Daily Buzz: 22 April 2026

Top News

US Extends Iran Ceasefire, Resumption of Peace Talks Uncertain

In a U-turn from threats a day earlier to resume bombing of Iran, US President Donald Trump extended a two-week ceasefire hours before it was due to expire. He said the extension will last until Tehran submits a "unified" peace proposal and "discussions are concluded, one way or the other." He said the Iranian government is "fractured" and vowed the US will continue its blockade of Iranian ports. The extension came as fresh talks in Pakistan between the two sides remained uncertain. US negotiators, contrary to earlier reports, have not left for Islamabad, and Iran has yet to agree to resume talks. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif thanked Trump for "graciously accepting" his request to extend the ceasefire and vowed to push on in mediating peace efforts.

Iran demanded the US release an Iranian-flagged ship it seized over the weekend and said it has "new cards" to play on the battlefield. The US blockade has extended beyond the Gulf region, with the US Navy seizing a sanctioned tanker carrying Iranian oil in the Indian Ocean, the New York Times reported. Oil prices hovered under US$100 a barrel as investors waited to see how the standoff will tip.

In Lebanon, Iran ally Hezbollah lobbed rockets and drones into northern Israel in retaliation for what it said was Israeli artillery shelling of a town in southern Lebanon. A 10-day truce in the fighting appeared all but gone.

Japan Opens Door to Exports of Warships, Missiles

Japan on Tuesday announced the biggest overhaul of defense export rules in decades, scrapping restrictions on overseas arms sales and opening the way for exports of warships, missiles and other weapons. Under Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, the nation is moving from postwar pacifism toward a stronger defense industrial base. The shift comes as the US signals less certainty about its longstanding security commitments to allies in Europe and Asia, CNN reported. One of the first exports under the new rules could be used warships to the Philippines. Last week, Australia signed a multibillion-dollar contract with Japan's Mitsubishi Heavy to build 11 warships to replace aging frigates. Spokesman of China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs Guo Jiakun said China is "well noted" for the move and the international community should be alerted by Japan's recent accelerating remilitarization. State media Xinhua commented Japan's policy shift and growing militaristic stance is "threatening the postwar peace order."

Top Business

V for Victory: China AI Circuit-Board Maker Rises in Market Debut

Shares in China's Victory Giant Technology, which supplies printed circuit boards to Nvidia, rose on their first day of trading in Hong Kong after an initial public offering that raised HK$20.1 billion (US$2.6 billion) – the city's largest IPO in seven months. The shares closed up 50 percent from their offer price. The retail portion of the IPO was oversubscribed more than 400 times amid continuing investor zeal for listings related to AI. The Huizhou-based company makes advanced printed circuit boards for AI servers and data center switches. Last year, Victory Giant held a 14 percent global market share in its segment. The company said it will use proceeds from the share sale for research and development, and production expansion. It reported a 273 percent surge in 2025 profit to 4.3 billion yuan (US$631 million).

Zijin Mining Profit Nearly Doubles

Zijin Mining, one of China's largest producers of gold, copper and zinc, reported net profit in the first quarter nearly doubled to 20.1 billion yuan (US$3 billion) on higher ore output and solid commodity prices. The company posted revenue of 98.5 billion yuan, up 25 percent from a year earlier. Gold production increased 23 percent to 23.5 tons, driven in part by newly acquired assets under subsidiary Zijin Gold International, including mines in Ghana and Kazakhstan. Copper output reached 260,000 tons. Excluding disruptions at the Kamoa-Kakula mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo, other operations progressed in line with annual plans. The second phase of the Julong copper mine in southwestern China, launched in late January, produced 60,000 tons in the quarter. Lithium output totaled 16,000 tons of lithium carbonate equivalent. Zijin said expects output to reach 120,000 tons this year and up to 320,000 tons by 2028, positioning lithium as a key growth driver.

China Mobile, Unicom Post Declines in Q1 Profit

China Mobile, the nation's biggest wireless carrier, reported a 4.2 percent drop in first-quarter profit from a year earlier to 29.3 billion yuan (US$4.3 billion), on a 1 percent gain in operating revenue to 266.5 billion yuan, as traditional telecom growth slowed and emerging businesses such as AI computing gained momentum. The company said the number of mobile subscribers in the first three months was relatively flat at 1 billion, including 668 million 5G customers. Broadband network customers rose to 333 million from 329 million a year earlier. Cellular Internet of Things connections rose marginally to 1.5 billion. Revenue from other business segments, including AI smart computing, increased 13 percent to 46.6 billion yuan.

