CX Daily: Will Europe Pour More Money Into China?
Xi calls upon Biden to jointly “chart the right course” for bilateral ties. Plus, Fosun’s billionaire chairman defends the group’s solvency
BASF’s Zhanjiang complex in Guangdong province on Sept. 10, 2022.
Business /
Cover Story: Will Europe pour more money into China?
The visit to China this month by a dozen leaders of blue-chip German companies provided an opportunity to take the pulse of foreign investor confidence in the country amid the war in Eastern Europe, the pandemic, rising inflation and recession fears.
As German Chancellor Olaf Scholz led a delegation including the businesspeople, European Union investment in China had fallen for three consecutive years from $10.4 billion in 2018 to $6.3 billion in 2021. But in the first eight months this year, EU investment more than doubled from a year earlier.
This year’s dramatic geopolitical changes have significantly altered the calculus for foreign investment in China. Large European enterprises are increasingly taking the lead. Japanese businesses are retreating in manufacturing and advancing in services. And American companies are frozen.
China-U.S. /
Xi calls for China-U.S. relations to return to ‘right course’
Chinese President Xi Jinping called upon U.S. President Joe Biden to jointly “chart the right course” for bilateral ties as the two leaders met Monday in Indonesia ahead of the Group of 20 Leaders’ Summit, according to the official Xinhua News Agency.
“The current situation facing China-U.S. relations does not meet the fundamental interests of the two countries and their people, nor does it meet the expectations of the international community,” state media reported Xi saying.
FINANCE & ECONOMY
Fu Wanjun, president of China Everbright Bank Co. Ltd. Photo: VCG
Banking /
Exclusive: Agricultural Bank of China to name Fu Wanjun president
Agricultural Bank of China Ltd., one of the country’s “Big Six” state-owned commercial lenders, will appoint the president of China Everbright Bank Co. Ltd. as its new president, sources with knowledge of the matter told Caixin Monday.
Fu Wanjun, 54, will become president of the country’s, as well as the world’s, third-largest bank by assets after administrative procedures are completed, the sources said.
Exclusive: Former China Guangfa Bank chairman detained
Investment /
China’s Silk Road Fund signs deal to invest in two Indonesian drugmakers
China’s state-backed Silk Road Fund (SRF) signed a deal to invest in two Indonesian state-owned pharmaceutical companies to help boost health care services in the Southeast Asian country.
The SRF and the Indonesia Investment Authority (INA), the country’s sovereign wealth fund, agreed to jointly take a 40% stake in a PT Kimia Farma Tbk. (KAEF) subsidiary, PT Kimia Farma Apotek, for around 1.86 trillion rupiah ($120 million), according to a press release by KAEF Sunday. The proceeds will be used to fund business expansion, increase working capital and improve operational efficiency of the subsidiary, it said.
China’s sovereign wealth fund posts 14.27% investment return overseas
Personnel /
Former provincial party chief takes over as Beijing’s new boss
The former Communist Party chief of Fujian province, Yin Li, replaced Cai Qi as the new party chief of Beijing, the state-run Xinhua News Agency reported Sunday.
Yin was selected for the Politburo after the 20th National Party Congress in October, when Cai was elevated to become one of the seven members of the Politburo Standing Committee, the party’s top decision-making body.
China appoints youngest provincial party chief in Fujian
Quick hits /
Hong Kong crypto firm says deposits at risk after FTX meltdown
Editorial: Take a gradual path to resuming face-to-face cross-border activities
BUSINESS & TECH
Guo Guangchang, Fosun’s billionaire chairman and co-founder. Photo: VCG
Fosun /
Fosun chairman defends group’s solvency
Fosun International Ltd.’s billionaire Chairman Guo Guangchang said the conglomerate has enough capital to cushion it from market risks, noting that the group itself has 270 billion yuan ($37.4 billion) in total assets versus 100 billion yuan in liabilities.
Guo’s remarks, made on an earnings conference call Thursday, are his latest effort to allay investor concerns about the Chinese multinational’s debt risks, as China’s sluggish growth and stricter regulatory environment have put growing liquidity pressure on private sector companies.
5G /
China’s 5G services need an upgrade as popularity slips, Ericsson exec says
An Ericsson Inc. executive called on Chinese telecom operators to improve their 5G services after a company survey found that more than a third of China’s 5G phone users chose lower-rated 4G service packages this year — more than in 2020.
The recent survey conducted by the Stockholm-based company found that 35% of China-based respondents who are 5G phone users selected 4G service packages in 2022, two percentage points higher than in 2020, Wu Lidong, vice president of Ericsson’s Northeast Asian operations, told Caixin in an exclusive interview.
Tesla /
Tesla cooperating with investigators after fatal runaway car crash
Tesla Inc. said Monday that it was cooperating with investigators after an out-of-control Tesla Model Y electric car crashed in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong, killing two and injuring three.
The crash reportedly happened Nov. 5, with widely circulated video showing a white Tesla Y rocketing down a road at high speeds, sideswiping several cars and motorcycles before eventually crashing into a storefront.
Quick hits /
Lithium price climbs to record on tight supply
Alibaba keeps ‘Double 11’ sales secret for the first time
Self-driving startup TuSimple ousts CEO, independent directors
Long Read /
In China, millions of women never learned to read. Can TikTok help?
GALLERY
China’s Zhang reclaims UFC title
