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☆ Foreign Investors Are Leery of China Bets, Despite Rebound Expectations
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Rebecca Feng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Market strategists say the stars are aligned in 2023 for Chinese assets to stage a comeback—but a return of foreign capital may take longer. Foreign investors have pulled more than $100 billion out of China’s bond market since February, according to two major Chinese clearinghouses. They have also dramatically slowed their investments in the country’s stock market. Foreign institutions bought a net $13 billion worth of yuan-denominated shares last year via a Hong Kong stock-trading link, down sharply from $63 billion in 2021.

☆ Chinese Semiconductor IPOs Surge as Chip Arms Race Heats Up
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( Rebecca Feng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Shares of recently listed chip companies have outperformed other sectors in China this year. Chinese semiconductor companies are in the middle of a boom in IPO volumes, as a government push to develop the country’s chip industry draws large sums of capital. Companies that produce chips or chip-making equipment raised the equivalent of $12 billion from domestic initial public offerings in the year through Dec. 15, nearly three times what they raised in 2021. They have filed for another $17 billion worth of IPOs in mainland China.

☆ Developer Sunac China Offers Up a Dollar-Debt Restructuring Plan
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Rebecca Feng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Sunac China , a large Chinese property developer that defaulted on its dollar debt earlier this year, offered a preliminary restructuring plan to its international bond investors and said it hopes to return to healthy development next year. The Tianjin-based company on Friday outlined how it intends to restructure the bulk of its roughly $11 billion in international debt. Sunac said it has proposed converting $3 billion to $4 billion of it into shares or equity-linked instruments, and exchanging some other existing obligations into new dollar notes with maturities ranging from two to eight years.

☆ China’s Covid Easing Fuels Stock-Market Hopes—and Fans Fears
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Rebecca Feng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Chinese stocks have recently been whipsawed by the country’s attempts—and its numerous struggles—to move past the Covid-19 pandemic. Investors say it is only the beginning of what is likely to be a long and tumultuous period, as Beijing tries to pivot from a zero-tolerance Covid policy characterized by lockdowns and numerous restrictions to living with the virus and limiting its damage to the economy. Economists and strategists say China’s path to reopening in the coming year is littered with hurdles that make it difficult for investors to predict the impact on domestic spending, corporate earnings and the country’s stock market.

☆ Chinese Stocks Drop as Covid Protests Intensify, Cases Surge
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( Rebecca Feng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Shares in mainland China and Hong Kong slid on Monday morning, after protests against the country’s zero-tolerance approach to Covid-19 gathered steam. Hong Kong’s benchmark Hang Seng Index, which is dominated by Chinese stocks, was down more than 4% after the market opened. It recovered some ground in the morning but was still around 2% lower by midmorning. The Chinese domestic CSI 300 index was down 1.6%.

☆ Chinese Banks’ $178 Billion ‘Medicine’ for Developers Won’t Cure All Ills
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-25 | by ( Rebecca Feng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

A construction site in Shanghai. State-owned banks are delivering loans and other support measures to the country’s developers of real estate. HONG KONG—China’s state-owned banks are showering the country’s real-estate developers with loans and other promises of financial support, moves that will prevent the beleaguered industry from spiraling into a full-blown crisis following a wave of debt defaults. The generous aid, however, is unlikely to quickly solve a fundamental problem afflicting many Chinese developers: A deep slump in new home sales.

So far in 2022, there have been 25 trading days in which the Hang Seng Index gained or lost more than 3%. Hong Kong entered a bull market earlier this month—at least according to one common definition. The city’s benchmark Hang Seng Index surged 25% in the first half of November, clearing the 20% hurdle that is traditionally used to define a bull market. The sharp run-up from its trough on Oct. 31—when the index touched its lowest level since April 2009—was fueled by signs that China is starting to shift away from its strict zero-Covid policy that has hamstrung the world’s second-largest economy. Moves by the Chinese government to ease pressure on its limping property sector also gave investors reason for optimism.

☆ Manulife Wins China Mutual Fund Approval
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( Rebecca Feng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Canadian-owned Manulife Investment Management applied for full ownership of its Chinese fund-management arm after a rule change. China’s securities regulator has given Manulife Investment Management approval to take full ownership of its local fund-management arm, a first in a country that is slowly opening up its $3.7 trillion mutual fund market. The Canadian-owned firm will become the first foreign fund manager to convert a local joint venture into a fully-owned entity. It applied for full ownership after a rule change in April 2020 that scrapped a previous 51% cap for foreign shareholders.

