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☆ Strained Chinese cities struggle to pay home buying subsidies
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Chinese cities have promised subsidies and other incentives to prop up the ailing property sector but have failed to deliver, frustrating potential homebuyers. The 30-year-old now pays 6,000 yuan of her 8,000 monthly salary on the mortgage for the 1.1 million yuan apartment and another 1,800 yuan to rent another one, relying on her parents for other basic expenses. Weifang, with a population of more than 9 million and an economy larger than Croatia's, and dozens of other Chinese cities, have promised subsidies and other incentives to homebuyers to prop up the ailing property sector. But the real estate downturn also affects the ability of cities to lease land to developers, a key revenue source. This meant some local governments were unable to raise funds to pay the promised subsidies, frustrating buyers and casting doubts over future support measures.

Persons: Amy Wang, Wang, Christopher Beddor, Gavekal Organizations: People's, Communist Party Locations: Hangzhou city, Zhejiang province, China, Weifang, Shangqiu

☆ China property stocks jump as Beijing takes steps to boost liquidity in the beleaguered sector
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-25 | by ( Shreyashi Sanyal | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

A newly built property is seen from the air in Hangzhou city, Zhejiang province, China, Dec 15, 2023. China's property stocks jumped after the country's central bank announced measures that would help boost the liquidity available to property developers. The CSI property index jumped 5.2%, while the mainland's broader CSI 300 added 1.8%. Shares of Hong Kong-listed Country Garden jumped 2.94%, Logan Group gained 5.17% and Longfor Group added 4.61%. The People's Bank of China and the Ministry of Finance said in a joint statement late Wednesday that these new measures will be valid until the end of 2024.

Organizations: Hong, Logan Group, People's Bank of China, Ministry of Finance Locations: Hangzhou city, Zhejiang province, China, Hong Kong, Hang

☆ Shadow bank Zhongzhi files for bankruptcy as China's debt and property crisis deepens
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-08 | by ( Shreyashi Sanyal | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Shadow banks in China operate by pooling household and corporate savings to offer loans to invest in real estate, stocks, bonds, and commodities. Companies such as Zhongzhi have often financed many large Chinese property developers. Hong Kong listed shares of property firms including Logan Group, China Vanke, Sunac and Longfor Group dropped between 2% and 3.6%. More pain for shadow banks? China's government has in the last few years tried to limit the rapid growth of non-bank debt issued by shadow banks.

Persons: Zhongzhi, Commerzbank, Zerlina Zeng, CNBC's Organizations: Zhongzhi Enterprise, Reuters, Beijing, CSI, Logan Group, Longfor, CreditSights Locations: HANGZHOU, CHINA, Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province, China, Hong Kong

☆ Asia’s year in review: Who had it good — and who had it bad — in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-22 | by ( Curtis Chin | Jose B. Collazo | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

As 2023 comes to a close, we take a look at the year that was in Asia and the Pacific region. But who had it good and who had it bad in 2023? Bad year: China's property marketWith millions of Chinese citizens still waiting for homes they put down payments on — but might never be built — 2023 was a particularly bad year for China's property market. A newly built property is seen from the air in Hangzhou city, Zhejiang province, China, Dec 15, 2023. Chinese families and individuals who once saw homes as more than somewhere to live but also as investments have reason to fear 2023 won't be the last bad year they face.

Persons: Curtis, Chin, Jose B, —, Vikram, Amit Dave, Narendra Modi, Taylor Swift, Kim Ji, Jennie, Kim Jennie, Roseanne Chae, Lisa, Lalisa, King Charles, Rose, Roseanne Park, Jisoo Kim, Jennie Kim, King Charles III, Yoon Suk Yeol, Kim Keon Hee, Victoria Jones, Blackpink, Michelle Yeoh, Joe Biden, Xi Jinping, San Francisco —, China Evergrande, Moody's, Asia's Organizations: Asian Development Bank, RiverPeak Group, ISRO —, Indian Space Research, Orbiter, ISRO, Buckingham, Sustainable, COP26, Getty, YG Entertainment, APEC, U.S, International Monetary Fund Locations: U.S, Asia, Turkey, Syria, Maui, Hawaii, Lahaina, Pacific, India, Gujarat Science City, Ahmedabad, Korea, British, LONDON, ENGLAND, Glasgow, London, England, South Korea, Malaysian, New Zealand, Thailand, China, San Francisco, United States, Taiwan, South China, Country, Hangzhou city, Zhejiang province

