51 h. ago China to remove tariffs on nearly all goods from Africa as both criticise US

Twenty more African countries, mostly from the continent’s middle-income nations, are set to gain access to the world’s largest consumer market duty-free as Beijing plans to remove tariffs for all products from every African nation except eSwatini. The measure was announced as African ministers joined Beijing at a meeting in central China affiliated with the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC). Amid the tariff war, representatives from China and African nations accused the United States of...

Politics

60 h. ago China approves world’s biggest amphibious plane, AG600, for mass production

China’s home-grown AG600, the world’s largest amphibious aircraft, has been given the green light for mass production, marking a step forward in building an independent and globally competitive aviation industry. The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) certified the plane on Wednesday, confirming that its developer, the state-owned Aviation Industry Corporation of China (Avic), has established a reliable system to consistently produce aircraft that meet safety standards, according to...

Politics

61 h. ago US venture capital firm to unload stakes in 40 Chinese tech start

Shares of a few dozen China-based start-ups may be up for grabs as their investor, US venture-capital firm Eight Roads, plans to exit its Chinese technology holdings. The move, reported by Bloomberg on Tuesday, comes as geopolitical tensions and a sluggish Chinese economy prompt some global investors to retreat. Domestic and government-backed funds and financing products would increasingly drive start-up funding in the world’s second-largest economy, analysts said. Fidelity Ventures-backed Eight...

Politics

3 d. ago Hong Kong must ‘seize opportunities’ to attract talent amid US student visa woes

Hong Kong should capitalise on the opportunities arising from US-China tensions to attract more talent to its academic and tech sectors, heads of the city’s top medical schools have said, ahead of a visit to the world’s largest biotechnology event in Boston. Representatives from the medical faculties of the University of Hong Kong (HKU) and the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) will join the delegation of the government-funded Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP)...

Politics

4 d. ago Apple’s most sweeping software redesign disappoints mainland Chinese consumers

Mainland Chinese consumers were left unimpressed by Apple’s most sweeping software redesign in its history, according to domestic social media posts on Tuesday, at a time when the US technology giant faces growing headwinds in the world’s largest smartphone market. Apple on Monday previewed a new software interface design, called Liquid Glass, during the company’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference held at its US headquarters in Cupertino, California. For the very first time, the new design...

Events

4 d. ago China’s solar panel makers seek antidote to market ills as glut, price war, tariffs bite

China’s solar photovoltaic (PV) manufacturers are looking for solutions to years of price wars and losses at home amid excess capacity and waning demand as executives gathered in Shanghai to discuss the problems crippling the industry. They will get a chance to gauge the crisis as the financial hub plays host to the SNEC PV+ Photovoltaic Power Conference and Exhibition from Tuesday to Friday. The conference is the largest of its kind, attracting some 3,000 enterprises from more than 100...

Economics

4 d. ago Losses, pricing reform in focus as Shanghai hosts world's largest solar conference

Losses, pricing reform in focus as Shanghai hosts world's largest solar conference  Reuters

Politics

4 d. ago US stocks drift and Chinese markets rise as trade talks start between the world's largest economies

US stocks drift and Chinese markets rise as trade talks start between the world's largest economies  AP News

Economics

5 d. ago Ahead of US trade talks, China’s rare earth trade data from May sends a message

In a reflection of Beijing’s ability to quickly leverage its dominance over the critical-mineral supply chain, the value of rare earth elements exported by China last month plunged by nearly half compared with a year prior. The official data came as analysts have been saying that China’s export controls over large quantities of critical minerals are like the ultimate trump card in trade negotiations with the United States. The world’s second-largest economy exported rare earth elements worth...

Politics

5 d. ago Hibor plunge a bigger deal for stock market than Hong Kong’s property sector

Hong Kong needs all the help it can get. Since 2018, the city has suffered one shock after another, preventing a meaningful recovery from taking hold and fuelling concerns about its position as a global financial centre. As an importer of US monetary policy with an economy that is far more synchronised with that of mainland China, Hong Kong has been the biggest casualty of economic and policy divergence between the world’s two largest economies, prompting renewed questions about the suitability...

Economics

5 d. ago China’s Geely hits the brakes on new plant construction globally: Li Shufu

Geely Auto, the mainland’s second-largest carmaker, will not build new plants amid excess capacity worldwide, a move that is likely to ripple across the sector as most Chinese companies are finding it difficult to make profits. Chairman Li Shufu told the Chongqing Auto Show over the weekend that the company would avoid building excess capacity and instead focus on improving its technological capabilities to become a key player in the future of mobility. “The global automotive industry is mired...

