CX Daily: China’s Push to Expand Its Carbon Market
TOP STORIES
Carbon?/
Big changes are afoot for China’s three-year-old national carbon market.
They began in January, when the certified carbon emission reductions (CCERs) — were reintroduced . The voluntary market is also preparing to expand beyond power plants into a number of primary manufacturing industries.
Then on Tuesday, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) released draft rules tightening the carbon allowances allocated to market participants for the mandatory national Emissions Trading System (ETS), aimed at boosting market activity and promoting power generators’ green and low-carbon transition. ?
Kidnap?/
China has urged the Philippines to capture and severely punish the murderers responsible for kidnapping and killing two people, including a Chinese citizen, in the Southeast Asian country.
The Chinese embassy in Manila said Tuesday it had been told a Chinese citizen was being held in the Philippines. It helped the victim’s family report the case to Philippine authorities and intervened to request a rescue. However, the victim, with another Chinese American hostage, were killed, the embassy said, without identifying the victims. ?
FINANCE & ECONOMY
Crypto?/
Yao Qian, a tech-focused securities regulator who was placed under investigation for suspected corruption earlier this year, likely accepted bribes for supporting a tech company and used cryptocurrency to try and bury the paper trail, according to sources with knowledge of the matter.
A financial regulatory official, who was not named, leveraged their power and influence to support a privately owned company over a long period, and received huge sums of money and equity in return, a report from the National Audit Office (NAO) showed. ?
PMI?/
China’s services activity grew at the slowest pace in eight months in June as the job market shrank and business optimism weakened, according to a Caixin-sponsored survey published Wednesday.
The Caixin China General Services Business Activity Index, which provides an independent snapshot of operating conditions in industries such as retail and tourism, fell 2.8 points from May to 51.2 last month. A reading above 50 indicates an expansion in activity, while a number below signals a contraction.
The Caixin China General Composite PMI, which tracks both manufacturing and services, was 52.8 in June, down 1.3 points from the previous month. ?
BUSINESS & TECH
领英推荐
Autos?/
China’s car market is under significant strain as domestic demand continues to weaken. The China Automobile Dealers Association reported Sunday that the dealers’ inventory alert index reached 62.3% in June.
The inventory alert index is above the 50% boom-bust threshold, indicating higher inventory pressure and market risk. Since January 2024, the index has remained above this threshold, signaling persistent recessionary conditions. ?
Corruption?/
A former chief of a state-owned asset investment conglomerate backed by northwest China’s Ningxia regional government has come into the graft buster’s sights, possibly related to bad asset deals, Caixin has learned .
Zhao Qihong, who served as Communist Party chief and chairman of Ningxia State-owned Asset Investment Holding Group Co. Ltd. between 2018 and 2024, has been placed under investigation, the anti-graft watchdog at the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region said in a brief statement. ?
Huawei?/
Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. is selling the trademarks and patents of Aito, the premium electric vehicle (EV) brand it co-developed with Seres Group Co. Ltd. to the Chinese carmaker, as it steps back from the brand.
Seres Group subsidiary Seres Auto is planning to spend 2.5 billion yuan ($343.7 million) acquiring 919 registered or pending trademarks of Aito-related characters and graphics, as well as 44 exterior design patents held by Huawei, according to a stock exchange filing Wednesday. ?
Quick hits?/
Daily Tech Roundup?/
Long Read?/
GALLERY
President Xi Jinping arrived in Astana on Tuesday for a state visit at the invitation of Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. Xi will also attend the 24th Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. This is Xi’s fifth trip to Kazakhstan as president following his previous state visit in 2022.