The US Department of Commerce has added 80 entities to its export control “entity list,” including more than 50 from China, as part of an intensified crackdown on the flow of advanced American technologies.

The move is the Trump administration’s first such action under its ongoing national security policy and aims to prevent China from acquiring sensitive US-origin technology for military purposes.

The banned companies include developers of artificial intelligence (AI), exascale computing, and quantum technologies.

Firms can no longer be supplied by US businesses without a government-issued licence.

27 firms linked to China’s military tech

According to the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), 27 of the blacklisted Chinese organisations were added for allegedly obtaining US-origin items that contribute to China’s military modernisation efforts.

Another seven were listed for assisting in the advancement of China’s quantum technology capabilities.

These additions are part of a larger strategy to curb Beijing’s access to cutting-edge computing technologies that are believed to have both civilian and military uses, commonly referred to as “dual-use technologies”.

The listed entities are accused of acting “contrary to the national security or foreign policy interests of the United States”, with some reportedly supplying to already-sanctioned Chinese giants like Huawei and its chipmaking arm HiSilicon.

These measures follow a broader pattern of the US reinforcing export controls over tech products linked to defence applications and surveillance infrastructure.

Inspur and others face renewed bans

Six subsidiaries of Chinese cloud computing provider Inspur Group were included in the updated blacklist.

These had previously faced sanctions under the Biden administration in 2023.

Inspur’s recurring appearance on the list highlights Washington’s concerns about its potential role in facilitating access to restricted technologies.

The updated restrictions also extend to entities believed to be intermediaries or “transit points” in third countries.

These intermediaries are suspected of enabling Chinese firms to obtain banned items despite prior controls.

Analysts point out that Chinese companies have been using such third-party networks to acquire strategic US-made dual-use technologies that would otherwise be inaccessible.

US-China tensions tighten tech controls

The new round of sanctions comes amid worsening US-China tensions.

The Trump administration has ramped up tariffs and trade restrictions targeting China’s tech sector, particularly focusing on semiconductors, supercomputers, and AI chip development.

These efforts are part of the “small yard, high fence” policy, which aims to selectively isolate sensitive technologies with military implications while preserving general trade.

The Commerce Department confirmed that it will continue to enhance its tracking and tracing of unauthorised exports, especially those involving advanced semiconductors made by Nvidia and AMD.

This includes ongoing investigations into potential smuggling activities and circumvention of export controls via third-party suppliers.

The move also comes in the wake of Chinese AI startup DeepSeek’s rapid growth, which has popularised open-source, low-cost AI models.

These developments have challenged US tech firms by offering alternatives to their high-cost, proprietary systems, prompting Washington to reassess how its technologies are being adopted globally.

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Tesco share price has suffered a harsh reversal this month, erasing all the gains made earlier this year. After peaking at near 400p in February, the stock tumbled to a low of 320p, the lowest level since August 7 last year. This article explains why the TSCO stock has plunged and whether it is safe to buy the dip.

UK retail price war may hit Tesco margins and growth

The main reason why Tesco share price has crashed is that the market is bracing for price wars in the UK. These concerns jumped last week after Asda, the biggest retailer in the country announced huge price cuts. 

The company will cut prices by an average of 22% on over 1,500 products. This is a continuation of price cuts that started in January, which imply that it has slashed prices on almost 10,000 products. 

These price cuts are meant to boost its market share in the UK, which has slipped in the past few years. As such, odds are that other retailers like Tesco will also slash prices to match what Asda is offering.

Lower prices are good for shoppers, who will likely keep buying more. However, they will affect the retailers’ margins over time unless they use their scale to squeeze the suppliers. 

Analysts caution that Tesco will be one of the most affected by the price wars, which may push it to issue a more cautious guidance in its next results. Most importantly, there are concerns on whether the company will continue growing its market share. 

Tesco share price has also dropped after the company agreed to a 5.3% wage increase that will cost it over £180 million a year. 

Read more: Tesco share price is beating Walmart, Kroger, and Target

TSCO business is doing well

The most recent half-year results showd that the company’s business is booming. Its total revenue rose to £31.46 billion from £30.4 billion a year earlier. 

This growth was accompanied by high profits as the management took measures to slash its costs.  The company’s adjusted operating profit rose by 15.6% to £1.64 billion.

Tesco has also continued to grow its market share in the country. The market share figure rose by 62 basis points as Asda woes continued at the time. 

The management expects that its full-year operating profit will be about £2.9 billion, while the free cash flow will be between £1.4 billion and £1.8 billion. 

What next for the Tesco share price

The stock market is often driven by fear and greed, and in Tesco’s case, a sense of fear has prevailed. In most cases, the fear-driven sell-off is usually short-lived as the market tends to adjust to the new normal. 

