3 h. ago Chinese EV maker Li Auto unveils industry’s cheapest AI glasses at US$282

Chinese electric vehicle maker Li Auto has launched its first wearable product, the Livis artificial intelligence glasses, marking a bold foray into the rapidly expanding market already crowded by tech giants like Alibaba Group Holding, Huawei Technologies and Xiaomi. The device is priced at 1,999 yuan (US$282), but buyers who place an order before December 31 qualify for a 15 per cent rebate via the government-backed subsidy programme, bringing down the price to 1,699 yuan. That effectively...

Politics

7 h. ago ‘China’s Nvidia’ shows that the global chip race is heating up as it basks in post

‘China’s Nvidia’ shows that the global chip race is heating up as it basks in post-IPO glow  MarketWatch

Politics

12 h. ago Letters to the Editor: China dominates the EV market, but that doesn’t mean we should give up

Letters to the Editor: China dominates the EV market, but that doesn’t mean we should give up  Los Angeles Times

Politics

13 h. ago As China defies US tech blockade, can local AI chipmakers capture Nvidia share?

With the technology race between the United States and China, the world’s two largest economies, intensifying even though a trade truce was reached in late October, analysts say the prospects of China achieving self-sufficiency in semiconductors and artificial intelligence (AI) are positive, despite American efforts to maintain leads in those fields. “If any country can do it [achieve self-sufficiency in semiconductors], it’s China, owing to its vast resources and pool of engineering talent,”...

Politics

13 h. ago Avatars, influencers in China livestreams help drive Reckitt's emerging

Avatars, influencers in China livestreams help drive Reckitt's emerging-market led growth  Reuters

Politics

14 h. ago BYD founder bets on new tech to win back customers as sales decelerate

BYD, China’s electric vehicle (EV) king, is pinning its hopes on next-generation technology to engineer a turnaround in sales amid fierce competition in the world’s largest automotive market, according to its founder and chairman Wang Chuanfu. Speaking at a shareholders’ meeting in Shenzhen on Friday, the billionaire said the company’s 12,000 engineers – the backbone of the carmaker – would help it regain a technological edge over rivals. “We have heavyweight new technology in the pipeline,” he...

Economics

19 h. ago China’s risky shadow banks back in spotlight after debt crackdown

China’s crackdown on borrowing by local governments is forcing state-run entities in even some of the wealthiest provinces to tap costly credit from non-bank lenders, a stopgap that is increasing risk in an opaque corner of the financial system. The borrowing marks a return of China’s shadow-banking market, which is more loosely regulated than traditional lenders and had been reined in over the past few years in a bid to reduce risk. Since September, industrial investment arms and financing...

Economics

21 h. ago CSRC vows deeper reforms to open China’s capital market and boost tech listings

China’s top securities regulator has pledged to widen foreign investors’ access to the mainland’s capital market while further lowering the fundraising threshold for technology firms, after a key indicator slumped nearly 4 per cent from a 10-year high in mid-November. Wu Qing, chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), set out guidance for the equity and bond markets in an article published by the Communist Party mouthpiece People’s Daily on Friday, three weeks after he was...

Politics

22 h. ago US senators seek ban on Nvidia’s advanced chips to China, experts warn ‘shortsighted’ move further erodes Nvidia’s back into Chinese market

US senators seek ban on Nvidia’s advanced chips to China, experts warn ‘shortsighted’ move further erodes Nvidia’s back into Chinese market  Global Times

Events

24 h. ago Moore Threads shares dazzle with fivefold jump in Shanghai debut

Moore Threads Technology surged by more than fivefold in Shanghai, as enthusiastic investors vied to get shares of the Beijing-based semiconductor supplier used in artificial intelligence, helping to mark the second-biggest trading debut in China’s stock market this year. Moore’s shares began trading at 650 yuan amid a declining market, a 468 per cent jump from their initial public offering (IPO) price of 114.28 yuan. China’s benchmark CSI300 Index slipped 0.1 per cent. The surge in Moore...

Politics

25 h. ago Legco poll a chance for Hong Kong to show its resilience after Tai Po fire

Last week’s deadly fire has cast a heavy shadow over Hong Kong, reminding us of the fragility of life and the need for solidarity in hard times. The central government has responded swiftly with its full attention and support. Aid and sympathy have poured in from across China, underscoring that Hong Kong’s pain is shared. The cause of the fire must be investigated and learned from in due course, but for now the priority is resilience. The announcement that the Legislative Council election will...

