China
Hormuz is just a ‘dry run’ if China and U.S. go to war in the Pacific, Singapore foreign minister warns
Singapore Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan (left) speaks with CNBC’s Steve Sedgwick at the CONVERGE LIVE event on April 22, 2026. CNBC Should a war break out between China and the U.S. in the Pacific, “what you are seeing in the Strait of Hormuz will be a dry run,” Singapore Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said Wednesday. […]
Read More
Volkswagen announces voice AI in its Chinese cars from later this year
Key Points German automaker announced it would incorporate AI agents that allow humans to control car features with voice commands into its cars in China. CTO Thomas Ulbrich told CNBC that the in-car AI agent would draw on tech from Tencent, Alibaba and Baidu. Volkswagen has invested heavily in China in recent years, with stakes […]
Read More
CNBC’s The China Connection newsletter: China ships more humanoid robots than the U.S. as investors diverge on AI bets
A staff member trains a humanoid robot to replicate human behavior at a training center in Hefei, Anhui province of China, on April 13, 2026. Vcg | Visual China Group | Getty Images Hi, this is Evelyn, writing to you from Beijing. Welcome to the latest edition of The China Connection — a succinct snapshot […]
Read More
USA Rare Earth to buy Brazil’s Serra Verde for $2.8 billion to build supply outside Asia
USA Rare Earth has announced plans to buy Brazilian rare earths miner Serra Verde in a deal worth $2.8 billion in cash and shares, as it seeks to challenge China’s dominance of the supply chain. The Oklahoma-headquartered company said it will pay $300 million in cash and $126.9 million in its own newly issued stock […]
Read More
China calls for ‘concerted’ industry efforts to tackle excess solar production
Workers check solar panels installed on a lake in Tianchang, east China’s Anhui province on January 12, 2026. – | Afp | Getty Images China has called for “concerted efforts” to ease its solar power industry’s severe overcapacity crisis, as part of Beijing’s campaign to end a fierce price war. The proposed measures include capacity […]
Read More
Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries sees shares jump nearly 4% on first ever warship export deal
Australia’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Richard Marles (L) and Japan’s Minister of Defense Koizumi Shinjiro (R) pose for a photo with Eisaku Ito, Pesident and CEO of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, before the signing of the contract for Japan to deliver the first three of Mogami-class warships, in Melbourne on April 18, 2026. […]
Read More
China keeps benchmark lending rates unchanged as economic growth revs up, Mideast risks loom
BEIJING, CHINA – DECEMBER 22: A woman walks by the headquarters of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) on December 22, 2025 in Beijing, China. Zhang Xiangyi | China News Service | Getty Images China held its benchmark lending rates unchanged for an 11th straight month, keeping its powder dry as policymakers weigh the economic […]
Read More
A non-human race: Beijing half-marathon shows how far robots have come
BEIJING, CHINA – APRIL 19: A humanoid robot runs alongside participants during a long-distance race, breaking the half marathon world record by surpassing human performance potential in Beijing, China, on April 19, 2026. (Photo by Emre Aytekin/Anadolu via Getty Images) Anadolu | Anadolu | Getty Images Dozens of Chinese-made humanoid robots showed off their fast-improving […]
Read More
Tanker diplomacy: Trump faces tests from Havana to Hormuz
A man stands as a tugboat guides the Russian oil tanker Anatoly Kolodkin at the oil terminal in the port of Matanzas, northwestern Cuba, on March 31, 2026. Yamil Lage | Afp | Getty Images Energy shipments are increasingly being used as foreign policy tool as the Trump administration attempts to hold down two blockades […]
Read More