027 under its landmark national security strategy, which has named China its “greatest strategic challenge.”

China raised the highest typhoon warning for Typhoon Saola as the storm — with winds of more than 200 kilometers per hour (125 miles per hour) — approaches its southeastern coastline near Hong Kong and other major manufacturing hubs in neighboring Guangdong Province.

Chinese state media: Xinhua News Agency headlines a piece on Xi Jinping leading a Politburo meeting to review a set of Party rules on “cadre education and training work,” much of which involves training Party members to implement “Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era.”

The People’s Daily’s front page follows the lead of Xinhua’s story from yesterday with a piece on Xi Jinping calling for an investigation and punishment of those responsible for a deadly flash flood at a highway construction site in Sichuan Province.

The front page also has a story on British Foreign Minister James Cleverly meeting Vice President Hán Zhèng 韩正. (The U.K.’s Guardian newspaper said “Cleverly’s humiliating China visit was the perfect symbol of isolated, ill-led ‘global Britain.’”

• The CORE probe follows lobbying by the Uyghur Rights Advocacy Project (URAP) and 27 other human rights organizations that allege the 14 companies contract slave labor in their supply chains in China.

CORE was established in 2018 to investigate allegations of human rights abuses in Canadian companies’ foreign operations in the garment, mining, and oil and gas sectors.

• CORE has no power to issue fines or penalties, but an unfavorable CORE report could lead to buyer boycotts and the withdrawal or denial of trade support from the Canadian government.

Giant Chinese online fashion retailer Shein, currently valued at $64 billion, has been a significant forced-labor offender, according to activists, who aim to pressure the Canadian government to scrutinize the firm.

Ruth Ingram

• In what has become a cultural phenomenon, Chinese social media sites have been teeming with self-described devotees to the cult of “clogcore,” whose Chinese name “hole gate” (洞门 dòngmén) is a nod to the brand’s signature design.
• Social media posts related to the trend have racked up a total of over 1 billion views. Some obsessive fans have told those who are still hesitant to take the leap: “You either wear Crocs all the time or have never tried Crocs. Once you have it on, there’s no turning back.”

For Crocs, the growing popularity of its synthetic shoes has already translated into a major surge in sales.

Zhao Yuanyuan

Nearly three decades later, he wrote City of Lingering Splendour, recounting an “Old Peking” saturated in the final vestiges of its luxurious imperial past. This is book No. 34 in Paul French’s Ultimate China Bookshelf.

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

BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY:

Economic gloom or boom
China’s economy shows fresh weakness in factories, housing and consumer spending / WSJ (paywall)
“China’s economy limped through August. A prolonged slump in the real-estate market deepened. Factories were hit by sinking exports, and consumers kept a tight leash on spending.”

Foreign investors sell China shares at record pace in August / FT (paywall)
“Foreign investors sold a record $12 billion worth of Chinese stocks in August as piecemeal support measures from Beijing failed to assuage concerns over slowing growth in the world’s second-largest economy and a worsening crisis in the country’s property sector.”

Why China’s efforts to juice stocks typically don’t last / Caixin (paywall)
“China’s new measures to energize its stock market likely won’t have long-lasting effects without additional policy help, as they are mostly designed to lift sentiment, analysts and market participants said.”

Airplanes and airlines
U.S.-China trade: market sees clouds clearing for Boeing after Raimondo visit elevates hope of an order frenzy / SCMP (paywall)
“A bridge-building effort between Beijing and Washington this week to curb mutual commercial concerns has raised market hopes that Chinese airlines might order more American-made Boeing aircraft after shying away amid bilateral tensions in recent years.”
Chinese airlines extend losses despite end of pandemic curbs / FT (paywall)
“China Eastern Airlines has extended its three-year lossmaking streak as international travel to and from the country remains depressed despite the removal of pandemic travel restrictions.”

Electric bicycyles and electric cars
Why China’s e-bike market is facing a wave of battery fires / Sixth Tone
“On August 20, a lithium-ion battery that a bus passenger was carrying caught fire, soon engulfing the whole vehicle in the eastern city of Nanjing. The blaze left two people, including a child, dead and five more injured.”

Chinese EV maker Hozon raises $960m in crossover financing / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
“Chinese electric vehicle maker Hozon New Energy Automobile said it has secured 7 billion yuan ($960.2 million) in crossover financing, a few months after the company denied media reports about its plan to move toward a public listing in Hong Kong.”

Automobile industry
China’s Great Wall Motor takes a bigger slice of Russian market / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
“China’s largest SUV maker Great Wall Motor is rapidly expanding its market position in Russia, which has become the company’s major profit generator amid weak growth at home, while Western and Japanese automakers continue to leave Russia after the invasion of Ukraine.”

Banking
China’s top banks report rising bad loans as property woes spread / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
“China’s top lenders have reported an increase in bad loans during the first half of the year amid predictions that credit problems in the property sector will grow worse.”

