fears

China has more solid-state battery patents than anyone else and still fears being left behind for one reason: Japan

by

What China is leading the energy and mobility transition What we are witnessing does not take anyone by surprise at this point. However, not all fish are sold, and in energy storage we are going to witness a significant evolution with the arrival of solid state batteriesa type of battery that we have been talking about for years. Just like they count From CarNewsChina, the country dominates the volume of research and records on solid-state batteries, but be careful because that leadership on paper does not guarantee winning the commercial race. And it is that a new analysis of the Xinhua agency recognizes that the United States, Europe, Japan and South Korea are moving forward with more industrial coordination and better international deployment of patents, just when the technology enters a decisive phase for its commercialization. Why it matters. Solid-state batteries are considered the next big leap from current lithium-ion batteries. These promise more energy density, faster charges, greater security and longer lifespan. They not only affect the electric car, but also humanoid robotseVTOL (vertical take-off aircraft), consumer electronics and stationary storage. Basically, whoever controls the technology and, above all, its manufacturing at scale, will set the pace of mobility and energy in the next decade. Patent war. China accounts for around 35% of the world market for solid-state patents and 39% of those related to electrolytes, the largest global share, according to share from CarNewsChina. Scientific publications have gone from 21 articles in 2015 to 562 in 2023, with institutions such as the Chinese Academy of Sciences or Tsinghua University leading advances in the engineering of the solid-solid interface, which for years has been one of the great bottlenecks. On the other hand, Japan continues to be the leading technological source with about 37% of global requests, compared to 30% from China. Japan is ahead. The problem in China is not quantity, but the concentration and quality of your strategy. Among the 30 most relevant institutions in the world in solid state and electrolyte patents, 17 are Japanese7 Chinese, 5 South Korean and only 1 European. The top ten positions are entirely Japanese or Korean. Toyota, alone, accumulates around 40% of all intellectual property in the sector. Added to this is a structural weakness, since Chinese companies register many fewer international patents than their Japanese and South Korean rivals, who shield their technology in the United States, Europe, India and Southeast Asia. The companies that move the board. CATL, BYD and SVOLT are leading the latest phase of this technology. And only in 2023 will Chinese companies filed more than 500 patent applications. Gotion High-tech The design of a 2 GWh line for totally solid batteries has already been finalized and another 0.2 GWh pilot line is operating with tests on vehicles. Ganfeng Lithium, backed by Changan, claims to have reached 1,100 cycles in a 400 Wh/kg cell and aims for 500 Wh/kg in production. On the other hand, Chinese researchers have also shown a prototype of 451.5 Wh/kg capable of charging in three minutes. CATL, for its part, is patenting lithium compounds with fluorine and sulfur electrolytes to improve fast charging and thermal stability. Deadlines. own report Xinhua places the start of production in small series around 2027 and broader commercialization around 2030. The industry continues to work in parallel on three electrolyte routes (sulfide, oxide and polymer) without any having won yet. Furthermore, according to the media, there are still challenges to overcome, including the formation of lithium dendrites, ionic transport mechanisms, solid-solid interface engineering or cell failure modes. And now what. China is preparing to industrialize what it currently masters in the laboratory. And its first national standard on solid state batteries (“Terms and Classification”) is under public consultation and proposes to differentiate between liquid, solid-liquid hybrid and totally solid cells. For now, the country dominates in terms of volume of papers and research, but it is clear that real dominance will come from manufacturers who first resolve large-scale production, cost, durability and safety. And let’s be honest, China has an advantage, especially with CATL and BYD controlling much of the world’s battery sharebut in the field of solid-state batteries there is still play. Cover image | Michael Fousert In Xataka | The EU no longer knows what to do to stop its car manufacturers from buying parts from China. So he’s going to force them