☆ China's unfinished property projects are 20 times the size of Country Garden
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-15 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

HANGZHOU, CHINA - NOVEMBER 15, 2023 - An aerial photo shows a new property under construction in Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province, China, Nov 15, 2023. (Photo credit should read CFOTO/Future Publishing via Getty Images)BEIJING — The size of unfinished, pre-sold homes in China is about 20 times the size of property developer Country Garden as of the end of 2022, according to a Nomura report on Wednesday. "We estimate that there are around 20 million units of unconstructed and delayed pre-sold homes," said Nomura's Chief China Economist Ting Lu and a team. About 3.2 trillion yuan ($440 billion) is needed to complete those remaining units, according to the analysts' estimates. Ensuring construction of the homes has been a government priority since delays make people less willing to buy new apartments.

Persons: Nomura, Ting Lu Organizations: National Bureau, Statistics, Publishing, Getty Images, U.S, Bloomberg News, China Locations: HANGZHOU, CHINA, Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province, China, BEIJING

☆ Two elves and a scroll: China military releases animation on Taiwan 'reunification'
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The shorter piece of the scroll, known as "The Remaining Mountain", about 51 cm long, is at the Zhejiang Provincial Museum in Hangzhou city. Taiwan's National Palace Museum has kept the 640-cm long "Master Wuyong Scroll" since the 1950s. The two pieces were reunited in 2011 when China lent its fragment to the Taiwanese museum for two months during a period of warmer relations as Taiwan pursued a policy of economic rapprochement with China. But in recent years, as relations have cooled, China has ramped up military activities around Taiwan, including drills over the past month that Beijing said were targeted at combating separatist forces. While China is keen to woo Taiwan with promises of economic gains, the threat of taking Taiwan by force is unrelenting.

Persons: Huang Gongwang, Pichi Chuang, Yuan, Ryan Woo, Robert Birsel Organizations: National, Museum, REUTERS, Rights, Eastern Theatre Command, Zhejiang Provincial Museum, Eastern, Command, Thomson Locations: Taipei, Rights BEIJING, Taiwan, China, Beijing, Taiwan Strait, Hangzhou city, Taiwan's, Fujian

Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in eastern Hangzhou city, in this handout picture released by Sana on September 22, 2023, Syria. China, the world's second-largest economy, will also support Syria's reconstruction, Chinese state media reported Xi as saying. In Chinese diplomacy, a "strategic partnership" implies closer coordination on regional and international affairs, including in the military sphere. But analysts said there was likely to be a limit to how far Beijing would help Damascus beyond recovering its regional status. "That is not part of China's role identity in the Middle East, which is to try and have a role without taking sides."

Persons: Xi Jinping, Bashar al, Sana, Handout, Syria's Assad, Assad, Xi, Caesar, Matteo Legrenzi, Joe Cash, Ella Cao, Gareth Jones Organizations: REUTERS Acquire, Saudi, Initiative, University of Venice, Thomson Locations: Assad, Hangzhou, Syria, Beijing, China, BEIJING, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Damascus, Ca'Foscari

HANGZHOU, China, Sept 21 (Reuters) - China hopes to make a splash with the Asian Games, opening on Saturday, but nationwide excitement has been muted as the economy sputters and some locals question the cost of the sporting extravaganza. Organisers this week expressed confidence in holding a "magnificent" games, thanks to President Xi Jinping’s "important instructions" and great, broad-based efforts. "People care more about their own lives, and the Asian Games are not on the top of their list of concerns," Yan said. [1/4]A woman poses for pictures in front of statues of the three mascots of the 19th Asian Games Hangzhou 2022, near the Hangzhou Asian Games Village, in Zhejiang province, China September 20, 2023. "There's a saying online: 'The Hangzhou city government, when encountering even a dog, wishes they could catch it and give it a fresh coat of paint'."

