On Thursday, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce said that Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remarks on Taiwan had a negative impact on Sino-Japanese economic relations.
“Prime Minister Takaichi’s erroneous remarks on Taiwan, made in public, have fundamentally undermined the foundation of China-Japan relations and seriously damaged bilateral economic and trade ties,” Western media quoted ministry spokesman He Yongqian as saying.
“If the Japanese side continues to take such actions and continues to move in the wrong direction, China will resolutely take the necessary measures, and all the consequences will fall on Japan,” she promised.
The media reminds us that China is the second most important market for Japan. In 2024, according to the UN, China purchased $125 billion worth of Japanese goods, mainly industrial equipment, semiconductors, and automobiles.
In November, Takaichi said that an emergency situation around Taiwan involving the use of force could escalate into a “situation that threatens Japan’s survival”; the Kyodo news agency explained that in such a case, Tokyo could resort to its right to collective self-defense.
However, the Chinese authorities consider the Taiwan issue to be an internal matter for China and called on Takai to retract his statements. As a result, Beijing urged its citizens to avoid traveling to Japan and recommended that those wishing to study in that country reconsider their decision in light of the security situation. The Kyodo news agency also reported, citing a source, that China had informed Japan of the suspension of imports of Japanese seafood
. On Thursday, US Ambassador to Japan George Glass condemned these measures by the PRC and called them “economic coercion.” After meeting with Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi, he assured that the US is committed to ensuring Japan’s defense, including the Diaoyu Islands (Japanese name: Senkaku) in the East China Sea, which are controlled by Tokyo. The islands are the subject of a territorial dispute between Japan and China.
According to Kyodo, 64-year-old Takaichi is known for her “hardline views on security.” In particular, she advocates revising Article 9 of the 1947 Japanese Constitution, which renounces militarism. She is also considered a supporter of ultra-right and nationalist views.
The Taiwan issue arose in 1949 when the People’s Republic of China was proclaimed and part of the Chinese Kuomintang party settled on the island of Taiwan, naming it the Republic of China on Taiwan. Beijing insists on the “one China principle,” according to which it is impossible to recognize both the PRC and the Republic of China on Taiwan at the same time. At the same time, some states have unofficial cultural and economic offices of Taipei.
In October this year, Ukrainians purchased 3,114 thousand passenger cars imported from China, which is 2.6 times more than in the same month last year, according to UkrAvtoprom on its Telegram channel.
It is noted that most of the passenger cars purchased from China were new — 2,512 units, which is 2.6 times more than last year. Demand for used cars also increased more than 2.6 times — 602 units were imported.
The vast majority of passenger cars from China were electric vehicles – 92%.
The most popular models of new passenger cars of Chinese origin were Volkswagen ID.UNYX – 441 units; BYD Song Plus – 391 units; BYD Leopard 3 – 261 units; Zeekr 7X – 169 units; BYD Sea Lion 07 – 150 units.
The most frequently purchased used cars were Zeekr 001 – 57 units; BYD Sea Lion 07 – 45 units; Volkswagen ID.UNYX – 36 units; Zeekr 7X – 33 units; and Audi Q4 – 30 units.
As reported, in January-October of this year, China was among the top three countries from which Ukraine imported passenger cars after Germany and the United States, with a share of 13.8% of total imports or $663 million, while in the same period of 2024, it was not among the top three.
In 2024, Ukrainians purchased about 14,400 cars imported from China, which is 18% more than in 2023. Demand for new cars grew by 37% to 11,000 units, while demand for used cars fell by 20% to 3,300 units.
In addition, according to UkrAvtoprom, in October 2025, Ukrainians purchased more than 5,800 used cars imported from the United States, which is 2.2 times more than in the same period of 2024.
The largest share of this number (49%) was electric cars, while gasoline cars accounted for 36%, hybrids – 8%, diesel cars – 4%, and cars with LPG systems – 3%.
The average age of the used American cars that joined the Ukrainian car fleet in October was 5.2 years.
The five most popular used cars manufactured in the US were Tesla Model Y – 900 units; Tesla Model 3 – 841 units; Ford Escape – 408 units; Nissan Rogue – 273 units; Tesla Model S – 270 units.
According to Serbian Economist, the Chinese company Techron Automotive plans to build its first foreign plant for the production of plastic car components in the city of Inđija (Vojvodina, Serbia), which will strengthen the country’s role as a regional hub for the automotive industry. This was announced by the Municipality of Inđija, as cited by Serbia-business.eu.
The construction is planned to start by the end of this year. According to the published information, the plant in Indjija will be the first Techron plant outside China. At the first stage, the construction of a 4.5 thousand square meters production building is envisaged. After reaching full capacity, the enterprise will be able to provide about 200 jobs.
The plant is scheduled to open in mid-2026.
Techron produces components for the world’s leading automakers – Volkswagen, Porsche, Audi, Chery, Geely and others. The product line includes engine and transmission parts, interior and exterior components, as well as control system components.
Experts note that the project fits into Serbia’s strategy of deepening specialization in the automotive industry and automotive components: dozens of plants for the production of harnesses, electronics and plastic parts for European and Asian brands are already operating in the country. For the region, this means not only new jobs, but also the need to invest in energy, logistics and vocational education in order to consolidate the effect of the new investor.