In its leap to electric cars, Europe fears total dependence on China. Your solutions arrive (quite) late

by

The rope tightens. This time it is Europe that pulls to its side. Or, at least, that is what he wants according to what is stated in Financial Timeswhere we read that the European Union wants to force car manufacturers to reduce their level of dependence on China. Now, forcing them to buy fewer components from their suppliers. A new goal. It is, according to Financial Timeswhat the European Union wants to impose on companies in key sectors such as automobiles, industrial machinery or the chemical sector. In the newspaper’s information we read that European institutions are looking for tools to put pressure on their own companies. In the information, which is attributed to two European officials familiar with this project, the objective is to put a limit on the percentage of components that can be supplied to a single country. That is, if a company wants to manufacture a product in Europe, it could not buy all of its components (or the vast majority) from China. To distribute the purchases. If the project goes ahead as we read in the British media, a company could only buy between 30 and 40% of its components from the same country. It is sought that, at least, the origin of the parts that, in this case, make up a car is from three suppliers and from at least three different countries. This would not be much of a problem if it were not for the fact that the 30-40% barrier could not be overcome. “Gradually dependent”. “In many areas we are gradually becoming dependent on China’s exports,” the words are from a senior European Union official consulted by the newspaper. According to Financial Timesthe organizations are very aware of the extent to which a stoppage of Chinese factories or exports can damage the European economy. In fact, last summer some factories had to stop or saw their production compromised after China put greater impediments to export of products in which rare earths are used such as the magnets in electric car motors. Just a few months later, The Nexperia crisis once again set off the alarms of possible interruptions in the supply chain since a good part of the chips used by the European industry uses components from this company. They are not key products for its operation but without them, a car cannot be sold because They are essential for auxiliary but basic functions How to raise and lower the car window. 1 billion. That is what, according to Financial Timesthey calculate in the European Union that we lose to China. 1,000 million euros of deficit in the trade balance. 1,000 million. Diaries. The figure has been floating for two years now. and the automotive industry is one of those that has suffered the most. According to the European Union, they have achieved this with a doped industry, which has led to the lifting of tariffs on electric cars arriving from China. And the Chinese manufacturers have wanted to land abroad on our continent but also the Europeans have wanted to manufacture in China because it was cheaper. Spain? According to Anfac dataIn Spain we have a deficit in our trade balance of 5,000 million euros annually if we talk about components. As the second largest car producer in Europe, our auxiliary fabric is not enough and we need to buy components worth 16,893 million euros when exports exceed 11,525 million euros. There is no data on the origin of these imported components but we do know that The second country that exports the most cars to Spain is China. Last year, 9.2% of cars purchased in our country from outside our borders arrived from China. Very far, yes, from the German 26%. The problem is that despite importing cars worth almost 2.7 billion euros, China does not appear among the 10 countries to which we export the most cars and we barely place 658 million euros in exports to all of Asia. The game of balance. Yet the European Union is discovering that perhaps it has arrived late to the trade battle. Yes, it has lifted tariffs on electric cars sold from China but the country’s tentacles reach deep into vehicles made in Europe, producing all kinds of cheap components but also producing key technology such as semiconductors or batteries of electric cars. China is aware that it can squeeze European industry but it also needs our trade to export all the cars that are already surplus there. It is no coincidence that Europe has not imposed tariffs on cars arrived with combustion engines and? have negotiated with China the possibility of lifting trade barriers to electric cars. The Band-Aid. Until now, a very important part of the components used in European cars had their origin within the borders of the European Union itself. However, China’s weight has skyrocketed in recent years. In 2024, China has already become the main exporter of cars to Europe and the weight of its components within the cars manufactured here is increasingly greater, which reduces the competitiveness of our exports, according to this report BBVA. This imbalance is doubly worrying because the European Union is trying to reduce Chinese dependence now that it is seeking to make the definitive leap to the electric car, a technology where the Asian country dominates the supply chain. In recent months, Europe has tried to curb dependence promoting mineral mining on our soil or battery production but Chinese dependence remains evident. Photo | Michael Fourset and Sou Jest In Xataka | Japan has been charging a 0% tariff on foreign cars for half a century. It will be very difficult for you to find one on the street.

