🔥 Top Stories
According to a Central Bank analysis report, Taiwan's foreign direct investment structure has undergone significant changes since the 2018 US-China trade war. The cumulative direct investment ratio to China decreased by 39.5 percentage points, as Taiwanese businesses shifted strategy from westward expansion to Southeast Asia and eastward expansion. The United States has emerged as the primary investment destination for Taiwan's businesses, reflecting global supply chain restructuring.
Taiwan's electronics industry is experiencing a significant shift from the traditional "Taiwan orders, China production, US sales" model due to US tariffs and cybersecurity compliance requirements. High-tech and security-sensitive products are returning to Taiwan for production, while lower-end products are being relocated to Southeast Asia or US-based assembly. This transformation is driving substantial growth in Taiwan's domestic export capacity, with Taiwan's production share now exceeding China's.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Trump held talks at the White House on the morning of the 24th EST. Xi expressed hope that the U.S. would maintain its opposition to Taiwan independence and handle the Taiwan issue carefully. Regarding trade cooperation, Xi noted that both nations' economic teams completed a new round of negotiations and reached a new joint arrangement, which he described as positive news for both countries and the global economy.
U.S. President Trump stated on January 25 that the Trump-Xi meeting was productive for both nations and hinted at major developments ahead. China's Xinhua News Agency disclosed that President Xi mentioned bilateral economic teams completed a new round of consultations and reached a new joint arrangement, though specific details remain undisclosed.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump held a tea meeting at the White House in Washington. Both leaders agreed to further enrich the substance of China-U.S. relations and jointly build a constructive strategic stable relationship based on respect, fairness, and reciprocity. Xi expressed satisfaction with the visit and proactively announced two additional planned meetings with Trump.
🏛 Politics
Chinese President Xi Jinping visited the United States from June 23-25, reaching eight consensus points with US President Trump. Both nations agreed to establish a constructive strategic stable relationship based on respect, fairness, and reciprocity. The agreements cover trade, artificial intelligence, drug enforcement, international issues, and military communication. The two countries also pledged mutual support for hosting APEC and G20 summits, and reached consensus on Iran's nuclear commitments and international waterway access.
Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force will deploy the Type 25 land-based anti-ship missile for the first time during a large-scale joint exercise with the United States in October, according to Japanese media reports. This marks the debut of Japan's long-range missile system in a US-Japan joint drill, reflecting deepened defense cooperation between the two nations in the Indo-Pacific region.
Following President Xi Jinping's state visit to the United States, China released eight key consensus points between the two nations. The agreements cover strategic stability, trade and economic consultation mechanisms, and drug enforcement cooperation. Both countries reaffirmed their alliance during World War II.
President Heine of the Marshall Islands spoke at the UN General Assembly debate, supporting Taiwan's participation. She stated that UN Resolution 2758 could become a legal instrument for coercion or war, and that appeasement cannot satisfy aggressors' intentions. Heine emphasized that only an elected government can represent Taiwan and called on the UN to find ways for Taiwan's substantive participation in meetings.
US Congressional Democrats and Republicans expressed dissatisfaction on the 24th that the Trump-Xi meeting failed to achieve breakthroughs on major issues. Democratic lawmakers urged President Trump to immediately implement the congressionally-approved Taiwan security assistance and military sales package totaling over $15 billion. Republicans expressed concerns regarding Trump's positions in the meeting with Xi Jinping. Both parties emphasized the importance of strengthening support for Taiwan.
US President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping held a summit at the White House on the 24th, staging a high-level state visit to foster stable US-China relations. However, major disagreements persisted on trade, artificial intelligence, and Iran conflict. China's priority issue of Taiwan saw Beijing present demands without public US response. Trump subsequently claimed the summit was "very productive," suggesting further developments ahead.
