China News - 23 November

International

UK white paper raises concerns over China’s growing foreign aid role. The white paper warns that “China’s growing role as an actor in international development marks a systemic shift in the global development landscape” and has wide implications in the UK’s own development policies. Patrick Wintour. The Guardian, 20 November

Human Rights Watch accuses Beijing of closing and destroying mosques. Maya Wang, the acting director at Human Rights Watch, said “the Chinese government’s closure, destruction and repurposing of mosques is part of a systemic effort to curb the practice of Islam in China”. Kelly Ng. BBC News, 22 November

China aviation regulator head and US ambassador seek increase of flights. Song Zhiyong met with Nicholas Burns and exchanged views on pushing for a substantial increase in flights between the countries. Bernard Orr and Ethan Wang. Reuters, 22 November

Fiji may partner with China to upgrade ports and shipyards, PM Rabuka says. The Fijian leader “anticipate[s] potential collaboration with China in that endeavour”. The Guardian, 22 November

Xi critic who fled on jetski to South Korea will die if sent back to China, says father. A South Korean court will decide the fate of Kwon Pyong on Thursday, who has pleaded guilty for violating the immigration control act. Amy Hawkins. The Guardian, 22 November

Christmas cancelled for Philippines troops in disputed sea amid “high tensions” with China. The Philippines government said a plan for civilians to travel to the disputed waters of the South China Sea and spread the Christmas spirit for soldiers there was “ill-advised”. Arpan Rai. The Independent, 22 November

Chinese police arrest tech founder on suspicion of running casino. DouYu chief Chen, was taken away by authorities in October after a probe of alleged porn and gambling on the streaming service. Ryan McMorrow and Qianer Liu. Financial Times, 22 November

Economy & Tech

“Breakthrough battery” from Sweden may cut dependency on China. Northvolt says its new lithium-free sodium-ion battery is cheaper, more sustainable, and does not rely on scarce raw materials found in the Chinese supply chain. Alex Lawson. The Guardian, 21 November

China puts Country Garden on draft list of builders to support. Sources say officials are close to distributing white lists to banks. Bloomberg, 22 November

China’s state banks are buying yuan, quickening its rally. In the past year, China’s large banks, which occasionally act on behalf of the country’s monetary authorities, have often sold dollars to slow the yuan’s decline. Reuters, 21 November

Alibaba exec moves to quell staff concern over Jack Ma share sale with internal post. A top executive told staff that a plan by former chief Jack Ma’s family trust to sell some shares on the same day as the firm scrapped its cloud unit’s listing was a “coincidence”. Casey Hall and Jenny Wang. Reuters, 22 November

Nvidia says growth elsewhere will outweigh drop in China sales. Chief financial officer Colette Kress said the company expected sales to China to “decline significantly” in the current quarter, but this should be “more than offset by strong growth in other regions”. Michael Acton. Financial Times, 22 November

Hong Kong food tech start-up challenges Japanese bento market. Kamakura Foods, founded by a Japanese educated former Sony chip engineer, is challenging the bento market in Japan. Kenji Kawase. Financial Times, 22 November

Opinion & long-reads

Falling inflation might not dent gold’s rally. Gold can gain even if the US economy heads to a soft landing. Rebecca Patterson. Financial Times, 22 October