Hi everyone. I’m Stephanie LI.

Coming up on today’s program

China's manufacturing PMI edged up to 49.7 in June;

China yesterday conditionally resumed imports of aquatic products from certain regions of Japan.

Here’s what you need to know about China in the past 24 hours 

China's factory activity gauge improved slightly in June, but was still below the 50-point mark that separates contraction from expansion, official data showed on Monday.

Data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed that China's official purchasing managers index for the manufacturing sector came in at 49.7 in June, up from 49.5 in May.

Zhao Qinghe, an NBS statistician, said the improvement was mainly supported by the recovery in both supply and demand, with improvement in gauges for production and new orders.

The sub-index for production was 51 in June versus 50.7 in May, while the gauge for new orders came in at 50.2 in June, up from 49.8 in May, the NBS reported.

Notably, the PMIs for equipment manufacturing, high-tech manufacturing and consumer products sectors came in at 51.4, 50.9 and 50.4 in June, respectively, remained in expansion for a second consecutive month.

China's non-manufacturing PMI, which includes subindexes for service sector activity and construction, came in at 50.5 in June, up from 50.3 in May. However, the services PMI dipped slightly to 50.1 in June from 50.2 in May.

The country's official composite PMI, which encompasses both manufacturing and non-manufacturing activities, rose from 50.4 in May to 50.7 in June, indicating continued modest expansion in overall business activity.

GBA express

Hong Kong led the world in initial public offerings by value in the first half of the year, with 40 companies raising HKD102 billion. The top five share sales were battery giant CATL, Hengrui Pharmaceuticals, Haitian Flavoring & Food, Sanhua Intelligent Controls and bubble tea chain Mixue, according to professional services firm Deloitte. Mainland exchanges also reported a wave of IPOs, with 44 new Class-A share listings that raised CNY37 billion. In the same six-month period, 36 Chinese companies went public in the US, raising USD869 million.

The Shanghai Gold Exchange opened its first offshore warehouse in Hong Kong to bolster international trading of its contracts. The vault is operated by the Bank of China's Hong Kong branch.

China Southern Airlines Cargo is ramping up efforts to ensure fresh lychees from southern China make their way swiftly to markets across the country and around the world. As the lychee harvest hits its peak, air freight volumes have soared—over 7,000 tons of the fruit have been transported by China Southern since January 2025, with shipments experiencing a 40 percent week-on-week increase in late June alone.

Chinese mainland-based Lens Technology Co aims to raise up to HKD4.77 billion listing its shares in Hong Kong, a regulatory filing showed on Monday. The company, which makes glass and metal products used in smartphones and watches, will issue 262.3 million H-shares with a maximum offer price of HKD18.18 per share, it said in the filing to the Hong Kong exchange.

Industry and company news

Chinese technology giant Baidu said it will make its Ernie generative AI large-language model open source, beginning today, in what could be another "DeepSeek moment" in lowering the costs of artificial intelligence. 

More than 8.3 million passenger trips are expected to pass through two major airports in southern island province of Hainan as the summer travel season begins on Tuesday, airport authorities said. Meanwhile, Shanghai’s two major airports are expected to move 396,000 passengers a day during the summer vacation travel peak from tomorrow to Aug. 31, up 7 percent from a year ago. Some 150,000 flights will be operated during the period. 

China's Comac has delivered some 166 of its commercial jetliner C909, formerly known as ARJ21, over the nine years since its maiden flight, operating on more than 700 routes and transporting over 24 million passengers, the plane maker said on Saturday.

BYD started expansion works of its electric bus and truck plant in Hungary. The new 29,000 sqm production facility will triple the annual production capacity to over 1,000 electric buses and trucks and generate over 600 new jobs.

Asia-Pacific highlights

China resumed imports of aquatic products from specified regions of Japan, lifting a ban it imposed in 2023 after Japan began releasing treated wastewater from the Fukushima nuclear power plant into the Pacific Ocean. Imports from 10 prefectures, including Tokyo and Fukushima, will continue to be banned. China's General Administration of Customs said the partial lifting of the ban is based on the understanding that "international monitoring of wastewater discharge and independent sampling inspections by Chinese authorities show no abnormalities."  

Tourism authorities in Thailand will launch a new safety certification program for hotels, restaurants and shopping malls by August, in an effort to lure back Chinese visitors after a sharp decline in arrivals ahead of China's October National Day holiday season. The new certification initiative, called "Thailand Safe Travel Stamp," which will be granted to qualified hotels, restaurants, shopping malls, and tourism operators by August, local media outlets reported.