Satellite images reveal how much Russia fears Ukraine’s drones. 7,000 km away they are covering their nuclear missiles

by

The British Navy discovered something truly absurd during naval tests in 1945: a single flock of birds could appear on the radar with a signature similar to that of enemy aircraft. Eight decades later, some of the most sophisticated military systems on the planet clash again to the same problem: Tiny, cheap threats that are difficult to distinguish before it is too late. The drone war against the Russian nuclear arsenal. They counted this week in Naval News that satellite images taken over the Russian submarine base of Rybachiy, on the Kamchatka Peninsula, reveal the extent to which drone warfare in Ukraine is altering Russian military logic even thousands of kilometers from the front. to some 7,400 kilometers of Ukrainetwo strategic nuclear submarines of the Borei class They have appeared completely covered with anti-drone nets while they remain docked in port. The scene is shocking because these submarines are part of the core of Russian nuclear deterrent: each one carries 16 Bulava ballistic missiles capable of launching intercontinental nuclear attacks. However, even that geographical distance no longer seems sufficient for Moscow to feel completely safe from possible surprise Ukrainian operations. From the Black Sea to the Pacific nuclear fleet. The evolution reflects how drones have ceased to be an exclusively tactical problem and have become a strategic threat. Russia had been installing for some time cages, nets and metal structures improvised on ships and patrol boats in the Black Sea to try to stop Ukrainian FPV attacks. Now that same logic has reached some of the most sensitive platforms in its entire military arsenal. The fear does not seem to focus so much on drones launched directly from Ukraine, something practically impossible at such a distance, but on covert operations similar to those that have already hit Russian targets very far from the front. The idea of ​​small cheap drones reaching multi-million dollar strategic assets It has even begun to modify the protection of nuclear submarines. A small threat capable of altering the strategic balance. The nets observed on the Borei do not hide the submarines from satellites nor do they serve as conventional camouflage. Its function It’s purely defensive.: prevent light drones from approaching, landing on the deck or launching explosive charges at vulnerable points, especially on hatches and exposed systems while the submarines are on the surface. Russia had already installed similar protections on some Baltic and Arctic submarines, but on Rybachiy the coverage is much more extensive and envelops practically the entire vessel. There is no doubt, the image conveys a certainly powerful conclusion: the Kremlin already considers it plausible that cheap, improvised and difficult to detect attacks could threaten even part of its nuclear triad. The great psychological change of the war in Ukraine. Beyond the real effectiveness of these networks, the important detail is rather psychological and strategic. Ukraine has managed to get Russia to dedicate resources, time and defensive concern to bases located on the other end of the continent Eurasian. For decades, the logic of nuclear deterrence assumed that submarines hidden in remote bases were virtually untouchable except in an all-out war between great powers. And this is where drones have begun to erode that sense of immunity. The war in Ukraine is showing that a country with limited resources can force a nuclear superpower to cover with mesh improvised some of their most important systems for fear of unexpected attacks. When “nuclear” fears the cheapest. In short, the image of nuclear submarines protected with networks recalls the extent to which the Ukrainian conflict is transforming modern military rules. Platforms designed to survive atomic wars, operate under the ocean for months, and launch intercontinental missiles now also have to worry about cheap quadcopters, commercial explosives, and improvised attacks. Of course, Russia still maintains a huge nuclear and naval advantagebut the proliferation of drones is altering something much more difficult to measure than weapons: the feeling of (in)security. And when even the most remote nuclear bases begin to be armored against small drones, it means that the war in Ukraine has already changed the global perception of military vulnerability. Image | Vantor In Xataka | Once again, Ukraine has opened a missile launched by Russia. Once again, surprising manufacturers have been found In Xataka | Russia has been advancing at a snail’s pace in Ukraine for months. That’s about to change because of one season: summer.

The hantavirus outbreak has sparked a search to find its origin. Ushuaia fears that this will cost it its tourism