Semiconductors
How China’s chipmakers can level the playing field / Caixin (paywall)
“China’s chip industry is being forced to evolve rapidly to meet the vast needs of the country’s cutting-edge tech developers that are now largely cut off from international supply chains. But Chinese chipmakers are going up against global leaders, namely Nvidia Corp.”

AI
China lets Baidu, others launch ChatGPT-like bots to public, tech shares jump / Reuters
“Five Chinese tech firms, including Baidu Inc and SenseTime Group, on Thursday launched their artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots to the public after receiving government approval, as China’s government pushes to widen the use of such products amid competition with the United States.”
China’s Baidu makes AI chatbot Ernie Bot publicly available / AP
Baidu AI bot Ernie gets Chinese approval for rollout to public / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
China’s Baidu and ByteDance launch AI chatbots to public / FT (paywall)

Life insurance
Hong Kong’s life insurance sales to mainland Chinese visitors return to pre-Covid levels as weaker yuan, rate gap drive the search for yield / SCMP (paywall)
“Life insurance sales in Hong Kong to mainland Chinese visitors surged 59-fold in the first half, as they rushed to the city to buy policies in search of higher returns after the borders reopened, according to data from the Insurance Authority on Thursday.”

Manufacturing
China’s manufacturing activity shrinks in August / FT (paywall)
“Activity in China’s manufacturing sector contracted for a fifth straight month in August, according to an official survey, adding pressure on policymakers in the world’s second-largest economy to take action to shore up growth.”

Real estate and property development
How Evergrande’s downfall signaled China’s property crisis / Reuters
“Hitting up employees for funds, Reuters has found, was just one of a number of unusual practices employed by the company before it came to the brink of a messy collapse in 2021 under the weight of hundreds of billions of dollars of debt. This account of the rise and fall of Hui and Evergrande is based on interviews with more than 20 people who have worked with the tycoon or at his company. All spoke on condition of anonymity.”
China lowers down payment, mortgage rate in stimulus push / Bloomberg (paywall)
“China’s financial regulators cut the down-payment requirements for first- and second-time home buyers and lowered rates on existing mortgages, another major effort to halt a slump in the country’s residential property market.”

Lower pork prices and higher costs hit major major sellers
Hormel Foods cuts annual forecasts on weak China demand, adverse pork prices / Reuters
“Hormel Foods on Thursday cut its annual revenue and profit targets after missing quarterly results as the Skippy peanut butter maker wrestled with lower pork and turkey prices and sluggish demand in key market China.”

Huawei
Is the new Mate 60 Pro a 5G comeback for Huawei? / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
“Details on Huawei’s latest phone are trickling out after the Chinese company quietly released its flagship Mate 60 Pro domestically this week with little comment and no fanfare.”
China state media declares Huawei phone a victory in U.S. tech war / Bloomberg (paywall)

SCIENCE, HEALTH, AND ENVIRONMENT:

Typhoon Saola
Super typhoon heads towards Hong Kong, China issues highest warning / Reuters
“China issued its highest typhoon warning on Thursday as Super Typhoon Saola, packing winds of more than 200 kph (125 mph), headed towards the southeastern coastline, threatening Hong Kong and other major manufacturing hubs in nearby Guangdong province.”
Super Typhoon Saola: highest warning as storm barrels towards southern China / SCMP (paywall)
Hong Kong to shut down city before super typhoon Saola hits / Bloomberg (paywall)

Climate cooperation
China, Europe and the U.S. have broad prospects for climate cooperation, top climate envoy says / Caixin (paywall)
“China, the U.S. and Europe complement each other in a lot of ways in terms of green technology and markets, so they have broad prospects for cooperation, Xie Zhenhua (解振华 Jiě Zhènhuá), China’s special envoy on climate change, said ahead of the UN climate summit later this year.”

Food security
China’s giant rice hybrid yields bumper harvest in what could be ‘game-changer’ for food security / SCMP (paywall)
“China’s ‘giant rice’ hybrid, which can grow twice as tall as conventional varieties, experienced a bumper harvest this month, and its high yields could make it an important tool in Beijing’s food security drive.”
China’s food security: Xinjiang develops seawater aquafarming in desert region amid agriculture focus / SCMP (paywall)
“China’s inland Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region has started to develop seawater aquafarming, including freshwater fish, king prawn, abalone and lobsters, as part of efforts to seek technological breakthroughs in agriculture.”

Renewable energy
China updates standards for electricity market watchdogs, construction begins at Sichuan’s mega solar farm / Caixin (paywall)
“China’s top energy regulator, the National Energy Administration (NEA), has updated the operating standards for provincial electricity market management committees, in yet another step toward China’s electricity market reform.”

POLITICS AND FOREIGN AFFAIRS:

Anti-espionage law
Spying in China: Chongqing megacity ready with expanded anti-espionage law in local government ‘first’ / SCMP (paywall)
“All overseas trips arranged by institutes in Chongqing will have to undergo security screening from Friday, when the southwestern megacity becomes the first to implement a local version of China’s newly expanded national anti-espionage law.”

