Daily Buzz: 16 January 2026

TSMC Profit Jumps in Fourth Quarter, Triggers Chip Rally

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, the world's largest contract chipmaker, said fourth-quarter profit surged 35 percent from a year earlier to a record NT$505.7 billion (US$16 billion) on surging demand from the AI industry. It was the seventh straight quarter of double-digit profit growth and exceeded analysts' forecasts. Net profit margin was 48 percent. Revenue rose 21 percent to NT$1 trillion. Advanced chips measuring 7 nanometers or smaller comprised 77 percent of wafer sales in the quarter. For 2025, the company posted annual revenue of NT$3.8 trillion, up 32 percent, and a 46 percent surge in profit to NT$1.7 trillion. Capital expenditure last year totaled US$41 billion, with the company forecasting capex will rise to as high as US$56 billion this year. TSMC shares in New York surged nearly 5 percent, triggering a rally across the chip sector. Shares in Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices rose.

TSMC is Asia's largest technology company by market capitalization and a bellwether in the global industry. The US government said on Thursday that Taiwan chip companies will invest at least US$250 billion in production capacity in the US under a trade agreement that lowered tariffs on imports from Taiwan to 15 percent from 20 percent. Taiwan Semiconductor has bought land and could expand in the state of Arizona, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told CNBC.

US-Iran Tensions Ease, China Urges Restraint

Several Arab states, including Qatar, Oman, Saudi Arabia and Egypt, helped to de-escalate tensions between Washington and Tehran this week, fearing wider repercussions across the region, CNN reported. The White House said President Donald Trump hasn't ruled out military intervention

after Iranian protests against the rising cost of living left thousands dead. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Thursday called for peace and restraint in the Iran situation as tensions continue to simmer. The Trump administration has announced new sanctions against Iranian individuals and entities that it alleges were involved in suppressing demonstrations or are involved in laundering proceeds of oil sales to foreign markets.

Trump Blames Zelensky for Stalled Ukraine Peace Talks

US President Donald Trump, who blows hot and cold in his relations with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, has pointed the finger of blame for stalled peace talks back to Zelensky. His latest accusation is disputed by Kiev and its European allies, who say Moscow has refused to compromise and has no interest in ending the war. Trump, however, told Reuters that Russian President Vladimir Putin is ready to make a deal to wrap up the four-year war and Zelensky is holding up progress.

Meanwhile, Zelensky declared a national state of emergency as Russian air strikes on the power infrastructure have left residents across the nation without heat as temperatures plummet to below-20 Centigrade. Zelensky said energy imports will be increased and emergency crews are working around the clock to restore power supplies.

Machado Gives Nobel Peace Prize Medal to Trump

Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado said she presented the Noble Peace Prize medal she won last year to President Donald Trump during a White House meeting to thank him for US intervention that ousted former Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro. The gesture was symbolic only because the Nobel committee has said awards aren't transferrable. Trump last year made no secret of his desire to win the coveted peace prize.

Philippines Grants Visa-Free Entry to China Tourists

The Philippines said it is granting visa-free entry for up to 14 days to Chinese nationals for the next 12 months. The policy affects only arrivals through airports in Manila and Cebu, and comes ahead of the Chinese Lunar New Year holiday next month, a big travel season for family reunions. The Philippines has a large ethnic Chinese population. The new visa-free policy was the second most discussed topic on Chinese social media platform Weibo on Thursday.

Top Business

Citic Securities Signals Record 2025 Profit

Citic Securities, a major Chinse investment bank offering brokerage, wealth management and underwriting services, said in a preliminary earnings report that 2025 operating revenue rose 29 percent from a year earlier to 74.8 billion yuan (US$10.7 billion) and profit rose 38 percent to a record 30 billion yuan. The Shenzhen-based firm said it maintained steady growth across all business lines, benefitting from increased trading in China's domestic capital markets and expansion offshore.

Alibaba Links Shopping to AI App

Alibaba Group began connecting its flagship services, including Taobao, Alipay, travel platform Fliggy and mapping service Amap, to its AI app Qwen on Thursday. The move represents a major step toward turning Qwen into a one-stop AI platform for 100 million users. The integration, now open for public testing in China, will allow consumers to shop, book travel and pay for services via AI. Alibaba aims to gradually expand Qwen into a full-feature personal assistant for the general public. The initiative highlights a trend among tech giants like Amazon and Meta, which are exploring ways for artificial intelligence to perform practical, every-day tasks for users. With its existing "super app" ecosystem, Alibaba is positioning itself for AI applications across e-commerce, finance, travel, streaming and food delivery services.

Montage Technology Said Poised for US$900 Million HK IPO

Shanghai-based chip designer Montage Technology is planning an initial public offering in Hong Kong this month that could raise US$900 million, with Alibaba Group, JP Morgan Asset Management, Mirae Asset Securities and Aberdeen Group among cornerstone investors, Bloomberg News reported. Pricing for the IPO hasn't been announced. Montage, founded in 2024, makes chips designed to speed data flows within data centers and AI accelerators. Its shares in Shanghai surged 73 per cent last year, and 2025 profit is estimated 2.3 billion yuan (US$330 million). AI-related Chinese companies have already raised US$4.3 billion in Hong Kong IPOs this year.

