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A reported drop in PLA sortie counts around Taiwan has prompted speculation of de‑escalation, but evidence points to a qualitative shift in operations. The deployment and massing of J‑20 stealth fighters, combined with integrated sensor networks, mean fewer visible flights can still impose significant military pressure and complicate Taiwan's defence picture.

A Chinese op-ed warns that a large-scale U.S.–Israeli strike on Iran could be imminent after negotiations stalled, citing elevated military postures and preparations on all sides. The commentary stresses the risk of a protracted regional conflict—drawing in proxies, disrupting oil flows and challenging global stability—while urging China to value and protect its peace and interests.

Following indirect Geneva talks, the White House said diplomacy remains President Trump’s first choice but kept a military option open. Regional mediators described the meeting as constructive, while U.S. officials warned Iran has not yet accepted key U.S. red lines.

As China faces a record 9.5 billion cross‑regional movements this Lunar New Year, armed police at Hangzhou East station are combining security patrols with public‑service duties to keep a major transport hub running smoothly. Their work reflects both practical crowd management needs and the state’s broader approach of using uniformed forces to reassure the public during large‑scale population movements.

A senior U.S. official says President Trump’s national security adviser ordered that all U.S. forces involved in a Middle East buildup be deployed by mid‑March, while Washington expects Iran to submit a written proposal after Geneva talks. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will visit Israel on February 28 to coordinate with Prime Minister Netanyahu, reflecting a parallel strategy of military readiness and diplomatic pressure.

The White House said talks with Iran have achieved limited progress but remain distant on key issues, with Iran expected to submit a more detailed proposal in the coming weeks. The administration declined to set a deadline or rule out military options, underscoring a cautious, leverage-preserving approach to negotiations.

China’s nine-day 2026 Spring Festival has prompted a crowded content race among films, long TV dramas and short-form series, with early figures showing presale box office roughly half last year’s pace and ticket prices falling. While traditional tentpole films still lead presales, platforms are aggressively promoting AI-assisted short dramas and conservative co-financing models are reshaping risk allocation across the industry.

Duan Yongping’s H&H International Investment held roughly $17.5bn in US equities at end-2025 and dramatically increased its Nvidia stake while trimming Apple and cutting ASML. The fund also initiated small positions in AI infrastructure and healthcare AI plays — CoreWeave, Credo Technology and Tempus — signaling a strategic pivot toward the AI compute stack and monetizable applications.

As the Lunar New Year return peak hits, Hainan is experiencing acute transport shortages: flights from Haikou to major mainland cities are selling out and ferry crossings on the Qiongzhou Strait have no available seats. The squeeze reflects a strong inbound tourism rebound to Hainan and an asymmetric flow of passengers that has pushed outbound fares sharply higher while some inbound fares have plunged.

January arrivals from mainland China to Japan fell 60.7% year‑on‑year, deepening a decline that began in December and contributing to Japan’s first monthly drop in foreign visitors in four years. The slump has hit hotels and duty‑free retail, with media and private data linking the fall to controversial comments by Japanese politician Sanae Takaichi and resulting cancellations during the Lunar New Year.

Jiangsu surpassed Guangdong to become China’s largest provincial retail market in 2025, while Chongqing overtook Shanghai as the country’s top retail city. The data show stronger consumption growth in central and western provinces driven by targeted subsidies, tourism and night‑time economy initiatives, while first‑tier cities such as Beijing face structural headwinds.

China’s AI competition has shifted from model development to a consumer battleground during two consecutive Lunar New Year campaigns. Alibaba, ByteDance, Tencent and Baidu used subsidies, embedded assistants and viral features to fight for national traffic, while smaller firms pursue agent‑style products that combine multiple models. The outcome will reshape who controls mass AI touchpoints in China, narrow the US–China model gap and raise barriers for smaller players unless they adopt alternative, interoperable strategies.

Boonie Bears’ latest Spring Festival film consolidated the franchise’s twelve‑year dominance of China’s New Year family market, earning about ¥290 million in early grosses and drawing an older, female‑skewing audience. The series has closed the technical gap with global animation but remains hamstrung by formulaic hero narratives, even as its culturally rich depiction of New Year customs gives it seasonal staying power.

Regulatory tightening in Singapore and attractive residency and tax regimes in Dubai have prompted a notable reallocation of Chinese wealth from Southeast Asia to the Gulf. The trend reflects policy‑sensitive capital seeking speed, tax advantages and regulatory predictability amid shifting geopolitics and regional integration.

A Tianjin University-led team published a Nature paper describing a new organic cathode for lithium batteries claimed to be safe, heat- and freeze-resistant, and mechanically flexible. The development could advance greener, wearable-capable energy storage, but significant engineering and scaling challenges remain before commercial deployment.

China's monitored highway charging network recorded 1.4099 million sessions and an average daily delivery of about 11.8 GWh during the first three days of the Spring Festival, up 63% year‑on‑year. The National Energy Administration reported stable operation and said it will step up monitoring ahead of the return‑trip peak.

Sanae Takaichi’s elevation to prime minister follows a decisive LDP electoral victory and ushers in a policy mix of aggressive, debt‑funded fiscal expansion targeted at defence and high‑tech industries. Critics warn this approach risks worsening Japan’s already massive public debt burden, accelerating yen depreciation and stoking inflation and social division, while political scandals and intra‑party factionalism threaten the government’s stability.

China logged 1.41 million highway EV charging sessions in the first three days of the Lunar New Year, with daily charging of 11.8 million kWh — up 63% year-on-year. Authorities report stable operations and plan intensified monitoring for the holiday return peak, underscoring rapid EV adoption and the need for grid and charging-network upgrades.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang announced that GTC 2026 will unveil “never‑seen” chips, signalling an aggressive push in AI infrastructure. The declaration underlines Nvidia’s central role in the AI compute market and raises questions about technological novelty, supply‑chain constraints and geopolitical implications.

World Labs, founded by AI pioneer Fei‑Fei Li, raised $1 billion in a round that included Autodesk ($200m), Andreessen Horowitz, Nvidia and AMD. The funding aims to accelerate the company’s work on 3D “world models,” exemplified by its Marble product, to advance robotics, scientific discovery and 3D content applications.