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Iran halts strikes as Trump gives space to talks

The calmer situation eased worries about a resurgence in inflation and a fresh round of interest rate hikes Iran and the United States held their fire on Monday, handing Gulf shipping and the oil industry a respite from missile strikes as Donald Trump’s UN envoy said the president was “giving talks some space”. Tehran said it had halted retaliatory attacks against Washington’s allies in the Middle East, and US ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz told Fox News Sunday that, while forces remained “locked and loaded”, Trump would give negotiations “a little bit of room”. Fighting over the strategic Strait of Hormuz derailed diplomatic efforts between Washington and Tehran, triggering a US air campaign and Iranian reprisals that expanded the conflict to shipping lanes, Gulf allies and military bases across the region. Prior to Friday, the US military had carried out strikes on Iran for 13 consecutive nights, in the largest rekindling of the almost five-month-old war since an April ceasefire. But Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights passed without bombing. “Since … our strategy has essentially been retaliatory, we have also halted our retaliatory operations,” said Iran’s army spokesman Mohammad Akraminia.

July 27, 2026

Business

New DNA tracking helps spot rare ‘Tai O fish’ in Hong Kong waters after 10 years

DNA of rare Chinese bahaba found in Hong Kong waters last September, a month after about 1,300 hatchery-reared juveniles released into Pearl River Estuary A Hong Kong academic has used environmental DNA technology to detect the critically endangered Chinese bahaba – commonly known as the “Tai O fish” – in local waters for the first time in more than a decade. Jack Ip Chi-ho, an assistant professor at Lingnan University’s division of science, co-led the study with Wang Junjie, a professor at South China Normal University in mainland China. Together, they developed a genetic identification method capable of detecting traces of Chinese bahaba DNA left in the marine environment. The rare species’ DNA was identified in Hong Kong’s western waters in September last year, one month after about 1,300 hatchery-reared juvenile Chinese bahaba were released into the Pearl River Estuary from the mainland. Lingnan University said the finding – the first in more than 10 years – suggested some of the released fish might have entered Hong Kong waters.

July 27, 2026

Business

India is losing its regional primacy as Beijing and Washington move in

South Asia is undergoing a gradual but important shift. Smaller states now command a widening array of options, and India’s primacy is quietly giving way. The lesson is clear. Regional leadership can no longer rest on geography and must be sustained through credible and mutually beneficial engagements that compare favourably with the alternatives. China’s challenge begins at India’s border. Both countries fought in 1962, continue to dispute a frontier of roughly 3,500km and had their deadliest...

July 27, 2026

Business

Will the heat from a cooking oil scandal help the opposition in Taiwan?

Mass protest may have put Taipei mayor Wayne Chiang in pole position to contest the island’s next leadership election The unexpectedly large turnout on Saturday appears to have given the island’s main opposition party, the Kuomintang, fresh momentum ahead of the local elections in November, and could reshape the race to become the party’s candidate in the next leadership election in 2028. The demonstration outside the office of Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te was the largest opposition rally since Lai came to power two years ago. Protesters accused the government of mishandling a scandal involving soybean salad oil found to contain excessive levels of the carcinogen benzo[a]pyrene, demanding that Lai apologise and Premier Cho Jung-tai resign. It showed that food safety could mobilise people in a way that cut across party lines, according to Chang Yuan-hsiang, a political-science professor at Soochow University in Taipei.

July 27, 2026

Business

French police arrest man who wounded 3 with knives in Paris

The man was detained ⁠by an off-duty police officer, and the motive of the attack remains unknown French police detained a man ‌on Monday after he attacked three women with knives near Porte de Clichy in Paris, Interior Minister Laurent Nunez told reporters. The man attacked the three women, who were aged 19, 24 and 36, with two kitchen knives, severely wounding two ⁠of them, Nunez said. Video aired on social media and verified by ‌Reuters showed a man with long black hair, wearing a cream tracksuit and wielding one big knife in ‌each hand stabbing and attempting to attack a young woman. ⁠It is ⁠unclear if the woman was injured. Another part of the video shows the same ‌man lying on the ground immobilised by bystanders, while the two knives are lying nearby ‌on a ‌pedestrian crossing. “It is Allah who commanded me,” the man ‌lying on the floor said. Nunez said the man had been detained ⁠by an off-duty police officer. “I pay tribute to him, it was a ⁠courageous act,” he added. The motive of the attack remains unknown, Nunez said, adding police could not verify the identity of ‌the attacker, whose declarations ‌were “incoherent” while he was being arrested.

July 27, 2026

Business

US criticism of Malaysia’s Israel stance spotlights growing ‘disconnect’

Claims that Malaysia’s ban on Israelis entering the country are antisemitic are unlikely to trigger a major policy shift, analysts say The remarks escalated a dispute that has drawn in members of the US Congress, Malaysia’s long-standing refusal to recognise Israel and the widening international debate over where criticism of Israel ends and hostility towards Jewish people begins. “We are not insulting the Jews. We are against what Israel is doing,” Anwar told reporters on Friday. “We are being labelled as if we are against a certain group. We are only against countries that oppress others.” Anwar said Malaysia’s policy on Israel was well received by Malaysians but not by US lawmakers. “We are a sovereign and independent country. We will not compromise nor allow a single Israeli to set foot in Malaysia,” he said.

