The ecommerce and cloud company hopes to recoup some of its lost shine with Monday’s releaseFinancial Times
Author: Media Library
US sets 15% polysilicon tariff, price floors to challenge China’s dominance
The United States has announced new tariffs and price floors on polysilicon and related products, targeting China’s dominance in key materials used in solar panels and semiconductor manufacturing. In a proclamation signed on Thursday, US President Donald Trump imposed a 15 per cent tariff, which will take effect after 120 days, and established a series of price floors to protect domestic manufacturers and curb imports of China-sourced materials. “We’re setting prices so that the Chinese can’t… South China Morning Post
Trump signs new orders targeting birthright citizenship and ‘birth tourism’
US President Donald Trump signed two executive orders on Thursday seeking to narrow birthright citizenship and intensify a crackdown on “birth tourism”, making a new attempt to restrict automatic citizenship after his original policy was rejected by the Supreme Court. Trump announced the measures unexpectedly during a White House event, describing the Supreme Court’s June 30 ruling as “very unfortunate” and arguing that wealthy foreigners had built businesses around securing US citizenship for… South China Morning Post
US presses China over alleged scam bosses despite growing police cooperation
US President Donald Trump has personally pressed Chinese President Xi Jinping over transnational criminal organisations involved in Southeast Asia’s sprawling online scam industry, a senior State Department official said on Thursday. Michael DeSombre, assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that Washington was raising concerns about both fentanyl trafficking and scam centres “at the highest levels” with Beijing. “President… South China Morning Post
Argentina renews US$19 billion China currency swap, brushing off Washington’s pressure
Argentina has renewed its currency swap with China for five years, preserving a US$19 billion lifeline that Washington spent more than a year pressing it to give up. The Argentine central bank and the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) signed the extension of the 130 billion yuan line on Wednesday, a day before the existing deal was due to expire. The new term runs to 2031, two years longer than any previous renewal since the two countries first signed it in 2009. The decision ends months of… South China Morning…
China Maritime Report #57: Sailing Thousands of Miles Without Losing Course: The Roles and Authorities of the PLAN Party Standing Committee
Main Findings: The Navy Party Standing Committee (NPSC) is the Chinese Navy’s core leadership body, but it does not operate independently; it functions within the broader Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and PRC military hierarchy. Politically, the NPSC ensures that China’s Navy remains loyal to the CCP with Xi Jinping at its core. Administratively, it ultimately directs personnel, training, procurement, logistics, fiscal management, readiness, and modernization. Military reforms have preserved the NPSC’s authoritative role within the Navy, and today’s members have gained more diverse operational experience earlier in their careers than…
US sanctions Cuba’s military representative in Beijing over China procurement
The United States sanctioned Cuba’s senior military representative in Beijing on Thursday, accusing him of helping procure military-related equipment from China for the island’s armed forces. Waldo Perez Cortes, Cuba’s military, naval and air attache in Beijing, was among six Cuban nationals and five entities added to the US Treasury Department’s Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons list. The US State Department said Perez Cortes was an official of Cuba’s Ministry of the… South China Morning Post
Congress should hold Trump’s feet to the fire on chips
The US urgently needs to broaden its export control regime if it’s serious about winning the AI raceFinancial Times
China confirms 2 deaths in Scarborough Shoal crash during Philippine ship chase
China honoured two coastguard personnel who died in a vessel collision in the South China Sea last year, state media reported on Thursday, marking the first official confirmation that the incident resulted in fatalities. The People’s Armed Police (PAP) on Thursday announced the latest recipients of its “Loyal Guards of the Chinese People’s Armed Police” honour. Among the four posthumous awardees were Yi Xinyu and Cheng Long, two China Coast Guard officers. They died during a “maritime rights protection operation in the South China Sea on August 11, 2025”, according…
Will latest trade ‘speed bump’ slow China-US ties, or even stop Xi-Trump summit?
Beijing and Washington’s latest tit-for-tat measures could test ties, but observers say they are little more than a “speed bump” on the road to a potential summit between presidents Xi Jinping and Donald Trump. China’s Ministry of Commerce sanctioned seven US entities and tightened export controls on drones and related technologies on Wednesday, citing the need to “safeguard national security”. The ministry separately launched a national security investigation into imported printing and copying… South China Morning Post