U.S. President Trump posted on social media that his talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping were "productive" for both nations and hinted at "major things" to come. Trump mentioned discussions on artificial intelligence terminology, noting Xi's preference for calling it "super intelligence" instead. Xi is on a three-day state visit to the United States, his second since 2015. Trump and Xi held talks on Thursday and attended a state dinner.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Trump held talks at the White House on the morning of the 24th EST. Xi expressed hope that the U.S. would maintain its opposition to Taiwan independence and handle the Taiwan issue carefully. Regarding trade cooperation, Xi noted that both nations' economic teams completed a new round of negotiations and reached a new joint arrangement, which he described as positive news for both countries and the global economy.
U.S. President Trump stated on January 25 that the Trump-Xi meeting was productive for both nations and hinted at major developments ahead. China's Xinhua News Agency disclosed that President Xi mentioned bilateral economic teams completed a new round of consultations and reached a new joint arrangement, though specific details remain undisclosed.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump held a tea meeting at the White House in Washington. Both leaders agreed to further enrich the substance of China-U.S. relations and jointly build a constructive strategic stable relationship based on respect, fairness, and reciprocity. Xi expressed satisfaction with the visit and proactively announced two additional planned meetings with Trump.
💰 Finance
Analysts warn that US Treasury yields experienced significant and rapid increases this week, pushing financial markets into a danger zone. The yield surge may impact multiple asset classes including stocks, bonds, and real estate. Investors should monitor potential market volatility and spillover effects across different sectors.
The US government announced up to $7 billion in financing through the Export-Import Bank through 2027 for Argentina's energy, mining, and infrastructure projects. Funds will support railway, pipeline, port, and power grid development to facilitate lithium and copper extraction in northwestern Argentina and shale oil and gas production in the Vaca Muerta region. The initiative aims to strengthen critical mineral supply chains in the Western Hemisphere while promoting US equipment purchases and corporate participation.
Taiwan's integrated circuit exports reached a historic high of $30.797 billion in August, growing 60% year-over-year, accounting for 37.4% of total monthly exports. AMD and Micron stock prices broke through long-term consolidation ranges. Industry observers view this as evidence that AI demand remains underestimated by markets. South Korea's chip exports surged 259% in the first 20 days of September, while TSMC's August revenue grew 53.3%, indicating robust global chip demand.
Market optimism over US-Iran diplomatic progress drove oil prices lower on Friday. US stocks closed broadly higher, with the Dow Jones gaining nearly 480 points, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq each rose about 0.5%. The Semiconductor Index gained over 1%. For the week, the Dow rose 0.3%, the S&P 500 gained 1.2%, and the Nasdaq climbed approximately 2%. Iran proposed reopening the Strait of Hormuz within 7 days, while AI-driven tech stocks provided support.
According to a Central Bank analysis report, Taiwan's foreign direct investment structure has undergone significant changes since the 2018 US-China trade war. The cumulative direct investment ratio to China decreased by 39.5 percentage points, as Taiwanese businesses shifted strategy from westward expansion to Southeast Asia and eastward expansion. The United States has emerged as the primary investment destination for Taiwan's businesses, reflecting global supply chain restructuring.
Taiwan's electronics industry is experiencing a significant shift from the traditional "Taiwan orders, China production, US sales" model due to US tariffs and cybersecurity compliance requirements. High-tech and security-sensitive products are returning to Taiwan for production, while lower-end products are being relocated to Southeast Asia or US-based assembly. This transformation is driving substantial growth in Taiwan's domestic export capacity, with Taiwan's production share now exceeding China's.
Taiwan's trade surplus with the United States and ASEAN countries is experiencing significant growth as high-end products are manufactured domestically and exported to the US, while mid-to-low-end products are assembled in ASEAN. Due to the highly specialized global AI industry supply chain, Taiwan's demand for upstream memory chips and semiconductor materials has increased substantially, making South Korea and Japan Taiwan's top two sources of trade deficits.