by

Until a few days ago, the vast majority of Spaniards had never heard of hantavirus. Probably not Ushuaiathe capital of the province of Tierra del Fuego. The crisis unleashed by the MV Hondius cruise ship, however, has united both names in one of the most worrying episodes so far in the turbulent 2026, at least in health terms. And so worries in Ushuaia. A lot. Although there are still unknowns about how, where and when the viral outbreak broke out, in the southern region they fear that what happened affects one of the pillars of their economy: tourism. They even talk about a “smear campaign”. And the hantavirus arrived. Although there are still many months ahead until December, 2026 seemed basically doomed to be the year of the iran waroil through the clouds, Maduro’s arrest or (in another order of things) the North American World Cup. Now that list is expanded with one more item: the hantavirus. Since on May 2 A viral outbreak was confirmed on board the MV Hondius, the world is waiting for what happens to the ship, its passengers and the chain of possible people infected by a virus that until almost two weeks ago was almost completely unknown in Europe. In a place in Patagonia… In Ushuaia, capital of the province of Tierra del Fuego (Argentina), one of the southernmost cities of the planet, the evolution of the outbreak is also being followed with interest. Although there what really generates debate is not the last hour about the outbreak or what may happen from now on, but what has happened in recent weeks. The reason is very simple: the fateful voyage of the MV Hondius left its port April 1. When the ship set sail, there were about 140 passengers on board, including the septuagenarian Dutchman who only a few days later (on the 6th) began to show symptoms of infection. More than a month has passed since then, four long weeks during which events have happened at breakneck speed. That first patient died on April 11, days later his wife did and since then at least one more dead and half a dozen infected. As for the MV Hondius, after the evacuation of the last hours on board the ship there are only a few dozen of people who will continue heading to the Netherlands. What has not changed is the question that authorities have been asking for days: Where is the origin of the outbreak? Where the hell did the Dutch couple get infected? A remote landfill. Taking into account the incubation period of hantavirus, which ranges between one and six weeks, authorities are working with the hypothesis that the epicenter of the outbreak is not on the ship. That is, the most plausible theory (at least in appearance) is that the virus they took him to the MV Hondius one or more travelers who were already carrying it before navigation began. That made all eyes turn first to the couple of Dutch retirees and second to Ushuaia, the place where they embarked. In recent days the conversation has revolved around a very specific point in the town: a garbage dump located about seven kilometers from the center of Ushuaia, a place where, assures The Countryepidemiologists are looking for traces of infected rodents. Hantavirus infection, let us remember, is contracted mainly by coming into contact with the urine, feces or saliva of certain rodents. The most common thing is that contagion occurs by inhaling remains of this waste in poorly ventilated spaces, but it could also be contracted in a large landfill. The unknowns begin. That a Dutch couple (he 70 years old, she 69) stop by a mega urban garbage dump before embarking on a luxury cruise through the South Atlantic may sound strange, but it makes a lot of sense. The MV Hondius trip was not just any trip. It was planned as an expedition cruise to contemplate Atlantic fauna. And the Ushuaia landfill is not just any garbage dump either. Lovers of birds and natural photography usually go there to enjoy the species that fly over it, including scavenger birds such as the white matamico. In recent days it has been published that some of the travelers who boarded the MV Hondius visited the dump. The Country even interviewed to a guide who was in the area with some of the tourists from the cruise, although the Dutch couple was not among them. Did they get infected there? Is that the epicenter and genesis of the outbreak? Hard to know. First because the marriage (unfortunately) has died. Second, because before boarding the cruise the couple had made a long road trip that took them to different parts of South America. In fact, it is believed that they were four months visiting several countries on the continent, including Chile and Uruguay. “We have no evidence”. This fact (that the first deaths were in other parts of South America) has been strongly emphasized by the authorities of Ushuaia, who do not quite understand that the couple was infected in their territory. The reason? The main one, insists Juan Facundo Petrina, general director of Epidemiology and Environmental Health of the province, is that the hantavirus is not a problem in the area. “In Tierra del Fuego we have no record of cases in our history,” clarifies to the BBC. “Specifically, since 1996, when the National Surveillance System included it among the notifiable diseases, we have not had a single case in Tierra del Fuego.” More than 1,000 km north. As if that were not enough, Petrina details a few more facts. To begin with, the hantavirus endemic area is more than 1,500 km to the north. Also remember that there are no records confirming that the mouse subspecies that transmits the disease lives in the area. “And if rodents begin to move, since they do not respect borders, it is important to remember that we are an island,” duck. Another key that … Read more

Only a handful of US companies have access to Claude Mythos: the ECB already fears for the savings of all of Europe

