Weekend Buzz: 24-25 January 2026

China Defends Wind Power Use Against Trump Jibes

China hit back at US President Donald Trump's criticisms of the nation's wind power industry. In a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Trump, an outspoken critic of wind power, said China makes almost all the windmills in the world, "yet I haven't been able to find any windfarms in China. They sell them overseas to stupid people who buy them but don't use them themselves." In Beijing, foreign minister spokesman Guo Jiakun said, "China's efforts to tackle climate change and promote the development and application of renewable energy in the world are obvious to all." He said the nation's installed capacity of wind power has ranked first in the world for 15 consecutive years, and its exports of wind power and photovoltaic products reduced carbon emissions by about 4.1 billion tons for other countries.

Move Over Greenland, Davos Buzz Was All About AI

Greenland may have captured the headlines during this week's World Economic Forum in Davos, but AI was the talk of the town, with many attendees reflecting on the US-China rivalry to dominate the technology. US President Donald Trump said in a speech to the forum, "We're leading China by a lot in AI," but many of those in attendance didn't agree. Arthur Mensch, chief executive of Paris-based tech startup Mistral, said claims that China lags the US in artificial intelligence is a "fairy tale." Moonshot President Zhang Yutong said China has the clear edge in development of power infrastructure needed to provide the vast amount of electricity needed to operate AI data centers. Mark Haefele, chief investment officer at UBS Global Wealth Management, told Yicai Global, "China seems to be using its AI to make its manufacturing capacity stronger and bigger, while in the US, it seems like a lot of AI capacity is going toward teenagers having AI boyfriends and girlfriends."

At various seminars and in media interviews, industry leaders and analysts also discussed the future impact of AI on daily life and jobs, whether there is a bubble in AI investment – most said no – and tighter regulation to prevent abuse of the technology. US tech entrepreneur Elon Musk predicted that artificial intelligence will be smarter than any human by the end of this year and smarter than collective humanity in five years.

Ukraine Trilateral Talks: High Stakes, Low Optimism

Ukraine, Russia and the US negotiators are holding two days of their first trilateral talks on ending the four-year war in Ukraine, but there's nothing new on the table in terms of reaching a final peace agreement. Moscow wants Kiev to cede the eastern industrial region of Donbas, including the 25 percent of the Donetsk area that Ukrainian troops still hold. Ukraine says surrendering the land to Russia would be rewarding an aggressor. Ahead of the talks in Abu Dhabi, both Russian and Ukrainian officials voiced hopes publicly that an agreement can be reached, but behind the scenes, optimism is low, according to those close to the talks. Meanwhile, Russian drones and missiles continue to bombard Ukrainian power infrastructure, causing the nation's worst wintertime energy crisis of the war.

Trump Riles NATO with Afghanistan Aspersions

US President Donald Trump, just two days after reaching what appears to be an agreement with NATO on Greenland, belittled the Western security alliance with remarks accusing non-US soldiers of staying away from the frontlines of battle in the Afghan war. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the remarks "insulting and frankly appalling" and demanded an apology. Around 3,500 allied troops died in the conflict, of which 457 were British. Denmark, with a population of only about 5 million lost more than 40 troops. Trans-Atlantic harmony has been strained in recent weeks by Trump's aggressive designs on controlling Greenland.

Top Business

China Car Sales Start the Year in a Slump

China car sales in the first 11 days of this month fell a third from a year earlier to 328,000 vehicles nationwide, with the manufacturers' wholesale market down 40 percent to 381,000, the China Passenger Car Association reported. New energy vehicle sales in the January 1-11 period dropped 38 percent after a government subsidy on their purchase was halved at the start of 2026. Chinese carmakers have lifted production forecasts for this year despite warnings that growth in the domestic auto market will slow in 2026.

Economy & Markets

China's Investment From Abroad Dips, Foreign Firms Increase

Direct foreign investment in China last year fell 9.5 percent to US$104 billion, despite the number of newly established foreign-backed firms jumping 19 percent to 70,392, China's Ministry of Commerce reported. Most foreign investment was directed at high-tech sectors, with e-commerce services skyrocketing 75 percent, followed by medical equipment at 42 percent and aerospace at 23 percent. Geographically, Switzerland led the foreign investment growth with a 67 percent increase, followed by the UAE at 27 percent and the UK at 16 percent.

Chinese Yuan Appreciates

China's central bank on Friday strengthened its mid-point daily fixing on the exchange rate of the yuan by 90 pips to 6.99 to the US dollar, which, given its allowed daily 2 percent range, put the Chinese currency above the 7 mark for the first time since May 2023, the South China Morning Post reported. The move comes amid continued weakness in the US dollar, reflecting geopolitical tensions and concerns about rising US debt. In an interview with Xinhua News Agency published on Thursday, People's Bank of China Governor Pan Gongsheng said the bank would "manage expectations well and keep the yuan basically stable at a reasonable and balanced level."

