Will US let Taiwan buy F-35 jets with ‘protection fees’ demanded by Trump?

Will US let Taiwan buy F-35 jets with ‘protection fees’ demanded by Trump?

Taiwan is exploring the possibility of acquiring F-35 fighter jets and other advanced US weaponry, but pundits doubt the plan will get past Washington’s long-held concerns about military technology leaking into the hands of the People’s Liberation Army. According to a recent Financial Times report, Taipei has reached out to president-elect Donald Trump’s team about … Read more

Beijing plans 12-inch wafer fab, pouring US$4.6 billion into state-backed chip project

Beijing plans 12-inch wafer fab, pouring US.6 billion into state-backed chip project

Beijing is set to spend 33 billion yuan (US$4.6 billion) building a 12-inch wafer fabrication facility, led by state-owned enterprises and funds, marking another step in China’s efforts to boost domestic semiconductor production Leading firms involved in the new facility include Beijing Yandong Microelectronics (YDME), which is listed on Shanghai’s Star Market, and BOE Technology, … Read more

What does Trump’s pick for Pentagon chief mean for US-China military ties?

What does Trump’s pick for Pentagon chief mean for US-China military ties?

US president-elect Donald Trump’s surprise pick of Pete Hegseth, a television host and army veteran, to be his Pentagon chief is expected to inject more unpredictability into the already fragile US-China military relationship, according to analysts. Hegseth, 44, is a Fox News political commentator and a military veteran who served tours of duty in Iraq … Read more

Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun marks roll-out of 100,000th EV by paying homage to Tesla’s Elon Musk

Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun marks roll-out of 100,000th EV by paying homage to Tesla’s Elon Musk

Xiaomi founder, chairman and chief executive Lei Jun on Wednesday marked the roll-out of the firm’s 100,000th electric vehicle (EV) from the assembly line with a social-media post of himself sleeping on the factory floor, paying homage to what Elon Musk did during the early days of Tesla. In a post published at 7:57am on … Read more

Shenzhen’s soaring R&D spending rivals Beijing, dwarfs Hong Kong amid China’s tech drive

Shenzhen’s soaring R&D spending rivals Beijing, dwarfs Hong Kong amid China’s tech drive

China’s southern tech hub Shenzhen spent a record amount on research and development (R&D) last year, rivalling Beijing’s level and vastly exceeding that of neighbouring Hong Kong to cement its position as a national research mecca. Shenzhen’s R&D expenditure jumped to 223.66 billion yuan (US$30.93 billion) in 2023, surpassing the 200-billion-yuan mark for the first … Read more

Why Donald Trump’s win could mean a defence budget nightmare for Taiwan

Why Donald Trump’s win could mean a defence budget nightmare for Taiwan

US president-elect Donald Trump made Taiwan a focal point of his 2024 campaign, advocating increased defence spending by the island and casting a critical eye on its semiconductor dominance. While some Taiwanese officials have dismissed these statements as campaign rhetoric, Trump’s repeated calls for Taiwan to pay “protection fees” and increase its defence spending to … Read more

China’s US$35.5 billion research fund needs more precision to win hi-tech race: minister

China’s US.5 billion research fund needs more precision to win hi-tech race: minister

China’s system of cultivating talent needs an overhaul if it is to serve Beijing’s ambitions to be an education power, while its universities lag far behind their peers in international appeal, the top legislature has heard. Education Minister Huai Jinpeng told a meeting of the National People’s Congress (NPC) Standing Committee last week that the … Read more

China’s ‘AI Tiger’ Zhipu in race to bring enhanced features to video-generation apps

China’s ‘AI Tiger’ Zhipu in race to bring enhanced features to video-generation apps

China’s state-backed unicorn Zhipu AI has introduced a series of artificial intelligence (AI) features to its video tool Ying, in a heated race with other start-ups and Big Tech companies to woo users in a growing market for AI-assisted video creation tools. After the updates, Ying will be able to generate 4K high-definition video clips … Read more

Alibaba sees Singles’ Day campaign pay off with strong sales in 4 popular categories

Alibaba sees Singles’ Day campaign pay off with strong sales in 4 popular categories

Alibaba Group Holding says this year’s Singles’ Day campaign has seen strong demand in four product categories – home appliances, consumer electronics, beauty and apparel – in a sign of consumer-spending recovery on the mainland, as the world’s largest online shopping festival drew to a close on Monday. Taobao and Tmall Group (TTG), Alibaba’s domestic … Read more

Global Impact | As the dust settles on Trump’s win, what’s in store for US-China relations?

Global Impact | As the dust settles on Trump’s win, what’s in store for US-China relations?

Global Impact is a weekly curated newsletter featuring a news topic originating in China with a significant macro impact for our newsreaders around the world. Sign up now! Ahead of the US election, the world was bracing itself for a long, uncertain period during which America might descend into violence as a power struggle between … Read more