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Thursday 12 March 2026
Middle East conflict raises helium supply risks for South Korean chipmakers
Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix are reviewing their helium supply strategies as tensions in the Middle East disrupt key logistics routes, raising concerns over the availability of a gas essential to semiconductor manufacturing
Thursday 12 March 2026
Samsung reportedly wins foldable iPhone DRAM supply deal; 12GB LPDDR5X prices double
Samsung has reportedly secured an order to supply 12GB LPDDR5X DRAM for Apple's first foldable iPhone, negotiating a sharply higher price than in previous memory contracts
Thursday 12 March 2026
AMD CEO Lisa Su reportedly plans South Korea trip for Samsung, Naver talks during Nvidia GTC

Reports indicate AMD CEO Lisa Su will visit South Korea in the coming days to discuss cooperation with Samsung Electronics and Naver. Some observers view the trip as an effort to challenge Nvidia's dominance in the AI market by strengthening AMD's partnerships with South Korean companies

Thursday 12 March 2026
China's space surge: reusable rockets and mega-constellations reshape rivalry with US
China conducted more than 90 orbital launches in 2025 and achieved several milestones, including collecting samples from the far side of the Moon, constructing a low-Earth orbit (LEO) space station, and landing a Mars rover. The progress highlights China's rapid rise in space capabilities and its growing challenge to the US's long-standing leadership
Thursday 12 March 2026
SMIC flags supply squeeze in memory, BCD chips
China's largest contract chipmaker, SMIC, says orders for mature-node memory and BCD processes are running at full capacity, pushing prices higher as AI demand tightens supply across the semiconductor industry
Thursday 12 March 2026
CATL profit jumps 42% in 2025, R&D spending tops US$3.2 billion

CATL released its 2025 annual report on March 9, reporting revenue of CNY423.7 billion (approx. US$61.3 billion), up 17.04% year-over-year. Net profit reached CNY72.2 billion, rising 42.28%, indicating profit growth outpaced revenue expansion

Wednesday 11 March 2026
India eases investment rules for border countries, signaling cautious economic thaw with China
India has relaxed parts of its foreign direct investment screening rules for neighboring countries, including China, in a move aimed at boosting manufacturing while maintaining safeguards. The changes suggest a cautious shift in India-China economic relations after years of tighter restrictions
Wednesday 11 March 2026
China moves to curb OpenClaw use at banks, agencies due to security concerns

Chinese authorities have moved to curb the use of OpenClaw AI software across government agencies and state-owned enterprises (SOEs), including major banks, amid rising concerns over potential security risks linked to the rapidly spreading AI agent platform

Wednesday 11 March 2026
Commentary: Tencent quietly builds WeChat AI agent to reclaim China's super-app lead

Tencent is reportedly developing an AI agent for its flagship messaging platform WeChat, a move that could reshape how users interact with services across China's largest digital ecosystem

Wednesday 11 March 2026
Japanese automakers to reverse-import US-spec cars
Amid rising global protectionism and US president Donald Trump's push to reduce trade deficits, Japan's automotive industry is undergoing a deep strategic shift. Honda Motor recently announced that it plans to reverse-import its US-made, US-spec car models into Japan, following a similar move by market leader Toyota Motor. Nissan Motor is also expected to follow suit
Wednesday 11 March 2026
OpenClaw craze sees Mac minis briefly sold out in China as AI agent costs top CNY10,000
China's latest AI trend has moved beyond developer experiments. The rapid rise of OpenClaw, an open-source AI agent nicknamed "lobster," is driving hardware purchases, installation services, and a broader push by Chinese cloud and device companies to bring AI agents into mainstream computing
Wednesday 11 March 2026
JCET opens automotive and robotics chip packaging plant in Shanghai Lingang

JCET, China's leading semiconductor packaging and testing provider, has launched a facility focused on automotive electronics and robotics chips, strengthening the country's vehicle-grade semiconductor manufacturing ecosystem

Wednesday 11 March 2026
Nvidia audits Samsung HBM4 packaging for Rubin GPUs, report says
Nvidia has reportedly conducted a series of closely spaced visits to Samsung Electronics' semiconductor packaging campus in Cheonan, South Korea, signaling that verification of the next-generation high-bandwidth memory (HBM) supply chain is entering a final stage
Wednesday 11 March 2026
Japan's investment list targets AI, quantum computing, and semiconductors
Japan selected 61 products and technologies for priority investment, including 27 items already under early review, such as physical AI systems, regenerative medicine, quantum computing, and marine drones, the government said, according to Bloomberg
Wednesday 11 March 2026
China reportedly accelerating nuclear expansion while Western revival faces structural challenges

The rapid growth of artificial intelligence (AI) and data centers is driving a sharp rise in global electricity demand, renewing interest in nuclear power as a source of reliable, carbon-free energy. Yet while governments in the US and Europe are trying to revive their nuclear sectors, structural challenges—including aging workforces, fragile supply chains, and project delays—are complicating those efforts