Daily Buzz: July 16 2026

China's Economy Grows 4.7 Percent in H1

China's economy in the second quarter expanded 4.3 percent from a year earlier, with weak April and May performances particularly in consumer spending and fixed-asset investment that turned around in June.

The National Bureau of Standards reported that industrial production in June expanded 5.3 percent from a year earlier and retail sales in the month rose 1 percent after a decline of 0.6 percent in May. The urban unemployment rate remained steady at 5 percent last month.

The government's target growth for 2026 is between 4.5 percent and 5 percent. The statistics bureau attributed the slide in the second quarter to short-term factors and external impact.

Alibaba's Qwen to Power Apple's On-Device AI Service in China

Alibaba confirmed on Wednesday that its Qwen large language model will be integrated into Apple Intelligence, on-device generative AI service, for users in China. It will span iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and visionOS, allowing users to access Qwen's advanced text and imaging directly on Apple devices without needing to switch between apps. Apple completed registration with China's cyberspace regulator on July 8 to roll out Apple Intelligence. Following the announcement, Alibaba's US-listed shares surged as high as 7 percent, closing with a 4.8 percent gain.

Trump Warns of Strikes on Iran Infrastructure as Ceasefire Unravels

On day 137 of the Iran war, the US launched fresh attacks that Iranian state media said killed seven military personnel and wounded 260 people. Iran retaliated with strikes on US military facilities in the region. President Donald Trump warned the US will attack Iran's bridges and power plants next week if Tehran doesn't return to stalled peace talks. The UN previously said such attacks on civilian infrastructure would constitute war crimes. The US has reimposed its naval blockade on Iranian ports as the June 17 ceasefire unravels further. Global oil prices remained elevated as oil and gas shipping through the Strait of Hormuz ground to a near standstill amid Iranian strikes on merchant vessels. Benchmark Brent crude futures were trading at about US$85 a barrel.

Agibot, Huawei Launches to Highlight Global AI Event in Shanghai

AgiBot will debut its G2 Max robot, co-developed with JD Logistics, at the 2006 World Artificial Intelligence Conference that opens in Shanghai on Friday. It's a next-generation, heavy-duty embodied robot that bridges robotics and industrial sectors. The Shanghai-based company this week launched a platform in London showcasing the company's lineup of humanoid robots as it mounts a push into the European market.

At the four-day conference, Huawei Technologies will debut its flagship supernode, the Atlas 950 SuperPoD. Its capabilities include the industry's largest 1024-card supernode with 1 Eflops FP8 computing power, the largest 256-terabyte global single virtual address space and an ultra-low round-trip time latency of three microseconds. Other Chinese companies showcasing their achievements at the conference include telecom equipment maker ZTE, with its high-performance Matrix supernodes, and new models from Chinese makers of graphics processing units. The main focus of this year's conference is the rapid shift in AI competition toward infrastructure that integrates AI chips into collaborative computing systems.

Argentina, Spain Head to World Cup Final Match

It will be a Spanish-speaking finale to the 2026 World Cup after Argentina and Spain won their semi-final matches to head to the championship showdown on Monday.

Top Business

China's Top Airlines Warn of Losses on Jet-Fuel Costs

Air China, Chinese mainland's largest carrier, forecasts a first-half loss of up to 2.6 billion yuan (US$384 million), compared with a 2.8-billion-yuan loss a year earlier. The airline, which reported a first-quarter profit, said its margins were squeezed by rising jet-fuel prices in the second quarter, arising from the Middle East war that has curtailed, and sometimes stopped, oil tanker passage through the Strait of Hormuz. Air China said domestic passenger traffic in June fell 6.7 percent from a year earlier on reduced capacity.

China Southern Airlines said it expects to report a net loss of 3.5 billion yuan for the first half, widening from a year-earlier loss of 1.5 billion yuan. It also cited the rising cost of jet fuel in the second quarter. Capacity in June dropped 1.2 percent, with domestic passenger traffic falling 5.5percent.

Shanghai-based China Eastern Airlines said it expects an operating loss for the first six months, though it didn't quantify the amount. However, the carrier said profit attributable to shareholders is expected to rise up to 1.8 billion yuan from 1.5 billion yuan a year earlier. China Eastern said capacity fell nearly 4 percent in June, with domestic passenger numbers down 9.3 percent.

China's Synthetic Diamonds Squeeze Miners of Natural Gems

China's Power Diamond, which produces man-made diamonds in a laboratory, is forecasting tripled first-half profit as the cheaper gems prove a hit with consumers. Prices for natural diamonds have dropped 30 percent in the last three years, with no recovery in sight. Global mining giant De Beers has suspended production at South Africa's largest diamond mine for two years in face of competition from synthetic stones, mostly coming from China.

The Chinese mainland is forecast to account for about two-thirds of global output by 2030. Most of the production is centered in Henan Province, where Power Diamond operates. The company has flagged profit of up to 93 million yuan (US$14) in the first six months of this year, with revenue nearly doubling to 450 million yuan. Man-made diamond production is based on technology, not geological processes. Synthetic diamonds have the same carbon-based chemical and physical properties as naturally mined diamonds. Advances in science have increased the size of lab gems to has high as 125 carats.

