China Financial News

Apple has refreshed its iPhone line-up with the launch of the iPhone 15 series, including the iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max. These phones will be available in India and 40 more countries starting September 22. Sources familiar with the matter said that Apple will make India-built iPhone 15 units available to Indian customers and customers in “some other regions” on the first day of sales.

The IMF said in an update to its Global Debt Database that the world's total debt to-GDP ratio fell last year to 238% from 248% in 2021 and 258% in 2020. But the decline for the past two years, driven by strong growth and stronger-than-expected inflation, has recouped only about two thirds of the COVID-induced spike in global debt. The ratio remains well above the 2019 level of 238% of GDP.China has played a central role in increasing global debt in recent decades as borrowing outpaced economic growth, and its debt burden has defied the moderating trend, growing to 272% of GDP in 2022 from 265% in 2021. Those levels are similar to the United States, which saw its total debt-to-GDP ratio fall to 274% in 2022 from 284% in 2021, according to the IMF report. The world has been on a debt «rollercoaster» for three years, but debt is likely to rise again over the medium-term, and the IMF urged governments to adopt strategies to help reduce debt vulnerabilities — both in public debt, household debt and non-financial corporate debt. «The rebound of real GDP growth is fading.

renewable energy to power this manufacture. This aligns squarely with India’s aspirations to become a pivotal hub in the green hydrogen ecosystem, making it one of the few nations to set a concrete benchmark in this emerging sector.

Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak courted controversy with his comments on the ‘intellectual potential’ of Indians and Chinese. Podolyak's statement, which was published in an article by Sputnik, quoted him saying that India and China exhibits ‘weak intellectual potential’ and ‘fail to analyze the consequences of their actions’. "What's wrong with India, China, and so forth? The problem is that they are not analyzing the consequences of their steps, these countries have weak intellectual potential, unfortunately," Sputnik quoted Podolyak.

Check out the companies making headlines before the bell.

electric vehicle subsidies will end, a high-level official was quoted as saying by the ET Auto. «India will be a global giant in all sectors of electric vehicles (EVs) by 2030.

China has not issued a ban on the purchase and use of foreign phone brands, the Chinese foreign ministry said on Wednesday, in response to media reports that said some government agencies and firms had told staff to stop using Apple's iPhones at work. «China has not issued laws, regulations or policy documents that prohibit the purchase and use of foreign brand phones such as Apple's,» foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told a regular press briefing when asked about the reports.

(Reuters) — The highest inflation for decades and the fallout from war in Ukraine have forced companies across Europe into layoffs or hiring freezes.

India has decided to make a change in its plans for the ‘G-77 plus China’ summit. Originally, External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar was set to lead the Indian delegation to Cuba for this significant event. However, due to a special parliamentary session scheduled for September 18, all government ministers, including Jaishankar, must be in New Delhi.

Alibaba Group has launched its artificial-intelligence model, Tongyi Qianwen, to the public, making it the latest Chinese company to tap the country’s fast-growing AI market. Chinese tech giants have been racing to launch generative AI models to rival OpenAI’s ChatGPT.

China on Wednesday refuted media reports about the country ordering government officials to stop using foreign electronic devices. “China hasn’t issued any laws, regulations or policy documents banning purchase or use of foreign phones including Apple’s iPhones," said Mao Ning, spokeswoman at China’s foreign ministry, at a daily briefing.

BRUSSELS—The European Union is launching an antisubsidy investigation into China’s electric-vehicle makers, opening a new front in the battle for leadership of the global clean-technology industry. The probe, announced Wednesday, reflects growing concern in Europe about the impact of low-price products from China on the bloc’s domestic industries. It could result in tariffs if officials from the European Commission, the bloc’s executive body, conclude that Chinese EV manufacturers are receiving subsidies that are hurting Europe’s auto industry.

By Jing Bian, Xie Yu and Carolina Mandl

Investing.com — The Dow closed just lower Tuesday, as Apple led a stumble in tech despite unveiling its latest iPhone, but jump in energy stocks kept losses in check a day ahead of fresh inflation data.

EPIC Foundation, a not-for-profit organization founded by industry veterans and co-founders of HCL, Ajai Chowdhry and Arjun Malhotra, have announced the launch of two ‘Made In India’ products by signing an MOU with Karnataka Digital Economy Mission (KDEM). Their aim is to turn India into a global hub for electronic hardware product design and manufacturing while imparting education and empowerment. With a skilled young workforce, combined with partnerships and government support, the foundation believes India can emerge as a dominant player in the electronics industry, contributing significantly to a US $400 billion Electronics sector. According to a statement, as part of this initiative, the foundation has announced the launch of two products- a) LED Driver Chip, designed by a startup in Bengaluru, to replace a Chinese counterpart and b) 100% designed in India tablet with unique features such as repairability and upgradability while aligning with the principles of sustainability. Ajai Chowdhry, Chairman of EPIC Foundation and a member of the MeitY task force, said in a statement, «EPIC Foundation aims to be the interface between Industry and State Government with MEITY, Niti Aayog DST and DPIIT to address key challenges and recalibrate the policies.

