Daily Buzz: 12 June 2026

Top News

US Calls Off Attacks, Says Iran Peace Deal Imminent

The US called off its attacks on Iran after US President Donald Trump said a peace deal is done, pending final signatures that he said could come "within days." Iran's foreign ministry said no text for an initial memorandum of understanding has been approved by Tehran. Trump has said an end to the war is nigh more than 30 times since the conflict began on February 28. The latest standoff in rhetoric came after two days of escalating attacks triggered by the downing of a US army helicopter. Iran has been striking US military facilities in the Gulf region, and the US has been bombing Iranian radar and other military installations. Three Indian seamen were killed when the US fired on a tanker near the Strait of Hormuz as part of its blockade of Iranian ports. Trump said the strait will reopen as soon as the deal is signed but made no mention of Israel's war in Lebanon as part of the deal. In New York, stock markets surged and oil prices dropped on renewed optimism that the four-month conflict will end soon. The S&P 500 index closed up 1.8 percent, and the Nasdaq added 2.5 percent. Global benchmark Brent crude futures dropped below US$90 a barrel for the first time since early March but closed New York trading at US$90.38.

Musk Set to Become World's First Trillionaire

US entrepreneur Elon Musk is poised to become the world's first trillionaire after his SpaceX initial public offering raised a world record US$75 billion, with shares priced at US$135 each. The shares begin trading on Friday in New York. Media reports said the IPO was four times oversubscribed. Musk, also founder and chief executive of Tesla, holds a SpaceX stake roughly valued at US$866 billion.

UK Defense Secretary Quits Over Inadequate Military Spending

UK Defense Secretary John Healey submitted a surprise resignation letter to Prime Minister Keir Starmer, accusing the government of failing to fund the military adequately in face of rising security threats. Three other ministry officials also quit, in a blow to the already tottering administration of Starmer. Don Jarvis, the security minister, was named to replace Healey. The resignations come weeks before a NATO summit in Turkey.

World Cup Opens Amid Controversy

The 2026 FIFA World Cup opened, with Mexico beating South Africa 2-0 in the inaugural match. Mexico, the US and Canada are co-hosting the event, which FIFA says could generate US$80 billion for the world economy. The premier global sporting event has been dogged by controversy, including exorbitant ticket prices and US refusal to grant visas to some foreign participants.

Top Business

China Resources New Energy Targets Mega IPO

China Resources New Energy, an arm of China Resources Power, plans to raise about 24.5 billion yuan (US$3.6 billion) in an initial public offering in Shenzhen, according to a stock-exchange filing. If completed at that size, the deal would rank among China's largest domestic listings in recent years. The company, which develops and operates wind farms and solar power projects across China, plans to sell around 2.1 billion shares, with subscriptions opening on June 22. China Resources New Energy said the proceeds will fund wind and solar projects with a combined planned investment of about 40.4 billion yuan. The company posted a 31 percent drop in first-quarter profit to 1.6 billion yuan, citing adverse weather conditions, power curtailment and electricity price adjustments. Its IPO comes amid a surge of mainland listings this year, which have doubled in value from a year earlier to US$28.3 billion.

Beijing Warns Online Giants About Competition Malpractice

Beijing's market regulator on Thursday warned e-commerce and social media giants Alibaba units Taobao and Tmall, JD.com, Pinduoduo, Douyin and RedNote (Xiaohongshu) against engaging in false promotions and opaque seller information for the upcoming 618 shopping gala. The Beijing Municipal Administration for Market Regulation said Taobao's 10-billion-yuan (US$1.5 billion) subsidy campaign for the 618 festival doesn't specify how much of the money is actually allocated to consumers for this month's event and how much is part of long-term marketing. Similarly, PDD's Pinduoduo platform also launched a 10-billion-yuan subsidy campaign without making clear how much of the money is allocated to merchants versus consumers, it said. The annual shopping festival on June 18 is second only to the Single's Day shopping extravaganza in November in terms of online sales.

Leveraging FAW, Changchun Seeks to Become Auto Hub

FAW Group, China's oldest automaker, is based in the northeastern city of Changchun. Now the municipality wants to leverage that distinction to attract more carmakers to the city, targeting electrical vehicle giants such as BYD, Leapmotor, Xiaomi and others. The old industrial heartland has released a draft plan to revamp its auto sector through 2020, Reuters reported. Driving its ambition is an expected consolidation in the auto industry, with the number of participants expected to drop to about 15 from the current 71. At the same time, FAW has declined in both production and sales in recent years, increasing chances of a major restructuring. The city's plan lays out ambitions to become a major site for car and auto parts manufacturing.

US-China Business Council Members Rate China Market Highly

The Washinton-based US-China Business Council's annual survey of members showed 95 percent of respondents said the Chinese market is "somewhat to very important" for staying globally competitive. Almost half of respondents said they apply what they have learned in China operations to other markets. The survey also pointed to snags. Some companies reported problems accessing rare earths from China because of export controls, with nearly half saying efforts to find new suppliers elsewhere have yet to bear fruit.