Taiwan's central bank announced on September 17 a relaxation of housing credit controls, raising the loan-to-value ratio for second homes from 60% to 70% and removing construction timeline restrictions on land loans. This marks the most significant policy adjustment in nearly two years, supporting home trading and new projects. However, restrictions on luxury properties, corporate purchases, and third-plus homes remain unchanged, while banking attitudes and regional supply-demand disparities continue to pose challenges to market recovery.
Chinese President Xi Jinping concluded a three-day visit to the United States. US Trade Representative Grier stated on social media that the newly established US-China Trade Committee will help American farmers, manufacturers, and businesses better access the Chinese market, promoting bilateral trade cooperation.
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer revealed on the 25th that the US and China have reached agreements on certain goods. Under the agreement, these products may be exempted from future trade disputes or tariff increases. The Trump administration plans to disclose more negotiation details on the 28th.
💻 Technology
A major genetic study analyzing over 3.3 million people discovered that some never-smokers with lung cancer may have inherited genetic risk factors. Researchers found that individuals carrying specific rare genetic variants have significantly elevated lung cancer risk, potentially dozens of times higher. This finding helps explain previously unexplained lung cancer cases in non-smokers and provides new insights for prevention and early screening strategies.
A US federal appeals court ruled 2-1 to uphold the Department of Defense's decision to designate AI company Anthropic as a national security supply chain risk. The court found the Pentagon had reasonable grounds to exclude Anthropic from military contracts and rejected Anthropic's retaliation claims. The dispute originated from the Pentagon's demand that Anthropic relax safety restrictions on its Claude AI model, including use in lethal autonomous weapons and mass domestic surveillance, which Anthropic refused.
Apple has disclosed its on-device AI capability matrix, mapping device specifications to compatible large language model sizes. The framework spans from iPhone and iPad to Mac systems, with the most powerful devices supporting models up to 1.6 trillion parameters. This marks Apple's first public demonstration of edge computing capabilities across its product ecosystem.
Tower Semiconductor announced a $4 billion investment in Japan to establish a major optical communication hub for AI optical chip manufacturing. The expansion aims to increase production capacity and meet growing global demand for high-performance optical communication semiconductors, strengthening the company's competitive position in the industry.
Goldman Sachs research indicates China's AI-related capital expenditure will reach 8.5 trillion yuan (approximately 1.3 trillion USD) from 2026 to 2030, supporting IT power capacity growth from 26GW in 2025 to 81GW by 2030. Major cloud providers and internet companies will drive investment, with 2026 capital expenditure projected at 995 billion yuan, representing 121% year-over-year growth, exceeding US peers' 41% growth rate. Alibaba, Tencent, and Baidu are primary participants.
Intel recently released performance assessments of its next-generation 14A process, claiming the performance gap with TSMC's A14 process is within 5%. However, industry analysts suggest Intel may still maintain certain technological advantages in advanced process development. The assessment reflects ongoing competition between the two major chipmakers in cutting-edge semiconductor manufacturing.
According to Bloomberg, OpenAI's AI model accessed public data from U.S. government websites, including those of the Census Bureau and Securities and Exchange Commission. OpenAI is currently investigating the specific actions and scope of impact of the AI agent.
The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is advancing small modular reactor (SMR) development. According to Bloomberg, the NRC may complete the final review stage for the BWRX-300 construction permit in the near term. This milestone represents significant progress in commercializing US SMR technology and supports nuclear energy's role in the low-carbon energy transition.
The primary bottleneck in generative AI development has shifted from chip supply to comprehensive challenges including power consumption, facility location, grid connectivity, and computational efficiency. Industry analysis indicates that companies must pursue dual strategies of intelligent power control and architecture optimization to meet growing computational demands, as simple data center expansion is no longer sufficient for competitive advantage.
Alphabet's Google announced it will launch a prototype satellite next week for the first orbital test of its Suncatcher project. The initiative aims to explore the feasibility of deploying large-scale AI computing infrastructure in space, marking Google's strategic move into the space AI market opportunity.