Events

5 d. ago How BYD and Chinese peers are transforming Europe’s small EV market

Some of the world’s biggest carmakers are squaring off for a titanic battle over small cars in Europe, as native stalwarts like Volkswagen and Renault fight to maintain their hold on the market against an influx of cheap electric vehicles (EVs) from BYD and its Chinese peers. Last month, BYD, which surpassed Tesla last year as the world’s largest EV maker, launched its Dolphin Surf compact hatchback in Europe. The company’s most affordable model, known in China as the Seagull, is priced from...

Politics

6 d. ago Pay dads to parent? How China could fix birth rate crisis, according to new research

Subsidising men’s participation in household chores and childcare could help reverse declining global birth rates, according to a new study, offering a fresh approach to deepening demographic challenges in countries like China. The study, co-authored by researchers from Fudan University and the University of Hong Kong (HKU), argued that subsidies for fathers produce significantly higher long-term fertility gains than solely subsidising mothers. The findings came as the world’s second-largest...

Events

8 d. ago Big shipowners take wind out of US sails, continue to order vessels from China

While a US port fee targeting ships linked to China has made some vessel buyers hesitant, major shipping companies – including Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), the world’s largest – are opting to continue working with Chinese shipyards, saying their competitiveness cannot be easily matched in the short term. Despite the United States’ determination to challenge China’s dominance in global shipbuilding, MSC senior vice-president Marie-Caroline Laurent told the Nor-Shipping Forum in Oslo this...

Politics

1 week ago Sweet deal: how China’s agritech helped turn Egypt’s desert into top sugar farm

Near the edge of the Sahara Desert, in Egypt’s West Minya, Chinese drillers bore deep into the earth, tapping groundwater to irrigate a once 500-hectare stretch of desert – now home to the world’s largest beet sugar factory. China’s Zhongman Petroleum has drilled 193 wells over the past three years to irrigate the farm, which supplies Canal Sugar – a joint venture backed by investors from the United Arab Emirates and Egypt – with an annual capacity of 900,000 tonnes, according to the state-run...

Politics

1 week ago China warns US pressure tactics won’t work for trade talks to happen

Beijing on Tuesday urged Washington to “respect facts, stop spreading disinformation, and correct its wrong practices” to create conditions for meaningful dialogue amid a dispute between the world’s two largest economies over a recent trade deal. “Pressure and coercion are not the right way to engage with China,” foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said in Beijing a day after the White House said that it was “likely” that US President Donald Trump would speak with Chinese President Xi Jinping...

Events

1 week ago ‘Full of gunpowder’: price wars of China’s carmakers deepen, draw Beijing’s ire

Beijing has amplified its warnings over cutthroat price wars among carmakers as deflationary pressure persists in the world’s second-largest economy, and economists say a reflation is likely to remain elusive. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), party mouthpieces and a carmaker association aired concerns at the weekend over recent discounts offered by manufacturers, while collectively deeming price wars a threat to product quality and the long-term development of the...

Events

1 week ago Nvidia builds new AI chip for China with computing cluster capabilities: report

Semiconductor giant Nvidia is developing a new China-tailored artificial intelligence (AI) chip that complies with US export regulations and will enable users to link multiple units to create high-performance computing clusters, according to a report by digital publication The Information. Nvidia plans to produce more than 1 million units of its new B30 chip this year, the report said, amid efforts by the company to preserve its market share in the world’s second-largest economy in the face of...

Politics

1 week ago China boosts Southeast Asian populations overlooked in Human Genome Project

For more than two decades, the Human Genome Project (HGP) – a landmark scientific endeavour led by Western nations – mapped humanity’s genetic blueprint, yet the rich diversity of Southeast Asia was overlooked. Despite being home to nearly 300 million people, including the world’s largest indigenous population, mainland Southeast Asia (MSEA) contributed a mere 1.57 per cent to global genomic databases, with most data derived from diaspora communities rather than local populations. Chinese...

Politics

1 week ago Apple faces another year of iPhone woes in China as Huawei rises

iPhone shipments in China are expected to drop further this year, partly because of rising competition from domestic brands, according to market research firm IDC, as Apple faces growing headwinds in the world’s largest smartphone market. Apple’s smartphone shipments in China were forecast to fall 1.9 per cent in 2025 owing to ongoing competition from Huawei Technologies and a broader economic slowdown in the country, the consultancy said in a report on Thursday. The exclusion of most iPhone...

Politics