Daily Buzz: 19 February 2026

The World Welcomes Spring Festival Travelers

Russia, Australia, Thailand, South Korea and the UK are among the popular destinations as Chinese residents take advantage of the nine-day Chinese New Year holiday to travel abroad. Trips to Japan, formerly a popular destination, have plummeted amid political tensions between China and Japan, with holiday flights down more than 50 percent. "Thailand has returned to being a top outbound destination thanks to its weather, when most parts of China remain cold," Zhou Weihong at Shanghai-based Spring Tour, the travel arm of budget carrier Spring Airlines, told Reuters. Following the sun, Chinese travelers also headed to Australia, where it's summertime, with Trip.com reporting a doubling of bookings. Some of the Down Under sunseekers also took holidays in nearby New Zealand.

Weather concerns didn't influence all outbound travelers. Bookings to Russia on the Spring Tour platform doubled, with visitors taking advantage of Moscow's December announcement of visa-free entry for Chinese tourists. And even in chilly London, the welcome mat is out. Trafalgar Square hosted Chinese New Year celebrations, the city's iconic red double-decker buses are outfitted with Chinese zodiac livery and British department store Harrods is offering festival afternoon tea in a pop-up collaboration with Shanghai-based design platform Labelhood. China's National Immigration Administration predicted average daily cross-border passenger flows during Spring Festival will exceed 2 million, up 14 percent from the 2024 holiday.

Tradition Trumps Price in Chinese New Year Gold Buying

Despite high gold prices, Chinese budget-conscious consumers loosened their purse strings to buy gold for the Chinese Lunar New Year that began on February 17, the South China Morning Post reported. Gold is a traditional gift during the national holiday called Spring Festival. Some jewelers offered small discounts to take the sting out of prices hovering at near record levels. Chow Tai Fook Jewelry China's largest retailer by store numbers, launched an 80 yuan (US$12) per-gram discount on gold items for the nine-day national holiday. Spot gold on Wednesday was up 1.7 percent at US$4,957.70 in late New York trading. The precious metal is up about 15 percent this year, according to Wind data, benefiting hares of listed retailers like Chow Tai Fook and Laopu Gold.

Vance Remarks on Iran Send Oil Prices Surging

US Vice President JD Vance said Iran failed to address US "red lines" in nuclear talks held on Tuesday and stepped up the Trump's administration's threats to attack the country if no deal is forthcoming. Oil prices shot up more than 4 percent, with benchmark Brent crude at US$70.14 barrel in late New York trading. Iran said the talks had resulted in a general agreement on "guiding principles" for further talks. "We do have a very powerful military," Vance said, "and the president has shown a willingness to use it." US news website Axios reported that the Trump administration "is closer to a major war in the Middle East than most Americans realize. It could begin very soon."

Takaichi Re-Elected Japanese Prime Minister

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi was officially re-elected on Wednesday, a formality after her Liberal Democrat Party won a majority of seats in last week's parliamentary election. Takaichi, who favors big government spending, lower taxes and a stronger military, faces ongoing tensions in China-Japan relations triggered by comments she made last year related to Taiwan. The Japan National Tourism Organization reported that tourists from the Chinese mainland fell 61 percent in January from a year earlier.

Cuba Grinds to a Halt Amid US-Led Oil Embargo

Cuba's sandy beaches and luxury hotels are devoid of tourists, its streets are empty of vehicles and even the nation's annual cigar festival has been cancelled as a US-led embargo on oil shipments to the country bites. The Caribbean nation says it has run out of jet fuel, causing major carriers to suspend flights to Havana. Venezuela was the biggest oil supplier to Cuba until the US attacked the country, arrested the president and took over the energy industry. The US, which has maintained economic sanctions on Cuba for decades, wants Cuba to begin talks on "dramatic changes" in its economic and political policies. Mexico has been sending shiploads of humanitarian aid to Cuban residents.

Top Business

Unitree Aims to Sell up to 20,000 Humanoid Robots

Unitree Chief Executive Wang Xingxing said the Hangzhou-based company is aiming for global sales of humanoid robots this year to be between 10,000 and 20,000. While the company scales up production, Wang said Unitree is still in the "early innings" of development due to bottlenecks in embodied AI "brains." He warned against price wars in the fledging industry, which could seriously harm the sector before it achieves its potential.

