Economy/Resources - 8. page

A cautionary tale of misaligned incentives and industrial overreach has emerged from China, as state television’s Focal Point program named electric vehicle maker Neta Auto — and its parent company Hozon New Energy — as a prime example of the destructive consequences of local government investment competition.

Eager to generate economic results, local governments across China have long competed fiercely to attract major enterprises through lavish incentives. Yichun, a city in Jiangxi province with no prior automotive industry base, invested 500 million yuan (approximately $68.8 million USD) to lure Neta Auto into building a factory there. Incentives included equity stakes, government-built facilities, ten years of rent-free terms, and a 20,000 yuan (approximately $2,750 USD) subsidy for every vehicle sold locally. Similar arrangements were made in Tongxiang, Zhejiang, and Nanning, Guangxi, where land and factory costs were also borne by government-affiliated enterprises.

What once looked like a regional development triumph has unraveled dramatically. Neta Auto’s Yichun “smart factory” now stands empty. Between 2021 and 2023, Hozon New Energy accumulated net losses of 18.3 billion yuan (approximately $2.52 billion USD) — losing over 80,000 yuan (approximately $11,000 USD) on every vehicle sold. By 2024, all three production lines had halted, and in the second half of 2025, the company entered bankruptcy restructuring proceedings.

Chinese officials have since acknowledged the systemic problem. A deputy director at the National Development and Reform Commission warned that subsidy competitions distort market mechanisms, encourage irresponsible corporate investment, and fuel industrial overcapacity and price wars — dynamics visible across multiple collapsed EV brands including HiPhi, Byton, and Bordrin, all of which received local state capital. Regulators have signaled these practices must be reined in to protect China’s unified national market.

Source: Central News Agency (Taiwan), April 23, 2026
https://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/202604230248.aspx

China’s optical fiber industry is experiencing a rare boom, with both prices and demand rising sharply. Prices for specialized fiber have jumped as much as 650 percent, while production and sales in the first quarter grew by over 35 percent, with some companies reporting nearly fivefold increases.

The demand shift is largely driven by AI and data centers rather than traditional telecom uses like 5G or fiber-to-home. As large AI models expand, data center traffic is growing rapidly, requiring high-speed optical interconnects. Global demand for data center fiber is expected to exceed 100 million core-kilometers by 2026, with hyperscale AI facilities needing 5–10 times more fiber than conventional data centers.

At the same time, supply is constrained. The upstream production of optical fiber preforms—where most profits and technical barriers lie—requires long investment cycles, and earlier industry downturns reduced capacity. This has led to a global supply shortage.

Chinese manufacturers are emerging as key suppliers, benefiting from advanced production technologies, lower costs, and faster delivery. China now accounts for over 60 percent of the global fiber and cable market and about 70 percent of production capacity. Leading firms such as Yangtze Optical Fibre and Cable Joint Stock Limited Company dominate high-end segments, positioning China at the center of the global supply chain.

Source: People’s Daily, April 21, 2026
http://finance.people.com.cn/n1/2026/0421/c1004-40705509.html

A recent commentary in People’s Daily highlights a growing imbalance in China’s waste incineration sector, where some regions are facing a shortage of waste to burn. Domestically, about 5 percent of incinerators operate at only half capacity, and in some areas facilities are competing for garbage. Globally, China accounts for roughly 60 percent of total waste incineration capacity—exceeding that of Europe, the United States, and Japan combined.

China has promoted waste incineration as a key component of its economic development strategy, achieving advances in equipment, temperature control, and emissions treatment. This has created a mature industry chain spanning waste collection, power generation, and byproduct reuse. However, rapid expansion has also caused the current overcapacity challenge.

To address the imbalance, the article suggests improving regional coordination (redistributing waste from surplus areas in the west to shortage areas in the east), integrating rural waste into urban disposal systems, and expanding overseas projects. China has already exported its incineration technology worldwide, with more than 100 projects abroad, combining waste management solutions with clean energy generation.

Source: People’s Daily, April 15, 2026
http://opinion.people.com.cn/n1/2026/0415/c436867-40702019.html

Pan Shiyi, the prominent Chinese real estate entrepreneur and founder of SOHO China, who has kept a low profile for three years, recently published an article describing nearly three decades of mainland China’s property market development as resembling a “Ponzi scheme.”

In a post titled “My Reflections” on his personal WeChat public account, Pan recalled how in 1998, when China began developing commercial housing, developers traveled to Hong Kong to learn sales methods, picking up concepts like mortgages and pre-sales. He noted that the industry soon adopted a high-leverage, high-turnover model that quickly became distorted on the mainland.

Within just a few years, competition in the sector shifted away from building and selling quality homes, and instead became a race to acquire more land, secure financing faster, and expand more aggressively.

Pan described a deeply interconnected and fragile system: developers survived on pre-sale revenues, companies kept afloat by borrowing new money to repay old debts, local governments depended on land sales for income, and homebuyers believed property prices would rise indefinitely. “Tie these four things together,” he wrote, “and if any one of them breaks, the rest will collapse.”

He noted that for a considerable period, the practices of some property developers were no different from a Ponzi scheme. The losses caused now amount to trillions of yuan (hundreds of billions of U.S. dollars), bringing pain to countless families.