☆ To Boost Land Sales, Local Chinese Governments Set Up New Companies to Buy Plots
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Rebecca Feng | Cao Li | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

China’s slumping housing market has made selling land increasingly difficult for local governments across the country, leading some to find creative ways to avoid massive revenue shortfalls. Local governments’ total land-related income in the first nine months of 2022 was down nearly 30% from a year earlier, data from the Ministry of Finance shows, mostly because of a big drop in land sales. After six consecutive years of annual growth, they fell 36% in the first 10 months of 2022, according to official data compiled by Wind.

☆ Investors Cheer Beijing’s Plan to Support China’s Housing Market, but Challenges Remain
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Rebecca Feng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

China’s central bank and banking regulator have issued a series of measures aimed at supporting the property market. Global investors applauded China’s new plan to resuscitate its ailing housing market, even as economists said the battered sector is unlikely to rebound quickly from its deep slump. Shares of Chinese property developers surged on Monday. Country Garden Holdings Co., one of the country’s largest real-estate companies by contracted sales, jumped 46% in Hong Kong, taking its gains this month to more than 200%. A Hang Seng subindex of Chinese property stocks rose more than 13%.

☆ Chinese Stocks Surge as Beijing Eases Some Covid Restrictions
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( Rebecca Feng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Chinese stocks surged Friday, after top officials in Beijing said they would try to minimize the economic impact from the country’s zero-Covid policy and promptly eased some of its quarantine restrictions. Hong Kong’s benchmark Hang Seng Index jumped 7.7% in its biggest single-day rally since March, taking its increase so far this month to around 18%. Stocks of internet-platform companies, electronics-parts manufacturers and Chinese real-estate developers were among the biggest gainers.

Shares of Chinese companies listed in Hong Kong jumped on Friday, after U.S. officials wrapped up a crucial audit inspection in the city and a transcript circulated on social media suggesting China was considering reversing its strict coronavirus policies. The Hang Seng Index closed the day more than 5% higher after Chinese stocks in a variety of sectors saw heavy buying. Tech giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., vehicle maker Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd. and restaurant chain Haidilao International Holding Ltd. were all up by double-digits in percentage terms. China’s CSI 300 index ended the day up 3.3% and the Shanghai Composite Index was 2.4% higher.

☆ Chinese Property Bonds Set Record Lows as Investors Lose Faith
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( Rebecca Feng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

HONG KONG—The bottom has fallen out of the market for bonds from Chinese property developers. The dollar bond prices of real-estate companies in China have plummeted to new lows, with some trading below 10 cents on the dollar. That reflects a loss of investor confidence in the sector, following a series of bond defaults that have shortchanged international investors, and a unrelenting downturn in the country’s property market.

☆ Hong Kong Shares Fall in Wake of China Party Meeting
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Rebecca Feng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Chinese stocks were among the worst performers in the Hang Seng Index this week. Hong Kong’s stock market was hit by another bout of heavy selling on Friday, pushing its main benchmark to an 8.3% decline for the week after China’s twice-a-decade Communist Party Congress. The Hang Seng Index closed the day at 14863, down 3.7%. That worsened the pain of a steep fall at the start of this week, as investors reacted negatively to Chinese President Xi Jinping ’s cementing of power with a third-term as the country’s paramount leader. Monday’s 6.4% decline was the index’s worst performance since the global financial crisis.

☆ Foreign Investors Yanked Billions from Chinese Bonds as Yuan Slumped
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Rebecca Feng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The yuan has fallen more than 12% against the dollar this year in China’s tightly controlled onshore market as well as the more freely traded offshore market. Foreign investors’ sales of Chinese yuan-denominated bonds picked up again in September, official data showed, reflecting continued pessimism over China’s economic outlook and the prospects for its currency. International investors’ total holdings of Chinese government bonds and other yuan-denominated debt in mainland China dropped to 3.4 trillion yuan, the equivalent of $470 billion, in September. That was the lowest level since December 2020, according to data released Friday by the China Central Depository & Clearing Co. and the Shanghai Clearing House.

