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On July 14th, Nomura lowered its non-IFRS net profit forecasts for Tencent Holdings (00700.HK) for fiscal years 2026 and 2027 by 2% and 1% respectively, reflecting the potential pressure on profit margins from continued increased investment in AI. Nomura maintained its "Buy" rating with an unchanged target price of HK$727. The bank noted that Tencent has made positive progress in the AI field in recent months, including the launch of the widely acclaimed Hunyuan 3.0 official version in early July, and the desktop AI assistant WorkBuddy becoming one of the most popular PC AI agents in mainland China. Nomura believes that Tencent has the ability to narrow the gap with current leading AI companies. However, as competitors such as Alibaba and ByteDance have also launched similar PC AI agent products, and user switching costs and willingness to pay are low, competition in the relevant market is expected to remain fierce in the short term.

According to Iranian media Fars News, the Bahrain banking system suffered a cyberattack, resulting in service disruptions.

On July 14th, CMB International slightly lowered its 2026 fiscal year Non-IFRS net profit forecast for Tencent Holdings (00700.HK) by 1%, considering its continued investment in AI, and lowered its target price from HK$750 to HK$735, while maintaining a "Buy" rating. The bank stated that it remains optimistic about the return on investment (ROI) of Tencent's AI investments, and expects that in the second half of 2026, with the launch of WeChat's AI agent "Xiaowei," the continuous upgrade of the Hunyuan large-scale model, and the growth of cloud business driven by increased computing power, these factors are expected to be important catalysts for improving the company's fundamentals and valuation.

On July 14th, the State Council Information Office held a press conference on the import and export situation of goods trade in the first half of 2026. Wang Jun, Deputy Director of the General Administration of Customs, discussed the reasons for the rapid growth in imports in the first half of the year. In the first half of the year, my country's imports reached 10.74 trillion yuan, exceeding 10 trillion yuan for the first time in the same period in history, representing a growth of 22.1%, 8.7 percentage points higher than the export growth rate. China's contribution to foreign trade growth was also greater than that of exports, promoting balanced trade development. As the world's largest manufacturing country and the world's second largest consumer market, my country has a vast market with enormous potential. my country has been the world's second largest import market for 17 consecutive years, with an average annual growth of 5.1%, and its share of global imports has increased from 7.9% to about 10%. Proactively expanding imports is a necessary condition. my country has orderly expanded its independent and unilateral opening-up, implemented zero-tariff policies for 63 countries, and successfully held international exhibitions such as the China International Import Expo, the China International Consumer Goods Expo, and the China Chain Store & Franchise Expo, providing a "window" for global goods to enter the Chinese market. In the first half of the year, my country's imports from more than 150 countries and regions achieved growth.

July 14th - From July 9th to 10th, the 2026 Summer National Coal Trade Fair, hosted by the China Coal Industry Association and the China Coal Transportation and Marketing Association, was held in Urumqi, Xinjiang. The theme was "Strengthening the Role of Coal as a Safety Net and Improving the Level of Coal Safety Guarantee." Liu Hongbo, Director of the Coal Division of the Economic Operation Regulation Bureau of the National Development and Reform Commission, pointed out that since the beginning of this year, the quality of long-term contract signing and performance has continued to improve, the overall supply of thermal coal has been effectively guaranteed, and the basic supply base has been continuously strengthened. Coal remains my country's greatest source of confidence in coping with the complex energy situation. "In the first half of the year, coal enterprises released production capacity in accordance with laws and regulations, strictly fulfilled long-term contract performance, and national coal production was at a historically high level for the same period," said Shi Ying, Vice Chairman of the China Coal Transportation and Marketing Association. Industry insiders revealed that in the first half of this year, the average daily output of raw coal remained stable at over 12 million tons, and the coal reserves of power plants under national unified dispatch exceeded 200 million tons, with an average usable period of over 30 days. Chen Pei, Deputy Director of the Logistics Center of China State Railway Group, introduced that in the first half of the year, the national railway coal transport volume reached 1.05 billion tons, a year-on-year increase of 3.4%, of which 700 million tons were thermal coal.

