Top News
Whither the Gaza conflict?
Talks on a ceasefire have collapsed. Palestinians starving to death in Gaza and the video of a skeletal Israeli hostage held by Hamas shock the world. The US says it's working with Israel on a plan to end the war in Gaza once and for all. Israeli media report that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is considering stepped up military attacks in Gaza and possible annexation of territory. Right-wing politicians, who prop up his coalition government, want Israel to take over Gaza completely. Canada, the UK and France are poised to recognize a Palestinian state. Against this backdrop, Israel's security cabinet meets this week to decided what next. A group of some 600 retired Israeli security officials, including former heads of intelligence agencies, wrote to US President Donald Trump urging him to pressure Israel to immediately end the war in Gaza, saying they don't believe Hamas poses a "strategic threat" to Israel anymore.
Beijing issues alert for more torrential rain
Beijing on Monday evacuated 82,000 residents and warned the rest of the city to stay indoors and brace for a new round of heavy rain and flooding, a week after the deadliest deluge to hit the Chinese capital in 13 years left at least 44 people dead. The city is forecasting up to 200 millimeters of rain could hit parts of Beijing, a city of 22 million people, in just a six-hour period – a third of average annual rainfall. The alert has halted below-ground business and outdoor leisure activities, and shut part of the Great Wall to tourism.
China advances HIV vaccine
China has completed Phase 1 clinical trials on a HIV vaccine based on the Tiantan strain of virus that was used to eradicate smallpox. The trial involving 48 healthy volunteers confirmed the vaccine's safe use in humans and demonstrated its ability to induce durable HIV-specific immune responses, paving the way for Phase II clinical trials. The vaccine is being developed by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention and Peking Union Medical College Hospital.
Top Business
July auto deliveries mixed: BYD slumps, Xiaomi hits record
BYD, China's largest maker of electric vehicles, reported a decline in deliveries in July, its first monthly drop of the year, and rival US-based Tesla deliveries also dropped. While some mainland competitors nursed falling deliveries, Xpeng, Xiaomi, Leapmotor and Aito showed gains for the month, according to the China Passenger Car Association.
BYD reported 341,030 deliveries in July, down 10 percent from June. The carmaker in May announced discounts of up to 30 percent on some of its hybrid and cheaper priced all-electric models, triggering industry price-cutting. Deliveries of Tesla's China-made Model 3 and Model Y vehicles reached 67,886 cars last month, down 5.2 percent from June. Domestic carmaker Li Auto deliveries dropped fell 15 percent from June, while Nio reported a 16 percent decline.
On the plus side, Xiaomi said it delivered a record 36,717 vehicles in July after releasing its new YU7 SUV. Xpeng deliveries in the month totaled 36,717; Xpeng's exceeded 30,000; and Leapmotor's, 50,129. The Harmony Intelligent Mobility Alliance, which is backed by Chinese tech titan Huawei and comprises brands such as Aito, Chery and Maextro, announced shipments of 47,752 in July. Geely-owned Zeekr deliveries were flat at 16,977.
China to scoop up Brazilian coffee beans once exported to the US
China has approved five-year export permits for 183 new Brazilian coffee companies to ship products to the Chinese market, according to a social media post of the Chinese embassy in Brazil. The approvals come after the US announced 50 percent tariffs on some Brazilian exports, including coffee, that take effect this week. In June, coffee exports to the US were almost eightfold higher than to China.
For years, China was hailed as a major rising market for coffee, growing 15 percent annually, causing Starbucks and other foreign coffee chains to enter the market and domestic rivals such as Luckin to initiate aggressive expansion strategies, but that pace of growth is slowing, according tothe Coffee Intelligence website.
Smaller Chinese oil companies expanding into Iraq
United Energy, Zhongman Petroleum & Natural Gas and Geo-Jade Petroleum are among the smaller, independent Chinese oil companies entering the Iraq market, where Western oil giants have been pulling out. Hong Kong-listed United Energy, is producing 120,000 barrels a day in Iraq, the third-largest producer among OPEC+ countries. Analysts say these private Chinese oil companies are expected to double production to half a million barrels a day by 2030. Shanghai-listed Zhongman, which started as an oilfield services company, said it will spend US$481 drilling at two Iraqi sites where it won exploration licenses. A consortium led by Shanghai-listed Geo-Jade is investing in the Tuba oilfield in southern Iraq and building a refinery in the country.
