China

Intelligence for Better Decision Making

Shanghai Robotics Summit Showcases Breakthroughs in Humanoid Automation and Industry Investment

Dec. 11, 2025 | Technology & Innovation

The 2025 Global Developers Pioneers Summit and International Embodied Intelligence Skills Competition will gather industry leaders in Shanghai from December 12 to 14 to showcase and evaluate cutting-edge robotics in simulated real-world scenarios.

**The summit features six major tracks and 17 distinct events centered on embodied intelligence, with challenges spanning industrial production and life skills.**
Industrial tasks include moving goods and tightening screws, while life skill scenarios require robots to arrange flowers, fold clothes, and make coffee. These activities unfold in homes, hospitals, and disaster-relief environments, with judges assessing both technical performance and humanistic care.

**Aoyi Technology will supply 30 high-performance dexterous robot hands—critical for humanoid robots operating in complex urban and industrial settings.**
Aoyi’s technical team will provide on-site support as the hands undergo intensive testing, feeding operational lessons directly into future product iterations.

**Humanoid Robot (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. will enter its full-size general-purpose humanoid robot, Qinglong, in the home service track.**
Built on open-source hardware and software platforms, Qinglong will tackle tasks such as folding clothes and tidying tableware to reveal challenges in model generalization and robustness across varied domestic environments.

Shanghai Zhuoyide Robot Co., Ltd. will challenge its precision motion-control systems in the flower-arranging event, using performance data from the competition to advance research and development in high-precision robotic manipulation.

**In the industrial sector, Shanghai Kepler Robot Co., Ltd. will deploy its “blue-collar humanoid robot” team to demonstrate autonomous, flexible logistics handling.**
Key capabilities include dynamic environment adaptation, heavy-load management, dual-arm coordination, and extended operation hours supported by proprietary components and algorithms. Kepler views the competition as a stress test for its technology’s commercial viability.

**Qinglang Intelligent will present its XMAN-R1 service robot, backed by extensive deployment experience.**
In 2024, Qinglang holds a 22.7% share of the global commercial service-robot market, with over 100,000 units operating in more than 600 cities. The firm will use the competition to validate its robots’ reliability and practicality in complex, realistic scenarios.

**Rongtai Electric Material announced a USD 77 million investment to build a factory in Thailand producing insulation components for new energy vehicles and robotic parts by end of 2026.**
The facility will manufacture 14,000 tons of mica paper, 4,500 tons of mica products, and seven million sets of robotic components annually. After the announcement, Rongtai’s shares rose over 7% in early trading before closing up 1.1%, outperforming the Shanghai Composite Index. Rongtai already supplies mica insulation to Tesla, Volkswagen, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz, and in June acquired a 51% stake in Shanghai-based Dizi Precision Machinery—specialists in planetary roller screw products used in humanoid robots—positioning itself to enter the precision transmission component market for robotics.

China’s Chip Export Surge Drives Foreign Trade Rebound amid US Tariffs

Dec. 11, 2025 | Technology & Innovation

China’s chip industry is fueling export growth as broader foreign trade rebounds amid tensions with the United States.

**In November 2025, China recorded a 5.9 percent year-on-year increase in exports to USD 330.3 billion, reversing October’s 1.1 percent decline.**
Strong shipments of integrated circuits and automobiles, alongside a lower comparative base from the previous year, drove this export rebound. Imports rose 1.9 percent to USD 218.7 billion, bringing total foreign trade to USD 549 billion, a 4.3 percent year-on-year gain.

**Integrated circuits led sectoral growth with a 34 percent jump in export value, while car exports surged 53 percent compared with November 2024.**
Analysts attribute these gains to China’s ongoing manufacturing transformation and a global upswing in investment linked to artificial intelligence technologies.

**Exports to the United States plunged 28.6 percent to USD 33.8 billion, widening from October’s 25.2 percent drop, as US tariffs averaging 31 percent continued to curb shipments.**
By contrast, China expanded exports to other major markets: the European Union bought 14.8 percent more, Japan 4.3 percent more, and South Korea 1.9 percent more.

**Exports to ASEAN countries rose 8.2 percent to USD 58.1 billion, though growth slowed from October’s 11 percent increase.**
Observers link this deceleration to reduced re-exports following US tariff hikes on certain ASEAN member exports.

