Trump WeChat ban 'an unwelcome signal' for Chinese community www.bbc.com

For the global Chinese community, WeChat is more than a chat app: it is often the primary means of staying in touch with friends and family back home.

So the decision last week by US President Donald Trump to order American firms to stop doing business with WeChat has sent shockwaves rippling out.

"WeChat has become the 'it' tool for Chinese-speaking people, no matter where you are around the world," one Shanghai resident told the BBC.

The billion-user app is primarily a social networking platform but can be used for a host of daily activities like shopping, gaming and even dating.

But WeChat has a less innocent side. It is seen a key instrument of China's internal surveillance apparatus.

In an executive order, President Trump labelled WeChat a threat to US national security and accused it of gathering "vast swaths" of user data, threatening Americans' personal and proprietary information.

WeChat's owner, TenCent, has been ordered to sell the app by mid-September or face a ban on US operations.

The move to block WeChat, a prominent example of China's tech innovation, is seen by many Chinese as an attack on their culture, its people and state. In response to President Trump, China's foreign ministry has accused America of using national security as a cover to exert hegemony.

The Chinese diaspora in the US has been shocked by the move, and many people are worried - not just about keeping in touch with loved ones, but what this means for China-US relations.

'An unwelcome signal'
Jennie, 21, is a student at the University of California, and learned about the order while browsing WeChat.

"At first I didn't believe that it is true," she told the BBC. "Then I just felt very angry."

Jennie spends around four hours a day on WeChat, using it to contact people in the US and China. It is also a vital source of information and she spends a lot of time reading articles published on the public accounts of Chinese media, content creators and businesses.

Is the US about to split the internet?
On the anniversary day of Tiananmen Massacre, Jennie made a one-sentence post of commemoration. It was quickly removed, and her entire public account vanished.

She told the BBC she is "very worried" that WeChat will share her information with the Chinese government, but strongly opposes America blocking the app.

"It'd be similar to what China does - to censor," said Jennie.

Shan used to publish on her own public account, until it was censored by WeChat two years ago.

She believes that there should be alternative to manage threats posed by WeChat, other than banning it altogether.

"I wanted to study in the US because of its openness, but this move has burst my bubble."

"I used to think America is culturally inclusive," says Miley Song, a Chinese immigrant in California. Washington's move sends "an unwelcome signal" to Chinese immigrants in the country, she believes.

The 30-year-old stay-at-home mum often uses the app to connect with her parents in China, who were in a panic after hearing about Mr Trump's executive order.

But Ms Song says she is cautiously optimistic. "The ban seems very vague, I think it may be difficult to ban WeChat entirely," she says, "We'll wait and see."

While not particularly worried about the ban, she is concerned about it means for her future in the America.

In the midst of a pandemic, and with presidential elections on the way, Ms Song thinks the Trump administration is trying to divert attention away from rising death tolls and falling polling numbers.

"Otherwise, why has Trump focused on cracking down Chinese apps now?"

'It's fully embedded into people's lives'
There is also concern among those who have returned to China after living and studying in America.

Rachel spent 10 years in the US, many of them as a student in the capital, Washington, DC.

Now home in Shanghai, WeChat has become "fully embedded into people's daily lives," she told the BBC.

"If you live in China, you cannot go anywhere without two major apps: one is WeChat, the other is AliPay," said Rachel. "If you want to buy a bottle of milk, you open you WeChat Pay or AliPay to scan the QR code and pay, and most stores don't accept cash."

WeChat is also being used as a tracking tool to help the government with containing the spread of coronavirus.

While President Trump's order will have little impact on her daily activities in China, Rachel said it may become harder to connect with people in the US. As a result, she said some are exploring alternatives like communication app Line, or VPNs - virtual private networks which mask your computers location.

It's sad that it's going down this way," said Rachel. "I see both sides, there is always good and bad in both societies, and I want to be neutral but it's harder and harder to become neutral."

Mongolia reports 3 more COVID-19 recoveries, no new cases www.xinhuanet.com

Mongolia has reported three more COVID-19 recoveries, bringing the total recoveries to 263, the country's National Center for Communicable Diseases (NCCD) said Sunday.

Foreign trade turnover decreased by 16.7 percent www.montsame.mn

Officials acquainted with preparations for new international airport www.montsame.mn

Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/. The 25th joint meeting between the Civil Aviation Authority of Mongolia (MCAA) and ‘New Ulaanbaatar International Airport’ LLC took place at the Chinggis Khaan International Airport in Khushigt Valley on August 6.