Musk Cleans Up Grok AI Tool to Prevent Sexually Explicit Images

Elon Musk's xAI has announced it will block the ability of people using its Grok AI tool to alter images of real people without their consent to naked or semi-clad deepfake images. The decision came amid a global backlash that has seen several countries, including Malaysia and Indonesia banning the site, and others like the UK threatening to do so. The sexually explicit images were largely centered on women and children. The changes will apply to all users on the platform.

Economy & Markets

China Central Bank Eases Rates for Some Sectors

China's central bank announced cuts to sector-specific interest rates to give the economy an early-year boost, and it left the door open for further monetary easing in 2026. The People's Bank of China said interest rates of so-called "structural monetary tools" will be reduced by 0.25 point to 1.25 percent, effective January 19. The bank said it is expanding its relending program providing cheaper loans to small and midsize technology companies by 400 billion yuan (US$57 billion) to 1.2 trillion yuan. The lending quota for agriculture and small business will be raised by 500 billion yuan, while a separate 1 trillion yuan relending facility will be established to support smaller private firms. In addition, the minimum downpayment for commercial mortgages will fall to 30 percent.

Lending under sector-specific monetary tools totaled 5.9 trillion yuan as of last March, the latest data published, accounting for about 13 percent of the central bank's balance sheet, Reuters reported, citing Standard Chartered Bank analysts. These tools don't have the same wide-reaching effects as headline prime rates and reserve requirements imposed on banks, but Zou Lan, deputy central bank governor, said on Thursday that moves in those settings may come later this year.

Kuaishou Technology Selling US$2 Billion in Offshore Debt

Beijing-based short-video streamer Kuaishou Technology began sales of its first offshore bonds to raise funds for AI-related enhancements, Bloomberg News reported. The company is marketing three-year and 10-year dollar-denominated bonds, and five-year, yuan-denominated "dim sum" bonds, aiming to raise an aggregate US$2 billion. It's expected to announce pricing this week. Kuaishou is a rival to ByteDance and Douyin in short-video streaming services. The company has an "A3" rating from Moody's and an "A-minus" rating from Standard & Poor's.

China Remains King of Global Online Retailing

China remained the world's largest online retail market in 2025 for a 13th straight year, with digital spending of about 24 trillion yuan (US$3.4 trillion), Xinhua reported. A recent national e-commerce conference said the sector has improved in quality because of technology gains in software and information services, and is also an engine of job creation. Online sales comprise more than a quarter of all retail sales, more than doubling that ratio in 10 years.

US Sells First Load of Venezuelan Oil

The US has begun selling stockpiled Venezuelan oil, starting with a US$500 million sale at discounted prices to undisclosed traders, Reuters reported. The money is going into a US bank account in Qatar. Washington took over the oil industry after attacking Caracas and capturing president Nicolas Maduro. OPEC member Venezuela has the world's largest reserves of dense, sticky crude, but its industry has been crippled for years by mismanagement and deteriorating infrastructure. US oil companies have been leery of President Donald Trump's proposal that they invest US$100 billion to rebuild it.

Corporate

Kingsoft Office to Scale Up Service for Vietnam

Shanghai-listed tech giant Kingsoft Office and Vietnam information services provider FPT Corp agreed to work together to expand Kingsoft's AI-powered WPS 365 office suite in Vietnam. The nation's digital sector is expanding three times faster than overall growth, and Kingsoft already has 5 million users there. WPS 365's AI capabilities and interfaces have applications specifically designed for Vietnamese market.

BYD, Ford Reported in Talks on Battery Deal

China's BYD, the world's largest maker of electric vehicles, is in discussions with Ford to sell the US automaker batteries for its hybrid models, the Wall Street Journal reported. With demand for new energy vehicles waning in the US, the deal would reportedly involve use of BYD batteries for Ford models sold overseas. The pact, if it eventuates, would give Ford access to cheaper batteries and advanced technology from BYD. Ford said last month it's scrapping several all-electric models.

Pony.ai, BAIC Deepen Robotaxi Partnership for Global Expansion

Robotaxi company Pony.ai and Beijing Automotive Group have announced an upgraded partnership to expand global marketing of self-driving features. The agreement extends the deployment of the ARCFOX Alpha T5 robotaxi and its proprietary operating system across Europe and the Middle East with a "billion yuan-level" investment. The partnership has already manufactured 600 units of the ARCFOX Alpha T5, which support Pony.ai's broader goal of reaching 3,000 operational units by the end of 2026. Pony.ai currently operates in eight countries, including the UAE, Qatar, South Korea and Luxembourg.

Jereh Oilfield Secures Second Contract in North America

China's Jereh Oilfield Services said it has secured a US$106 million order for gas-turbine generators from a US-based artificial intelligence company that it didn't identify. Yantai-based Jereh in November said it signed a US$100 contract with a North American AI data center. The company provides smart power solutions that related to generators, energy storage and power transmission, Yicai Global reported.