by

He hasn’t even been with us a month and Claude Mythos Preview is terrifying the world. AND We don’t even know if there are reasons for it.because Anthropic has it tied up and muzzled: only a handful of companies have been able to access the model to test it and use it properly. The objective is that these companies can use it to find vulnerabilities before others do, but of course, a contagion effect has been created: if the model is good enough to find security flaws everywhereeveryone is threatened. And among those beginning to fear the worst are the world’s most important financial institutions. And the European Central Bank is one of them. The Project Glasswing Private Club. During the launch of Claude Mythos Preview, Anthropic selected an extremely small group of US “partners” to carry out the first fire tests of this model. Under the name of Project Glasswing, giants such as Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet or financial entities such as JP Morgan have been the only ones authorized to evaluate the capabilities of Mythos. This access has made AI become a curious geopolitical piece. One that has left the European institutions aside. In Xataka An Anthropic worker was having a snack when he received an email he should never have received: it was Mythos The fear of zero-day. What makes Mythos a fearsome AI model is its ability to go through the code of all types of applications and software platforms and find so-called vulnerabilities.”zero day“. These flaws are not even known by the developers of these projects, and they tend to remain hidden even in highly critical infrastructures such as banking or energy companies. Until now, finding these security holes required complex work by highly specialized human experts, but Mythos is capable of detecting many of these flaws and generating the code to exploit them almost instantly. The European Central Bank, on alert. Given this panorama, the ECB has taken action on the matter calling on those responsible for risks in the main financial entities of the Eurozone. Among the participants are those responsible for Santander, BBVA, CaixaBank and Sabadell, who must – like the rest – detail their contingency plans for the possible emergence of Mythos. This is no longer about how to act in the event of increases in unemployment or economic contractions, but rather about what steps should be taken if the model falls into the hands of cybercriminals who could cause massive thefts of data… and money. A “nuclear” weapon. That only some private American companies have access to the model has strained international relations in a notable way. The White House and the US Treasury hold meetings with their banks, and meanwhile some media sympathetic to the Russian regime qualify to this model as something “worse than a nuclear bomb. Huge (theoretical) risks. The fact that a single company can unilaterally decide who has access to the most powerful cybersecurity tool on the planet (or so Anthropic claims) creates a truly delicate situation. This can put all types of entities in check, but also even developing countries with more vulnerable systems. The UK has already had access to Mythos. The British country has already managed to position itself ahead of the countries of the European Union. The AI ​​Security Institute has had access to the model and has confirmed that the model is capable of completing attacks that no previous AI could complete. Anthropic itself has indicated which will expand access to Mythos to British financial institutions. Meanwhile, EU member countries continue to wait for that same privilege. {“videoId”:”xa4n2g8″,”autoplay”:false,”title”:”An initiative to secure the world’s software ｜ Project Glasswing”, “tag”:””, “duration”:”349″} Possible cracks. While all this is happening, Anthropic itself confirmed how unauthorized users they could have accessed to a version of Mythos. If users with bad intentions gain access to a model of this type, the consequences could be important… if it really complies with the expectations that have been generated. Cybersecurity experts warn that it is a matter of time before other powers such as China develop similar capabilities. OpenAI in fact already has GPT-5-5 Cyber, a specific version of its new model that also seems to have notable capabilities in this regard. And as in the case of Anthropic with Mythos, access to this model is restricted. In Xataka |OpenAI and Anthropic have proposed the impossible: lose $85 billion in one year and survive (function() { window._JS_MODULES = window._JS_MODULES || {}; var headElement = document.getElementsByTagName(‘head’)(0); if (_JS_MODULES.instagram) { var instagramScript = document.createElement(‘script’); instagramScript.src=”https://platform.instagram.com/en_US/embeds.js”; instagramScript.async = true; instagramScript.defer = true; headElement.appendChild(instagramScript); – The news Only a handful of US companies have access to Claude Mythos: the ECB already fears for the savings of all of Europe was originally published in Xataka by Javier Pastor .

While Europe fears for its pocket after gas cuts in the Middle East, France has a plan: its nuclear power

