Day: May 2, 2025

China softens stance on US tariff talks, spy claims condemned: SCMP daily highlights

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Catch up on some of SCMP’s biggest China stories of the day. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. China says it is looking at American proposals to scale down tariff war China is assessing whether to start trade negotiations with the United States following representations from Washington, the Ministry of Commerce said on Friday, signalling a possible easing of the tit-for-tit tariff war between the world’s two largest economies. 2. Deal or no deal? EU engages US, China on high-wire bargaining act…

Gautam Adani nephew denies insider trading

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Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. A nephew of Indian infrastructure tycoon Gautam Adani has denied violating laws against insider trading, saying he is seeking to settle allegations made by the country’s capital markets regulator. News of the accusations against Pranav Adani, who sits as a director on multiple companies in the sprawling Adani Group, is likely to add to scrutiny of the conglomerate’s controlling family after its billionaire founder was criminally charged in the US…

Why is Trump ending the ‘de minimis’ tariff loophole on low-value imports?

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At one minute past midnight on Friday, eastern time, a US tariff exemption that has fuelled the rise of companies such as Shein and Temu, and stocked the wardrobes of millions of Americans with cheap fast fashion and other household goods, closed. As part of Donald Trump’s flurry of tariffs on China, the US is closing a loophole that allowed low-value goods to be shipped into the US without paying any import fees. The “de minimis” loophole, known by the Latin phrase for “of little importance”, was “a big scam…

Global markets rally as Beijing considers US trade talks

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Stay informed with free updates Simply sign up to the Equities myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox. Signs of a possible thaw in trade tensions helped drive global markets higher on Friday after Beijing said it was “evaluating” recent overtures from Washington on starting trade talks. China’s commerce ministry said the US had recently “conveyed messages to China through various channels, expressing a desire to engage in discussions”. “China is currently evaluating this,” the ministry spokesperson said. Global equities extended their gains further after stronger-than-expected US jobs figures…

Pakistan Air Force showcases advanced Chinese weapons as tensions escalate with India

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The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) has released footage showing it has armed its combat aircraft with long-range Chinese missiles. Advertisement The footage, published online on Tuesday comes amid spiralling tensions with India following a terrorist attack in Kashmir last month that killed 26 people. New Delhi has blamed Pakistan for the incident, but Islamabad has denied any links to the attackers. The three-minute video showed warplanes, including the JF-17 fighter, armed with Chinese-made PL-15 missiles and described them as the “PAF’s potent punch”. The PL-15, originally developed for the fifth-generation…

US beats expectations with 177,000 jobs added in April

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Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. The US added 177,000 jobs in April, beating expectations and defying worries about the early impact of Donald Trump’s policies on the world’s largest economy. Friday’s figure from the Bureau of Labor Statistics exceeded the 135,000 predicted by economists polled by Bloomberg. But it marked a fall from March’s downwardly revised figure of 185,000 posts. The unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.2 per cent.  S&P 500 futures extended gains after…

Could Marco Rubio’s new national security role make US-China communications easier?

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Marco Rubio’s appointment as US national security adviser on top of his role as secretary of state could help streamline communications with Beijing despite his hawkish views on China, according to some analysts. Advertisement Rubio will be the first secretary of state since Henry Kissinger to hold both roles at the same time and the latest appointment makes him a direct counterpart of China’s Wang Yi. “In the interim, Secretary of State Marco Rubio will serve as national security adviser, while continuing his strong leadership at the State Department,” Trump…

Temu abandons Chinese imports to US as tariffs force overhaul

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Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Temu has stopped shipping low-cost items from China to sell directly to US consumers, as the Chinese ecommerce company overhauls its business model in response to the Trump administration’s tariffs. Sales on Temu’s US marketplace — which sells households goods ranging from phone chargers to silicone toilet brushes — will now all be fulfilled from US-based sellers, rather than Chinese sellers, it said on Friday. The company, which has been…

Alibaba launches Taobao fast-delivery service ahead of time to challenge JD.com, Meituan

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Advertisement Hangzhou-based Alibaba said its Taobao Instant Commerce initiative was introduced “ahead of schedule” on Friday, according to its post on Weibo. Alibaba, owner of the South China Morning Post, earlier this week said the service would be rolled out on May 6 and cover 50 major cities across China. The new service – covering categories that include food, groceries, electronics and clothing – was designed as an upgrade to Alibaba’s original local delivery operation, with orders handled by food delivery unit Ele.me. Alibaba’s early introduction of the new Taobao…

China ‘evaluating’ US offer to engage in trade negotiations

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Beijing is “evaluating” an offer from the US to engage in trade negotiations, the Chinese government has said, a week after Donald Trump claimed talks were already under way. China’s commerce ministry said on Friday: “The US has recently taken the initiative on many occasions to convey information to China through relevant parties, saying it hopes to talk with China.” On Thursday, influential commentators in China said the country was ready to engage in talks. Ren Yi, a nationalist blogger who writes under the nickname Chairman Rabbit, wrote that he…