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Can the US and its allies break China’s grip on rare earths and AI technology?

In an exclusive interview, senior US official says a whole-of-supply-chain strategy is needed to cut dependence on China “When it comes to the world, our allies were really put on alert by China’s export controls of minerals that have really come back to bite them in pretty serious ways,” Jacob Helberg, US undersecretary of state for economic affairs, told the South China Morning Post in an exclusive interview days before Trump’s action. Beijing’s restrictions set off a scramble for supplies and led to factory shutdowns across the developed world, including in the United States. While a temporary US-China truce in October resumed the flow of exports, countries such as Japan have continued to face shortages.

July 22, 2026

Business

China neighbour calls police after mistaking ‘stinky fart vinegar’ for rotting corpse

The infamous smelly condiment has earned recognition as an Intangible Cultural Heritage across various regions in Guangdong A tenant in a residential block in southern China called the police, reporting a smell resembling corpses in their building. It turned out that the odour was actually coming from a neighbour cooking with Guangdong’s traditional stinky vinegar. On July 14, a woman in Guangdong province, surnamed Chen, posted about someone calling the police to check on her home. She stated: “My neighbour thought I was cooking a dead body,” while tagging “the power of stinky vinegar.” The neighbour reportedly suspected that someone had died in a nearby unit, but it was, in fact, Chen preparing a soup that included the stinky vinegar. Literally translated as “stinky fart vinegar” and also known as longevity vinegar, it is believed to be a traditional Guangdong ingredient with a history spanning 2,000 years. According to legend, it was invented when a filial, poor man begged for food and preserved fried rice in a jar to save for future meals for his sick mother.

July 22, 2026

Business

Hong Kong surpasses July rainfall in just 20 days – why?

Observatory has issued 48 rainstorm warnings since start of last month, nearly double number sent out during same period last year. Hong Kong’s rainfall so far this month has already surpassed typical levels for July by 23 per cent, a review of Observatory data shows, with a meteorologist warning the city will experience more extreme downpours due to global warming. The Observatory also said on Tuesday that Hong Kong would be hit by rainstorms again over the weekend following weeks of heavy rain as a tropical cyclone neared the city. A South China Morning Post reporter reviewed the forecaster’s data and found the city recorded 474.7mm (18.69 inches) of rainfall in the first 20 days of July – exceeding the typical monthly level of 385.8mm by 23 per cent. The city also recorded 600.5mm of rainfall in June, 22 per cent higher than normal. Last month, heavy showers prompted the forecaster to issue three black rainstorm warnings – the highest in Hong Kong’s three-tier alert system. Since June, the Observatory has issued 48 rainstorm warnings, nearly double the 25 alerts sent out during the same period last year.

July 22, 2026

Business

Japan seeks Southeast Asia sea lanes to avoid troubled waters in region

A proposal to map charts through five straits comes as Japan fears trade disruption from choke points in the South China Sea and off Malacca The project is designed to give commercial shipping more confidence in alternative passages – with the latest data on depths, hazards and navigational aids – if ships need to avoid the heavily used route through the Strait of Malacca after they sail beyond the Strait of Hormuz. The strategic waters off several Malaysian states are increasingly at risk from geopolitical tensions, raising concerns in Tokyo about the resilience of current maritime routes that carry much of Japan’s trade, ranging from energy to electronic goods. As much as 90 per cent of all Japanese crude oil imports come from Gulf states, typically shipped through the Strait of Hormuz. The region is also a key source of natural gas and fertilisers. Since the initial US attacks on Iran in March, Japan has moved quickly to seek alternative energy sources, and new supply chains linking to the US, Latin America, Central Asia and Africa have been established.

July 22, 2026

Business

US war in Iran has cost US$37.5 billion so far, Pentagon chief Hegseth says

The defence secretary was publicly facing questions from lawmakers for the first time since the US military restarted operations in Iran The cost of the United States’ war in Iran has risen to US$37.5 billion so far, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Tuesday, as he faced sceptical lawmakers for the first time since heavy bombings resumed to seek urgent funding for the unpopular conflict. With just six months before midterm elections in which US President Donald Trump’s Republicans may face an uphill battle to keep their House of ‌Representatives and Senate majorities, Democrats are riding high in public opinion polls as they attempt to link the unpopular Iran war with affordability. Hegseth told lawmakers at a hearing in Washington that the US$37.5 billion included certain aspects of the war as well as anticipated costs through September 30. It was unclear how the Pentagon arrived at the figure. A source told Reuters in March that Trump’s administration estimated the first six days of the war had cost at least US$11.3 billion.

July 21, 2026

Business

More US companies switch to Chinese AI models to save money and tokens

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. U.S. companies are increasingly shifting workloads to Chinese AI models to cut costs. DeepSeek leads the trend, but Alibaba's Qwen has also gained significant ground, with the company claiming its Qwen3.8-Max model rivals top U.S. systems on coding and reasoning benchmarks while offering far cheaper costs per token.Ride-hailing giant Uber has publicly acknowledged building on Chinese open models, drawing scrutiny from U.S. lawmakers who have opened inquiries into the practice over national security concerns. Coinbase has also made the switch, cutting its AI spending by nearly half after moving to Chinese models GLM 5.2 and Kimi 2.7, even as its overall AI usage increased.Price is the driving factor across the board with analysts at Citi finding Chinese models can charge as little as 18 cents per million tokens versus roughly $4 on average for top-tier competitors based in the U.S.

