Month: May 2025

Catch up on some of SCMP’s biggest China stories of the day. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. China offers visa-free travel to 4 Gulf countries following landmark summit China extended its short-term stay visa exemption policy to four Persian Gulf countries on Wednesday, a day after a landmark summit with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and Southeast Asian countries. 2. Record levels of pessimism among EU businesses in China, survey reveals European businesses’ optimism about growth and profitability in China has…

Chinese discount e-commerce giant PDD Holdings, operator of Temu and Pinduoduo, faces increased profitability challenges amid US President Donald Trump’s trade policies and heightened competition in its home market, according to analysts. Advertisement PDD on Tuesday reported a 47 per cent slump in first-quarter earnings amid slower sales growth, with results trailing market consensus. PDD’s Nasdaq-listed shares tumbled as much as 18 per cent in New York overnight, as the company’s poor report card suggested that continued discounts to attract consumers would hurt near-term earnings outlook. In the company’s post-earnings…

A senior former official at the agency responsible for the oversight of China’s defence industry is under investigation for corruption. Advertisement The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, China’s top anti-graft watchdog, said on Wednesday that Zhang Jianhua was suspected of “serious violations of discipline and law” – a standard euphemism for corruption – and had “turned himself in”. Zhang worked for many years at SASTIND, the government agency responsible for managing the industry and overseeing research and production in areas such as nuclear technology, aerospace, aviation and shipbuilding. Zhang, 64,…

Aerial shots and detailed analysis of a key Taiwanese military base on mainland Chinese social media have sparked security concerns on the self-ruled island, where officials are seeking to reassure the public. Advertisement The images of Hualien Air Base were part of a video lasting less than seven minutes that emerged last week on RedNote, or Xiaohongshu, the mainland-based lifestyle platform that is also popular in Taiwan, especially among young users. The video was uploaded by a military blogger from an IP address in Beijing on May 21 – one…

Semiconductor representatives from China and Europe have come together at a government-hosted meeting in Beijing to explore deeper collaboration and enhance supply-chain resilience after the United States stepped up tech curbs on China. Advertisement Representatives from more than 40 companies in the semiconductor supply chain, both upstream and downstream, attended Tuesday’s meeting, along with representatives from China’s Ministry of Commerce (Mofcom), the China Semiconductor Industry Association, and the European Union Chamber of Commerce. “At present, the security and stability of the global semiconductor production and supply chain are facing serious…

The European Union and the Czech Republic have slammed a group associated with the Chinese Ministry of State Security for conducting a “malicious cyber campaign” targeting the country’s foreign ministry. Advertisement The ministry said the attack started in 2022 and “affected an institution designated as Czech critical infrastructure”, without specifying what had been targeted. “Following the national attribution process, the government of the Czech Republic has identified the People’s Republic of China as being responsible for malicious cyber campaign targeting one of the unclassified networks of the Czech Ministry of…

China extended its short-term stay visa exemption policy to four Persian Gulf countries on Wednesday, a day after a landmark summit with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and Southeast Asian countries. Advertisement Starting on June 9, passport holders from Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait and Bahrain will be permitted to enter China without a visa, according to China’s foreign ministry. Citizens of these countries who intend to stay in China for up to 30 days for business, tourism, family visits or cultural exchanges are able to benefit from this visa-free arrangement,…