Tesco has some positives that may propel its stock higher over time. It trades at a forward P/E ratio of 11.2,  making it a bargain for a market leader in its business. It is growing its margins, and most importantly, it has a dividend yield of about 4.5%, higher than the average yield of the FTSE 100 index.

Tesco share price analysis

TSCO chart by TradingView

The daily chart shows that the TSCO share price peaked at near 400p this year and then plunged after the Asda price cuts. It has now slipped below the crucial support level at 337p, its lowest level on November 12.

Tesco stock price has crashed below the 200-day and 50-day moving averages, a sign that bears are in control. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) and the Stochastic Oscillator have moved to the oversold level.

Therefore, the stock will likely bounce back in the coming months. If this happens, the next point to watch will be at 350p.

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Lloyds share price has done well in the past few months and is now hovering near its highest point in years. This rally has coincided with the ongoing surge of other UK banks. 

LLOY has jumped by about 50% in the last 12 months. It has continued to underperform other companies like NatWest, HSBC, Standard Chartered, and Barclays. NatWest has soared by over 90%, while Standard Chartered is up by 77%. This article conducts a technical analysis and explains whether the Lloyds share price has more room to grow.

Lloyds share price technical analysis

The weekly chart shows that the LLOY stock price has been in a strong uptrend, as we predicted. It jumped above the key resistance level at 61.42p, its highest point on December 9, 2019, and October last year. That was a big move that signaled that bulls had prevailed. 

The LLOY share price has remained above all moving averages, a sign that the momentum is continuing. In trend-following analysis, this performance is a sign that bulls are in control for now. 

The Relative Strength Index (RSI) has continued rising, and recently moved above the overbought level. Similarly, the Percentage Price Oscillator (PPO) has remained above the zero line since February. The Awesome Oscillator has turned green. 

Therefore, there is a likelihood that the stock will continue its uptrend in the near term as bulls target the next key resistance level at 80p. More Lloyds stock gains will become invalid if the stock plunges below the support at 61.42p.

Lloyds Bank’s business is doing well

The Lloyds share price has surged this year because of the ongoing surge of European bank stocks this year. The Nasdaq Europe Bank Index, which tracks the biggest banks in the region, has soared to a record high. It has jumped by over 44% in the last 12 months.

These stocks have done well because of higher interest rates that helped to boost their earnings per share (EPS). Most of them have used the higher interest income to boost their dividends and share repurchases.

The most recent results showed that Lloyds Bank’s had a statutory profit after tax of about £4.5 billion, down from £5.5 billion a year earlier. The net income dropped by about 5% during the year. 

The decline, which the market received well, was because of higher impairment costs due to the motor insurance crisis. 

At the same time, Lloyds Bank’s net interest income dropped by 7% to £12.8 billion, while its other underlying income was £5.6 billion. 

Lloyds share price also jumped because of its strong FY’25 guidance. The company hopes that its net interest income will be about £13.5 billion, while the return on tangible equity will be 13.5%.

Lloyds Bank has also boosted its dividends and share buybacks. It paid an ordinary dividend of 3.17p a share last year, a 15% increase from a year earlier. It is also reducing its outstanding share count by boosting share buyback by up to £1.7 billion.

One way the company is doing this is by reducing its CET-1 ratio to 13% from 17.2% in 2021. It reduces the ratio by slashing the amount of money in its balance sheet. Even so, its ratio will be higher than other banks like Bank of America and Wells Fargo.

Read more: Analysts are bullish on Lloyds share price: should you?

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Chinese electric vehicle giant BYD is aiming to more than double its overseas sales to over 800,000 units in 2025 as it continues its aggressive international expansion, its chairman told analysts on an earnings call on Tuesday, Reuters reported.

The company, which sold 417,204 units outside China in 2024, sees strong potential in Britain, Latin America, and Southeast Asia, where it expects market share to grow significantly.

Chairman Wang Chuanfu told analysts on an earnings call that BYD will navigate tariff challenges by assembling cars locally while still relying on China for key components.

The move comes as several governments impose or consider tariffs on Chinese-made vehicles.

Britain, in particular, presents a promising opportunity for BYD, as Wang described the market as “very open” to competitive Chinese products.

The company also expects to benefit from growing acceptance of Chinese brands in Latin America and Southeast Asia, where demand for affordable electric vehicles is increasing.

BYD plans local assembly to counter tariff barriers

With protectionist measures increasing in key markets, BYD is adopting a strategy of local vehicle assembly while sourcing components from China.

This approach allows the company to maintain its cost advantages while ensuring compliance with local trade policies.

Wang did not disclose specific countries where this approach would be implemented but emphasized that BYD would continue expanding its production footprint.

Currently, the company is constructing factories in Brazil, Thailand, Hungary, and Turkey, reinforcing its commitment to global manufacturing.

However, BYD’s expansion in Brazil, its largest market outside China, has not been without controversy.