🎬 Entertainment
Taiwan's delegation continues strong performance at the Nagoya Asian Games. Guo Ziang won bronze in esports Magic Bubble, while table tennis player Lin Yun-ju advanced to the men's singles semifinals, securing at least one bronze medal. Taiwan's medal count stands at 2 gold, 5 silver, and 17 bronze. The baseball team will compete against China for bronze on the 27th.
Taiwan's table tennis player Lin Yun-ju defeated Hong Kong's Chan Ho-wa 4-1 in the men's singles quarterfinals at the Nagoya Asian Games. The victory advances him to the semifinals and guarantees at least a bronze medal, surpassing his previous Asian Games quarterfinal exit and achieving his best result at the competition.
Taiwan's Lin Yun-ju defeated Hong Kong's Chen Hao-hua 4-1 in the men's singles quarterfinals at the Nagoya Asian Games, advancing to the semifinals for the first time. This marks Taiwan's first men's singles semifinalist in 12 years since Chuang Chih-yuan at the 2014 Incheon Asian Games. Lin has secured at least a bronze medal and will face China's Lin Shidong in the semifinals.
Taiwanese swimmer Wang Guan-hong claimed gold in the men's 200-meter butterfly final at the Nagoya Asian Games with a time of 1:55.05, defeating competitors from China and Japan. This marks Taiwan's first-ever men's swimming gold medal at the Asian Games and the delegation's second gold at this edition. Taiwan's previous swimming gold at the Asian Games dates back to 1998 in Bangkok, when Tsai Shu-min won the women's 200-meter freestyle.
Japanese entertainment company Stardust Entertainment, which manages multiple popular boy bands, reportedly issued directives to record labels on the 25th, instructing them not to allow their artists to apply for this year's NHK Red and White Song Festival. The move allegedly stems from dissatisfaction with NHK's handling. The decision could result in a complete absence of the company's artists from the competition, drawing public attention.
32-year-old Taiwanese BMX athlete Cheng Chiao-hung qualified for the finals at the 2026 Aichi Nagoya Asian Games, ranking 8th in the men's qualification round with an average score of 37.40. He became the first Taiwanese athlete to reach the BMX Freestyle final at the Asian Games, marking a historic milestone for Taiwan's BMX program after 25 years of development.
🌏 International
Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Trump held talks at the White House on the morning of the 24th EST. Xi expressed hope that the U.S. would maintain its opposition to Taiwan independence and handle the Taiwan issue carefully. Regarding trade cooperation, Xi noted that both nations' economic teams completed a new round of negotiations and reached a new joint arrangement, which he described as positive news for both countries and the global economy.
U.S. President Trump stated on January 25 that the Trump-Xi meeting was productive for both nations and hinted at major developments ahead. China's Xinhua News Agency disclosed that President Xi mentioned bilateral economic teams completed a new round of consultations and reached a new joint arrangement, though specific details remain undisclosed.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump held a tea meeting at the White House in Washington. Both leaders agreed to further enrich the substance of China-U.S. relations and jointly build a constructive strategic stable relationship based on respect, fairness, and reciprocity. Xi expressed satisfaction with the visit and proactively announced two additional planned meetings with Trump.
Chinese President Xi Jinping concluded his first visit to Washington in 11 years, reaching new consensus with President Trump on building a constructive strategic stability relationship based on respect, fairness, and reciprocity. Xi emphasized that the visit achieved mutually beneficial results in trade and economic sectors, and stressed the importance of respecting differences and managing disagreements for long-term stable development.
Chinese President Xi Jinping visited the United States from June 23-25, reaching eight consensus points with US President Trump. Both nations agreed to establish a constructive strategic stable relationship based on respect, fairness, and reciprocity. The agreements cover trade, artificial intelligence, drug enforcement, international issues, and military communication. The two countries also pledged mutual support for hosting APEC and G20 summits, and reached consensus on Iran's nuclear commitments and international waterway access.
An independent panel concluded that Manchester City violated Premier League regulations on 114 out of 115 charges following an extensive investigation into financial rule breaches. The club faces potential significant penalties as a result of these findings in what represents one of the most serious violations in Premier League history.
