From cash handouts to reimbursed procedures, local governments across China are throwing money at in vitro fertilisation and related fertility treatments in a bid to coax couples into having children. But some experts warn that the hi-tech push ignores the low-tech reality: raising a family is simply too expensive, and fertility subsidies cannot reverse China’s demographic decline. Jingmen, a city in central Hubei province, is the latest to join the fray, announcing subsidies of up to 10,000...

Shenzhen’s main railway station handled a record 116.6 million passengers in the first 11 months of 2025, as China’s major cities continue to see a boom in rail ridership and travel between Hong Kong and mainland China picks up steam. The total passenger flow at Shenzhen North Railway Station between January and November was up 8.8 per cent compared with the same period last year, according to data from China State Railway Group cited by local media. Shenzhen North is one of the two largest...

China’s currency appears poised to break through the psychological 7.0-per-dollar barrier next year, fuelled by US Federal Reserve rate cuts and thawing trade tensions, with some bulls betting that the yuan could strengthen to 6.8. Analysts and onlookers are increasingly optimistic, with some citing the potential for a relatively weaker US dollar and pointing to signs that Beijing’s policy support is stabilising the world’s second-largest economy. Guan Tao, a former senior official with China’s...

Chinese electric vehicle (EV) maker Xpeng plans to establish a production base in Malaysia targeting Southeast Asian customers, in its latest move to expand overseas to improve profitability. The Guangzhou-based company, 5 per cent owned by Volkswagen Group, said on Monday that it would partner with Malaysian firm EP Manufacturing Berhad (EPMB), an investment conglomerate focusing on automotive manufacturing and engineering, to locally assemble its intelligent electric cars tailored to the needs...

China faces mounting pressure to ramp up stimulus as new data shows its growth engines sputtering, with retail sales growth slowing for six straight months and investment showing renewed signs of strain in November despite recent policy support. The deceleration in consumption growth and the deepening property slump underscore the challenges Beijing faces in revitalising the economy heading into 2026. Retail sales, a key gauge of consumer spending, grew in November by just 1.3 per cent, year on...

Geely Auto, mainland China’s second-largest carmaker by sales, has doubled down on its push to improve vehicle reliability by launching a 2 billion yuan (US$283.5 million) facility for safety tests, bucking the trend of price competition in the world’s largest automotive market. The centre, the world’s largest of its kind, reflected Geely’s determination to prioritise safety as it resisted offering discounts amid a brutal price war, according to Jerry Gan Jiayue, CEO of the firm’s passenger car...

The recently concluded Politburo meeting in Beijing marked a profound strategic recalibration of China’s economic compass. Moving decisively past the crisis response narrative that defined 2024, Beijing has signalled an evolution towards equal emphasis on quality and efficiency and a careful balance of short and long-term goals for 2026. This pivot, timed for the threshold of the 15th five-year plan, confirms that the era of aggressive, blunt-force stimulus is yielding to one of high-precision,...