Kingsoft Office Debuts AI Products, Eyeing Native AI Platforms

Kingsoft Office, China's biggest maker of office software, launched two AI products in Shanghai. Lingxi Professional is an AI office agent tailored for individual users, and an upgraded, AI-integrated version of WPS 365 is designed for businesses. Kingsoft Office Chief Executive Zhang Qingyuan said the boundaries of traditional office software are expanding. "It's now beyond document editing, evolving into AI-native platforms that seamlessly consolidate file organization, data search, expense reporting and internal application development," he said.

Morgan Stanley Delivers Stronger-Than-Expected Earnings

Morgan Stanley, the last of the US investment bank giants to report second-quarter earnings, said profit jumped 58 percent from a year earlier to US$5.6 billion on a 27 percent increase in revenue to US$21.4 billion. Its earnings, like those of rivals Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan, exceeded analysts' forecasts as strong stock market rallies and AI-related dealmaking boosted income.

Economy & Markets

China Central Bank Signals Ease With Yuan Value

Zou Lan, deputy governor of the People's Bank of China, told a Wednesday briefing that the central bank is comfortable with flexibility in the yuan, signaling little interest in engineering the appreciation sought by key trading partners. The yuan is currently hovering around 6.8 to the US dollar. Its value has weakened this year, making exports cheaper but hurting mainland company bottom lines when overseas earnings are repatriated. China sets a daily trading range for the onshore currency. Zou said the yuan will continue to see two-way moves, and the central bank will ensure the market plays a key role in determining its rate.

Decline in China Home Prices Eases Amid Tentative Sector Recovery

China's new home prices in June dropped 3.3 percent from a year earlier, easing from a 3.5 percent decline in May. On a month-to-month basis, prices slipped 0.1 percent. The housing market has been in a slump for five years, triggered by a liquidity squeeze and excess inventory that led to property developer defaults. Declines in property sales, investment and new construction starts accelerated in the first half. Economists have been mixed in predicting how close the housing market might be to reaching its bottom. The nation's biggest cities are showing signs of modest recovery on a month-to-month basis, but year-on-year figures for both new and existing homes fell across all population tiers in June.

SpaceX Shares Tumble to IPO Offer Price

SpaceX shares in New York fell below their offer price for the first time after a much-hyped, world-record US$86 billion IPO last month. The shares closed just 27 US cents above their US$135 offer price after surging to US$225 on their debut. The cooling investor enthusiasm toward the company comes ahead of the 13th Starship test flight.

China Per-Capita Disposable Income Rises 5.2 Percent

China's per-capita disposable income in the first half rose 5.2 percent from a year earlier to 22,981 yuan (US$43,394). The figure for urban residents rose 4.4 percent to 30,126 yuan, while that for rural residents jumped 6.4 percent to 12,699 yuan. Household disposable income, the amount of money left after taxes and other mandatory charges, is a measure of consumer spending power.

Pudong, Yuewen Open AI Cultural, Creative Industry Base

The Pudong area of eastern Shanghai and Yuewen, China's largest online literature group, have opened a joint AI cultural and creative industry center that will focus on cultivating premium content, developing industry talent and driving global expansion. At the center's launch, the partners showcased advanced AI-driven tools designed to streamline the creative pipeline, including the Qidian Theater App and DramaBuddy Assistant.

Corporate

Coal Giant Shenhua Forecasts Higher Profit

Shenhua Energy, China's largest coal producer, said it expects to report a first-half profit increase of up to 19 percent to 31.9 billion yuan (US$4.7 billion). It cited strong performances in coal chemical and transport businesses. The company also refines coal and sells electricity.

GF Securities Flags Up to 85 Percent Surge in Profit

GF Securities forecasts up to an 85 percent increase in first-half profit from a year earlier to 12 billion yuan (US$1.8 billion) amid record stock market rallies that boosting numbers of investors. Revenue from businesses including wealth management, brokerage and investment banking all recorded year-on-year growth, it said.

Huifu Unveils Strategy Upgrade for AI-Driven Smart Payments

Huifu, a Shanghai-based payment firm that handles 3 trillion yuan (US$443 billion) of transactions a year, released an upgrade to its smart payment strategy, with Chief Executive Zhou Ye saying the upgrade addresses industry challenges like multi-channel operations, global expansion and siloed data systems. Now in its 20th year, Huifu bridges 1,500 software-as-a-service providers, 20 major domestic public platforms, over 350 banks, six major international card networks and more than 100 overseas local e-wallets.

CTG Duty Free Says Profit Rose on Hainan Free Trade Port

CTG Duty Free said preliminary audit figures show first-half net profit rose 19 percent to 3.1 billion yuan (US$447 million) from a year earlier, driven by a duty-free sales surge in Hainan after the establishment of a free trade port in the southern province. Revenue dropped 2 percent to 27.6 billion yuan.

Longi Green Energy Flags First-Half Loss

Solar power firm Longi Green Energy is forecasting a first-half net loss of up to 3.8 billion yuan, widening from a year-earlier loss of 2.6 billion yuan. The photovoltaic industry in China has been laboring under capacity exceeding demand. Longi said supply-and-demand conditions haven't measurably improved. It also cited losses from investments in associates and foreign-exchange losses caused by the appreciation of the yuan.