The FBI experienced a significant data breach that has alarmed current and former agents. In interviews with the BBC, personnel expressed concerns about the serious implications of the security incident. The breach has prompted investigations into how sensitive information was compromised and what protective measures need to be strengthened.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has departed Washington after completing a three-day state visit to the United States. During the visit, Xi held a summit with US President Trump to discuss bilateral relations, trade cooperation, and other key issues. The meeting represents an important diplomatic engagement between the two nations' leaders.
Chinese President Xi Jinping concluded a 43-hour state visit to the United States, his first in over a decade. Xi and US President Donald Trump held multiple meetings including airport ceremonies, White House reception, and bilateral talks covering trade, tariffs, and Taiwan. The leaders attended a state dinner held in Xi's honour.
According to a Central Bank analysis report, Taiwan's foreign direct investment structure has undergone significant changes since the 2018 US-China trade war. The cumulative direct investment ratio to China decreased by 39.5 percentage points, as Taiwanese businesses shifted strategy from westward expansion to Southeast Asia and eastward expansion. The United States has emerged as the primary investment destination for Taiwan's businesses, reflecting global supply chain restructuring.
US Congressional Democrats and Republicans expressed dissatisfaction on the 24th that the Trump-Xi meeting failed to achieve breakthroughs on major issues. Democratic lawmakers urged President Trump to immediately implement the congressionally-approved Taiwan security assistance and military sales package totaling over $15 billion. Republicans expressed concerns regarding Trump's positions in the meeting with Xi Jinping. Both parties emphasized the importance of strengthening support for Taiwan.
Taiwan's electronics industry is experiencing a significant shift from the traditional "Taiwan orders, China production, US sales" model due to US tariffs and cybersecurity compliance requirements. High-tech and security-sensitive products are returning to Taiwan for production, while lower-end products are being relocated to Southeast Asia or US-based assembly. This transformation is driving substantial growth in Taiwan's domestic export capacity, with Taiwan's production share now exceeding China's.
US President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping held a summit at the White House on the 24th, staging a high-level state visit to foster stable US-China relations. However, major disagreements persisted on trade, artificial intelligence, and Iran conflict. China's priority issue of Taiwan saw Beijing present demands without public US response. Trump subsequently claimed the summit was "very productive," suggesting further developments ahead.
U.S. President Trump posted on social media that his talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping were "productive" for both nations and hinted at "major things" to come. Trump mentioned discussions on artificial intelligence terminology, noting Xi's preference for calling it "super intelligence" instead. Xi is on a three-day state visit to the United States, his second since 2015. Trump and Xi held talks on Thursday and attended a state dinner.
President Heine of the Marshall Islands spoke at the UN General Assembly debate, supporting Taiwan's participation. She stated that UN Resolution 2758 could become a legal instrument for coercion or war, and that appeasement cannot satisfy aggressors' intentions. Heine emphasized that only an elected government can represent Taiwan and called on the UN to find ways for Taiwan's substantive participation in meetings.
📰 Other
The International Union for Conservation of Nature warns that widespread wildfires ravaging tropical forests in Indonesian Borneo are placing severe pressure on the critically endangered Bornean orangutan. The fires are destroying the species' habitat and threatening its survival.
A fire broke out near the observation deck of Nagoya TV Tower, a famous landmark in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, around noon on the 26th, producing black smoke. The 180-meter-tall tower, built in 1954, is a well-known tourist attraction. Emergency services have responded to the scene, with no casualties reported so far.
Bangkok faces severe flooding from heavy rainfall, with all 50 administrative districts declared disaster zones. On the morning of the 26th, a 58-year-old waste collector was electrocuted and killed while wading through a flooded parking lot in Bang Kapi district, apparently due to faulty electrical wiring. Neighbors hesitated to rescue her due to safety concerns, highlighting the dangers posed by the disaster.