On August 28, 2025, the financial world was abuzz with a flurry of corporate earnings, market reactions, and industry shifts, but nowhere was the spotlight brighter than on Nvidia. The world’s most valuable company posted a staggering 59 percent increase in second-quarter net income, raking in US$26.4 billion, and a 56 percent surge in revenue to US$46.7 billion compared to the previous year. Yet, despite these eye-popping numbers, traders responded with a collective shrug, as Nvidia’s outlook and the broader market narrative revealed a more nuanced story, according to recent coverage by top business sources.
Nvidia’s results were particularly notable given the company’s ongoing entanglement in the US-China trade war. The chipmaker reported that it sold no advanced chips to China during the quarter, a move that forced it to write down US$4.5 billion. This absence of Chinese sales, a direct consequence of tightened US export controls, weighed on the company’s data center business, which accounts for a massive 88 percent of its total sales. While data center revenue soared 56 percent to US$41.1 billion, it still fell short of Wall Street’s lofty estimates, as reported by the South China Morning Post.
In after-hours trading, Nvidia shares dipped slightly, as investors digested the results and tried to gauge whether the artificial intelligence (AI) boom could keep fueling such rapid growth. For the upcoming third quarter, Nvidia projected revenue of US$54 billion, plus or minus 2 percent, and crucially, this forecast assumes no sales to China. The US government has resumed export licenses for Nvidia’s H20 chips to China, but only on the condition that 15 percent of those sales are handed back to the US as a cut. So far, the return of these chips has met a lukewarm response in China—a market that Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang called a “US$50 billion market of opportunity for us if we address it with competitive products.”
Huang, never one to downplay the stakes, concluded a recent call with analysts by declaring, “The opportunity ahead is immense. A new industrial revolution has started. The AI race is on!” It’s the kind of bold rhetoric that’s become synonymous with the current era of tech, but for all its sizzle, the market’s muted reaction spoke volumes about investor expectations and the shifting sands beneath the industry’s feet.
Elsewhere in the business world, the day was marked by a surge in corporate share buybacks—a trend that’s been sweeping through Corporate America. Companies are snapping up their own stock at a record pace, a move that typically signals confidence in future prospects and can help prop up share prices. But some analysts warn that buybacks, while boosting earnings per share in the short term, might be masking deeper uncertainties about organic growth, especially as economic headwinds gather strength.
Meanwhile, coffee drinkers everywhere were bracing for a hit to their wallets. Coffee prices are expected to rise soon, meaning that the daily ritual of grabbing a cup—or three—could soon cost a bit more. It’s just one more example of how global supply chains and commodity markets can impact the everyday consumer, even as the headlines are dominated by multi-billion-dollar tech deals and high finance.
Turning back to China, the world’s second-largest economy delivered a mixed bag of business news on August 28. Meituan, the country’s biggest food-delivery service, reported an 89 percent plunge in second-quarter adjusted net profit to 1.5 billion yuan (about US$208 million). The culprit? A fierce price war in the fast-food delivery market, where competition with Alibaba and JD.com has forced Meituan to pour money into customer discounts and merchant subsidies. The company’s operating margin tumbled by 19 percentage points to 5.7 percent, missing market forecasts and casting a shadow over the near-term outlook.
Yet, not all was gloom. China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology unveiled a sweeping plan to boost the country’s satellite communications sector, aiming for more than 10 million users by 2030. The initiative is expected to improve regulatory frameworks, expand infrastructure, and spur innovation, with the goal of integrating satellite connectivity into everyday life—including direct-to-phone services. Industry analysts predict this push could position China as a leader in commercial satellite applications across Asia and beyond, opening up new opportunities for telecom operators, device makers, and space-tech firms.
On the industrial front, China’s July report showed overall profits slipping 1.5 percent from a year earlier, but high-technology companies bucked the trend. High-tech profits jumped 19 percent, with the semiconductor industry skyrocketing 176 percent and aerospace and aviation up 41 percent. These gains helped offset steeper declines in other sectors, such as mining, where profits dropped 32 percent. The National Bureau of Statistics noted that, over the first seven months of the year, profits at major industries fell 1.7 percent, with state-owned companies down 7.5 percent but foreign-invested businesses up 1.8 percent.
China’s infrastructure, however, faced major challenges. Extreme summer rains and flooding inflicted 16 billion yuan (US$2 billion) in road damage across roughly two-thirds of the nation’s administrative regions. The central government has so far allocated 540 million yuan in emergency repair subsidies, but local authorities warn that much more will be needed to restore the battered transport network.
Other notable corporate updates rounded out the day’s news. Shanghai-based Fosun Pharma posted a 39 percent rise in half-year profit, driven by earnings from innovative drugs and a focus on chronic disease therapeutics. Zijin Mining, a heavyweight in gold, copper, and zinc, reported record first-half net profit of 23.3 billion yuan (US$3.3 billion), riding a wave of higher metals prices amid global geopolitical tensions. Despite these strong results, Zijin cautioned that intensifying competition for critical minerals and rising resource nationalism could pose challenges for overseas projects.
China’s property market, long a source of concern, showed tentative signs of recovery. Developer China Resources Land saw half-year profit rise 16 percent, while Sunac—one of the country’s largest private developers—reported that its losses had narrowed. Yet, the sector remains in a prolonged slump after years of debt defaults and market turbulence.
On a lighter note, Enlight Media, producer of the blockbuster animation "Ne Zha 2," announced a 372 percent surge in first-half net profit, with global box office receipts for the film exceeding 16 billion yuan. The success of "Ne Zha 2," now available in English, highlights the growing global reach of Chinese entertainment and the potential for homegrown cultural exports to make waves far beyond their domestic market.
Amid all this, the global shipping industry revealed its own set of challenges. Sea freight rates on European and US routes have been declining since June, while routes in the Middle East and Australia have seen gains. These regional disparities reflect shifting demand, ongoing trade disputes, and the complex dynamics of global commerce.
With so many moving parts, August 28, 2025, offered a snapshot of a world economy in flux—one where tech giants like Nvidia can post historic earnings but still leave Wall Street wanting more, where old industries grapple with new realities, and where the next big opportunity might be just around the corner, waiting for those bold enough to seize it.