iPhone 15 base model, announced at Apple’s marquee fall event Tuesday, is expected to see a higher uptake in India as compared to the iPhone 14 base model last year, on account of significant design and feature upgrades, market trackers said. Locally made iPhone 15 base model is expected to be made available in the first wave of launch, making it the first time that both China and India-made units will go on sale the same day. Market trackers said this underpins the optimism and confidence Apple has from the South Asian nation, amidst increasing diversification of its supply chain in China. Tarun Pathak, research director at Counterpoint Research, predicted that the iPhone 15 base model is expected to sell 1.5 times more than the iPhone 14 base model last year, on account of significant differentiation. “The iPhone 15 base model will be more popular this time, due to the Dynamic Island, OLED display, and 48MP cameras. We expect it to sell 1.5 times more than the iPhone 14 in the first wave of sale,” Pathak said. Prabhu Ram, head of the Industry Intelligence Group at CMR added that the iPhone 15 model is the most compelling base variant from Apple in a long time. “The base model will appeal to upgraders upgrading from older generation iPhones, as well as switchers for whom the Pro models are out of reach”.

China, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh formally inaugurated a total of 90 projects on Tuesday. These projects, ranging from the pivotal Nechiphu tunnel on the road to Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh to revamped airfields, helipads, roads, and bridges, mark a significant stride in bolstering India's border infrastructure. The foundation stone for the enhancement of the critical Nyoma advance landing ground, located just 50 km from the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh, was also virtually laid by Minister Singh during the ceremony commemorating the inauguration of the 423-meter Devak bridge constructed by the Border Roads Organization (BRO) in Jammu. The Rs 230 crore upgrade at Nyoma ALG, situated at an altitude of over 13,400 feet, includes the extension and reinforcement of the existing airstrip into a 2.7-kilometer «rigid pavement» runway capable of accommodating various fixed-wing aircraft for both defensive and offensive operations.

Aeroflex Industries, whose metal hoses are used in utilities, refineries and fire fighting equipment, is in talks to enter the aerospace sector, a top company executive said, aiming to capitalise on the country's burgeoning space program. Following the recent success of its lunar mission, India launched its first solar mission, the latest step in its efforts to increase its share of the global satellite launch market by fivefold within the next decade. «It is our aim that our products be a part of India's next space mission,» Aeroflex Managing Director Asad Daud told Reuters in an interview last week. The company is in early-stage discussions with the likes of Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) and Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL) and even the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), Daud said. While HAL and BHEL are existing clients, the ongoing talks are a first for specific space-related projects, he said. The move will help the company, which made a stellar debut on the stock market about two weeks back, diversify its revenue stream. Aeroflex expects its total revenue to increase by 35% in the next three to four years, with at least 5% coming from aerospace, Daud said. Its revenue has surged over 86% in the past two years, to clock in at 2.69 billion rupees ($32.5 million) in the year that ended in March. Daud also said Aeroflex aims to cut imports of coils — a key raw material that accounts for half of overall raw material costs — from China in favour of local suppliers, who can deliver much faster. Aeroflex has three Chinese suppliers that, currently, meet 70%-75% of its needs for their coils.

Rakesh Arora, Managing Partner, Go India Stocks, says “cement is our preferred pick for the next few months. In steel, largely it is the long products which are seeing some bit of an uptick. But China has been producing a lot of steel and they have been exporting and so steel prices have not really been moving up in the global market. Any hint of a little bit of demand pickup is resulting in raw metal prices, iron ore and coking coal moving much ahead of steel prices.”Everybody is stunned by the magnitude of market fall yesterday. In isolation it looks ugly, but do you think that was an overbought market which was looking for a reason to correct? And unfortunately yesterday was that day.It is a minor correction in the whole scheme of things. And actually stocks are stabilising today, so I do not really see too much worry. Obviously, when something is overbought, such corrections are welcome and then only the strength of the up move can actually, the strength is much better if there are these kinds of corrections during the up move.

A net 32% of managers thought the European economy will go into a recession over the next 12 months.

Huawei Technologies inked on Wednesday a global patent cross-licensing deal with Xiaomi Inc, according to a statement from Huawei. The deal covers communication technologies including 5G, it said, and marks the resolution of a patent licensing dispute between the two firms. Local Chinese media reported in March that Huawei was suing Xiaomi for alleged infringement of four registered patents mainly related to wireless communication technology, smartphone photography and screen lock technology. Huawei also has patent license agreements with other tech players such as Oppo and South Korea's Samsung.