CX Daily: China’s Relaxation of Penalties for Wildlife Breeding Raises Concerns
Xi criticizes sanctions as a “double-edged sword” hurting the world economy. State-owned enterprises are urged to hire more college graduates
A Formosan pangolin is seen at the Taipei Zoo in Taipei on Feb. 24. Photo: VCG
Wild animals /
In Depth: China’s relaxation of penalties for wildlife breeding raises concerns
Wang Lei served more than 200 days behind bars after he was prosecuted in 2020 for owning 14 artificially bred Hermann’s tortoises, an endangered species. He was set to serve two more years — until a notice from the country’s top court caused the local procuratorate to withdraw the charges.
Wang, a farmer in Yucheng, Shandong province, had purchased the captive-bred Hermann tortoises in 2018. Following his arrest two years later, Wang was initially sentenced to three years in prison and fined 40,000 yuan ($5,980) by a court in the city for illegally purchasing rare and endangered wildlife under national protection.
Jobs /
State firms urged to recruit more college graduates amid bleak job market
China’s top state-asset supervisor urged state-owned enterprises (SOEs) to hire more college graduates this year to bolster a job market that has been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic and last year’s regulatory crackdowns.
At a recent meeting on graduate employment, the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) said that all centrally administered SOEs and local SASAC branches need to explore ways to create more jobs. They should launch their summer campaigns to recruit fresh graduates as soon as possible, the commission said.
FINANCE & ECONOMY
BRICS /
Xi Jinping slams sanctions as ‘double-edged sword’ hurting world economy
Chinese President Xi Jinping called for strengthening macroeconomic policy coordination to overcome the global economic crisis and urged developed countries to pursue responsible economic policies and avoid a serious spillover impact on developing countries.
In a speech kicking off the BRICS Business Forum Wednesday, Xi criticized sanctions as a “double-edged sword” and called for upholding the multilateral trading system with the World Trade Organization at the core, removing trade, investment and technological barriers and building an open world economy.
REITs /
China expands REIT market to spur infrastructure growth
Chinese regulators set the ball rolling for a fresh round of fundraising by the country’s nascent publicly offered infrastructure-focused real estate investment trusts (REITs) as part of a push to increase infrastructure investment amid waning economic growth.
The Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges published a new set of rules May 31 that allow these listed REITs to raise additional funds through a follow-up offering of new shares. The bourses had been instructed to create the new framework by the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC).
Quick hits /
China approves plan for ‘healthy’ development of fintech sector
J.P. Morgan’s China fund ramps up bets on tech as ‘worst over’
BUSINESS & TECH
Visitors at a showroom for a new housing project in Fuzhou, Fujian province, on May 28, 2022.
Property /
Housing crash forces developers to slash sales goals
Chinese real estate developers are struggling to meet sales goals as homebuyers stay away amid pandemic controls and a weak economic outlook despite government efforts to bolster the property market.
Among the 14 publicly traded real estate businesses that have disclosed annual sales goals, nearly 80% said they reached less than 30% of their targets by the end of May according to a survey by the market research firm China Real Estate Information Corp. (CRIC). More than 50% reported hitting less than 25% of their goals, the survey found.
More than 60% the companies lowered their targets.
After junk downgrade, China’s largest developer announces $441 million bond buyback
Ericsson /
Ericsson to drive growth in China through private 5G network plan
Sweden’s Ericsson Inc. will shift its focus toward helping Chinese businesses build their own private 5G networks, a company executive said while hailing the firm’s commitment to investing in the China market.
Fang Ying, president of Ericsson’s China operations, made the remarks at a Wednesday news briefing, citing growth opportunities in the private 5G networks space, following the aggressive pace of construction in 5G infrastructure nationwide over the past three years.
Shipping /
Greek shipping insider lays out how industry can recover from post-pandemic malaise
Theodore Vokos, managing director of the Posidonia Shipping Exhibition, told Caixin in an interview that the international shipping industry is currently facing multiple challenges after the pandemic, including environmental regulations, supply chain disruptions and geopolitical tensions.
Greece remains the world’s largest ship owning nation with a fleet of over 5,000 vessels, representing 59% of the EU-controlled fleet and 21% of global deadweight tonnage. Since 2019, the Greek-owned fleet has grown by 7.4% despite the pandemic, and if the figure is taken back to 2014, by 45.8%.
Bilibili /
Analysis: Bilibili’s loss widens as costs spiral
Nasdaq-traded Bilibili Inc. recorded a widening loss in the first quarter this year as the Chinese video-streaming and mobile gaming giant spent big to lure users in an ultra-competitive market depressed by the Covid-19 pandemic.
The company reported a 2.3 billion yuan ($343 million) net loss in the first quarter, widening 152% year-on-year, more than double the increase in the same period last year, according to its latest earnings report. Revenues grew 30% to 5.1 billion yuan, much slower than 68% in the same period in 2021.
Quick hits /
Ansteel may take over Lingyuan Iron & Steel
Online drug sellers lead China tech losses on fears of sales ban
Polysilicon price hits 11-year high on surging solar panel demand
Long Read /
Chinese history offers lessons on sustaining charitable giving
GALLERY
Beijing’s Palace Museum comes to Hong Kong
