Chinese foundry Hua Hong Grace Semiconductor is investing between $2-4 billion to expand its 12-inch wafer production capacity in Wuxi, adding 55,000 wafers per month in Phase III buildout. The expansion comes after a sharp earnings rebound and record shipments in the first half of 2026, driven by surging domestic demand for AI chips.
Chinese tech giant Baidu reported a 4% year-on-year decline in second-quarter revenue to 31.3 billion yuan ($4.62 billion), missing Wall Street estimates as continued weakness in its core advertising business offset gains from its artificial intelligence cloud operations. The results mark the company's fifth consecutive quarterly revenue drop.
Guangdong province has expanded its collaboration with Alibaba Group Holding to advance digital transformation initiatives focused on artificial intelligence, semiconductors, and smart public infrastructure.
China's auto market continued its decline in July, marking the 10th straight month of falling sales as domestic demand remains subdued. However, strong export growth has helped offset intense domestic competition, with new-energy vehicles now accounting for 65.1% of total sales.
China's producer price inflation eased to 3.5% year-on-year in July, a three-month low and below market expectations, while consumer price inflation slowed to 0.5%, a six-month low. The cooling reflects retreating global energy prices and soft domestic demand despite ongoing geopolitical tensions.
China's economy slowed sharply to 4.3% annual growth in the second quarter of 2026, missing analyst expectations and marking the weakest performance since late 2022. The slowdown was driven by weak domestic demand and oil price shocks from the Iran war, putting pressure on policymakers to accelerate stimulus measures.
Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a speech on July 1, 2026, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing commemorating the 105th anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party, highlighting China's rapid industrialization as a model for developing nations and emphasizing the party's global influence.
