CX Daily: Why a Sperm Bank Drive Is Fueling Fears of Infertility in China
China and Russia agree to expand cooperation in the energy sector. Tron founder Justin Sun is sued by the SEC over crypto sales
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A technician shows samples on Feb. 13 at the Hainan Province Human Sperm Bank in Haikou, South China’s Hainan province. Photo: VCG
Sperm /
In Depth: Why a sperm bank drive is fueling fears of infertility in China
One February morning, Zhong Ming stepped into the sperm bank of Beijing’s Peking University Third Hospital and was surprised to find the premises packed with men.
Zhong’s visit to the facility was his fourth as a donor and the first time he encountered a crowd, including many who appeared to be in their 20s and 30s, the Ph.D. student told Caixin.
Imprisonment /
Chinese man exonerated after record 29 years of wrongful imprisonment
A Henan man spent more than 29 years in prison for a murder he didn’t commit, according to China’s top prosecutor, setting a record for the longest known wrongful imprisonment in China.
“Tan Xiuyi was given a suspended death sentence and jailed for 29 years for the tragic killing of a family,” the Supreme People’s Procuratorate (SPP) said in its work report delivered to the country’s annual key political gatherings known as the “Two Sessions,” which ended last week. The judicial authority said it lodged a protest against Tan’s conviction, leading to its reversal, and urged police to continue to track down the real killer.
Covid-19 /
China clears first homegrown mRNA Covid vaccine
China approved its first homegrown Covid-19 vaccine using the advanced mRNA technology, months after the country pivoted from its “zero-Covid” strategy toward living with the virus.
The vaccine, developed by CSPC Pharmaceutical Group Ltd., was approved for emergency use by the National Medical Products Administration, Hong Kong-traded CSPC said Wednesday in a statement.
FINANCE & ECONOMY
Crypto /
Tron founder Justin Sun sued by U.S. regulator over crypto sales
Tron founder and cryptocurrency entrepreneur Justin Sun and three of his companies are being sued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for alleged violations of the country’s securities law, including fraud and manipulating the prices of their crypto assets.
Actress Lindsay Lohan and seven other celebrities are also being sued for allegedly touting Sun’s cryptocurrencies without revealing they were paid to do so, the commission said Wednesday.
Huarong /
China Huarong expects to post $4 billion loss for 2022
China Huarong Asset Management Co. Ltd. expects to post a net loss of 27.6 billion yuan ($4 billion) for 2022, the company said, citing factors including volatility in the capital markets leading to declines in the value of some assets, business transition and the real estate industry slump.
The bad-debt manager said it adjusted its business structure last year, resulting in less nonperforming asset acquisition and restructuring and less revenue. The macroeconomic situation and the downturn in the real estate industry led to increased provisions for credit impairment losses, the company said Sunday in a statement to the Hong Kong exchange.
Quick hit /
Emerging Asia bonds see investor influx amid bank crisis
BUSINESS & TECH
Energy /
China, Russia to boost energy cooperation
China and Russia agreed to expand cooperation in the energy sector, with Moscow ready to scale up natural gas exports and provide “uninterrupted” oil supplies to China, according to statements from the Chinese Foreign Ministry and the Kremlin.
During President Xi Jinping’s visit to Russia this week, he discussed with his counterpart Vladimir Putin “in detail” the implementation of pipeline project Power of Siberia-2, which could deliver up to 50 billion cubic meters of Russian gas to China each year.
Tiktok /
TikTok CEO Shou Chew defiant as U.S. lawmakers doubt safety assurances
TikTok Chief Executive Shou Chew defended his company against a barrage of criticism from hostile U.S. lawmakers, repeatedly asserting the app’s independence from its Chinese owners.
Chew said TikTok’s Beijing-based owner, ByteDance Ltd., is mostly owned by international investors, and most of its board members are American.
“The bottom line is this is American data on American soil by an American company overseen by American personnel,” Chew said in an appearance Thursday before the House Energy and Commerce Committee. He could not unequivocally say that no ByteDance employees have access to the data, saying rather that he’s “seen no evidence” of that happening.
TikTok’s CEO will tell Congress his app is safer than most
Tencent /
Tencent books $21 billion revenue in quarterly earnings rebound
Tencent Holdings Ltd. brought its revenue back on a growth track in 2022’s final quarter after two successive quarters of contraction, buoyed largely by strong demand for ads on its short-video platform.
During the three-month period, Hong Kong-listed Tencent generated 145 billion yuan ($20.8 billion) of revenue, representing a small year-on-year increase of 0.5%, according to its earnings report released Wednesday.
Tencent president Liu Zhiping to step down from board in May
Lithium /
Lithium prices nosedive amid weaker demand
The price of lithium carbonate, the key raw material for power batteries, fell by half over four months, reflecting weakened demand.
The spot price of lithium carbonate in China was 290,000 yuan ($42,138) per ton Wednesday, down 30% from the previous month and 41.7% lower than a year ago, data from metal industry information provider Shanghai Metals Market showed. The price fell by more than 50% from the peak of nearly 600,000 yuan per ton in November 2022.
Quick hits /
China Evergrande’s EV unit may shut down without new funding
Long Read /
The Chinese scholars taking on fraud in academic journals
GALLERY
Art fair kicks off in Hong Kong