Events

25 h. ago Emerging markets to outperform US stocks as dollar weakness continues: report

Global investors should consider reducing their US equities exposure as emerging market stocks are on track to outperform those in developed nations for the first time in five years amid a weakening US dollar, according to global investment firm Cambridge Associates. The recommendation comes as the dollar has experienced significant weakness this year, falling by 10 per cent at one point after a decade-long bull run that started in 2011. However, the greenback still remains 29 per cent above its...

Politics

26 h. ago End of an era: Japan’s Canon shuts China printer plant as local rivals rise

Japanese imaging technology giant Canon has shut down one of its major printer production facilities in mainland China, underscoring the growing clout of domestic brands in the country’s printing market. A visit on Thursday by the Post to Canon Zhongshan Business Machines, in Zhongshan city in the southern Guangdong province, revealed little activity. The car park was nearly empty, while a dozen employees strolled outside the office building. A worker said production had halted late last month,...

Politics

28 h. ago ‘Blue ocean market’: why Brazil is becoming a magnet for Chinese investment

With their domestic profits narrowing and production capacity expanding, China’s firms are continuing to widen their overseas footprints in search of new, more lucrative markets. In this series, we examine China Inc.’s next phase of “going global” and the complex, challenging international environment its companies have chosen to enter. In early November, the chairman of one of China’s top construction machinery makers was spotted touring potential factory sites in Piracicaba, a city in...

Economics

28 h. ago Why China sees Brazil as ‘last untapped blue ocean market’ for investment boom

With their domestic profits narrowing and production capacity expanding, China’s firms are continuing to widen their overseas footprints in search of new, more lucrative markets. In this series, we examine China Inc.’s next phase of “going global” and the complex, challenging international environment its companies have chosen to enter. In early November, the chairman of one of China’s top construction machinery makers was spotted touring potential factory sites in Piracicaba, a city in...

Economics

39 h. ago China’s top AI chip firms set for bumper IPOs as Nvidia kept out of market

China’s Nvidia challengers Moore Threads and MetaX are set for their hotly anticipated market debuts, driven by investor excitement over domestic demand for home-grown graphics processing units (GPUs) amid Beijing’s tech self-sufficiency drive. Beijing-based GPU maker Moore Threads, which was 4,000 times oversubscribed after launching its 8 billion yuan (US$1.13 billion) initial public offering (IPO) last week, will be listed on Shanghai’s Nasdaq-style Star Market on Friday, according to a...

Economics

42 h. ago Mainland China’s billionaire count surges as BYD and Mixue bosses power gains

Mainland China’s billionaires have tightened their grip as Asia-Pacific’s wealthiest after their combined fortunes swelled to nearly US$1.8 trillion, with electric-vehicle (EV) maker BYD’s founder Wang Chuanfu and bubble tea chain Mixue’s bosses among the biggest drivers of that growth, according to a UBS report. Backed by a booming tech sector and surging asset prices, the wealth of mainland China’s billionaires jumped 22.2 per cent year on year to US$1.77 trillion in the 12 months to early...

Economics

42 h. ago As China’s companies become industry leaders, where in the world are they going?

With their domestic profits narrowing and production capacity expanding, China’s firms are continuing to widen their overseas footprints in search of new, more lucrative markets. In this series, we examine China Inc.’s next phase of “going global” and the complex, challenging international environment its companies have chosen to enter. The “Made in China” label has evolved considerably in recent decades. Mostly found affixed to low-cost goods of relative simplicity in China’s early years as a...

Politics

52 h. ago Beyond factories: how China’s trendy brands turn local into global influence

With their domestic profits narrowing and production capacity expanding, China’s firms are continuing to widen their overseas footprints in search of new, more lucrative markets. In this series, we examine China Inc.’s next phase of “going global” and the complex, challenging international environment its companies have chosen to enter. On a busy roadside in Riyadh, K-pop music – popular among the city’s youth – pulses from the speakers of Javis Wang’s bubble tea shop. His stores have...

Politics

52 h. ago Beyond factories: how China’s trendy brands turn local influence global

With their domestic profits narrowing and production capacity expanding, China’s firms are continuing to widen their overseas footprints in search of new, more lucrative markets. In this series, we examine China Inc.’s next phase of “going global” and the complex, challenging international environment its companies have chosen to enter. On a busy roadside in Riyadh, K-pop music – popular among the city’s youth – pulses from the speakers of Javis Wang’s bubble tea shop. His stores have...

Politics