China News - 26 July 2021
International
UK looks to remove China’s CGN from nuclear power projects. The FT reports that the British government is exploring ways to remove China’s state-owned nuclear energy company from all future power projects in the UK, including the consortium planning to build the new £20bn Sizewell nuclear power station in Suffolk. The change in mood at the top of government also affects proposals by CGN to build a new plant at Bradwell-on-Sea in Essex using its own reactor technology. FT, Reuters, The Guardian, 25 July
US accused of ‘demonising’ China as high-level talks begin in Tianjin. US deputy secretary of state Wendy Sherman is holding discussions with Xie Feng and Wang Yi. Beijing has for the first time given the US a list of red lines and remedial action it must take to repair relations, including lifting sanctions and dropping its extradition request for Huawei financial chief Meng Wanzhou. Vice foreign minister Xie Feng urged the US “to change its highly misguided mindset and dangerous policy,” according to Xinhua. The Guardian, FT, SCMP, 25 July
China imposes sanctions on US officials, including former US Commerce Secretary, Wilbur Ross. BBC, 24 July
Sale of semiconductor factory to Chinese-owned firm presents bigger UK risk than Huawei. Ciaran Martin, the former head of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), said the takeover of Newport Wafer Fab was both “puzzling” and “inconsistent” with the Government’s wider stance on Beijing. Mr Martin ranked the sale as a “level one” or top priority issue, because of the vital importance of ensuring the country has “sovereign capacity” over the production of key technologies, compared to Huawei as a “level three” issue. The Telegraph, iNews, 25 July
Foreign journalists harassed by Chinese citizens over floods coverage. Reporters from the Los Angeles Times and German outlet Deutsche Welle were confronted by an angry crowd in Zhengzhou on Saturday. The Guardian, 26 July
US drops visa fraud case against five Chinese researchers. The Justice Department moved this week to drop cases that it brought last year against five visiting researchers. NYT, WSJ, 24 July
Macron promises closer ties with Japan to oppose Chinese expansion in the Pacific. The Times, 24 July
China urged by human rights activists to stop forcibly returning North Korean defectors. FT, 23 July
China focus
Shares in Chinese online tutoring firms slump after shake-up. Shares in Chinese online tutoring firms have slumped after Beijing stripped them of the ability to make a profit from teaching core subjects. The new guidelines also restrict foreign investment in the industry in an overhaul of the country's $120bn (£87bn) private tutoring sector. BBC, FT, 26 July
Tencent shares slide after Beijing crackdown on music rights. China ordered Tencent to end exclusive music licensing deals with record labels around the world. BBC, 26 July
Meituan dives 15% after China pledges to tighten oversight of the country’s massive food delivery sector. Bloomberg, 26 July
China property management stocks slump as Beijing tightens grip. Bloomberg, 26 July
Chinese leader Xi Jinping makes first visit to Tibet as president. The Guardian, 23 July
Economy & tech
After historic floods, businesses look to reopen in Zhengzhou. The city of 12 million is home to key coal routes and the world’s biggest production base for Apple’s iPhone. Caixin, 23 July
China’s digital yuan: Tencent and Alibaba called on to help develop state-backed digital currency. WSJ, 24 July
Longer reads & opinion
China is defying US pressure to change its behaviour. There is no sign that Biden has persuaded China to change course. FT, 26 July
Adam Tooze's Chartbook #28: China in 1983, a miracle waiting to happen? Chartbook, 24 July
The Times view on the oppression of Uighurs: China’s Sycophants. The Times, 26 July