HKIC leads its first overseas delegation to Malaysia and Brunei
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South China Morning Post
2 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Singaporean semiconductor equipment maker ASMPT to close Shenzhen plant, axe 950 workers
Singapore -based ASMPT , which makes semiconductor assembly and packaging equipment, will close its factory in Shenzhen and lay off 950 workers to streamline its operations in mainland China, the company's largest market. Shutting down ASMPT Equipment (Shenzhen), which falls under the company's semiconductor solutions segment, 'was a tough but necessary decision' to better align the company 'with evolving market dynamics and customer needs', according to the Hong Kong -listed firm's statement on Monday. 'Comprehensive support measures are being put in place to assist impacted staff through the transition,' ASMPT said. 'Other key global manufacturing operations are unaffected by the closure.' ASMPT earlier disclosed that it would incur a one-time restructuring charge of around 360 million yuan (US$50 million), covering severance, shutdown expenses and inventory write-offs. The company expected the voluntary liquidation to save it 115 million yuan annually in operating costs based on current production levels. The company's shares closed up 2.1 per cent to HK$70.20 on Monday. The restructuring of ASMPT's mainland operations appears to temper the optimism expressed by CEO Robin Ng last month, when he said the firm posted 'better-than-expected bookings for the first half of 2025'.
South China Morning Post
3 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Chinese EV makers' July sales dip 5% as narrower discounts cool vehicle buyers' ardour
Electric vehicle (EV) sales in mainland China hit a speed bump last month, sparking worries about the industry's growth momentum as more carmakers heed Beijing's call to hold back on discounts and focus on profitability. Total EV deliveries, comprising passenger cars and commercial vehicles like buses, slid 5 per cent from a month earlier to 1.26 million units in July, according to data from the government-backed China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM). It was the first month-on-month drop in the Chinese EV market since May. The sales volume represented a 27.4 per cent increase from the same period in 2024. 'The once booming industry will not sustain its growth over the next few months because of weaker consumer demand,' said Tian Maowei, a sales manager at Yiyou Auto Service in Shanghai. 'Chinese drivers are now very price-sensitive and many of them tend to make purchase decisions due to big discounts.' The sales dip came after discounts offered by EV makers narrowed amid Beijing's call to exit a brutal price war The average price cut on Chinese electric and petrol-powered cars fell to 16.7 per cent last month from an unprecedented 17.4 per cent in June, according to a recent JPMorgan report. In late May, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology warned that carmakers initiating price cuts would face penalties, although it did not mention specific measures. The government stepped in to police the market amid worries that escalating price competition would undermine the industry's growth, which has been a bright spot in the mainland economy.
South China Morning Post
3 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Trump urges China quadruple US soy buys, amid trade truce deadline
US President Donald Trump said he hopes China will massively step up its purchases of American soybeans – comments that come a day before a trade truce expires. Advertisement 'China is worried about its shortage of soybeans,' Trump wrote on social media on Monday. 'I hope China will quickly quadruple its soybean orders. This is also a way of substantially reducing China's trade deficit with the USA.' Trump also thanked Chinese leader Xi Jinping in the post, without saying why. The president's push is happening as US farmers are just weeks from their next harvest, boosting supplies available to sell. China is the world's top buyer of the oilseed and usually ranks as the biggest customer of American soy farmers, a trade valued at more than US$12 billion in 2024. However, US government data as of late July show the Asian nation has refrained from booking any cargoes for the coming season that starts in September as tensions between the two sides linger. Soybean futures in Chicago jumped as much as 2.8 per cent after Trump's post, the biggest intraday gain in four months, and traded 2.3 per cent higher as of 5.15am local time. Corn and wheat also rose. Soybeans are planted on a farm in Minnesota. Photo: AP Agriculture has been a key issue in the trade dispute between the two sides, with China turning to crops from South America and elsewhere to meet its needs. China agreed to increase buying of US agricultural goods like soybeans during the so-called phase one trade agreement reached during Trump's first term, although Beijing ultimately fell well short of the purchase targets in that pact.