China Wealth Products Deliver Steady Gains

China's wealth management products posted steady returns in 2025, according to an annual report released by the China Banking Wealth Management Registration and Depository Center. The sector generated a total of 730.3 billion yuan (US$104 billion) in returns for investors, up nearly 3 percent from 2024. Some 136 banking institutions and 32 wealth management companies launched 33,400 new products during the year, raising 76.33 trillion yuan in funds.

Japan Inflation Slows Ahead of Snap Election

Japanese headline inflation in December slowed to 2.1 percent, its lowest level since March 2022, capping a year when consumer prices rose 3.2 percent. Core inflation, which excludes fresh food, was 2.4 percent in the last month of a year when rice prices skyrocketed to their highest in 50 years. Rice prices in December rose by 34.4 percent year-on-year, marking the seventh consecutive month of decelerating. The inflation data are the last to be released before a snap parliamentary election on February 8. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who took office last October, has pledged to suspend the 8 percent tax on food for two years. Japan's central bank in a Friday meeting held its key rate at 0.75 percent.

Industrial, Information Technology Power Growth

Shanghai's industrial and information technology sectors continued to underpin economic growth in 2025, contributing to roughly half of the city's growth, local authorities said. The contribution of industrial production to gross domestic product rose a percentage point, while that from information services industry added 1.6 points. Revenue from software and information services sector surged 153 percent to 1.7 trillion yuan (US$240 billion), ranking tops among growth contributors.

Deep Dive

What Might We Be Driving This Year? A Peek at Ultra-Tech Cars

China Biz Buzz previews the vehicles that will likely capture consumer attention this year in the world's largest auto market.

Corporate

Fosun to Spin Off, List Vaccine Unit

Shanghai-based Fosun Pharmaceutical will spin off and list its vaccine subsidiary on the Hong Kong stock exchange, the South China Morning Post reported. Going public will allow the unit, Fosun Adgenvax Biopharmaceutical, to strengthen its funding for research and development, Fosun said, without disclosing how much it hopes to raise in the initial public offering. The parent is already listed in both Shanghai and Hong Kong. Biotech companies last year raise more than US$1.5 billion in Hong Kong share sales. The Hang Seng Innovative Drug Index has surged 70 percent in a year.

China Merchants Bank Reports 2025 Growth

China Merchants Bank released its 2025 preliminary results on Friday, showing fairly flat revenue of 337.53 billion yuan (US$46.8 billion) after a decline in 2024. Net profit attributable to shareholders rose 1.2 percent to 150 billion yuan. The bank said its asset quality remained stable. Total assets surpassed 13 trillion yuan, marking a 7.56 percent increase, as the lender maintains its leading position in local retail banking.

Geovis Forecasts Sharp Profit Decline

Geovis Technology, a provider of satellite remote sensing and geospatial data services, said it expects its net profit for 2025 to plunge by as much as 91 percent from a year earlier. The Shanghai-listed company forecast net profit of between 30 million yuan (US$4.3 million) and 45 million yuan, according to a filing on Friday. Geovis said the decline was driven by slower expansion in its traditional businesses as the company shifts focus toward emerging sectors, including commercial space and the low-altitude economy. Increased spending on research and development, along with higher operating expenses, also weighed on earnings.

DiDi and GAC Aion Deliver Next-Gen Robotaxi

DiDi Autonomous Driving and Aion of Guangzhou Automobile Group officially delivered their new-generation robotaxi, the R2, on Friday. The self-driving vehicles have already secured road test licenses for the southern city of Guangzhou. Built on DiDi's latest platform, the R2 is equipped with a powerhouse system that allows the vehicle to process complex 360-degree environmental data in real time.

Toyota China Recalls 16,000 Vehicles Over Display Fault

Toyota's Chinese joint ventures have issued a recall for 15,978 vehicles, including 10,922 RAV4 and 5,056 Wildlander models, city a software glitch in the multimedia system that may cause screens to remain black upon startup and could disable defogging and defrosting functions. It's Toyota's second major recall in two months, following a December safety action involving nearly 100,000 vehicles. Toyota sold nearly 2 million vehicles on the mainland last year.

Enpack to Partner With LG Chem on Lithium Materials

Enpack Packaging, a Chinese maker of drinks cans, said it will establish two research and development labs in China with South Korea's LG Chem to accelerate its lithium battery materials business. The labs will use LG Chem technologies in the field of polymer film materials.