Container shipping rates from China to the United States have scaled fresh highs above $20,000 per 40-foot box as rising retailer orders ahead of the peak U.S. shopping season add strain to global supply chains, Reuters reported. The acceleration in Delta-variant COVID-19 outbreaks in several counties has slowed global container turnaround rates. Typhoons off China's busy southern coast in late July and this week have also contributed to the crisis gripping the world's most important method for moving everything from gym equipment and furniture to car parts and electronics.
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China Construction Bank Corp. on behalf of creditors sued Suning Appliance Group Co Ltd. to recoup about $255 million lost on debt, Bloomberg News reported. The group, which used to own retail giant Suning.com Co., and its owner, father-and-son pair Zhang Jindong and Zhang Kangyang, were listed as defendants in an Aug. 2 claim filed in the Hong Kong High Court. The suit is being brought by China Construction Bank (Asia) Corp., which is acting on behalf of creditors. Suning Group declined to comment.
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Advertising company Leo Group said it is applying to a Chinese court to freeze 356 million yuan ($55.06 million) in assets of Evergrande Group for overdue payments, becoming the latest supplier to sue the indebted property developer, Nikkei Asia reported. Leo's lawsuit, which was disclosed in a securities filing late on Monday, comes after Huaibei Mining Holdings said last week its construction unit was suing Evergrande regarding 400 million yuan in overdue fees.
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Kenya has resumed servicing loans owed to China after Beijing’s six-month debt-repayment suspension expired in June, piling pressure on the exchequer, Bloomberg News reported. The government began 2021-22 remittances, with the first batch to the Export–Import Bank of China amounting to 82.7 billion shillings ($761 million), according to Kenya’s Controller of Budget Margaret Nyakang’o. Repayments are for debt taken for projects, including a railroad between Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, and the port city of Mombasa, Nyakang’o said in emailed responses to questions.
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The U.S. securities regulator will not allow Chinese companies to raise money in the United States unless they fully explain their legal structures and disclose the risk of Beijing interfering in their businesses, the agency said on Friday, confirming an exclusive report by Reuters. In a statement, Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler said he had also asked staff to "engage in targeted additional reviews of filings for companies with significant China-based operations." The development underscores U.S.
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China moved to ease investor concerns about crackdowns on listed companies, with a top regulator privately telling global financial firms that Beijing will consider the market impact before introducing future policies, the Wall Street Journal reported. Fang Xinghai, vice chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission, spoke to representatives of global banks including Goldman Sachs Group Inc. GS 0.89% and UBS Group AG, as well as some investment firms on Wednesday evening, according to the people.
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Hong Kong's buzzing IPO pipeline is likely to taper off in the second half of 2021, as Chinese firms temper their expectations for valuations amid a drastic regulatory crackdown in the mainland, dealmakers said, according to Reuters reported. Investors, on tenterhooks as China's assault on fast-growing private firms has led to an uncertain environment, are also expected to be selective of which deals to buy into, they added.
China's move to ban private tutoring firms from making a profit from teaching core school subjects and raising capital is set to trigger a scramble among venture and private equity investors to find an exit after pouring billions of dollars into the sector, Reuters reported. While stricter regulations were expected with China looking to ease pressure on children and the cost burden on parents that has contributed to lower birth rates, private equity industry sources say that they were surprised by the severity of the rules that could kill many companies and block their exits.
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Tsinghua Unigroup, a Chinese state-backed chip maker, said that it received court notice that one of its creditors had initiated bankruptcy proceedings for the group, The Epoch Times reported. Tsinghua Unigroup is a commercial arm of China’s Tsinghua University and an integral part of Chinese Leader Xi Jinping’s semiconductor self-reliance dream. One of its creditors had requested the court to initiate bankruptcy and reorganization proceedings due to Tsinghua Unigroup’s failure to repay debts and its glaring insolvency. The company is a key member of China’s microchip national team.
The Biden administration’s business advisory on Hong Kong has generated more heat and light than appears justified by its contents, according to a Bloomberg Opinion. The fireworks may be a sign that the U.S. and China are content to let hostilities play out as diplomatic theater, and are reluctant to raise confrontation to a level that would meaningfully challenge the functioning of a key global financial center.