July 21, 2026

Business

What’s at stake as Beijing beats global peers with first approval of novel therapy

Push to accelerate novel drug reviews promises earlier access to breakthrough therapies for patients long left waiting The NMPA gave the green light for commercial sales of a rare-disease therapy for narcolepsy type 1 in people aged 16 and older, state media reported. The drug was not named, but reports said it had won fast-track designations in the US and orphan-drug designation in Japan and the European Union. Orphan-drug status means a therapy for a rare disease gets government incentives like tax breaks and exclusive rights to make development viable. Narcolepsy type 1 is a lifelong brain condition that makes people intensely sleepy during the day and causes them to fall asleep without warning. For many sufferers, it also causes them to suddenly lose control of their muscles when they feel strong emotions, like laughing, being surprised, or getting angry.

July 21, 2026

Business

China’s policy playbook took its EV sector from zero to hero – can other countries follow?

China’s electric vehicle (EV) industry sits at the centre of numerous economic and geopolitical trends: consumer spending, environmental protection, trade policy, high-end manufacturing, technology and more. In this short series, we assess the current state of the sector within these broader contexts. Here, Yeon Woo Lee asks whether Beijing has written a blueprint for developing countries to kick-start their own contenders in the field. Emerging markets once seemed like also-rans in the global...

July 21, 2026

Business

Why China is rapidly expanding its land trade routes to Central Asia

Beijing is seeking to diversify its export channels as geopolitical tensions destabilise maritime trade hubs Last year, China became the largest trading partner of all the Central Asian countries for the first time as trade jumped by 12 per cent to exceed US$100 billion. China’s exports to the region, dominated by high-value goods, are twice the value of its imports. It explains the rapid containerisation of cargo, a trend also evident in Chinese shipments to Europe. Since April last year, freight trains have been running between Chongqing in China and the Uzbek capital of Tashkent. Departing twice a month, the trains cross the Kazakh border and cover 4,700km in about 12 days, cutting the time taken to transport goods from southwestern China to Central Asian countries by 30 per cent, improving profitability.

July 21, 2026

Business

Trump vows to help Lebanon pursue peace with Israel

The US president also says he will allow direct flights by US airlines to Lebanon for the first time in over 40 years US President Donald Trump vowed on Tuesday to help Lebanon “a lot” as its president, Joseph Aoun, sought Washington’s backing for a fragile effort to disarm Hezbollah and forge a path to peace with Israel. Aoun, the first Lebanese president invited to Washington since 2009, asked Trump for political support and continued backing for the Lebanese army, which has begun deploying in southern areas under a US-backed framework agreement with Israel. “We need to support the LAF,” Aoun said, referring to the Lebanese Armed Forces. “Without the LAF, everything will collapse.” Meeting Aoun at the White House, Trump said Lebanon had been “a very mistreated country” that had been “hit hard” for decades. “It’s probably a dangerous place in a lot of ways,” Trump told reporters. “But they love the country … and we’re going to help it. We’re going to help it a lot.” After the talks, Trump said he would authorise the resumption of direct flights by US airlines to Lebanon, which were suspended more than 40 years ago after the 1985 hijacking by Lebanese Islamist militants of a TWA flight with many Americans aboard.

July 21, 2026

Business

Zelensky sacks Ukraine army chief Syrsky, amid backlash over Fedorov firing

The president’s move comes after days of protests triggered by the removal of his popular defence minister Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday that he was dismissing Oleksandr Syrsky, commander-in-chief of Ukraine’s army, amid an ongoing political crisis triggered by the removal of a popular defence minister. The Ukrainian leader announced he was appointing joint forces commander Mykhailo Drapaty in his place. Syrsky, 60, had served in the role since 2024 and was among Kyiv’s most experienced commanders, having led the defence of Kyiv at the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022. His removal comes after days of protests in support of ousted defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov, who accused Syrsky of forcing him out and stalling his attempt to reform the military. “I have decided that the new Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine will be Mykhailo Drapaty,” Zelensky said in a post on Telegram.

July 21, 2026

Business

China security partner Solomon Islands to sign US Coast Guard patrol deal

Agreement will allow US vessels to patrol with local police as Honiara expands maritime ties with Washington despite close Beijing links The Solomon Islands, widely considered China’s closest security partner in the South Pacific, will soon sign a deal allowing the US Coast Guard to patrol its waters with local police aboard, Prime Minister Matthew Wale announced on a trip to Washington to strengthen bilateral ties. While the South Pacific nation has deepened its ties with China over the past few years, particularly following the signing of a secret security pact in 2022, Wale’s visit underscored efforts to strengthen maritime cooperation with the US. Wale, who took office in May pledging change for the Solomon Islands, met with the US Coast Guard’s vice commandant, Admiral Thomas Allan, while in America on Monday. A US State Department readout stated Wale also met with Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau to discuss the two countries’ evolving ties. “Deputy Secretary Landau and Prime Minister Wale signed a Letter of Intent to return Peace Corps to Solomon Islands,” the readout said.

July 21, 2026