✨ Good morning, friends,

In China, street vendors used a cancer-stricken colleague’s QR payment code for a full day instead of their own.

By the end, they had raised around USD 2,900 for his treatment. 🥹

What a beautiful story for this Christmas Eve edition!

P.S. We’ll be back here next Monday.

🤝 Whether you celebrate Christmas or not: We wish you good health and all the best, both professionally and personally.

🛷 Sleigh ride in Asia: As the year winds down, a festive mood is lifting Asian markets. Hopes for further US rate cuts and strong tech momentum from the US are pushing stocks higher.

🎁 But Santa isn’t generous to everyone: Chips and IPO newcomers are the stars under the tree, while platform and property stocks feel more like socks with holes.

TOP BIT

🚁 Drone Lockdown in the US

The US regulatory agency FCC has placed all new drones and components from abroad on the "Covered List" – a massive blow to global market leader DJI.

Details

📵 The new reality: New DJI models can no longer be sold in the US as of now. Existing drones remain legal, but updates and new components could become scarce.

🎯 Why now? Congress set a deadline in the Defense Bill 2025: By December 23, manufacturers had to prove their drones posed no security risk.

• After an interagency review, the FCC decided: All foreign drones are an "unacceptable risk."

🏟️ Olympics as catalyst: The FCC explicitly cites the 2026 World Cup and 2028 Olympic Games as reasons for the measure. The concern: "Terrorists and hostile actors" could misuse drones.

🇺🇸 US manufacturers celebrate: They're hailing the move as a breakthrough for "American drone dominance," even though US drones often cost twice as much and are considered "half as good."

🇨🇳 Beijing's response: China's Foreign Ministry calls it a violation of market principles. DJI itself dismisses all espionage allegations as "unfounded" and "pure protectionism."

Good to know

DJI dominates nearly the entire US market (over 90% of commercial drones). From agriculture to construction to police and fire departments – the dependence on Chinese technology is massive and can hardly be replaced in the short term.

📊 All details & data: Newsweek, Politico, CBS News, SCMP

YOUR CHRISTMAS PRESENT

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NUMBER OF THE DAY

That’s how many cinema visits South Korea recorded in 2025 through November — a historic low.

🎟️ Big screens, small numbers: Attendance is down about 16% year on year. For the first time since the pandemic, not a single Korean film crossed the symbolic 10-million-ticket mark.

📺 Streaming beats the theater: While multiplexes struggle, Korean content is breaking records on Netflix and other platforms worldwide. Series, animation and music films reach millions — just from the couch instead of the back row.

The big question for 2026: What does a film need to offer to make people go out again instead of pressing play?

MARKET BIT

🎄 The tree is on fire: ZF Friedrichshafen sells driver-assistance unit to Samsung

🎄 Last-minute Christmas deal: Heavily indebted auto supplier ZF sells its ADAS business to Samsung subsidiary Harman. Valuation: around €1.5 billion.

🛷 Smartphone on wheels: Harman takes over cameras, radar and ADAS controllers. The goal is a next-gen in-car platform from a single source. Closing is planned by 2026. Harman’s brands include JBL and Bang & Olufsen.

🔥 Damage control, not decorations: Nearly €11 billion in debt and more than €700 million in annual interest costs are forcing the German group to retreat from capital-intensive electronics.

📋 Long “Naughty list”: While Santa checks his list, ZF sharpens the red pen. Up to 14,000 jobs may go by 2028. The ADAS sale is an attempt to save Christmas before the sleigh crashes.

🥢 Kimchi instead of potato salad: Around 3,750 ZF employees are getting a new boss from South Korea. Less bland recipes, more Korean spice – with hopes that budgets and innovation finally get more flavor too.

Background

Samsung acquired Harman in 2017 for $8 billion. Since then, the group has been steadily expanding its automotive electronics and in-car audio business to reduce reliance on smartphones and memory chips.

Software-defined vehicles are accelerating the pace. Samsung expects the market for ADAS and central vehicle controllers to grow from $42.2 billion in 2025 to $65.6 billion by 2030.

👉🏻 Full Story: Reuters, Yonhap News, DealStreet Asia

HEAD OF THE DAY

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HIGHLIGHTS

✈️ A Christmas present for Pakistan: After years of stalled reforms, Pakistan is moving ahead with the privatisation of Pakistan International Airlines, with Arif Habib Consortium submitting a $482m winning bid for a 75% stake. The sale aims to revitalise the flag carrier, reduce the state’s financial burden, and signal renewed momentum on wider state-owned enterprise reforms. With PIA recording its first profit in 20 years, confidence is beginning to return.

🚗 China’s luxury EVs bring holiday cheer: After years of dominance by foreign brands, China’s premium car market is seeing a shift, with the Huawei co-developed Maextro S800 outselling Porsche’s Panamera and BMW’s 7 Series. Built with state-owned JAC Group, the high-end electric sedan has become the top seller in the 700,000 yuan-plus segment, highlighting the growing appeal of Chinese luxury EVs. The milestone signals rising confidence among domestic automakers.

❄️ Daikin brings winter chill to AI data centers: With U.S. AI data centers expanding rapidly, Japan’s Daikin is moving in with advanced cooling solutions, acquiring two American specialists in rack-level and liquid chip cooling. Planning to boost production by 150% by 2030, the air-conditioning giant is aiming to meet growing demand for energy- and water-efficient systems while positioning itself at the forefront of the next-generation infrastructure race.

COUNTRY READS

🇰🇵 Kim Jong Un tours hotels, highlighting North Korea’s economic progress as new luxury facilities open in Samjiyon. More on this.

🇯🇵 Suntory pauses Jim Beam production for all of 2026, citing slowing exports and rising inventories. More on this.

🇮🇩 Indonesia targets “finfluencers,” tightening oversight as risky P2P lending sparks concerns over misleading financial advice. More on this.

BITS TO DO

✅ Prepare an epic breakfast on Christmas morning.
✅ Make your family laugh and rock a Christmas tree hairstyle.
✅ Do a puppy yoga class on your next trip to Bangkok.
✅ Learn the history of Santa saying “ho, ho, ho.”
✅ Turn your Christmas moments into a festive video with CapCut.*

_{* Yes, it’s an affiliate link. No, you won’t pay more. But it helps support asiabits. Thanks ;)}

FORTUNE COOKIE

Wishing you a Merry Christmas from Shanghai 🎄

MORE ASIABITS

• All the latest AI trends from Asia — every Wednesday, exclusively with us.

• Champagne & Chopsticks — your Sunday guide to Asia’s best insider spots.

CAREER BITS

🌏 Tencent: Global Communications Associate Manager, Shenzhen
🌏 ByteDance: Sales Development Representative, Hong Kong
🌏 Oppo: Product Marketing Manager, Guangdong
🌏 Cisco: Operations Specialist, Beijing
🌏 Accenture: Brand Strategist, Shanghai
🌏 MSL Global: Junior Associate, Hong Kong
🌏 Appier: Account Operations Intern, Seoul
🌏 Rakuten Viki: Acquisition & Partnerships Intern, Seoul
🇪🇺 BYD EUROPE: Sales Manager Baltics & Balkans, Budapest
🇪🇺 Xiaomi Technology: Network Development Manager, Munich