Economy & Markets
China turns to grain production in Angola to curb reliance on US
China is investing heavily to develop soy bean and grain farms in the western African country of Angola to reduce its reliance on US exports. Two state-owned companies have signed agribusiness contracts valued at US$350 million, the South China Morning Post reported. SinoHydro, for one, is investing US$100 million in return for a 25-year, tax-free land concession covering 30,000 hectares, according to Angola's agriculture ministry. About 60 per cent of the output will be shipped directly to China.
Citi raises outlook for gold price
Citibank raised its three-month forecast for gold prices to US$3,500 an ounce, citing a worsening outlook on US growth. The spot price for the precious metal was trading at about US$3,371 in New York on Monday. Gold is a favorite haven for investors during periods of economic uncertainty and tends to gain value when interest rates are low. Many investors are now betting that the US Federal Reserve will lower rates next month after weak economic data. China is the world's biggest producer and consumer of gold.
Bitcoin holder's net surprises Wall Street
Bitcoin investor Strategy, formerly known as MicroStrategy, posted second-quarter net income of US$10 billion, its first profitable quarter in six. The results surprised Wall Street, which was forecasting a loss. The results were largely fueled by a US$14 billion unrealized gain on Bitcoin holdings. Strategy holds 628,791 Bitcoins valued at about US$72 billion, accounting for nearly 3 percent of the entire global Bitcoin supply.
Panda bond borrowing
Panda bonds totaling 116.7 billion yuan (US$16.2 billion) had been issued in China's interbank market to date this year, raising the total outstanding debt to more than 1 trillion yuan, financial data provider Wind reported. Panda bonds, first introduced in 2005, are bonds denominated in yuan and issued by borrowers outside of the mainland. Last year, 195 billion yuan of the bonds were issued.
Corporate
Baidu partners with Lyft on robotaxis
Chinese tech giant Baidu formed a partnership with US ride-hailing company Lyft to launch robotaxi services in the UK and Germany next year. In July, Baidu formed a similar alliance with Uber, covering Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Europe. Baidu has been operating robotaxi services in some major cities in China for four years.
China boosts Canada Goose revenue
Luxury winter-wear maker Canada Goose posted a 22 percent jump in second-quarter revenue to US$78.5 million, with Greater China accounting for 19 percent of the increase. The US company launched a livestreaming channel on Chinese platform Douyin in 2024 to penetrate the mainland market. The company said China will remain a key growth engine for the rest of the year.
CNPC engineering unit wins Iraq seawater pipeline contract
China Petroleum Engineering Corp, the construction engineering arm of Chinese oil and gas giant China National Petroleum Corp, secured a US$2.5 billion contract from Iraq's Basra Oil for a seawater pipeline project in Iraq. Construction is expected to take 54 months.
Sohu narrows Q2 loss
Beijing-based Sohu, an Internet search and online games company, reported a second-quarter loss of US$20 million, narrowing from US$38 million a year earlier. on a 27 percent slide in revenue to US$126 million. The Nasdaq-listed company reported its earnings in New York.
Shein online fashion discounter fined in Italy
Chinese discount fashion e-commerce platform Shein was fined 1 million euros (US$1.2 million) by Italy's competition regulators for misleading customers about the environmental impact of its products. Earlier this month, France fined the company 40 million euros for fake discounts and misleading claims.
Ikea to join JD e-commerce platform
JD.com signed a deal with Ikea to host the flat-pack furniture giant's flagship online store on its e-commerce platform. The shop will offer 6,500 products across 168 categories.
CATL to develop battery-swapping network
Contemporary Amperex Technology Co (CATL) said it is partnering with Chinese car rental platform CAR to build a battery-swapping network in key transport hubs. Battery swaps provide instant recharging and remove the necessity of waiting at recharging stations. CATL is the world's largest maker of batteries for electric vehicles.
SAIC posts 34 percent sales gain
Shanghai-based carmaker SAIC said sales in July surged 34 percent from a year earlier to 337,500 cars, its seventh straight month of increases. Sales of new energy vehicles jumped two-thirds to 117,000 units.