Strategically located at the centre of the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) bloc, with access to a market of 680 million people, Malaysia offers a business-friendly environment supported by well-developed physical and digital infrastructure. Such advantages have made it an attractive destination for investment and a strategic platform for regional expansion. Malaysia, therefore, offers an attractive platform for Hong Kong and Chinese Mainland enterprises’ ASEAN expansion, production diversification, and participation in such high-growth sectors as semiconductors, electronics, data centres, medical devices, and halal products.

The CPSC is seeking public input by 24 August on a proposal to address the unreasonable risk of death and injury associated with lithium-ion batteries used in micromobility products. The rule would require compliance with the applicable voluntary standards for these products, with certain modifications.

As AI impacts the Chinese Mainland personal care appliance sector, a raft of safer, smarter, more intuitive products is emerging.

While demand for larger home appliances appears to have plateaued, their more compact counterparts have seldom been more sought out.

On 2 July, the Ministry of Commerce and the General Administration of Customs jointly announced the launch of a pilot programme, effective from 25 June, allowing bonded testing services outside comprehensive bonded zones.

The European Commission has published a Notice of Initiation (C/2026/3479), marking the formal launch of anti-dumping proceedings relating to non-rechargeable, cylindrical alkaline manganese dioxide primary cells and batteries imported from the People's Republic of China. Actioned on 2 July 2026, the initial complaint was lodged by VARTA Consumer Batteries GmbH & Co. KGaA on behalf of the wider EU battery industry.

The China RoHS 2026 Catalogue expands Category I by adding 23 new product categories and 5 expanded categories.

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission has provided additional exemptions from import restrictions imposed on drones and routers produced in foreign countries, including Chinese Mainland and H0ng Kong. Separately, the FCC is taking steps to terminate the recognition of a Chinese Mainland test lab.

The U.S. Department of War on 8 June added 65 companies to its List of Chinese Military Companies (the 1260H list), bringing the total to 188 entities. The substantial increase in the number of listed companies appears to be a concerted effort by U.S. authorities to broaden the scope of the 1260H list to cover key sectors of the Chinese Mainland economy, including solar products, electric vehicles and batteries, robotics, drones, Wi-Fi networking equipment, optical transceivers and semiconductor display technology.

Hong Kong’s export performance continues to be underpinned by robust electronics demand, fueled by the ongoing surge in artificial intelligence (AI) adoption worldwide.