**In the first eleven months of 2025, China’s total foreign trade grew 2.9 percent to USD 5.7 trillion.**
Over the same period, exports climbed 5.4 percent to USD 3.4 trillion, while imports edged down 0.6 percent to USD 2.3 trillion.

Monitored Intelligence for China - Dec. 12, 2025

News
Media
328

Government
Releases
16

City/State
Releases
17

Embassy
Releases
1

Foreign
Service
Advisories
0

Academic/
Think
Tank
10

Podcasts
0

Videos
0

Social
Media
0

Business
Releases
0

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Nation ramps up power trading for greener future

China Daily | English | News | Dec. 12, 2025 | UndeterminedEnergy Prices

In 2025, China has significantly expanded its power-trading market, allowing enterprises to purchase electricity at market-based rates, which enhances cost control and accelerates the transition to cleaner energy. For example, Xuzhou Shanshan Outlet Plaza reduced its monthly electricity bills by over 70,000 yuan ($9,910) by buying power through the market, while also benefiting from sourcing renewable energy to support low-carbon supply chains. Approximately 23,900 industrial and commercial businesses in Xuzhou participated in the market in 2025, with market-based power consumption reaching 10.2 billion kilowatt-hours in the first half of the year, saving users around 40 million yuan monthly.

China's unified national power market, launched in 2025, facilitates long-distance transmission of renewable energy, such as hydropower from Yunnan and Sichuan provinces, to energy-demanding industrial regions like the Yangtze River Delta. Market-traded electricity increased from 1.1 trillion kWh in 2016 to 6.2 trillion kWh in 2024, accounting for 63 percent of total electricity consumption. The State Grid's trans-provincial transmission capacity reached 370 million kilowatts by November, promoting efficient resource allocation and reliable energy supply amidst varying regional energy endowments.

Jiangsu province has aggressively promoted green power trading, boosting the trading volume from 1.37 billion kWh in 2021 to 20.34 billion kWh in 2024, resulting in reductions of 6.24 million metric tons of standard coal consumption and 15.56 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions. Concurrently, China's combined wind and solar installed capacity surged from 530 million kW in 2020 to 1.68 billion kW by mid-2025, growing at an average annual rate of 28 percent. The growing demand for green electricity includes trade fairs, conferences, and exporters aiming to enhance carbon neutrality and global competitiveness amid increasing carbon footprint awareness.

DPP authorities slammed for hollowing out Taiwan's industrial strengths

Peoples Daily | English | News | Dec. 12, 2025 | Geopolitical Conflict and Disputes

A spokesperson from the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council criticized recent statements by Taiwan leader Lai Ching-te and deputy Hsiao Bi-khim about relocating Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) production capacity overseas. The comments highlighted the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities’ role in undermining Taiwan's industrial base.

Chen Binhua argued that what Lai described as efforts to support TSMC's global presence in the United States, Japan, and Europe, ostensibly to promote "global prosperity and progress," actually represents the loss of Taiwan’s key industrial assets. The move was characterized as damaging to Taiwan's industries, companies, and the livelihoods of ordinary Taiwanese people.

Air China–Rolls-Royce joint venture begins operations in Beijing

China Daily | English | News | Dec. 12, 2025 | UndeterminedBizdev-Partnering

China has officially launched its first joint venture dedicated to aero engine maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) in the Beijing Capital International Airport Economic Zone. The joint venture, Beijing Aero Engine Services Co Ltd (BAESL), is a partnership between Air China and Rolls-Royce, each holding a 50-percent stake. This facility represents Rolls-Royce's fourth MRO JV and the first of its kind in mainland China, focusing on servicing high-thrust engines such as the Trent series.

BAESL plans to start overhaul work on several engine types, including the Trent 700, Trent XWB-84, and Trent 1000, beginning in 2026. The company targets achieving an annual output of 250 overhauled engines by 2034. The joint venture aims to enhance maintenance reliability and efficiency for Air China’s fleet while supporting Rolls-Royce’s 2030 goals for global MRO capacity expansion and localized growth.

The Beijing Capital International Airport Economic Zone, where BAESL operates, is a significant aviation hub that hosts over 20 maintenance enterprises. These companies generate approximately 14 billion yuan in annual industrial output, representing about 20 percent of China’s national total in this sector.

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