Japan has officially launched the Japan Hydrogen Fund, a US$400 million initiative aimed at advancing the global hydrogen supply chain and reducing barriers to clean energy adoption. The fund, proposed by the Japan Hydrogen Association (JH2A), reached its first-phase fundraising goal by August 2024 and commenced operations on September 12, with plans to announce its first investment by year-end
The escalating tensions between major powers are reshaping global investment and trade patterns, leading to a surge in companies facing divestment, relocation, and investment shifts. This trend suggests an impending rise in production and trade costs, coupled with intensified competition for localized investments. Nations that previously benefited from global supply chain shifts should remain vigilant, as they may become potential targets in the United States' evolving trade strategies
Huawei's rotating chairman, Zhijun Xu, has publicly recognized for the first time that China's limited chip manufacturing capabilities hinder the company's ability to develop advanced computing solutions. This acknowledgment highlights a significant bottleneck in Huawei's pursuit of greater computing power
With China's electric vehicles (EVs) gaining a strong foothold and automotive sales in the European Union (EU) slowing down, traditional large Germany-based automotive manufacturers are facing an increasingly bleak business outlook. Their sales and competitive power are being eroded by local China-based EV manufacturers in their main markets
Foreign auto joint ventures (JVs) that once dominated China's car market are rapidly losing market share to local electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers, according to industry sources. JVs formed by foreign marques and local partners have seen their combined share in China's car market fall to less than 30%, the sources said
China's automobile manufacturers are reportedly asking silicon carbide (SiC) module vendors to cut prices by as much as 30% amid growing supply, according to industry sources
Solar energy industry personnel pointed out that after N-type tunneling oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) became the trend in 2024, there was a severe supply surplus. Many businesses turned to production decreases and staff layoffs to reduce loss. However, how the rest of the year will progress is still unclear
China's Alibaba has announced the launch of a new generation of open-source large language models (LLMs), titled the Qwen2.5 series. Notably, Qwen2.5 has outperformed Meta's Llama 3.1 in several tests, and the Qwen-Plus model's performance rivals closed-source models like GPT4-o and Claude-3.5-Sonnet, garnering widespread attention
Japan is the industry leader in materials and equipment, while Taiwan maintains an overwhelming advantage in semiconductor manufacturing, according to Takashi Hattori, deputy representative of the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association. There is room for further collaboration between Japan and Taiwan
China has successfully circumvented US tariffs on DRAM modules through South Korea, leading to a sharp drop in direct exports of Chinese DRAM modules to the US and a corresponding surge in shipments to America from South Korea, according to market investigations
Samsung Electronics reportedly plans to restructure its Semiconductor Research Institute, transferring the DRAM and NAND flash memory development teams to the business division's development office
Skyworth Group, through a subsidiary, has sold its stake in LG Display's LCD factory in Guangzhou, paving the way for both companies' strategic adjustments as the highly competitive panel industry undergoes consolidation
As the US's annual review of export control approaches, speculation is mounting in the Chinese market regarding the potential discontinuation of Nvidia's H20 chip, a specialized version tailored for China. This has become a significant concern within the industry, particularly in light of recent developments
As consumer demand remains weak and China intensifies audits, Chinese memory module manufacturers are doubling their liquidation efforts after offloading excess inventory in the second quarter of 2024, driving down spot prices in the solid-state drive (SSD) market
