Daily Buzz: 22 May 2026

Top News

Nvidia Chief 'Largely Concedes' China Chip Market to Huawei

Nvidia Chief Executive Jensen Huang told a CNBC interview that his company has "largely conceded" China's AI chip market to Chinese tech giant Huawei as US export restrictions continue to reshape the global semiconductor landscape. "The demand in China is quite large," he said. "Huawei is very, very strong. They had a record year; they'll likely, very likely, have an extraordinary year coming up, and their local ecosystem of chip companies are doing quite well, because we've evacuated that market." His comments came after Nvidia posted an 85 percent surge in revenue to US$81.6 billion for its first fiscal quarter ended April 27. China formerly comprised about a fifth of Nvidia data center revenue, but Washington has restricted exports of its advanced AI chips, while Beijing has accelerated its drive toward chip self-sufficiency. Looking forward, Huang said Nvidia investors should "expect nothing" in sales of chips to China going forward.

US Continues Upbeat Assessment of Indirect Talks With Iran

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, echoing the sentiments of his boss President Donald Trump, said there are "some good signs" that a deal to end the Iran war could be in sight but said he didn't want to be "overly optimistic." Indirect negotiations through intermediary Pakistan are continuing. Rubio said, however, that a deal could be jeopardized if Iran imposes tolls on vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz, which Tehran is currently in the process of doing. Investors chose to latch on to promising words, not the fact of a continuing impasse in a breakthrough. Global Brent crude futures traded slightly lower at US$105 a barrel late in New York.

Iran President Masoud Pezeshkian says that "all paths" to a diplomatic solution "remain open from our side" but warned that his country cannot be forced to surrender by US coercion. Trump continues to talk up a peace deal while threatening to resume attacks on Iran if they fail. Trump had a "tense" phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu this week, CNN reported, citing Israeli sources who said Netanyahu told Trump that delaying a resumption of attacks is a mistake. He also made clear his opposition to any deal that doesn't address Tehran's stockpile of enriched uranium. Iran's supreme leader, in a statement, said the uranium should remain in Iran.

Three supertankers carrying 6 million barrels of Persian crude oil transited the Strait of Hormuz this week, as Iran sets up a system of controls over the waterway, involving checkpoints, tolls and strict sailing channels. It isn't known if any of the supertankers paid tolls. The United Arab Emirates, chief oil producer in the Gulf, said it has completed about half of an oil pipeline that will bypass the strait and ship oil to Oman. The pipeline is expected to become operational next year. in 2027. The UAE said 100 million barrels of oil are lost every week that the strait remains closed to normal traffic.

Top Business

Gamemaker NetEase Q1 Profit Beats Expectations

NetEase, a Chinese internet and mobile games giant, beat expectations with a 3.6 percent rise in first-quarter profit to 10.7 billion yuan (US$1.6 billion) and a 6 percent increase in revenue to 30.6 billion yuan. Revenue from online games rose 7 percent to 25.1 billion yuan. The company cited the strength of titles such as "Fantasy Westward Journey," "Identity V," "Eggy Party," "Sword of Justice" and "Where Winds Meet." Chief Executive William Ding said in a statement, "We delivered another solid quarter across our established gaming portfolio, while continuing to make steady progress advancing our pipeline of new titles." Looking ahead, analysts said the company faces challenges of higher costs, intense industry competition and slower consumer spending. Netease is listed on both the Hong Kong and Nasdaq exchanges.

Nio Narrows First-Quarter Loss

Chinese carmaker Nio narrowed its first-quarter loss to 496 million yuan (US$73 million) from 6.7 billion yuan a year on a doubling of revenue to 25.5 billion yuan. It reported deliveries of 83,465 vehicles in the quarter, with car sales rising 130 percent to 22.8 billion yuan, mainly due to an increase in delivery volume and a higher average selling price mainly driven by a favorable product mix. The margin on vehicle sales rose to 19 percent from 10 percent. Research and development expenses in the first quarter fell 41 percent to 1.9 billion yuan. For the current quarter, the company forecast deliveries of up to 115,000 vehicles and revenue as high as 34.4 billion yuan.

Data Center Operator GDS Posts 247 Percent Surge in Profit

Shanghai-based GDS Holdings, which develops and operates data centers in China, said first-quarter profit surged 247 percent to 2.7 billion yuan (US$384.5 million) on a 24 percent increase in revenue to 3.4 billion yuan. The company serves cloud service providers, large Internet companies, financial institutions and telecommunications carriers. The company said it had 674,269 square meters of area service on the quarter, with 118,411 square meters under construction. In the first three months, GDS completed a private placement of US$300 million in convertible preferred shares to Huatai Capital Investment.

Samsung Electronics, Union Reach Settlement, Thwarting Strike

Samsung Electronics, one of the world's biggest chipmakers, and its labor union reached a tentative agreement after workers postponed a pending 18-day strike to allow for last-minute talks involving government mediators. Union members are due to vote on the agreement from May 22-27. Yonhap news agency said the accord would give the highly profitable chip division 40 percent of the company's bonus pool, with the rest going to other units. Reuters reported Samsung will allocate a special bonus equivalent to 10.5 percent of operating profit to the profitable chip division. The special bonus would be partially funded with company stock, contingent on the division exceeding operating profit targets of 100 trillion won (US$66.4 billion) for 2026-28. A group of Samsung Electronics shareholders vowed legal action against the deal. Samsung has posted record profits on rising global chip prices. The company accounts for nearly a quarter of South Korea's exports.

