- CATL, Tencent said among lead backers; Moonshot AI also targets early 2027 debut
- Le Pen pitches sub-3% deficit pledge; French finance chief rules out ECB debt lifeline
- EU plans joint energy buyers as German factory slump clouds growth picture
China’s artificial-intelligence champions are preparing a wave of marquee public listings, with generative-AI startup DeepSeek nearing an agreement to raise $12 billion in a funding round ahead of a planned early-2027 initial public offering, according to people familiar with the matter.
The capital injection features heavyweight domestic backers including electric-vehicle battery pioneer Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd. (CATL) and WeChat operator Tencent Holdings Ltd., the people said. Rival developer Moonshot AI is also targeting an early-2027 debut as its valuation approaches $50 billion, setting the stage for what could be the biggest flurry of Chinese tech offerings in years.
Across the Atlantic, political maneuvering in France kept fiscal credibility in sharp relief. Far-right presidential candidate Marine Le Pen pledged to bring France’s budget gap below the European Union’s 3% ceiling in a pitch aimed squarely at wary bondholders, while simultaneously urging the European Central Bank to ease monetary policy. Finance Minister Roland Lescure pushed back against market speculation of systemic stress, insisting Paris remains far from requiring ECB intervention to manage its sovereign debt load.
The continent’s economic headwinds deepened elsewhere. The EU is moving to appoint an external market operator to coordinate joint energy purchases as member states grapple with their second price squeeze in under five years. Meanwhile, data showed German factory orders plunged 10% in their steepest monthly decline since January, dragged down by large-scale orders; stripping out big-ticket contracts, orders fell just 0.1% month-on-month and rose 1.3% on a smoother three-month reading.
Markets at a Glance
- Equities: Equity markets struck a broadly firmer tone. European shares climbed near 1%, mirroring comparable advances of about 1% across Tokyo and Hong Kong benchmarks. Mainland Chinese stocks trailed, edging up 0.3%.
- Futures: Contracts tied to Wall Street indexes indicated modest gains ahead of the New York opening bell.
- Commodities: Brent crude dropped 2% to trade at $98.50 a barrel, retreating back below the century mark as slowing European manufacturing figures tempered fuel-demand expectations.
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