Major Chipmakers Seek U.S. Approval to Supply Huawei by Sanctions Deadline; China Expects Air Travel Surge for Holiday

China banned imports from a second U.S. poultry supplier after workers came down with the coronavirus. More Chinese are expected to travel by air for the National Holiday. HNA chairman hit by spending bans amid company debt woes. Meanwhile, some tech companies are asking Washington to let them keep supplying Huawei as the latest sanctions against the company took effect. And the former chairman of troubled Kangde Xin Composite Material Group Co. Ltd. will soon stand trial for alleged fraud in issuing bonds and other crimes.

— By Timmy Shen (hongmingshen@caixin.com) and Han Wei (weihan@caixin.com)

** TOP STORIES OF THE DAY

China air travel for holiday expected to jump 10% to a record

Air travel during the National Day holiday starting Oct. 1 in China is expected to rise 10% to a record of more than 15 million trips, according to an estimate by an institution affiliated with air travel platform Qunar.com. The rebound follows a prolonged period of stagnation early this year as the pandemic ground the industry almost to a standstill.

HNA chairman faces spending restrictions as company debt woes deepen

Chen Feng, chairman of China’s embattled HNA Group Co. Ltd., was restricted from excessive spending on travel, golf and other activities by a court as debt woes continue rattling the once high-flying conglomerate. A person from the company said Chen stepped away from HNA’s daily operations and restrictions on him won’t affect HNA’s business operations.

China unit of Singapore agribusiness giant Wilmar files for Shenzhen listing

Yihai Kerry Arawana, a China joint venture of Singapore agribusiness giant Wilmar International, won a go-head to launch an initial public offering on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange ChiNext board. The company expects to raise as much as 13.9 billion yuan ($2 billion) from the offering to fund food industry investment projects.

China bans imports from second U.S. poultry plant

China has suspended imports from an OK Foods Inc. poultry plant in the U.S. after coronavirus cases were discovered among its workers, Reuters reported, citing a U.S. industry group. It is the second American poultry plant that has been banned by China, which in June suspended imports from a Tyson Foods Inc. plant.

Fosun resurrects Thomas Cook as online-only holiday brand

British travel brand Thomas Cook has relaunched as an online-only holiday brand after China’s Fosun Tourism Group took control of the company following its bankruptcy last year.

Major chipmakers seek U.S. approval to supply Huawei by sanctions deadline

Multiple suppliers for Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd., including Chinese chipmaker Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp., have applied to the U.S. Department of Commerce for permission to continue supplying (link in Chinese) the Chinese telecom giant, as the latest U.S. sanctions took effect on Tuesday. None of the companies had announced they had received U.S. government approval as of Wednesday afternoon Beijing time.

Actual controller of troubled Kangde Xin to stand trial

Zhong Yu, the former chairman of scandal-ridden Kangde Xin, will soon stand trial for his alleged fraud in issuing bonds and other crimes. Several other former executives of the company will also face trial for involvement in the case.

** OTHER STORIES MAKING THE HEADLINES

Finance & Economy

• The number of corporate bankruptcies is likely to spike worldwide over the next few months, as the Covid-19 pandemic batters companies around the globe, a former deputy managing director of the International Monetary Fund warned.

• BlackRock Inc., a major global asset manager, plans to launch a new exchange-traded fund Thursday to track Hong Kong’s new index of technology stocks, giving a nod to the growing importance of Chinese tech giants among global investors.

• The U.S. Department of the Treasury on Tuesday imposed sanctions on China’s Union Development Group Co. Ltd., the resort developer behind the controversial Dara Sakor tourism development on Cambodia’s coast, saying that the company intimidated and evicted families from their homes to make way for the development. (Nikkei Asian Review)

• The U.S. has exempted TikTok employees and contractors from President Donald Trump’s executive order banning transactions involving the popular online short video app.

• IQiyi Sports, a joint venture between Chinese video streaming platform iQiyi Inc. and Super Sports Media Inc., is teaming up with FC Barcelona to create a dedicated channel in China for the top-tier Spanish football club for the 2020/2021 season, iQiyi said on Tuesday.

• Beijing-based biotechnology platform Biocytogen has announced the completion of a 970 million yuan ($142 million) Series D+ round financing led by returning backer CMB International Capital Corp. Ltd., a Hong Kong-based subsidiary of China Merchants Bank Co. Ltd. (Deal Street Asia)

• ByteDance Ltd.’s short video app Douyin, TikTok’s Chinese twin, had over 600 million daily active users in China as of August, ByteDance’s China CEO Zhang Nan said Tuesday.

• Shanghai-based AI graphics company Yitu Technology plans to go public (link in Chinese), according to information from the Shanghai securities regulator’s website.

** ON THE CORONAVIRUS

• On Tuesday, the Chinese mainland reported 12 new Covid-19 cases with symptoms (link in Chinese), all imported, according to China’s top health body.

• Starting in October, Thailand will issue special visas to foreign tourists, who will be required to quarantine for 14 days on arrival in a hotel or hospital. (Bloomberg)

• As of Wednesday afternoon Beijing time, the number of coronavirus infections globally exceeded 29.5 million, with the death toll surpassing 935,000, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

Contact reporter Timmy Shen (hongmingshen@caixin.com) and editors Yang Ge (geyang@caixin.com) and Gavin Cross (gavincross@caixin.com)

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