China Unicom, the country's second-largest telecom carrier, said its profit dropped 18 percent to 2.1 billion yuan in the first quarter on a 0.5 percent dip in revenue to 102.8 billion yuan. For both carriers, higher value-added taxes were cited as one reason for profit declines, but China Unicom's worse-than-expected performance showed its less agile adjustment toward new services, analysts said.

Economy & Markets

Shanghai, Shenzhen Seen as Leaders in Property Market Recovery

Shanghai and Shenzhen will be the first Chinese cities to enter a property market recovery after bottoming out this year, according to US investment bank Goldman Sachs. The US investment bank said their recovery will precede a nationwide rebound by 6-24 months. House prices in the two cities are expected to rise by 15 percent over the next three years. In March, 31,215 existing homes were sold in Shanghai, the highest in five years. That came amid central bank data showing a rise in mortgage lending. The national property market declined in the first quarter, with new home sales down 17 percent as mortgages. The market has been in a slump since developer defaults on debt in 2021.

China Predicts Higher Grain Harvest

China's grain harvest is forecast to rise 0.2 percent this year to 716 million tons, with yields rising to almost 6 tons per hectare, the agriculture ministry reported. Oilseed output is expected to increase 2.6 percent to 42 million tons. The report forecast that China's consumption of cooking oil will dip 0.2 percent from a year earlier in 2026, while soybean and dairy consumption will both increase 0.6 percent. Farm prices are expected to remain generally stable.

Gao Feng, Shanghai Think Tank Sign Agreement to Assist SOEs

Management consulting firm Gao Feng Advisory signed an agreement with Shanghai State-owned Capital Operations Think Tank to collaborate on upgrading AI applications of state-owned companies, leveraging professional expertise to empower high-quality digital transformation in industry. Representatives from SenseTime, Rockwell Automation, BrainCo, Lark (Feishu) and Ping An Life Insurance attended the signing ceremony.

Corporate

CATL Unveils Sodium-Ion, Ultra-Fast Charging Batteries

Chinese battery titan Contemporary Ampere Technology (CATL) dominated the headlines at a technology event ahead of the Beijing Auto Show that will open on Friday, announcing it will begin mass production of sodium-ion batteries this year. Company chief scientist Wu Kai said the new batteries are engineered for resilience in extreme cold, addressing a problem that has slowed acceptance of electric cars in colder climates. The company also debuted its next-generation, super-fast charging technology, capable of reaching a 98 percent charge in approximately six minutes. The company has maintained a steady 30 percent share of the global vehicle battery market, with its domestic share at 48 percent. CATL's share price closed at record highs last week in the Shenzhen market.

Muyuan Foods Profit Plunges 127 Percent

Muyuan Foods, one of the world's biggest hog breeders and pork producers, said first-quarter profit plunged 127 percent to 1.2 billion yuan (US$176 million) on a 17 percent decline in revenue to 29.9 billion yuan. The company wrote down 41.5 million yuan in credit and asset impairments. The domestic hog and pork market has been suffering from oversupply and plummeting prices. The Nanyang-based company earlier said its revenue in the first two months of this year dropped despite selling more than 11.6 million hogs.

Moonshot AI Unveils New Model

Chinese startup Moonshot AI released its open-source Kimi K2.6 model, which supports up to 13 hours of continuous coding and can run 300 sub-agents compatible with OpenClaw and Hermes agents. Founded in 2023, the Beijing-based company develops large language models and has been called one of China's "AI Tigers."

Huawei Debuts First Diamond Smartwatch

Huawei launched its first jewelry smartwatch, designed by Francesca Amfitheatrof. The Ultimate Star Diamond watch will go on sale in mid-May at a price of 29,999 yuan (US$4,400). The watch features 99 natural diamonds.

Chery Opens New Plant in Thailand

Chinese automaker Chery and its subsidiary Omoda & Jaecoo officially opened their new energy vehicle production facility in Thailand on Monday, another milestone in global expansion. The plant's annual capacity will reach 80,000 vehicles by 2030. Separately, Chery said it is working to expand beyond its SUV range to produce smaller vehicles for the European market. The company is already assembling cars in Europe through ⁠a joint venture in a former Nissan plant in Spain.