In 2023, the company faced allegations of labor abuses, which briefly overshadowed its progress in the region.

Despite this setback, BYD remains committed to strengthening its presence in Latin America, a region where it sees long-term growth potential.

North America remains off the table

BYD has no immediate plans to enter the US and Canadian markets due to ongoing geopolitical tensions and high tariffs.

Both countries have maintained duties of up to 100% on Chinese electric vehicles, effectively blocking access for Chinese automakers.

While competitors like Tesla have expanded their operations in China, BYD is taking a different approach, focusing on markets that offer fewer regulatory hurdles.

Europe, Australia, and emerging economies remain key targets for expansion, as the company seeks to diversify revenue streams amid intense competition in China’s EV sector.

Profitability ambitions and smart driving expansion

Wang expressed confidence that BYD’s profitability per vehicle would surpass that of Toyota once it reaches a comparable sales scale.

Toyota, the world’s top automaker by volume, sold 10.8 million vehicles in 2024, while BYD sold 4.27 million.

In addition to increasing production capacity, BYD is investing heavily in software and semiconductor development.

The company plans to expand its intelligent driving technology workforce from 5,000 to 8,000 people, though no specific timeline was provided.

BYD also intends to introduce its smart driving features to global markets by 2026 or 2027.

As part of this initiative, the company plans to send more employees overseas to support its international expansion strategy.

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Corporate America is having a mixed performance this year as concerns about technology companies’ valuations remain. Stocks have also reacted to the highly hawkish actions of the Federal Reserve and Donald Trump’s tariffs. 

Some well-known companies have filed for bankruptcy this year as their cash burn accelerated. This article reviews some of the top names that have filed for bankruptcy protection and identifies others that may follow suit. These names include Canoo (GOEV), Fisker (FSR), Nikola (NKLA), 23andMe (ME), and Forever21.

Canoo (GOEV)

Canoo is one of the popular companies that filed for bankruptcy this year after running out of money. Unlike other firms, Canoo filed for a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, where a company ceases to operate and its assets are sold off to pay creditors. This explains why Canoo’s website has gone dark. 

Canoo’s bankruptcy was easy to predict, as we warned in many articles: here, here, here, and here. Like other Tesla rivals, Canoo was burning so much cash in an unsustainable manner. As its stock crashed, it became impossible to raise cash by selling shares. The most recent Canoo news is that Anthony Aquilla, the CEO, was buying all its assets out of bankruptcy for $4 million in cash. 

Fisker (FSR)

Fisker is another company we’ve lost. It was a Tesla rival that filed for bankruptcy protection in 2024 as csh burn accelerated. 

Fisker’s bankruptcy situation was different than that of Canoo in that it was already manufacturing vehicles and selling them to customers. The challenge, however, was that shipping vehicles from Austria to the United States was a logistic nightmare that became too expensive to handle.

Fisker was also burning cash, suffered a brand reputation damage when MKBHD delivered a bad review, and also had an expensive recall.

Nikola (NKLA)

Nikola is another tech company that we’ve lost this year. Like with Fisker, we predicted Nikola’s bankruptcy, as you can read here, here, and here. Nikola filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, which allows a company to negotiate and restructure its operations.

In many instances, companies often emerge from the Chapter 11 bankruptcy process and thrive. However, in Nikola’s case, the chances of this happening are low because of the business the company is in.

Nikola manufactured hydrogen trucks that are more expensive than diesel ones, leading to low demand. Most importantly, there is no adequate infrastructure to support these vehicles in the US. This makes it difficult for any company to takeover the company as operating it will be more expensive.

23andMe (ME)

The most recent company to file for bankruptcy was 23andMe. Like the other companies, this bankruptcy was easy to predict, which we did here. The company has been going through major challenges in the past few years. It suffered a big hack that exposed data of millions of companies.

23andMe company had a core business problem: what to do after carrying out genetic testing. That’s because customers only do genetic testing once, and they don’t do the DNA testing again.

The company sought to grow its business in other areas. It wanted to become a leading player in data, where it sold its data to companies like those in the biotech industry. It also aimed to become a top player in research. All these initiatives were slow and expensive to implement. 

Forever21

Meanwhile, Forever21 also filed for bankruptcy in March. It cited its high debt load from between 10k and 25k creditors. Forever21 blamed its bankruptcy on the rising competition from the likes of Shein and Temu, and weak demand in the US. It noted that these firms were taking advantage of the de minimis exemption that helped them avoid paying taxes.

This is the second time that Forever21 has filed for bankruptcy protection, having done so in 2021. 

Potential bankruptcies

Other companies will likely file for bankruptcy in the next 12 to 24 months. The most notable of these firms that are burning cash fast are Mullen Automotive, Faraday Future, Workhorse Group, Wheels Up, Children’s Place, and Allbirds.

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