Corruption in the military
China Defence Ministry: We will crack down on every corrupt official / Reuters
“China’s Defence Ministry on Thursday vowed to ‘crack down on every corrupt official,’ when asked about a reshuffle of senior rocket force commanders and the whereabouts of former Defence Minister Wèi Fènghé 魏凤和, who has not been seen for months.”

South China Sea
Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia reject China’s latest South China Sea map / Reuters
“The Philippines, Malaysia and Taiwan have rejected as baseless a map released by China that denotes its claims to sovereignty including in the South China Sea, which Beijing on Thursday said should be viewed rationally and objectively.”
Malaysia, India and Taiwan reject China’s new territorial map / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
China says countries should see its national map in ‘objective’ way / Reuters
China hones anti-submarine capabilities amid South China Sea tensions / Reuters
“China’s military said it had recently held intensive anti-submarine exercises in the strategically important South China Sea as part of efforts to hone its capabilities amid rising maritime tensions with its neighbors and their allies.”
Opinion: ASEAN’s silence amid South China Sea confrontation is deafening / Nikkei Asia (paywall)

G20 summit

China’s Xi likely to skip G20 summit in India / Reuters
“Chinese President Xí Jìnpíng 习近平 is likely to skip a summit of G20 leaders in India next week, sources familiar with the matter in India and China told Reuters.”
Xi Jinping to skip G20 summit in India, western officials say / FT (paywall)
Xi Jinping has yet to tell India if he’ll attend G-20 summit / Bloomberg (paywall)

U.S.-China competition and tensions
China decried U.S. tariffs, requested equal treatment for its firms in Raimondo meeting / Reuters
“China’s commerce minister urged Chinese companies investing in the U.S. to be given ‘equal treatment’ and called U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports ‘discriminatory,’ when he met U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo this week, his ministry said on Thursday.”
China defence ministry: Military communication has not stopped with U.S. / Reuters
“China’s Ministry of Defence said on Thursday that military-to-military communication between Beijing and Washington has ‘not stopped,’ amid high tensions between the two superpowers over the South China Sea, Taiwan and other issues.”

U.S. military drills amidst tension with China
U.S., Indonesia and 5 other nations hold war drills amid China concerns / AP
“Soldiers from the U.S., Indonesia and five other nations began annual training exercises Thursday on Indonesia’s main island of Java while China’s increasing aggression is raising concern.”
Indonesia, U.S. begin expanded drills amid South China Sea tensions / Nikkei Asia (paywall)

Nicaragua
China, former Taiwan ally Nicaragua sign wide-ranging free trade deal / Reuters
“China and Nicaragua signed a free trade agreement (FTA) on Thursday, China’s commerce ministry said, in confirmation of deepening economic ties since the Central American country switched its allegiance to Beijing from Taiwan in 2021.”

Germany
German far right shows an unlikely affinity for Communist China / SCMP (paywall)
“Germany’s ‘most China-friendly party’ wants its government to stop meddling in Beijing’s ‘internal affairs’ on human rights.”

European Union
China-Europe ties: EU narrows search for new Asia chief to 3 candidates with front runners hinting at bloc’s Beijing priorities / SCMP (paywall)
“The European Union is looking for a new Asia chief to steer its changing China policy, with veteran official Gunnar Wiegand set to retire on Thursday.”

Japan
China’s Fukushima propaganda at odds with travel boom / Nikkei Asia (paywall)
“Among Chinese, demand for trips to Japan will likely come more from this brand of traveler than from tour groups — a trend that is likely to further contribute to that precious legacy of mutual understanding.”

SOCIETY AND CULTURE:

Tennis
China’s Zhang stuns Ruud for first top-five victory / Reuters
“Zhāng Zhīzhēn 张之臻 became the first Chinese man to beat a top-five opponent since the introduction of the ATP rankings in 1973 by stunning last year’s runner-up Casper Ruud 6-4 5-7 6-2 0-6 6-2 in the U.S. Open second round on Wednesday.”
Beaten Ruud says China’s Zhang can be a threat for years / Reuters

Basketball
FIBA Basketball World Cup: China must ‘release the dragon’ says coach as first win keeps slim Olympic hopes alive / SCMP (paywall)
“China head coach Aleksandar Djordjevic urged his players to ‘release the dragon’ after they hauled themselves back into Olympic qualifying contention with their first win at the Basketball World Cup on Thursday.”

Movies
How, during the Cultural Revolution, a Chinese ballet film wowed the West after premiering at Venice / SCMP (paywall)
“In 1971, during the Cultural Revolution, Beijing sent a Chinese ballet film to the glitzy Venice Film Festival, from where it became a hit with Western audiences.”

China brings retired teachers back to class
China wants its ‘silver’ haired teachers to get back to teaching / Sixth Tone
“With some of the lowest retirement ages in the world, China is launching its biggest recruitment drive yet for retired teachers to return to the classroom.”