☆ Vice President Biden’s Greatest Blunder
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( James Freeman | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Americans hoping that President Joe Biden won’t blunder his way into war with Russia can hardly take comfort from his history of poor judgment in matters of foreign policy. The latest news from China underscores how badly Mr. Biden misjudged the tyrant who has now consolidated power in Beijing. The Journal’s Rebecca Feng reports that on Monday foreign investors were fleeing Chinese stocks and it’s easy to see why. The Journal’s Chun Han Wong and Keith Zhai report:The old-fashioned communist thug’s determination to reassert state control of the economy threatens all of the progress the Chinese people have enjoyed since the late 1970s.

☆ Hong Kong Stock Market Dives After China Party Meeting
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( Rebecca Feng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Hong Kong shares faced a wave of selling after the conclusion of the Chinese Communist Party’s national congress meeting over the weekend. The Hang Seng Index fell 6.4% on Monday, the biggest one-day decline since the global financial crisis, according to Wind data. It closed at its lowest level since April 29, 2009. Shares in mainland China were also down, although not by as much. The benchmark CSI 300 was 2.9% lower and the Shanghai Composite Index was down around 2%.

☆ Chinese Stock Traders Told Not to Disrupt Market Around Communist Party Meeting
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( Rebecca Feng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Chinese stock exchange officials told brokers and fund managers in the country not to sell large blocks of shares around the Communist Party’s National Congress this week, according to people familiar with the matter. The move was designed to reduce market volatility around the all-important political meeting, which began on Oct. 16. The Chinese Communist Party is nearing the end of its week-long gathering of senior officials, during which Chinese President Xi Jinping is widely expected to secure a convention-defying third term as party chief.

☆ China Evergrande’s Debt-Crisis Fallout: Losses, Layoffs and More Defaults
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-13 | by ( Cao Li | Rebecca Feng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

When China Evergrande Group began struggling under a mountain of debt last year, it quietly set off a chain reaction across the country. Chinese authorities prevented a disorderly collapse of the real-estate colossus, but Evergrande’s distress has spread across China’s housing market and many related industries. The situation has worsened this year into what is now a full-blown property downturn that has become a major drag on China’s economy.

☆ Chinese Stocks Slide on Weaker Consumer Spending
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-10 | by ( Rebecca Feng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

China’s CSI 300 index hit its lowest level in more than two years Monday, after a run of bad news pushed down the value of Chinese shares on every major exchange. The benchmark, which tracks the 300 largest companies listed in Shanghai or Shenzhen, dropped 2.2% on its first trading day after a weeklong national holiday. Its 3720.94 closing level was its weakest finish since April 2020.

☆ China’s Offshore Currency Hits Record Low Against Dollar
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-28 | by ( Rebecca Feng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

China’s currency hit its weakest ever offshore trading level against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday, despite recent attempts by the country’s central bank to support the yuan. The offshore yuan depreciated to more than 7.2 to the dollar for the first time since a separate system for trading the currency outside mainland China was launched more than a decade ago.

☆ China’s Central Bank Moves Further to Bolster the Yuan
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-26 | by ( Rebecca Feng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

China’s central bank took another step to shore up the yuan, making it more expensive for traders and institutions to bet against the currency after it weakened rapidly against the dollar. The People’s Bank of China said on Monday that financial institutions selling foreign-exchange forward contracts will be subject to a 20% risk-reserve ratio, up from zero currently. The change, which will kick in on Sept. 28, will make it costlier for banks—and correspondingly, their clients—to sell yuan to buy dollars in the derivatives markets.

The U.S. dollar is experiencing a once-in-a-generation rally, a surge that threatens to exacerbate a slowdown in growth and amplify inflation headaches for global central banks. The dollar’s role as the primary currency used in global trade and finance means its fluctuations have widespread impacts. The currency’s strength is being felt in the fuel and food shortages in Sri Lanka, in Europe’s record inflation and in Japan’s exploding trade deficit.

Almost all shares in the Hang Seng Index were trading lower by midday Monday. Hong Kong shares faced a wave of selling after the conclusion of the Chinese Communist Party’s national congress meeting over the weekend. The Hang Seng Index was down 5% by midday, bringing it below its lowest closing level since April 29, 2009. Shares in mainland China were also down, but not by as much. The benchmark CSI 300 was 1.7% lower and the Shanghai Composite Index was down around 0.9%.

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