On July 14th, at a press conference held by the State Council Information Office, Lu Daliang, spokesperson for the General Administration of Customs and Director of the Department of Statistics and Analysis, stated that amidst the global heatwave, exports of cooling appliances such as air conditioners, fans, and refrigerators totaled 107.91 billion yuan in the first half of the year. "In recent years, the public has paid more attention to the 'new three items,' namely electric vehicles, lithium batteries, and photovoltaic products. However, we also have the 'old three items,' namely mobile phones, computers, and home appliances, which continue to play an important role in stabilizing foreign trade," Lu Daliang emphasized. Lu Daliang pointed out that intelligent technology is continuously empowering and driving the iterative innovation of my country's home appliance industry. Not only is the quality of my country's exported home appliances improving, but the brands are also upgrading; domestic brands now account for one-quarter of exported home appliances.

On July 14th, Investinglive analyst Eamonn Sheridan stated that the U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) is expected to decline by 0.2% month-over-month in June, marking the first decline since the pandemic began, driven entirely by a 15% drop in gasoline prices from mid-May to the end of June. The annualized inflation rate is expected to slow to 3.8% from 4.2% in May. Core CPI is expected to rise by 0.2% month-over-month, with the annualized core inflation rate expected to only slightly decrease to 2.8% from 2.9% in May. Service inflation (covering rent, auto repairs, leisure and entertainment, and dining out) is projected to grow at an annualized rate of 3.4%, higher than January's 2.9% and significantly higher than the 2.6% average between 2010 and 2019. This means that even with improved nominal overall inflation data, the Federal Reserve has little basis for easing policy. This situation presents a dilemma for Warsh, who is making his first congressional testimony this week: he must demonstrate a determination to curb inflation without appearing too hawkish and thus tightening credit conditions excessively, while the fragile Middle East ceasefire poses a two-way risk to the energy price outlook. This balance largely depends on how the situation in the Middle East and its impact on oil prices evolve.

On July 14th, according to Tianyancha App, Qijing Intelligent Vehicle Technology (Guangzhou) Co., Ltd., an affiliated company of Qijing Auto, recently underwent industrial and commercial registration changes, adding Hongtu No. 1 Enterprise Management (Guangzhou) Partnership (Limited Partnership) and Jiaxing Boyuan Yicheng Equity Investment Partnership (Limited Partnership) as shareholders. Simultaneously, its registered capital increased from 2.1 billion RMB to approximately 3.02 billion RMB, an increase of approximately 44%.

July 14 – The State Council Information Office held a press conference today to introduce my country's foreign trade performance this year and answer reporters' questions. In recent years, China has consistently maintained its position as the world's largest exporter of sporting goods, accounting for over 40% of global exports. In the first half of the year, my country's exports of sporting goods and equipment reached 67.53 billion yuan, of which ball sports accounted for 3.08 billion yuan. In the first half of the year, my country's exports of fitness and rehabilitation equipment such as treadmills reached 26.7 billion yuan, and exports of water sports equipment such as paddleboards reached 4.77 billion yuan. In addition, exports of trendy skateboards, popular among young people, increased by 20.4%. my country's sporting goods not only maintain a stable market share in traditional markets such as Europe and the United States, but also perform well in emerging markets such as Latin America and Africa. In the first half of the year, my country's exports of sporting goods to Latin America and Africa increased by 18.9% and 8.1%, respectively.

SpaceX (SPCX.O): Successfully deployed 27 Starlink satellites.

According to the General Administration of Customs, China exported 1.069 million automobiles (including chassis) in June, compared with 988,000 in May.

According to the General Administration of Customs, China exported 5.307 million automobiles (including chassis) from January to June.

According to the General Administration of Customs, China exported 53.261 million mobile phones in June, compared with 53.436 million in May.

According to the General Administration of Customs, China imported 6,261.5 tons of rare earths in June, compared with 6,770.2 tons in May.

According to the General Administration of Customs, China imported 53,886.6 tons of rare earths from January to June.

According to the General Administration of Customs, China's exports of unwrought aluminum and aluminum products reached 711,000 tons in June, compared with 632,000 tons in May.

According to the General Administration of Customs, China imported 10.931 million tons of natural gas in June, compared with 10.108 million tons in May.