China News - 12 September
International
Chinese academic raided by Australian police and offered $2,000 for information during trip. A man offered the Chinese professor cash wrapped in a paper package in exchange for “information and networks” known to the academic. The Chinese professor’s accommodation was raided by Asio and the Australian police. Ben Doherty. The Guardian, 10 September
Joe Biden calls for stable US-China relationship during south-east Asia tour. Biden stated he does not want to “contain” China, but instead wants “to make sure that we have a relationship with China that is on the up and up”. Edward Helmore. The Guardian, 10 September
Biden says China less likely to invade Taiwan amid economic downturn. Biden suggested that China was becoming too economically weak to invade Taiwan as it “probably doesn’t have the same capacity that it had before”. David Millward. Telegraph, 10 September
China to give $200,000 to earthquake-stricken Morocco. According to Chinese state media, the Red Cross Society of China will give the Moroccan Red Crescent $200,000 for emergency humanitarian aid. Bernard Orr. Reuters, 11 September
Chinese singer denounced over video at bombed-out Ukrainian theatre. Wang Fang performed “Katyusha”, a Soviet-era patriotic song, on the ruins of the theatre. Vadym Boychenko, mayor of Mariupol, said in a statement “to turn the theatre into a tourist destination and to sing on the bones of the dead is incredible cynicism and disrespect for the memory of the dead civilians”. Javier Hernandez. NYTimes, 10 September
Economy & Tech
Europe’s solar industry warns of bankruptcies over Chinese imports. The EU’s efforts to boost local production of green technologies, specifically solar, has been undercut by a glut of cheap Chinese imports. Alice Hancock. Financial Times, 11 November
Former Alibaba chief Daniel Zhang steps down from cloud unit. The leadership shake-up comes as Alibaba starts to break up its empire. “The company will continue to execute its previously announced plan to split off Alibaba Cloud Intelligence Group under a separate management team”. Eleanor Olcott. Financial Times, 11 September
More Chinese cities lift home-buying curbs to revive demand. Two of the largest cities in the populous province of Shandong, Jinan and Qingdao, have allowed homes in all areas to be put on the market. Albee Zhang and Ryan Woo. Reuters, 11 September
China issues strong warning against bets on renminbi depreciation. In a statement, the People’s Bank of China said they “feel confident in … keeping the renminbi exchange rate at a reasonably stable level”. This reassurance meant it has risen 1% to an intraday high of Rmb7.2698 against the dollar. Hudson Lockett, Cheng Leng and Joe Leahy. Financial Times, 11 September
Opinion & long-reads
Is China in decline, and what does that mean for the US? Economically, it will be worse for emerging markets, as well as Europe and the US to a lesser extent. Politically, it could be net positive for the US. Rana Foroohar. Financial Times, 11 September
China must go radical to restore confidence in its economy. Beijing needs to change their mind-set to save the economy. The CCP needs to stop harassing private firms, rethink its anti-corruption drive and cut down bureaucracy. Wang Xiangwei. South China Morning, 11 September
No more exceptionalism for US banks in China. Foreign banks used to prosper in China despite tensions with the West, this exceptionalism is now clearly waning. Patrick Jenkins. Financial Times, 11 September