CX Daily: Where Covid Vaccine Development Is Going
Hong Kong’s new chief executive pledges to review the IPO rules to attract companies from around the world
Current Covid-19 vaccines are mainly based on the original strain of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that emerged in Wuhan in late 2019.
Covid-19 /
Cover Story: Where Covid vaccine development is going
More than two years into the pandemic, scientists and regulators are still struggling to catch up with the stealthy, rapidly mutating coronavirus as it continues ravaging the world.
Despite the number of effective Covid-19 vaccines in use around the world, new variants increasingly find ways to break through immune system defenses and infect more people. It has become a pressing issue for scientists to find more powerful weapons for containing the new variants.
Shanghai outbreak swells as first sub-variant case detected
Editorial: Put an end to Covid discrimination
Caixin Summer Summit /
Hong Kong’s new chief executive pledges to review IPO rules to attract foreign firms
Hong Kong’s new chief executive John Lee promised to lead his team to “comprehensively” enhance the city’s competitiveness while continuing to give full play to its advantages such as freedom and openness to consolidate its status as a global financial center.
“We will review the listing rules to attract high-quality companies from around the world to list in Hong Kong and enrich the choices available to investors,” Lee said in a video address to the Caixin Summer Summit in Beijing Saturday.
China can widen deficit to support economy, former finance chief says
Attacker /
Knife-wielding attacker injures five people at Shanghai hospital
As many as five people, including children and medical staff, were injured by a knife-wielding attacker at a renowned Shanghai hospital Saturday before the man was subdued by armed police, according to local police and witnesses.
Huangpu district police said in a statement (link in Chinese) that they received a call about the attack at around 11:30 a.m. and headed to the scene in Ruijin Hospital’s outpatient department.
FINANCE & ECONOMY
A guidebook released by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange laid out a framework for companies to manage exchange rate risks. Photo: VCG
Forex /
China’s forex watchdog warns businesses about exchange rate volatility
China’s foreign exchange regulator told companies involved in international trade to do more to manage risks stemming from exchange rate fluctuations.
The warning comes as China’s exports boomed during the pandemic but the yuan’s exchange rates against other currencies have been volatile.
A guidebook released by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) earlier this month laid out a framework for companies to manage exchange rate risks, detailed how forex derivative instruments can be used and explained relevant accounting.
Banking /
Police arrest ‘criminal gang’ members linked to Henan rural bank meltdown
Police in central China’s Henan province arrested a second batch of people suspected of crimes linked to Henan's ongoing rural bank meltdown, which this weekend led to clashes involving protestors demanding the return of their deposits.
The scandal came to public attention in April, when several village banks in the province suspended their online banking services, effectively locking their customers around the country out of their accounts.
Quick hits /
Biden says action on China import tariffs still being discussed
China Carbon Watch (June): Allowance trading volume nears all-time low
BUSINESS & TECH
Monthly rent for Beijing’s grade A office space declined 0.6% from the first quarter to $50 per square meter in the second quarter.
Office buildings /
Beijing’s Covid outbreaks push more tenants out of office buildings
Pandemic outbreaks caused rising vacancies and declining rents in Beijing’s office buildings in the second quarter, data showed.
The net absorption volume for office space fell to a negative 10,750 square meters in the second quarter, data from real estate services firm Savills showed. The negative figure means more tenants terminated leases than new tenants signed up.
Trip.com /
Trip.com clashes with tour group operators as it seeks more control
Online travel agency Trip.com Group Ltd. has been embroiled in a brouhaha with tour group operators on its platform since the company moved to take control of customer service and contracting and exert greater control over pricing.
It’s a move that merchants say could give the travel giant a bigger cut of profits — but one that risks driving them into the arms of a growing number of alternative platforms.
Steel /
Chinese steelmakers’ profit margins shrink as demand drops
Chinese steelmakers’ profit margins shriveled in the second quarter as the industry wrestled with sluggish demand and high raw material costs, according to a survey of producers.
In late June, 247 surveyed steel manufacturers reported quarterly margins of 15.2% on average, down from 83.6% the previous quarter, according to data compiled by Mysteel.com, an industry information provider.
Quick hits /
Brii Bio launches China’s first domestically developed Covid-19 drug
Musical.ly co-founder quits ByteDance after edtech experiment flop
Long Read /
China SOE reform will turn companies into investors
GALLERY
Several Chinese cities ramp up Covid curbs