Pan concluded that while judicial authorities have identified the specific wrongdoings of certain developers, the crisis is the combined result of systemic, financial, fiscal, corporate, and social factors. He noted that China’s property market has been declining for 47 consecutive months, and that restoring confidence — built on integrity — is now the most critical task.

Pan, 62, relocated to the United States in 2014 after selling off large amounts of assets. The IP address of his post was traced to the U.S., though he has previously stated he retains Chinese citizenship.

Source: Central News Agency (Taiwan), April 17, 2026
https://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/202604170043.aspx

At the Data Fusion 2026 conference held in Moscow on April 8–9, Liu Zhiqiang, Executive President of Digital International Limited, outlined two defining characteristics of China’s approach to investing in emerging technologies.

The first is what Liu described as “patient capital.” He noted that China has sustained large-scale investments in critical sectors over periods of up to a decade, even when returns remained low. The semiconductor industry serves as a prime example, where the entire Chinese economy has maintained consistent, long-term commitment to the sector.

The second characteristic, which Liu emphasized as uniquely Chinese in its investment logic, is the focus on full industrial chain investment rather than backing isolated technologies. Rather than placing bets on individual technological breakthroughs, China invests across the entire supply chain ecosystem surrounding a given industry.

Liu illustrated this with an example from his own company, which operates in the robotics sector in the Greater Bay Area. He described a phenomenon known as the “45-minute supply chain circle,” where any robotics company in the region can source over 95% of the components it needs within a 45-minute radius.

“Investment in an emerging industry is not just about specific technologies,” Liu said, “but about building out the entire supply chain and industrial ecosystem.”

Together, these two traits — the willingness to absorb prolonged low returns and the commitment to cultivating complete industrial ecosystems — reflect a distinctly Chinese model of strategic technology investment that sets it apart from approaches seen elsewhere in the world.

Source: Sputnik News, April 9, 2026
https://sputniknews.cn/20260409/1070696062.html

China’s rapid subway expansion era is drawing to a close, as local governments face mounting financial pressures and demographic headwinds — even in prosperous coastal cities.

A widely circulated article from the WeChat account “Urban Finance” highlights how several major cities have recently seen subway plans rejected or scaled back. Ningbo’s development authority stated the city lacks the ridership levels needed to qualify for a fourth phase of rail construction. Shenzhen’s proposed Metro Line 18 failed to receive national approval. And Guangzhou’s fourth phase of subway planning may be approved for only about 100 kilometers fewer than originally submitted — a reduction of over 60 percent.

The article notes that approval difficulties are no longer limited to smaller cities; even high-tier urban centers are finding it harder to get new lines greenlit. Behind the tightening standards lie two key forces: the collapse of the real estate sector has severely squeezed local government revenues and worsened debt problems, while slowing population growth has undermined the ridership case for new lines in many cities.

The financial toll is already visible. Shenzhen Metro, which intervened to bail out property developer Vanke Group, reported a loss of 33.46 billion yuan (approximately $4.6 billion USD) by the end of 2024 — more than it earned over the previous five years combined.

The broader fiscal picture reinforces the challenge. National land sale revenues fell to 4.15 trillion yuan (approximately $571 billion USD) in 2024, less than half the peak of 8.7 trillion yuan (approximately $1.2 trillion USD) reached in 2021.

China currently has over 40 cities with metro systems, including Shanghai and Beijing, both of which have surpassed 900 kilometers of operating lines. But the article argues the era of cities racing to build sprawling networks is effectively over. While new lines will continue opening in the coming decade, the spectacle of cities competing to submit hundred-kilometer expansion plans is unlikely to return.

Source: Central News Agency (Taiwan), April 13, 2026
https://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/202604130173.aspx

As the U.S.-Iran conflict raises concerns over global energy supplies, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported on April 7 that President Xi Jinping has called for accelerating the planning and construction of a new energy system to ensure the country’s energy security.

According to the report, building a new energy system is a major strategic decision that reflects global energy trends and deepens China’s new energy security strategy. Xi emphasized the need to coordinate hydropower development with ecological protection, pursue nuclear power in a safe and orderly manner, and strengthen the country’s energy production, supply, storage, and distribution infrastructure.

During a visit to Xiong’an New Area in Hebei province, Xi noted that energy is a strategic issue for development, saying China’s early investments in wind and solar power have proven to be forward-looking. He also stressed that coal-fired power remains a foundational energy source and must continue on a clean, low-carbon path.

As of the end of February this year, China’s total installed wind and solar capacity reached 1.88 billion kilowatts, up 28.8 percent year-on-year. Renewable energy generation has surpassed 4 trillion kilowatt-hours, accounting for roughly 40 percent of the country’s total power output.

China’s 15th Five-Year Plan (2026–2030) sets out ambitious targets, including a non-fossil fuel energy doubling initiative and an average annual addition of 200 million kilowatts of wind and solar capacity. By 2030, new energy power generation is expected to account for more than 50 percent of total installed capacity, while non-fossil fuels are projected to make up 25 percent of overall energy consumption — providing a strong foundation for both energy security and economic growth.

Source: Central News Agency (Taiwan), April 7, 2026
https://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/202604070056.aspx