by

Europe holds its breath in the face of the threat of a new energy crisis. The escalation of war in the Middle East has caused a real earthquake in the markets. The de facto blockade in the vital Strait of Hormuz puts in check the arrival of liquefied natural gas (LNG) ships from Qatar, forcing cargo ships to deviate towards Asia. With European gas reserves below 30% after an unusually cold winter, panic relives the nightmare of 2022 it is palpable. However, in the midst of this continental chaos, France observes the situation with an apparent and calculated calm. The French country believes it has an ace up its sleeve to avoid blackouts and industrial ruin: its imposing, and recently resurrected, nuclear fleet. A historical export record. While northern Europe trembles over gas, the French electricity grid operator, RTE, has just put figures on the table that support the Elysée’s optimism. According to the Bilan electric 2025Last year, France broke its historical record by exporting 92.3 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity. To put it in perspective, RTE’s Director General of Economics, Thomas Veyrenc, explained to the Revue Générale Nucléaire that this volume exceeds the annual electricity consumption of an entire country like Belgium. This milestone has returned France to its traditional role as Europe’s “electric battery”, a status that it had resoundingly lost in 2022. The secret of this success lies in the recovery of its nuclear park, which produced 373 TWh in 2025 (3.1% more than the previous year) thanks to better availability of its reactors. As pointed out by Financial Timesthis French nuclear fleet is precisely the energy lever that Europe was missing after the invasion of Ukraine, and could be the key to not having to turn on polluting coal plants again in the face of the current gas cut in the Middle East. The paradox: they export because they do not consume. Economically, the move is round. According to Le Mondethese exports have earned France 5.4 billion euros. By having so much low-cost electricity production (nuclear and hydroelectric), the country manages to maintain very competitive wholesale prices, situated at an average of €61/MWh in 2025, well below the suffocating prices suffered by neighbors such as Germany or Italy. But this “miracle” has some worrying fine print. As the specialized media warns Le Monde de l’EnergieFrance exports so much electricity mainly because its domestic consumption is stagnant. The country’s electricity demand remained at 451 TWh in 2025, 6% below pre-crisis levels. The reality is that France is far behind in the electrification of its own economy. Paradoxically, 56% of the final energy consumed by the country continues to depend on fossil fuels, especially in sectors such as transportation and heating. The energy clamp to Spain. The French master plan to establish itself as the energy savior of Europe has a clear loser: the Iberian Peninsula. As we explained in Xatakawhile Germany pays more than 100 euros for electricity and France pays 13 euros, in Spain and Portugal renewable overproduction sinks prices until they reach zero or negative values. Why doesn’t that cheap and clean Iberian energy flow to a thirsty Europe? Because France acts as a protective wall. The country maintains Spain as an “energy island” with only 2.8% interconnection, deliberately blocking vital projects in Aragon and Navarra in its network plan for 2025-2035. ANDThe eternal France-Spain conflict. The motivation is not technical, but pure geostrategy and economic survival. Paris needs urgently make profitable a pharaonic investment of 300,000 million euros in its atomic sector. Allowing the massive entry of competitive Spanish solar and wind energy would sink the prices and profitability of its nuclear plants. In fact, President Emmanuel Macron has come to attack the Spanish energy model in the international press, calling it unstable, arguing that a network does not support a 100% renewable model, and describing the urgency of interconnections as a “false debate.” However, the data dismantles the Elysée story. On the one hand, there is the “Danish mirror”: Denmark operates with more than 80% wind generation and does not suffer blackouts because it is ultra-interconnected with its neighbors to balance the load. On the other hand, the flagrant French amnesia regarding 2022 stands out, the year in which the French reactors failed massively due to corrosion problems and it was Spain that had to export electricity to rescue France from the blackouts. Because of this current plug, Spain is forced to throw it away (what is known as technical discharges or curtailment) around 7% of its clean energy because it literally “does not fit” into the grid. All this is part of a strategy of total domination by the Elysée: Macron not only seeks civil energy hegemony, but, how to collect CNBChas put a doctrine of “advance deterrence” on the table, offering the protection of its nuclear weapons to Europe in the face of the withdrawal of the United States. The Achilles heel: the uranium crisis. However, Macron’s nuclear fortress could have feet of clay. The chain RFI (Radio France International) warns that this “nuclear renaissance” faces great uncertainty over uranium supply. Historically, France obtained 20% of its uranium from Niger. But following the recent military coup, the ruling junta revoked the permits of the French company Orano, nationalized the mines and blocked exports, leaving Paris with a gaping supply hole. Now, France is desperately trying to look for new sources in countries like Kazakhstan (the world’s largest producer) or Mongolia, but there it comes face to face with the overwhelming geopolitical, business and infrastructure influence of Russia and China. A castle with a drawbridge. France has managed to build an energy strength that, in the short term, allows it to weather the Middle East storm better than its European neighbors, selling its surpluses at a gold price. But it does so at the cost of isolating the Iberian Peninsula and betting everything on a mineral, uranium, whose control is increasingly slipping out of its hands on the global chessboard. Time will … Read more