July 27, 2026

Business

China condemns US over new Section 301 tariffs – but holds off on retaliation

Beijing also rejects allegations that Chinese companies trained local AI models on American systems China’s Ministry of Commerce has objected to Washington’s latest tariff on the country’s goods but signalled it will hold off on retaliation for now, noting the 12.5 per cent duty keeps the United States within the ceiling that the Trump administration promised in earlier talks. It added that the US had previously promised Beijing that tariffs on Chinese goods would not exceed 20 per cent while reserving “the right to take all necessary measures”. The US imposed fresh tariffs of 10 to 12.5 per cent on 60 trading partners on Thursday, including China and allies such as the EU, Japan and South Korea, following the Section 301 investigation. Washington has another Section 301 investigation under way into excess industrial capacity, covering 16 economies including China and the European Union. In a separate statement published on the same day, the commerce ministry also rejected US allegations that Chinese AI companies had “distilled” American models – a practice that uses the outputs of larger systems to train smaller ones.

July 27, 2026

Business

A robot every 12 minutes? China’s smart manufacturing in action

By continuing to browse our site you agree to our use of cookies, revised Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. You can change your cookie settings through your browser. An industrial robot is assembled every 12 minutes in Chengdu. Powered by 3D vision models, the robots are learning to see, decide and work in complex environments.

July 27, 2026

Business

Slovakia seizes new opportunity with China

By continuing to browse our site you agree to our use of cookies, revised Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. You can change your cookie settings through your browser. Grassalkovich Palace, the office and official residence of Slovak President, Bratislava, Slovakia, June 25, 2026. /VCG Editor's note: Lin G. is a CGTN economic commentator. The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of CGTN. As President of the Slovak Republic Peter Pellegrini visits Beijing, China and Slovakia are demonstrating that their economic partnership is entering a new stage shaped not only by trade, but by the ability to build industries together. The Gotion-InoBat Batteries gigafactory in Surany, Slovakia's first large-scale battery manufacturing facility, embodies this transformation. At first glance, it may appear to be just another Chinese investment in Europe's electric vehicle supply chain. However, it represents something more significant: Slovakia's determination to transform itself from one of the world's leading producers of conventional automobiles into a key player in Europe's electric mobility revolution.

July 27, 2026

Business

How will rare earth supplies impact Japan’s high-end manufacturing?

By continuing to browse our site you agree to our use of cookies, revised Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. You can change your cookie settings through your browser. Editor's note: Liu Xu is executive director of the Center for International Energy and Environment Strategy Studies, Renmin University of China. The article reflects the author's opinions and not necessarily the views of CGTN. Facilities in the Keihin Industrial Zone, Kawasaki, Japan, May 26, 2025. /VCG Japan's high-end manufacturing — from electric vehicles and industrial robots to semiconductor equipment and medical devices — rests on a fragile foundation: An overwhelming dependence on rare earth elements imported from China. With China tightening export restrictions since early 2026, that foundation is now shaky. The supply shock is already visible in trade data, corporate balance sheets, and factory floors, raising urgent concerns about cost pressures, supply chain resilience, and the global search for alternatives. China controls roughly 70% of global rare earth mining and over 90% of the refining capacity that turns ores into usable metals. For Japan, which sourced about 66% of its rare earths from China in 2025, this dependence has become a strategic liability.

July 27, 2026

Business

100-day countdown to CIIE 2026: preparations busy ongoing

By continuing to browse our site you agree to our use of cookies, revised Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. You can change your cookie settings through your browser. Shanghai held a press conference to introduce CIIE preparations on July 27, 2026. /CGTN July 27 marks the 100-day-countdown to the 9th China International Import Expo, which will take place between November 5 and 10, 2026. According to a press conference held on July 27, 53 countries and 3 international organizations have confirmed to show at a national pavilion. Romania, Moldova and the United Nations Development Programme will be participating for the first time. More than 1,200 organizations from 99 countries and regions have also confirmed to show company pavilions and 265 of them are Fortune 500 companies. Over 70 companies will showcase their latest technologies in AI and new materials. According to the size of the exhibition areas, the United States is now top among all foreign nations. The CIIE will upgrade its special section for African countries that have diplomatic relations with China, encouraging the Global South to actively use the platform of CIIE.

July 27, 2026

Business

Chinese memory chipmaker CXMT surges 531% in record-breaking debut

By continuing to browse our site you agree to our use of cookies, revised Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. You can change your cookie settings through your browser. CXMT office buildings in Shanghai, China, July 15, 2026. /VCG Chinese memory chipmaker Changxin Memory Technologies (CXMT) surged 531.06% to end the morning session at 54.65 yuan (about $8.05) per share on Shanghai STAR Market debut. The company, one of the world's largest DRAM makers specializing in memory chips that power AI servers, smartphones and personal computers, saw a turnover of 122.1 billion yuan in the morning session. It became the largest listed company by market capitalization on the A-share market after jumping 471.6% at the opening to achieve a market capitalization of over 3.3 trillion yuan. The blockbuster debut caps a historic IPO run with expected total proceeds surpassing 66 billion yuan, making it the largest-ever IPO in China's sci-tech innovation board. CXMT is expected to generate operating revenue of 110 billion to 120 billion yuan in the first half of this year, with net profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company reaching 50 billion to 57 billion yuan, according to the company.

July 27, 2026