Chinese companies achieve 5-minute ultrafast EV charging

14 Chinese automakers reported H1 2026 revenue of 1.47 trillion yuan, with only 1 profitable. Traditional automakers like BYD, Geely, and Great Wall saw mixed results, while 7 new EV brands posted total losses of 15.9 billion yuan. CATL, a battery supplier, reported 43.28 billion yuan in profit, exceeding the total profit of all 14 automakers combined.

Argentina's S&P Merval index rose 1.11% to 3,110,163, up 30.5% year-on-year. YPF, the state-linked oil and gas company, led gains with a 3.6% increase after raising $1.2bn in international debt. Banks also performed well, reflecting confidence in President Milei's economic reforms. The peso slipped 0.13% to 1,514 per dollar, near its 52-week high.

Chinese regulators have identified quality and conformity issues in vehicles from BYD and Geely, among others, during unannounced factory inspections. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) found deviations in fuel consumption and wheelbase tolerances. The inspections, part of a broader industry-wide campaign, aim to address concerns about rapid development cycles and a price war. The campaign includes stricter testing and a ban on post-test software manipulation, with potent

Geely Automobile reported record H1 sales, with revenue up 15% and net profit up 46%. The company overtook BYD in domestic retail volume but faces challenges in competing with BYD's diverse product lineup and market position. Geely is restructuring to control costs and improve efficiency, with a focus on new energy vehicles. BYD's pure electric sales surged, while Geely's electric offerings underperformed.

Apollo Global Management raised its easyJet (EZJ) cash offer to 715p per share, valuing the airline at £5.7bn, and easyJet’s board said it is minded to recommend. The bid is 25p higher than Castlelake’s. Other updates: MJ Gleeson (GLE) expects results in line but outlook uncertain; Impax (IPX) AUM rose to £23.3bn; Vodafone (VOD) gets e& stake sold to Xavier Niel; Schroder REIT (SREI) bid for Picton (PCTN); Hays (HAS) profit guidance; Johnson Service Group (JSG) shares fall.

Biohub, the US Department of Energy, NIH, and tech firms Meta, Google DeepMind, and Isomorphic Labs are investing $1.8bn in AI biology data. The funds will support data, computing, and new measurement tech. Biohub aims to create AI-ready biology data to accelerate scientific discovery. Commercial funders get exclusive data access for one year.