Meta Chief Testifies in Social Media Addiction Case

Meta Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg, testifying in a landmark legal case in Los Angeles, told a jury that social media platforms Facebook and Instagram aren't harmful to children. The lawsuit against Meta and YouTube was brought a 20-year-old woman, identified in court only as Kaley, who claims she began using Instagram and Google's YouTube at age nine, became addicted after hours online every day and now suffers from social anxiety and suicidal thoughts as a result. Zuckerberg said his company no longer designs apps to maximize user screen time, adding that the Instagram app requires users to be 13 or older to register. Mark Lanier, the plaintiff's attorney, produced an internal document from 2015 showing estimates that more than 4 million users were under 13, and he said Meta didn't begin asking new users for birthdates until 2019 and existing users until 2021. Meta argues that Kaley's mental problems arise from a difficult family life, rather than social media. YouTube also denies the lawsuit's claims.

The issue of children being harmed by social media prompted Australia to become the first country to ban use of major social media platforms by under 16s. Other countries are considering similar bans, with Germany the latest to join Spain, Greece, France and Britain in claiming that popular platforms manipulate children with fake and salacious content.

Japan to Invest US$33 billion in a US Gas Facility

US Japan plans to invest up to US$36 billion in US oil, gas and critical mineral projects as part of a US$550 billion commitment under its trade agreement with Washington, Bloomberg News reported. The most significant investment will be US$33 million in a natural gas facility expected to generate 9.2 gigawatts of power, according to the US Department of Commerce. Japan said financial investment SoftBank will be involved in the project. Xiang Haoyu, a distinguished research fellow at the China Institute of International Studies, told the Global Times that the investment is "a political pledge of allegiance" by a Japanese prime minister seeking to curry favor with US President Donald Trump.

Economy & Markets

China Property Slump Sours Home-Furnishing Market

China's 100,000-plus home furnishing companies, most of them smaller businesses, have been stung by the weak property market on the mainland, the South China Morning Post reported. With profits teetering and competition intense, many of them are cutting prices to attract budget-conscious consumers. Residential home prices declined again in January amid a continuing real estate slump that began four years ago when a liquidity crisis caused some property developers to default. With fewer people selling their homes and general weakness in consumer spending continuing, the home furnishing market is a facing a critical year, the report said. According to Hunan Zonghengjia Brand Consulting, revenue in the home decor sector edged up only 2.8 percent last year to 2.68 trillion yuan (US$387.9 billion).

Japan Monthly Exports Surge on China Shipments

Japanese exports in January exceeded forecasts with a 16.8 percent increase from a year earlier. Shipments to China jumped 32 percent ahead of the Chinese Lunar New Year, and exports to Europe rose by about a quarter. Shipments to the US, Japan's second-largest trading partner after China, fell 5 percent. The biggest export growth came in food, machinery, and electronics products including semiconductors. Cars, auto parts and other transport-related equipment comprised about a fifth of exports. Imports in the month slipped 2.5 percent.

China Film Industry in Holiday Mode

China's film industry is finding a lot to celebrate this Spring Festival, with the box office in the first four days of the nine-day holiday topping 2 billion yuan (US$290 million). The playbill of films screening spans comedy, action, animation and science fiction. The top grossing movie is currently "Pegasus 3," a Chinese car racing comedy.

Corporate

Anta Joins the Posh Set in New Beverly Hills Store

Chinese sportswear maker Anta has opened its first directly operated retail outlet in the US, locating itself in Beverly Hills, the California city renowned for its concentration of upscale brands. The new shop features a full line-up of core products, including the KAI signature basketball series, Hela lifestyle collection, PG7 cushioned running shoes and C202 racing shoes, all made in China. Earlier this month, parent Anta Sports announced the US$1.8 billion purchase of a 29 percent stake in German sportswear giant Puma, making it the largest shareholder.

Nvidia Bows Out of Arm, Expands Meta Partnership

US chip giant Nvidia sold its last holding in UK-based technology company Arm Holdings in share sales valued at about US$140 million, Bloomberg News reported, citing a regulatory filing of a disposal that occurred in the fourth quarter. Five years ago, Nvidia unsuccessfully tried to acquire Arm for US$40 million. Arm, majority owned by Japan's SoftBank Group, designs chips underpinning most of the world's advanced semiconductors.

Separately, Nvidia announced this week that it signed a multiyear deal to sell Meta millions of its current and future AI chips, including its advanced Blackwells, coming Rubin chips and standalone

installations of its Grace and Vera central processors, Reuters reported. No financial details were disclosed. Meta announced last month that it plans to spend up to US$135 billion on AI this year.