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Local authorities will be allowed to turn unsold homes from developers into affordable housingChina will cut mortgage rates and allow local authorities to turn unsold homes from developers into affordable housing, in a series of drastic measures by Beijing aimed at propping up the country’s faltering property market.The People’s Bank of China said it would scrap the minimum rate of interest and reduce down-payment...

In a crisis of her own making, Qu Jing also threatened Baidu staff who dared to question her management styleThe head of public relations at China’s biggest search engine, Baidu, has apologised after creating her own PR crisis with a series of videos glorifying the country’s work-till-you-drop culture.Qu Jing, who is also vice-president at the company, said she would not take responsibility for her...

Deal to use mapping data from web search giant Baidu is a big step towards launching driver assistance tech in world’s biggest car marketElon Musk’s visit to China has reportedly reaped immediate rewards with a deal for Tesla to use mapping data provided by web search company Baidu, a big step in introducing driver assistance technology in the world’s largest car market.Musk made an...

Fitch cut to negative comes as country moves away from reliance on growth from property sectorBusiness live – latest updatesFitch has downgraded the outlook on China’s debt as it warned of increased risks to the economy while the country moves away from its reliance on growth from the property sector.On Wednesday the US-based agency said it had revised China’s sovereign credit rating from stable...

Company founded in China and promoted on social media is thought to be considering London listingShein, the online fast fashion retailer founded in China, has more than doubled its profits to more than $2bn (£1.6bn) as it awaits approval for a stock market listing in New York or London.The company, which is growing rapidly around the world by using social media to promote its...

Revenue at Chinese telecom rose 10% as net profit more than doublesChinese telecoms firm Huawei grew faster in 2023 than it has for four years, as it shrugged off the impact of US sanctions.Revenues rose by nearly 10% to 704.2bn yuan (£77bn) as the Shenzhen-based company enjoyed a rebound within its consumer segment, which includes smartphone handsets. Continue reading...

Prime minister Anthony Albanese says China’s duties on Australian bottled wine will come to an end from FridayGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastChina has dropped tariffs on Australian wine, a long-awaited decision heralded by the Albanese government as validation of its “calm and consistent approach” with the superpower on a series of controversial trade disputes.In a statement...

Regulator acts after identifying concerns of possible greenwashing during review of fashion sectorShares in the British packaging group DS Smith rose after it announced that it is in discussions with a New York-listed paper producer over a £5.7bn takeover offer.London-based DS Smith confirmed that it is in talks with International Paper, the largest paper and pulp company in the world, over an all-stock offer...

Plant on outskirts of Coventry could create up to 6,000 jobs and will be part of planned Centre for ElectrificationA Chinese manufacturer of electric vehicle batteries is in talks to invest more than £1bn to build a giant new factory on the outskirts of Coventry.EVE Energy, which says it employs 28,000 staff worldwide, is understood to be in talks to construct a 5.7m sq...

Tourism industry disappointed but hopeful Chinese holidaymakers could return by year’s end – but economists predict a longer waitGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastIn the two weeks either side of lunar new year, Mandy Ho, who manages a hot air balloon company in Melbourne, has many balls in the air.Most mornings before dawn, when weather permits, her...

Company accused of violations including Chinese employees improperly downloading files relating to Pentagon programsBoeing said on Thursday it had reached a $51m settlement with the US state department for numerous export violations including Chinese employees in China improperly downloading documents related to US Pentagon programs.The state department said from 2013 through 2017 three Chinese employees at Boeing facilities in China downloaded technical data involving...

Remarks by head of trade authority come amid fears UK firms could be undercut ‘to extinction’The head of Britain’s post-Brexit trade watchdog has said it is ready to follow Brussels in launching an investigation into Chinese companies flooding the market for electric cars, but the government has not asked it to do so.Oliver Griffiths, the chief executive of the UK’s Trade Remedies Authority (TRA),...

Plunge in consumer prices has fuelled calls for a stimulus package – yet Beijing may stick to the new normal of lower growth• China consumer prices plunge at fastest rate for 15 yearsChina’s economy has gone from bad to worse – and it is only February.Figures released on Thursday showed consumer prices fell by 0.8% in January compared with a year earlier, outstripping economists’...

Social media users get around government crackdown on negativity via US embassy conservation updateA social media post about giraffe conservation has become the latest place for people in China who are unhappy about the economy to vent their frustration, as the Chinese government increasingly cracks down on negative commentary.On 2 February, the US embassy in China posted an update on its Weibo account about...

Companies such as Toyota, Volkswagen, Tesla, General Motors and BYD could do more to ensure their strict standards are applied in China, Human Rights Watch saysCar manufacturers Toyota, Volkswagen, Tesla, General Motors and BYD may be using aluminium made by Uyghur forced labour in their supply chains and could do more to minimise that risk, Human Rights Watch says.An investigation conducted by HRW has...

Judge says ‘enough is enough’ after developer, which has $300bn in debt, fails to provide convincing restructuring plan Embattled Chinese development company, Evergrande, has been ordered to liquidate by a Hong Kong court after an 18-month long hearing.Evergrande, which holds the ignominious title of the world’s most indebted property developer with about $300bn in liabilities, failed to convince the court that it had a...

Biggest reduction since December 2021 will allow 1tn more yuan to be released in form of new loansChina’s central bank has announced a surprise cut to the amount of cash that banks must hold in reserve, hoping to boost the lending available to households and businesses as policymakers try to steer the economy through a fragile recovery.Pan Gongsheng, the governor of the People’s Bank...