China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded to questions regarding potential visits by UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and former U.S. President Donald Trump. Spokesperson Guo Jiakun stated that while enhanced engagement between China and the UK aligns with mutual and global interests, no specific information was available regarding the timing of the visits. On the question of Trump's reported April visit and a potential reciprocal visit by Chinese leadership to the U.S. later this year, Guo emphasized the importance of stable U.S.-China relations but offered no confirmation of the specific plans.
The commercial space sector received multiple significant boosts. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk announced at the World Economic Forum in Davos the goal of achieving full rocket reusability with Starship technology this year, potentially slashing space access costs by 99% to under $100 per pound. Separately, Beijing municipal authorities jointly issued measures to promote the development and utilization of commercial satellite remote sensing data resources from 2026 to 2030, emphasizing optimized financial support and encouraging investment. Furthermore, Jiujuan city released its commercial aerospace industry development plan (2026-2035), aiming to establish national bases for commercial launches, research, and data application. At the 2026 Beijing International Commercial Aerospace Forum, Galaxy Aerospace's founder projected a multi-trillion dollar market for space infrastructure, forecasting the global space economy to reach $1.8 trillion by 2035.
Rumors regarding a tightening of thresholds for listings in Hong Kong were refuted. Reports suggesting that Chinese regulators would impose a market capitalization floor of 30 billion yuan for mainland companies seeking to list in Hong Kong were confirmed to be untrue, with current overseas listing policies remaining unchanged.
The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) issued its first penalty notice of 2026. Yu Han was fined a total of 1.02 billion yuan after being found to have illicit gains of 510 million yuan from trading shares of Doctorglasses Chain Co.,Ltd. using 67 controlled accounts between June 2019 and August 2024, during which the stock price surged 175.58%.
The memory chip sector saw significant positive developments as price hikes intensified. Samsung Electronics reportedly more than doubled its NAND flash memory prices in the first quarter, exceeding market expectations, with new negotiations for Q2 prices underway, signaling a continued upward trend. Analysts from institutions like Citi suggest a "super cycle" for memory chips, driven by AI demand, is underway, projecting 2026 price increases for DRAM and NAND at 88% and 74% respectively, higher than previous forecasts.
Zhejiang Fenglong Electric Co.,Ltd. and Jiamei Food Packaging(Chuzhou)Co.,Ltd. announced they would suspend trading to verify unusual stock price fluctuations. Fenglong's stock, after 17 consecutive trading days of hitting the upward limit with a 405.74% surge, will be halted from January 26. Similarly, Jiamei Packaging, whose stock rose 408.11% over a specific period, will also suspend trading for verification, citing a deviation from fundamentals, with halts expected to last no more than five trading days.
U.S. markets saw mixed performance, with Intel plunging over 17%, its largest single-day drop since August 2024. In contrast, Microsoft and Netflix gained over 3%, while AMD and Amazon rose over 2%. Precious metals led gains, with U.S. gold and Pan American Silver rising significantly. Spot gold and silver also hit new highs. Among popular Chinese ADRs, the Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index dipped slightly, with XPeng and NIO down over 2%, while Youdao and New Oriental posted gains.
Key economic data is anticipated, with China's January PMI figures scheduled for release on January 31. The U.S. Federal Reserve is expected to announce its interest rate decision on January 29, with markets pricing in a 95% probability of rates remaining unchanged.
The CSRC approved the IPO registrations of three companies: Xi'an Taijin New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. for the STAR Market, and Shenzhen Dapu Microelectronics Co., Ltd. and Nanchang Sanrui Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd. for the ChiNext Board. Three new shares are set for issuance this week (January 26-30): North Core Life on Monday, and Electroblue Sky and Linping Development on Friday.
This week, over 40 billion yuan worth of restricted shares will become eligible for trading. Data shows 28 companies have a total of 796 million shares lifting their sales restrictions, with a combined market value of approximately 40.97 billion yuan. Haibo Sichuang, Fushide, and Yifang Biology have the highest解禁市值 (lifted share value), while Fushide, Haibo Sichuang, and Jinghua Micro have the highest解禁占比 (percentage of float unlocked).