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News about international trade flows, statistics and policy decisions from the world’s most important trading economies and trade-related bodies, including the World Trade Organisation.
India has avoided taking sides in the widening US-Iran conflict, as it finalises a trade deal under negotiation since US President Donald Trump took office. Image: Shutterstock
United States

US won’t let India become rival like China, Trump official says

Washington will not ‘make the same mistakes’ as it did with Beijing 20 years ago, the State Department’s Christopher Landau says.

Two Sessions 2026

China targets lowest growth range in 35 years as pressures rise

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Donald Trump

Trump’s 15% global tariffs likely to start this week, US Treasury chief says

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Science

‘Two sessions’, two paths: China prioritises AI integration amid US tech rivalry

Beijing’s open-source push in focus ahead of annual legislative meeting and coming five-year plan, as Washington chooses different approach.

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The US has sought to slow China’s tech development, mainly through blocking the export of advanced chips used to power AI. Photo: Shutterstock Images
Middle East

Air freight costs for China shippers may jump 30% as Middle East airspace closes

China-Europe cargo flights face longer routes and higher fuel costs after Middle East airspace closures, the Hong Kong Association of Freight Forwarding & Logistics says.

Spain

Germany’s Merz lacked ‘solidarity’ amid silence during Trump attacks: Spain

The comments came after the US president said the Spanish government has been ‘terrible’ during the escalating conflict in the Middle East.

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China's economic recovery

Stagflation risk emerges amid Mideast oil crisis, clouds China’s economic battle

While rising energy costs from war in Iran may briefly aid China’s deflation battle, analysts warn how oil price spike could threaten nation’s fragile economic rebound.

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A worker fills up a car at a petrol station in China’s Shandong province. A prominent economist said rising oil prices amid Middle East tensions could lead to stagflation in China. Photo: Getty Images
Technology

Asian tech stocks reel as US-Iran war threatens infrastructure and supply chains

South Korea’s Kospi is the worst-hit in Asia, with Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix falling 11.7 per cent and 9.6 per cent, respectively.

China-Asean relations

Singapore and China have ‘common interests’ in safeguarding global order: envoy

In Beijing, Peter Tan Hai Chuan says two countries built ties based on sovereign equality and respect, not just cultural or ethnic links.

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Asean

Opinion | Fatigue is rewriting the US-China soft power contest, starting in Asean

At a time when no one has bandwidth left, soft power is being won by being the partner that feels usable, steady and low-risk.

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People pick up Labubu toys at a Pop Mart store in Siam Square in Bangkok on May 8, 2025. Photo: AFP
US-China relations

China and US to hold high-level talks in Paris before Trump’s Beijing visit

Delegates to discuss trade and investment deals amid rising global tensions in lead-up to President’s first visit since returning to power.

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(From left to right) US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent will meet with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in Paris for high-level trade talks, in the lead-up to US President Donald Trump’s forthcoming Beijing visit. Photo: Reuters
US, Israel war on Iran

Maritime mayhem: shipping firms halt Gulf routes amid regional military strikes

Rising tensions in the Strait of Hormuz see vessels diverted and bookings suspended, as companies impose emergency fees of up to US$4,000 per unit.

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US, Israel war on Iran

Trump slams European allies, praises China and continues to justify Iran attack

US president blasted Spain for denying access to its military bases for his bombing campaign, but boasts of ‘good relationship with China’.

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US, Israel war on Iran

Global stock sell-off slams Wall Street as oil prices leap on Iran war woes

The Dow ended down 403 points, after plunging over 1,200 earlier in the day.

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A display featuring Iran’s slain supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Tehran on Tuesday. Photo: AFP
Artificial intelligence

Opinion | How the US ceded the robotics economy to China

Chinese gains in robotics show that nations wishing to compete must go beyond financial engineering to master their physical realities.

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Robots perform martial arts during China Central Television’s Spring Festival Gala 2026 on February 16. Photo: CCTV
India

India’s 100GW nuclear push was missing one thing. Canada just provided it

India needs to triple its uranium supply to meet its nuclear targets. Canada, with mines already in the pipeline, is well placed to deliver.

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US-China relations

Exclusive | US, China discuss investment revival ahead of Trump’s trip: sources

Both sides exploring structured joint ventures and licensing deals, with Beijing seeking protection and Washington eyeing better market access amid declining capital flows.

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Two Sessions 2026

How China is using its economic clout to give the US dollar a run for its money

Beijing is using economic clout to reshape its global financial influence – a strategy analysts say could play out over decades.

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Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen
US-China trade war

Trump’s 2026 trade agenda sharpens push for ‘managed’ US-China ties

US Trade Representative report touts deficit drop, pledges tougher Section 301 enforcement ahead of Trump’s Beijing summit with Xi.

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Donald Trump

US appeal court denies Trump bid to delay tariff refund lawsuits

The tariffs, which had been ruled illegal by the high court, had generated more than US$130 billion for the US government as of late 2025.

US-China relations

Will Iran attack derail Trump’s high-stakes China visit to meet Xi Jinping?

China has condemned killing of Iranian leader as a grave violation of sovereignty and called US incitement of regime change ‘unacceptable’.

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US President Donald Trump is expected to meet Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping when he travels to Beijing later this month, the first such visit by an American leader since his own trip in 2017. Photo: AP
Banking & finance

Hong Kong, Shanghai sign pact on digital trade finance, cross-border data link

‘This marks an important milestone in the collaboration on financial innovation between Shanghai and Hong Kong,’ HKMA’s Howard Lee says.

The collaboration with Hong Kong is expected to help Shanghai realise innovative applications in digitised cargo trade and finance. Photo: Getty Images/iStockphoto
US-China relations

Editorial | China now holds more cards ahead of Xi-Trump meeting

US Supreme Court reversal of Trump’s tariffs leaves China with lower tariffs and US deals with allies in doubt.

China shipbuilding

Open Questions | Top shipbuilding voice Li Yanqing rebukes Washington’s ‘China threat’ narrative

China’s national shipbuilding association official calls US port fees ‘absurd’ and politically motivated, while asserting China’s market lead is solid despite global fluctuations.

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War and conflict

Opinion | US-Israeli strike on Iran signals new phase of global escalation

This is deterrence fatigue: escalation thresholds weakened by repeated testing and retaliation. The risk is not only war but systemic strain.

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People watch as smoke rises on the skyline after an explosion in Tehran, Iran, on February 28. Photo: AP
Japan

Macroscope | Why Japan should push back on Trump’s investment demands

Trump’s use of tariff threats to strong-arm foreign governments, companies and investors into funding US projects should be resisted.

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Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, with US President Donald Trump, speaks to members of the military aboard the USS George Washington aircraft carrier docked at the American naval base in Yokosuka, Japan on October 28, 2025. Photo: AP
United States

US seeks delay on tariff refund court hearing, faces above 2,000 lawsuits

Lawyers for companies seeking tariff refunds have been pushing the courts to speed up the process.

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Taiwan

As I see it | Taipei must break free of its abusive relationship with Washington

US President Donald Trump’s tariff blitz is not Taiwan’s fault, but the self-ruled island must come to see that Washington is unreliable.

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