Moody’s reviews ratings of Mongolian Mortgage Corporation www.news.mn

Moody’s Investors Service (“Moody’s”) has completed a periodic review of the ratings of the Mongolian Mortgage Corporation HFC LLC and other ratings that are associated with the same analytical unit. Since 1 January 2019, Moody’s practice has been to issue a press release following each periodic review to announce its completion.

Currency swap agreement extended for three years www.montsame.mn

Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/. The bilateral currency swap agreement between the Bank of Mongolia and the People's Bank of China has been successfully renewed on July 31 for another 3 years until 2023.

Mongolia's coal export drops nearly 50 pct amid COVID-19 pandemic www.xinhuanet.com

Mongolia exported a total of 11.2 million tons of coal in the first seven months of this year, a decrease of 46.4 percent compared to the same period last year, according to official data on Tuesday.

Microsoft says it is still talking with Trump about buying TikTok from its Chinese owner www.cnn.com

New York (CNN Business)Microsoft says it is still discussing a potential purchase of TikTok, days after President Donald Trump said he would ban the popular short-form video app from operating in the United States.

In a blog post Sunday, Microsoft (MSFT) said its CEO Satya Nadella has talked with Trump about buying the app, which is owned by Chinese start-up ByteDance. US policymakers have for weeks expressed concerns about the app as tensions between the United States and China escalate, with many asserting that it could pose a national security risk.
'Everyone is going cray cray': TikTok users freak out over possible US ban
'Everyone is going cray cray': TikTok users freak out over possible US ban
"[Microsoft] is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury," the company said, adding that it will "move quickly" to talk with ByteDance "in a matter of weeks."
"During this process, Microsoft looks forward to continuing dialogue with the United States Government, including with the President," the company added.
The Washington State-based firm's blog post suggests TikTok could avert the ban that Trump threatened Friday night, when he said he could use emergency economic powers or an executive order to block the app from operating in the United States. Microsoft's remarks also come after the Wall Street Journal reported that the company's talks with ByteDance had been put on hold after Trump's comments.
A deal would create a new structure wherein Microsoft would own and operate TikTok services in the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. As part of the agreement, Microsoft said it would ensure that all private data of TikTok's American users would be transferred to and remain in the United States.
TikTok has previously stressed that its US user data is already stored on US-based servers and backed up in Singapore, and is therefore not subject to Chinese law as some US officials have feared.
"This new structure would build on the experience TikTok users currently love, while adding world-class security, privacy, and digital safety protections," Microsoft said. "The operating model for the service would be built to ensure transparency to users as well as appropriate security oversight by governments in these countries."
The company added that "in any event" it would finish talking with ByteDance no later than September 15.
ByteDance did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the Microsoft post. But the company said in a statement published Sunday on Toutiao, the Chinese social media site it owns, that it "has always been committed to becoming a global company."
"In this process, we are faced with all kinds of complex and unimaginable difficulties," the company added. It cited a "tense international political environment," among other issues.

It from Disney's king of streaming to fighting for TikTok's life
"But we still adhere to the vision of globalization and continue to increase investment in markets around the world, including China, to create value for users around the world," ByteDance said. "We strictly abide by local laws and will actively use the rights granted to us by the law to safeguard the legal rights of the company."
TikTok did not respond immediately to a request for comment Sunday night, but a TikTok spokesperson said in a statement to CNN Business on Saturday that it is "confident in the long-term success" of the app. The company has hired nearly 1,000 people to its US team this year, and plans to hire another 10,000 employees across the United States, the spokesperson said. It also recently announced a "Creator Fund" to lure top talent to create content for the app.
Beijing, meanwhile, blasted Washington after Trump floated a ban.
"The US has been stretching the concept of national security, without any evidence, and only based on presumption of guilt. It is threatening certain businesses," Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Wang Wenbin told reporters Monday. "China is firmly opposed to this."
TikTok could be the "right partner at the right time" for Microsoft, according to Wedbush Securities analyst Daniel Ives, who pegged the app's valuation at roughly $50 billion. (He added, though, that TikTok's value could be hurt considerably if it were to be shut down.)
Ives added that if the sale is successful, Microsoft would also receive a social media "crown jewel" at a time when tech peers like Facebook (FB) and Google (GOOGL) parent Alphabet are facing regulatory scrutiny, making it difficult for them to consider Tiktok.
— Shawn Deng, Jill Disis and Isaac Yee contributed to this report.

Global coal power falls for first time even as China builds more www.mining.com

Global coal-fired power capacity edged down for the first time on record in the first half of 2020 as retirements accelerated and the coronavirus saw new projects put on hold.

U.S. FAA lays plan for Boeing 737 MAX's return; hurdles remain www.reuters.com