U.S. suspends sweeping export control rule for one year after China trade talks
The U.S. has temporarily halted a sweeping export control rule, which had vastly expanded trade blacklist restrictions and swept in thousands of Chinese firms. In an announcement Monday, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) said it would pause its so-called 50% ownership rule designed to limit exports to entities that are majority owned by blacklisted companies until Nov. 9, 2026. The suspension is part of a broader agreement reached by presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping in Kuala Lumpur late last month, where Washington promised to halt the 50% ownership rule for one year in exchange for Beijing’s agreement to suspend its retaliatory trade measures announced in early October for one year.
China’s auto market hits electric milestone
For the first time, more than half of all new cars sold in China were new-energy vehicles (NEVs) in October, marking a milestone in the country’s rapid transformation of its auto industry. Sales of NEVs — including all-electric models and plug-in hybrids — rose 20% year-on-year to 1.72 million units, making up 51.6% of the total vehicles sold, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) said Tuesday. Overall auto sales for the month hit 3.32 million, an 8.8% increase from the prior year and the highest ever recorded for October.
China’s robotics industry revenue soars
Revenue from China’s robotics industry surged 29.5% year-on-year during the first three quarters of 2025, outpacing expectations as the country produced 595,000 industrial robots and 13.5 million service robots — both exceeding the full-year totals for 2024. The country’s density of manufacturing robots — measured as the number of robots per 10,000 employees — more than doubled since 2020, rising to 567 units and propelling China from eighth to third in the global ranking, according to Wang Weiming, a senior official at the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. Wang disclosed the data during the 2025 China Robot Industry Development Conference held on Tuesday.
Hesai Technology turns profit in third quarter
Chinese lidar-maker Hesai Technology reported a net profit of 256 million yuan ($36 million) for the third quarter, swinging from a loss a year earlier and achieving its full-year profitability target one quarter ahead of schedule. Quarterly revenue rose 47.5% year-on-year to 795 million yuan. Its total lidar deliveries surged 228.9% to 441,400 units, including 380,800 units for advanced driver-assistance systems and 60,600 units for robotics.
Beijing takes swipes at potential EU ban on Huawei, ZTE
China’s foreign ministry has pushed back against reports that the European Commission is considering forcing EU member states to phase out Huawei and ZTE equipment from their telecom networks. Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said at a regular press briefing on Tuesday that using administrative measures to restrict or ban companies from entering a market without legal basis or factual evidence seriously violates market principles and fair competition rules. Politicizing economic and trade issues will hinder technological progress and economic development, Lin said, urging the EU to provide a fair, transparent, and non-discriminatory business environment for Chinese companies.
