FirstFT: Former aide to NY governor charged with performing as an agent of China

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Good morning. Right now we’re masking:

• Huawei’s bug-ridden AI expertise

• A US inventory market sell-off

• How China’s coastguard is policing the ocean

However first, a former adviser to New York governor Kathy Hochul has been charged with performing as an unregistered agent for China, allegedly utilizing her place to “further the interests of the Chinese government”.

Linda Solar, a 41-year-old Chinese language-born American citizen who additionally labored in former governor Andrew Cuomo’s administration, is accused in a federal legal indictment of making an attempt to make her bosses’ public statements extra beneficial to the Chinese language at Beijing’s behest; of arranging visits for Chinese language officers; and sidelining diplomatic approaches to the governor’s workplace from Taiwanese representatives within the US.

She is additional accused of eradicating references to “Republic of China”, Taiwan’s official title, from an announcement made by Cuomo saluting US and Taiwanese troops, and acquiring faux letters from Hochul’s workplace inviting Chinese language authorities officers to New York, which had been allegedly fraudulently utilized by a visiting delegation to acquire US visas.

Solar was arrested yesterday and charged alongside her husband, Chris Hu, an American citizen who ran a seafood export enterprise in New York Metropolis, amongst different enterprises. They’re accused of receiving substantial financial advantages in alternate for unlawful work, together with “the facilitation of millions of dollars in transactions” for Hu’s China-based enterprise actions.

Learn extra particulars from the indictment.

Right here’s what else I’m conserving tabs on right this moment:

• Financial knowledge: Australia publishes second-quarter progress figures. S&P International companies PMI is due for a number of international locations together with China, India, Japan and Singapore.

• Jap Financial Discussion board: Russian President Vladimir Putin holds a plenary session with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and Chinese language vice-president Han Zheng.

5 extra high tales

1. Unique: China’s efforts to match US computing energy in synthetic intelligence are being hampered by bug-ridden software program. Clients of main AI chipmaker Huawei have complained of efficiency points and the issue of switching from Nvidia merchandise.

2. Massive tech teams together with Nvidia led a broad US inventory market sell-off yesterday, because the S&P 500 suffered its worst day since a bout of worldwide volatility in early August. Right here’s what prompted the market drop.

3. China has mentioned it’s going to open an anti-dumping probe into Canadian canola exports. The transfer got here after Ottawa’s resolution final week to boost tariffs on Chinese language metal and electrical automobiles.

4. TotalEnergies has struck a brand new cope with a inexperienced power division of Indian billionaire Gautam Adani’s conglomerate and can make investments $444mn in a joint portfolio of solar energy initiatives. The French oil and gasoline main has pursued collaborations with the Adani Group regardless of final 12 months’s fraud allegations from US brief vendor Hindenburg Analysis.

5. The most important shake-up of Ukraine’s wartime authorities started yesterday, with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy saying a sequence of resignations among the many nation’s ministers was a part of an effort to “give new strength” to the nation’s establishments.

Really feel higher knowledgeable on the occasions shaping your world with our relaunched e-newsletter Newswrap. Darren Dodd, a former FT information editor, explains how the largest tales relate to world financial and enterprise developments. Enroll right here to get it delivered 3 times every week.

Information in-depth

China’s coastguard has been the world’s largest for a decade, however the maritime drive is more and more utilizing home police powers to implement Beijing’s huge maritime claims whereas intimidating its neighbours. “They are everywhere,” mentioned Captain Kentaro Furuya, a professor on the Japan Coast Guard Academy and a former coastguard officer. “They are trying to occupy the ocean as if it were part of their own land territory.”

We’re additionally studying . . . 

• Mitsubishi: The boss of the buying and selling home has known as on the federal government to assist Japanese firms counter growing Chinese language competitors of their conventional stronghold of south-east Asia.

• Israel-Hamas conflict: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has remained defiant over a hostage cope with Hamas regardless of normal strike and mass protests.

• Housing prices: Dissatisfaction with housing prices has hit a document excessive throughout wealthy international locations, hovering above different worries resembling healthcare and schooling.

Chart of the day

Hovering demand for liquefied pure gasoline carriers has pressured world shipowners to show to China. However the high quality of LNG ships being constructed at Chinese language shipyards, which have restricted expertise manufacturing the advanced vessels, is “a likely concern”, mentioned one professional.

Take a break from the information

Stephen Bush was not impressed with the “expensive special effects” and “CGI trickery” in Alien: Romulus, the brand new instalment of the epic sci-fi movie franchise. However his newest column explains why dangerous films show that revenue could be a drive for good within the age of expensive movie and TV.

Extra contributions from Melody Abike Adebisi and Irwin Cruz