China News - 30 September
Upcoming event - Banking on the Belt and Road: Join us for a discussion with experts from the AidData team as they break down China’s lending on the international stage. This follows the release of their latest global dataset on Chinese development finance to more than 150 countries, revealing that many countries’ financial liabilities linked to the Belt and Road Initiative have been systematically under-reported for years. This virtual briefing will take place on Monday 18 October at 4pm BST. Register here.
AidData’s report was covered by The Economist this morning.
International
US celebrates ‘win’ as Britain looks to push China out of nuclear energy sites. Plans to push Chinese energy giant CGN out of the Sizewell C nuclear plant and curtail China’s hold on UK critical infrastructure come after a sustained lobbying effort from Washington. Independent, 29 September
China’s ambassador to UK urges ‘candid dialogue’ to repair trust. Only weeks after he was blocked from entering British parliament, Zheng Zeguang also called for the two sides to step up communication on trade and investment, the pandemic and climate change. SCMP, 29 September
Chinese, UK firms need to do right thing: Chinese commerce minister. Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao urged Chinese and British companies to pursue pragmatic cooperation in the face of challenges in a video conference with business representatives from the UK on Wednesday. Executives from 15 multinational companies, including HSBC, Burberry Group, Standard Chartered, Jaguar Land Rover, Prudential, Diageo and Reckitt attended the conference. Global Times, 30 September
US-EU Trade and Technology Council release inaugural Joint Statement. After discussions on Wednesday, the two sides agreed on the need to maintain investment screening and export controls, affirmed their intention to develop artificial intelligence systems that “respect universal human rights and shared democratic values,” and committed to partnering on a rebalance of semi-conductor supply chains. White House, AP, 29 September
Hong Kong internet access blocked to online Tiananmen museum. The move comes two weeks after authorities forced the group that had set up a physical version of the museum in Hong Kong to remove the contents of its website and social media accounts. Nikkei Asia, Reuters, 29 September
Hong Kong’s ‘BBC’ ordered to support China national security. Independent, 29 September
Beijing 2022: Non-vaccinated athletes must serve 21-day quarantine. Participants at the February 2022 Games who are fully vaccinated will enter a "closed-loop management system" when they arrive. BBC, The Guardian, NYT, 29 September
Tony Abbott says China tensions should not prevent Taiwan joining trade pact. The former Australian PM called on the government to urge the US to rejoin the Trans-Pacific Partnership and backs the UK to join. The Guardian, 30 September
US, Chinese military officials hold 'frank, in-depth' talks - Pentagon. Reuters, 30 September
San Jose apologises for past racial discrimination against Chinese community. BBC, 29 September
Rare images taken by one of the first British photographers to explore China go on sale for £20,000. Daily Mail, 29 September
Economy & tech
China manufacturing activity contracts as power shortages bite. Manufacturing activity in China suffered its first official contraction since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic as PMI figures indicate weakness across an economy buffeted by a property slowdown and Delta outbreaks. FT, The Guardian, 30 September
China considers hiking industrial power prices to ease supply crunch. Bloomberg, 29 September
China draws up plan to bring algorithms under state control in sign of tightened censorship. Under the new policy guidelines, local governments are urged to tighten the regulation of algorithms, while companies are told that they will be held accountable for misusing the technology, according to a notice published on Wednesday by the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC). SCMP, 29 September
Big investors plan to cut exposure to Chinese assets on regulatory worries. FT, 30 September
Chinese government tells bankers to support property market, homebuyers. Bloomberg, 30 September
China focus
Xi stresses improving biosecurity risk control, management system. Addressing a group study session of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee on Wednesday, Xi called for efforts to improve the country's risk control and management system on biosecurity and enhance its governance capacity in this regard. Xinhua, 29 September
China blocks WeChat protests over Evergrande. The groups, consisting of between 200 and 500 people, were used to organise protests but also enabled members to discuss their claims and concerns. The Times, 30 September
In China, even jump-rope is competitive - so parents pay for lessons. WSJ, 27 September
Hit Netflix series “Squid Game” sets the Chinese internet on fire. RADII, 30 September
Longer reads & opinion
The Security Implications of Chinese Infrastructure Investment in Europe. German Marshall Fund, 28 September
How bad is China’s energy crisis? Phillip Inman. The Guardian, 29 September
Changing China: How Beijing's crackdowns are impacting business. Peter Hoskins. BBC, 30 September
Evergrande is a convenient villain for Xi. Richard McGregor. Foreign Policy, 29 September
Goldman Sachs was poised to triumph in China. What happened? Tabby Kinder. FT, 30 September
Why China (probably) won’t go to war over Taiwan’s semiconductor riches. George Calhoun. Forbes, 29 September
How Xi Jinping lost Australia. Zoya Sheftalovich and Stuart Lau. Politico, 27 September
Translating Tension: Chinese-language media in Australia. Fan Yang. Lowy Institute, 29 September