Economy & Markets

Chipmaker UniIC Moves Toward Listing in Beijing

Xi'an-based UniIC, a maker of dynamic random-access memory chips, is seeking a public listing in Beijing to capitalize on investor zeal for initial public offerings related to advance technologies, the South China Morning Post reported. The IPO is now in the review phase, according to the China Securities Regulatory Commission. UniIC's IPO application follows the Shanghai Stock Exchange's approval of a 29.5-billion-yuan (US$4.4 billion) IPO by rival CXMT, China's top DRAM chip manufacturer. UniIC spun off from Infineon Technologies in 2006 and was acquired in 2015 by tech conglomerate Tsinghua Unigroup, an affiliate of one of China's top universities. Yangtze Memory Technologies, a supplier of NAND chips, also in an IPO review process, was spun off by Tsinghua Unigroup in 2022.

ByteDance's AI Drug Discovery Unit Begins Spin-off

ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, has begun spinning off its AI drug discovery business, though it plans to retain a controlling stake. The new company will receive algorithms, the technology platform and existing pipeline assets from its parent, including continuing support from ByteDance cloud arm Volcano. The drug arm, founded in 2021, has core team of 50 members combining AI algorithm specialists with pharmaceutical veterans. In April, its Anew Labs drug-discovery platform presented preclinical data on what it described as a first-in-class, pan-spectrum IL-17 small-molecule inhibitor designed to treat autoimmune diseases such as psoriasis.

Huawei Retains Global Dominance in Smartwatches

Huawei ranked first globally in shipments of smartwatches and other wrist devices, International Data Corp reported. It said worldwide shipment of wrist devices, including health bands, rose 2.2 percent in the first quarter to 47 million, with smartwatches up 4.8 percent. Huawei retained its dominance with a 20.2 market share despite a 4.6 percent decline in shipments in the period.

Corporate

BYD Building Super-Fast Charging Network in Europe

Chinese electric car giant BYD plans to invest 2 billion euros (US$2.3 billion) to build super-fast charging infrastructure in Europe, with 3,000 charging stations to be installed by the end of the year, Yicai reported. The carmaker has started rolling out flash-charging sites in Germany and the UK. Europe is a major market for Chinese-made vehicles.

Akeso Becomes 3rd Pharma Firm to Announced Share Buyback

Chinese biopharma company Akeso said its board approved spending up to HK$200 million (US$25.5 million) to buy back shares on the open market. The Zhongshan-based company, best known for developing the cancer antibody drug ivonescimab, said in a filing with the Hong Kong exchange that the company's share price doesn't reflect "intrinsic value and business prospects," and the share purchase will create value for shareholders. The buyback will be financed by existing cash reserves. It follows on the heels of a US$100 billion buyback announced by biotech firm XtalPi and up to a 1-billion-yuan (US$150 million) share repurchase by WuXi AppTech, a Chinese provider of contract research, development and manufacturing services for the drug industry.

Mercedes Taps Livestreaming Influencers for Sales

Forty Mercedes-Benz vehicles sold within seconds during a livestreaming event hosted by popular Chinese influencer Li Jiaqi this week, marking the luxury carmaker's first full-vehicle sales campaign on China's most influential e-commerce livestream channel. The event featured several models, including the all-electric GLC SUV and the long-wheelbase C-Class sedan. Buyers paid a 3,000-yuan (US$443) deposit online for delivery before the end of September. The campaign highlights how automakers are increasingly using livestreaming platforms to attract younger consumers and generate sales. Audi, Cadillac and SAIC-GM have also experimented with similar promotions. Mercedes has faced mounting pressure in China, its largest market. The company reported a 27 percent year-on-year decline in first-quarter deliveries in China, compared with a 6 percent drop in global deliveries.

Oatly Weighs Sale of China Business

Swedish oat milk producer Oatly is exploring the sale of its China business amid weak performance in one of its most challenging overseas markets, according to a Bloomberg report. The review comes eight years after Oatly entered China with ambitions to capitalize on rising demand for plant-based beverages. Sources cited by Bloomberg said management involved in the company's China operations is considering a buyout, with a potential deal possible this year. On a first-quarter earnings call in April, Chief Executive Jean-Christophe Flatin said the company was evaluating several options to maximize the value of the China business.

HQVT Begins HK IPO Book Building

Shenzhen-based HQVT Technology, a multispectral AI company, kicked off book building for its initial public offering in Hong Kong, aiming to raise HK$613 million (US$78.2 million) through the sale of 85.2 million shares. Book building is a process to determine an IPO price by gathering bids from institutional investors. The company is expected to start trading on June 22.

Huayan Acquires New Production Base

Huayan Robotics said it will spend 85.1 million yuan (US$12.6 million) to acquired seven floors at the Pengxia Robotics Intelligent Manufacturing Park in the southern city of Jiangmen for use as a production base. The property has a gross floor area of 24,316.18 square meters and a land use right area of 62,960 square meters.