The closure of QatarEnergy shoots up the price by 45%, reviving fears of 2022

by

Just when Europe breathed a sigh of relief, convinced of having stabilized its energy supply after the traumatic cut of ties with Putin’s Russia, the specter of the 2022 crisis has materialized again. A new “Black Monday” has shaken international markets, but this time the epicenter is not in Eastern Europe, but in the waters of the Persian Gulf. An unprecedented escalation of war in the Middle East has culminated with the temporary closure of the largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) export plant in the world. Europe reaches this moment in a position of vulnerability, since the gas market has mutated: it has ceased to be a simple raw material and has become a “high-speed financial asset” dominated by volatility. Added to this is that the continent has changed its dependency of Russian gas pipelines by methane tankers from the US and Qatar, today facing unusually low gas stores. The spark that set the markets on fire jumped on March 2, 2026. The state-owned company QatarEnergy issued a statement announcing the cessation of production of LNG and associated products after suffering military attacks on its strategic facilities in Ras Laffan and the industrial city of Mesaieed. According to the Qatari Ministry of Defense collected by Al Jazeerathe country was attacked by drones launched from Iran. One hit a water tank in Mesaieed and another hit an energy facility in Ras Laffan. Although the toll is about 20 injured and “minimal damage” after a rain of dozens of drones and missiles against the country, the decision to paralyze operations in Ras Laffan – which manages a capacity of 77 million tons per year—has been devastating. The chaos, however, not limited to Qatar. We are facing a regional domino effect. Saudi Arabia has been forced to temporarily close units of its giant Ras Tanura refinery after Iranian drones were intercepted. In parallel, Iraq has stopped the flow of a key pipeline to Türkiye for security reasons, and the Israeli government has ordered Chevron to halt production from its huge Leviathan gas field. The energy system faces a logistical problem There are some 150 ships paralyzed in the areawhich means an effective blockade of the Strait of Hormuzthe bottleneck through which a fifth of the world’s maritime oil and gas trade transits. The situation is so serious that, according to the Financial Timeshalf of the world’s largest marine insurers will suspend their war risk coverage in the area, completely deterring cargo ships. But the paralysis of QatarEnergy has a deeper reading. For geopolitical analyst Bachar El-Halabi, consulted through their social networksthis is not just a supply shock, but a clever maneuver. By stopping production, Doha internationalizes the conflict: sends the message that it will not be a simple passive game board and puts the pressure directly on its partners in Washington, Europe and Asia. The macroeconomic impact is already visible. From the British environment They point to widespread falls in the stock markets -with the Stoxx Europe 600 losing almost 2%— and a flight of investors towards gold. As stated by Simone Tagliapietra, analyst at the Bruegel think tank cited by Bloomberg: “The threat to security of supply is immediate (…) we are facing a new scenario.” So, is the price of gas going to rise? The market’s immediate reaction has been one of true panic. The reference gas contract in Europe (Dutch TTF) recorded intraday increases of more than 50%. According to data collected by The Economistthe megawatt hour jumped sharply from below 40 euros up to touching 47.5 euros. At the same time, Brent oil rose 9%, hovering around $80 per barrel. The European citizen might ask: “If only 10% of the LNG that reaches Europe passes through the Strait of Hormuz, why does it affect us so much?” The energy expert Joaquín Coronado sums it up perfectly: Gas markets do not operate based on isolated physical volumes, but rather based on global prices. If Asia suddenly loses the Qatari tap, it will compete fiercely with checkbook against Europe for shipments from the United States or Africa. In fact, Coronado warns that the consulting firm ICIS projects that a closure 90 days in Hormuz would raise the TTF up to €92/MWh. However, in the midst of the noise, analytical voices ask for calm. The columnist of Bloomberg Javier Blas he remembered on his social networkssupported by the economic journalist Miquel Roig, who although a 45% rise is scary in the headlines, the current ones €46/MWh They are nothing compared to the absolute record of €345/MWh in the summer of 2022. As Blas states: “As always, putting the wide angle lens on helps.” Although we are far from historical highs, the current situation finds Europe unprotected. Joaquin Coronado provides worrying information: European gas storages are at 30%7.5 points below the 2025 level. In Xataka we explain it with the phenomenon of backwardation: since gas in the future was cheaper than current gas, it was not worth it for companies to fill their warehouses. This price spike has direct and immediate consequences. Crowned already advance that the price of electricity in the Spanish wholesale market (OMIE) will reach €106.6/MWh in tomorrow’s peak hours. For intensive industries (such as chemicals, fertilizers or ceramics), the profitability threshold usually is among the 50 and 60 €/MWh. If prices stagnate there, we could see a new wave of factory closures and a rebound in inflation. On this board, Spain lives its own paradox. Although it has regasification plants and ships on its coasts, it functions as an “energy island.” Our country lacks sufficient interconnections (pipes through the Pyrenees) to pump all that gas to Germany or Central Europe, preventing Spain from serving as a total lifeline for the continent. The closure of the QatarEnergy plant serves as a stark reminder of current energy geopolitics. Europe believed it had shielded its system by becoming independent of piped gas from Russia, but it simply has replaced one vulnerability with another: dependence on sea routes and American and Qatari … Read more