Economy & Markets

Value of Chinese Yuan Rises to Three-Year High

The Chinese yuan rose to its strongest level against the US dollar in three years. The People's Bank of China sets a daily midpoint for the value of the currency and allows it to within 2 percent either side of that point. On Thursday, the central bank set the midpoint at 6.83 to the dollar. That followed a 0.22 per cent appreciation in the offshore yuan to 6.80 a day earlier. China has been gradually allowing the yuan to appreciate, amid resilient export growth and a weaker dollar. A higher yuan makes exports more expensive for foreign buyers and imports cheaper. The Bank of America this week predicted the yuan would strengthen to 6.7 to the dollar.

Schroder Says Transfer of China Funds Doesn't Signal Market Exit

UK asset manager Schroder denied rumors that it is leaving the China market, saying that its decision to transfer three public funds managed by its wholly owned China unit to US investment firm Neuberger Berman is a routine global realignment. The firm said it remains fully committed to the Chinese market and will continue to provide public and private fund services for Chinese investors. Schroder began a global restructuring last year, aimed at sharpening its business focus and improving operational efficiency.

Japan Exports Surge on Chip Shipments

Japan's exports in April rose an eighth straight month, climbing 14.8 percent from a year earlier and beating market forecasts on a 42 percent surge in semiconductor shipments. Imports increased 9.7 percent. Exports to China grew 16 percent, to the US 9.5 percent, to the EU 27 percent, and to Southeast Asia 20 percent, but shipments to the Middle East fell 56 percent on the Iran war. Exports increased in all sub-categories, including vehicles, electrical machinery and scientific optical equipment.

China's Electric-Car Charging Network Expands

China's electric-vehicle charging network infrastructure reached 22 million stations at the the end of April, up 47 percent from a year earlier, led by private facilities, according to the National Energy Administration. Privately operated stations totaled 17 million, with the rest public. China has rapidly expanded charging infrastructure in recent years as electric vehicle adoption accelerates nationwide.

Corporate

Tesla Brings Self-Driving System to China

Tesla said on Thursday that its supervised full self-driving system is now available in China and will be rolled out globally. The announcement came after Tesla China posted several job openings tied to autonomous-driving testing, including autopilot test engineers and data labelers, fueling speculation that the US automaker is accelerating local deployment. The 64,000 yuan (US$9,400) smart-driving package is not yet compatible with all vehicles and remains subject to regulatory approval in China. The company said it is working with authorities and plans to release the feature to customers once approvals are completed.

Guess to Resume Sales on the Chinese Mainland With Chinese Partner

US clothing retailer Guess will relaunch operations in the Chinese market with local partner Ruisi Haishang, two months after closing all of its online and offline stores there, Yicai reported, citing parent Authentic Brands Group. Sales will restart with a stronger focus on trends in the Chinese consumer market rather just selling global brands. Ruisi Haishang will handle development, production, distribution and sales of Guess womenswear, menswear and childrenswear lines. Hangzhou-based Ruisi Haishang is a joint venture between Quanshang Technology and Yinian Huasheng.

BOE Links Up With Corning

China's BOE, the world's largest display maker, said it has formed a partnership with US-based glass and ceramics manufacturer Corning to explore technological development and market opportunities in next-generation consumer electronics and computing technology over the next three years. The collaboration will focus on glass-based packaging substrates, foldable glass, perovskite glass substrates used in solar cells and optical interconnects.

Jinlihua Electric to Enter Aerospace Industry

Zhejiang Province-based Jinlihua Electric, a maker of toughened glass and insulation products, said it plans to enter the commercial aerospace sector by buying an 83 percent stake in commercial satellite designer and manufacturer Xiopm Space. Jinlihua Electric said the cash-and-share deal will include issuing shares to 11 shareholders of Xiopm and also announced it will conduct a private placement of new shares to raise funds.

Kelin Electric to Raise Investment in Robotics Sector

Hangzhou-based Kelin Electric, a Chinese smart-power system supplier, said it will invest as much as 300 million yuan (US$44 million) to boost its stake in startup Kepler Robotics to a controlling 51 percent as it seeks to expand in the sector. Kepler has been operating at a loss, though it reportedly has 47 million yuan of orders on hand.

Nongfu Spring Founder Bets on Solid-State Batteries

Zhong Shansha, founder of Chinese bottled water company Nongfu Spring, has indirectly backed a solid-state battery startup through his holding company Yang Sheng Tang. The holding company, which has an 81 percent stake in a venture fund that recently led a fundraising round for Zhibang Lithium New Materials, took about a 10 percent equity stake. Zhibang develops solid electrolytes for all-solid-state batteries and is building a factory with annual capacity of 11,000 tons.

Luxury Retailers Report Revenue Growth

French luxury house Chanel said 2025 revenue rose 3 percent to US$19.3 billion, returning to growth after a weak 2024 marked by slowing demand in China. Comparable sales increased 1.8 percent, while operating profit climbed 5.2 percent to US$4.7 billion. Net income, however, fell 14.3 percent to US$2.9 billion.

Luxury retailer Ralph Lauren beat analysts' revenue forecasts in its fiscal fourth quarter ended March 31, citing a 50 percent surge in sales in China. Ralph Lauren reported revenue rose 17 percent to US$2 billion and net income rose to US$152 million from US$129 million a year earlier.