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China’s actual gold purchases this year may exceed officially declared volumes by several times and have already become one of the key drivers of record growth in precious metal prices, the Financial Times writes, citing analysts and market data.
According to official statistics from the People’s Bank of China, in 2025 the regulator purchased only about 25 tons of gold, with an increase in reserves of approximately 2 tons in some months. However, analysts at Société Générale, assessing trade flows of large bars and import data, believe that Beijing’s actual purchases could reach up to 250 tons per year, or more than a third of the total demand of global central banks. According to their estimates, actual purchases may exceed the officially disclosed figures by ten times or more.
Bruce Ikemizu, director of the Japan Precious Metals Market Association, said that market participants this year “practically do not believe official statistics, especially for China,” and estimates the country’s current gold reserves at nearly 5,000 tons — about twice the level reported publicly by the Chinese authorities.
According to the FT and experts, a significant portion of purchases are made opaquely — through the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), the sovereign wealth fund China Investment Corporation, and other entities that are not required to publish detailed reports on gold reserves. This makes it difficult to assess the real scale of operations and increases market uncertainty.
Analysts note that the secretive accumulation of gold is linked to a strategy of de-dollarization. “China is buying gold as part of its strategy to reduce its dependence on the dollar,” the press quotes Jeff Currie, a strategist at Carlyle, as saying. Gold is seen as a hedge against currency and geopolitical risks, including against the backdrop of tensions with the US.
According to estimates by the World Gold Council, over the past decade, the share of gold in the international reserves of countries outside the US has grown from about 10% to 26%, making the metal the second most important reserve asset after the US dollar. Large-scale purchases by central banks have helped push the price of gold above $4,300 per troy ounce, according to the FT and industry publications.
China remains the world’s largest producer and consumer of gold, accounting for about 10% of global production, which allows Beijing to increase its reserves not only through imports but also through the domestic market.
The volume of passenger car imports to Ukraine, including cargo-passenger vans and racing cars (UKT ZED code 8703), in January-October 2025 amounted to almost $4.82 billion, which is 32.6% more than in the same period of 2024 ($3.63 billion) and 10% more than in the whole of 2024.
According to statistics released by the State Customs Service of Ukraine, the growth rate of passenger car imports has thus accelerated, reaching 27.4% in the first nine months of the year compared to the same period in 2024.
In October this year, passenger cars worth $647.8 million were imported into Ukraine, which is 81% more than in October last year.
The top three suppliers of cars to Ukraine in January-October this year were Germany, the US, and China, while last year they were the US, Germany, and Japan. In particular, car deliveries from Germany increased by 52% to $841.3 million, and their share in the structure of car imports was 17.45% compared to 15.23% a year earlier.
Cars worth $839.7 million (25.4% more) were imported from the US to Ukraine, and $663 million (13.8% of passenger car imports) from China. Last year, imports from Japan, which was among the top three leaders, amounted to almost $430 million (11.8%).
Imports of passenger cars from other countries during the period amounted to $2.476 billion, compared to $1.981 billion in January-October 2024.
At the same time, in the first 10 months of this year, Ukraine exported only $7.17 million worth of such vehicles, in particular to the UAE, Canada, and the US, while a year ago, during the same period, the country supplied $9.33 million worth of such vehicles to foreign markets, mainly to Canada, Germany, and the US.
According to the State Customs Service, in the overall structure of imports of goods to Ukraine in January-October 2025, the share of passenger cars was 7.1% (6.3% last year), and in the structure of exports – 0.02% (0.03%).
As reported, in 2024, passenger cars worth $4.385 billion were imported into Ukraine, which is 8% more than a year earlier, and $10.1 million worth were exported (2.7 times less).
The volume of tractor imports to Ukraine in January-October 2025 amounted to $703.83 million, which is 6.6% more than in the same period of 2024 ($660.51 million), according to statistics from the State Customs Service.
According to the published statistics, tractors were mainly imported from the US (22% of total imports of this equipment, or $154 million), China (17.2% or $121.1 million), and Germany (16.4% or $115.6 million), while last year Germany was the leader ($101.5 million), China was second ($91.6 million), and the US was third ($86.9 million).
At the same time, imports from other countries in January-October decreased by 17.7% to $313.1 million.
In October this year, tractor imports to Ukraine increased by 9.1% compared to October 2024, to $73.8 million, which is also slightly higher than in September 2025.
Since the beginning of this year, as reported, tractor imports to Ukraine have shown negative dynamics: in January, they were one-third lower than in January 2024, but by the end of the first half of the year, the figures were almost equal to last year’s.
According to statistics from the State Customs Service,
this year, tractors worth $5.1 million were exported in January-October, mainly to Romania (25%), Belgium, and Germany, while last year during this period, exports amounted to $4.6 million, mainly to Moldova (25.6%), the Czech Republic, and Kazakhstan.
As reported, tractor imports to Ukraine in 2024 amounted to almost $784 million, 5.6% less than a year earlier, while exports amounted to $5.44 million compared to $5.74 million.