Persons: Xi Jinping’s, Xi, Bashar al, Assad, John Yan, Yan, Jiang, It's, Mark Dreyer, Tingshu Wang, Wu Lili, Zhang, Jules Boycoff, it's, Dylan Martinez, Martin Quin Pollard, Xihao Jiang, William Mallard Organizations: Asian Games, COVID, Games, Sports, Beijing Olympics, Asian, Hangzhou, REUTERS, Pacific University, Thomson Locations: HANGZHOU, China, Hangzhou, Beijing, Zhejiang province, Zhejiang, Shanghai, U.S ., Oregon, West

☆ Jack Ma started off as a school teacher and built China's Amazon. But 3 years after Beijing cracked down on his tech businesses, Ma's now turned to farming.
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Alibaba cofounder Jack Ma has invested in a new agrotech company in China. Ma largely vanished from public view since angering Beijing with a critical speech in October 2020. During his disappearance, Ma traveled the world and studied agrotech. Alibaba cofounder Jack Ma is leading an active retirement. Ma, a teacher turned tech titan, retired from Alibaba in 2019 but still sits on the board of the Jack Ma Foundation.

Persons: Jack Ma, Ma Organizations: Morning, South China Morning, Marine Technology, Culture Co, Tokyo College, Alibaba, Jack Ma Foundation Locations: China, Beijing, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Tianyancha, Zhejiang, Hangzhou, Spain, Netherlands, Japan, Thailand

☆ China's eastern Hangzhou city signs comprehensive strategic agreement with Alibaba
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BEIJING/HONG KONG, June 29 (Reuters) - China's eastern Hangzhou city has signed a comprehensive strategic cooperation agreement with the e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding (9988.HK), according to a city government statement on Thursday. It is expected that Alibaba can expand its leading advantage in the platform economy, and reinvigorate the innovation momentum of digital trade, according to the statement. The eastern city also hopes that Alibaba could expand more new businesses and land more new projects in Hangzhou. Reporting by Ella Cao in Beijing and Meg Shen in Hong Kong; Editing by Toby ChopraOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Ella Cao, Meg Shen, Toby Chopra Organizations: Alibaba, HK, Thomson Locations: BEIJING, HONG KONG, Hangzhou, Beijing, Hong Kong

☆ China tightens media control with tiny stakes in two Alibaba units
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Sopa Images | Lightrocket | Getty ImagesBEIJING — State-backed entities have taken tiny stakes in parts of two Alibaba subsidiaries that oversee a video platform and web browser. The state-backed stakes reflect a progression of government directives over the last decade to increase control of media in China. "So far most of the stakes announced (including in other Chinese companies) seem to be highly concentrated on media companies and media subsidiaries." watch nowSince 2020, business records show state-backed entities have taken 1% stakes in popular social media or short-video apps Weibo , ByteDance's Douyin and Kuaishou . A provincial state media group completed a 1% investment in September, leaving Alibaba's media arm with 99% ownership.

CNN —Chinese billionaire Jack Ma will no longer control Ant Group after the fintech giant’s shareholders agreed to reshape its shareholding structure, according to a statement released by the company on Saturday. After the adjustment, Ma’s voting rights will fall to 6.2%, according to the statement and CNN calculations. Before the restructure, Ma held 50.52% of voting rights at Ant via Hangzhou Yunbo and two other entities, according to its IPO prospectus filed with stock exchanges in 2020. As part of the company’s restructuring, Ant applied for an expansion of its registered capital from $1.2 billion to $2.7 billion. Ant Group is a fintech affiliate of Alibaba, both of which were founded by Ma.

☆ Jack Ma's Alibaba, China tech giants are making a comeback post zero Covid
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-05 | by ( Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Hong Kong CNN —Chinese tech giants are witnessing a dream start to the year. US-listed shares of Chinese e-commerce firms Alibaba (BABA), JD.com (JD) and Pinduoduo (PDD) added $53 billion to their combined market value on Wednesday. The surge comes as investors are feeling optimistic that Chinese regulators will go easy on tech firms this year and also introduce measures to boost growth in the industry. The change in sentiment comes after Jack Ma’s Ant Group won a key approval for capital expansion. Chinese tech companies have faced a sweeping regulatory crackdown since late 2020, which drove investors away.

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