Japan has been wanting fewer tourists for years. Now he fears China is making his wishes come true

by

Japan has been choked by foreign tourism. And it is understandable. The weakness of the yen, the reactivation of demand after the pandemic stop and the enormous popularity that the country has achieved on networks has triggered its flow of visitors to record levelsstirring up the debate on he oversight and generating discomfort in some particularly congested destinations, such as Kyoto, nara or Osaka. To stop it, there is already talk of a tax increase. There are even cities looking for ways to reduce the flow of international tourists. Now, for reasons that have little or nothing to do with the tourism market, Japan is encountering the collapse of demand in its big market: China. The question is whether that is a blessing or a threat to your economy. Pack of tourists. The data is incontestable. Japan has become one of the most popular destinations among those planning their vacations. Last year the country received 42.7 million of foreign visitors, an absolute record that shatters the data from 2024, when it fell just short of 37 million. Beyond the year-on-year comparison, the data is interesting for two reasons. First, because never before had the Japan Tourism Organization (ONTJ) counted more than 40 million visitors annual. Second, because the data leaves the 31.9 million of 2019, the last year before the pandemic, far behind. If nothing changes, the Government plans to reach the 60 million this decade, which will translate into a powerful injection of resources into the Japanese economy. In 2025 alone, foreign travelers spent more than $60 billion. More than money. The problem is that this flow of tourists not only translates into full planes, hotels with the sign ‘no places left’ and hoteliers and merchants satisfied with their sales. The international tourism boom has generated tensions in some destinations especially congested, leaving almost almost surreal episodes, such as the one lived in Kyoto. There the authorities have had to prohibit “paparazzi tourists” from accessing one of the most emblematic points of the city. The reason: so that they do not harass the geishas. It is not the only proof of the tensions that are emerging due to tourist saturation. In Fujikawaguchiko the authorities, unable to contain the hordes of travelers eager to “hunt” the best selfiethey chose to install a fence that blocks the views of Fuji. In Fujiyoshida they just canceled your festival Sakura because it saturates the city with visitors who clog traffic, sneak into homes and leave trash in parks. And in Yamanashi they decided years ago start charging to ascend Fuji to preserve the mythical mountain. And the Taiwan crisis arrived. Whims of geopolitics and international diplomacy, Japan has just found that this record flow of visitors could receive a severe setback. And all on account of something that has little or nothing to do with the tourist market: Taiwan. To understand it, we have to go back to November 7, when the Prime Minister of Japan, Sanae Takaichi, warned during a parliamentary debate that Japan would not hesitate to mobilize its self-defense forces in case China entered Taiwan by force. Although the Japanese Government assures that its position remains the same as always, the truth is that Takaichi’s words broke the “strategic ambiguity” that Japan has maintained for decades. And that was not liked one bit in China. The relationship between Beijing and Tokyo became strained to such an extent that the Asian giant responded with more than complaints diplomatic: canceled concerts by Japanese artists, postponed the premiere of movies, he claimed the pandas on loan to Japanese zoos and restricted its valuable rare earth exports. What does it have to do with tourism? That in its response to Japan, Beijing also played one of its great economic assets: tourism. The Chinese authorities they advised its citizens to avoid Japan and even canceled dozens of routes airlines with the country. In November the BBC reported that some Chinese airlines were offering their customers refunds for their flights to Japan. Such a movement would not have much importance if it were not for the fact that China is one of the main sources of the Japanese tourism sector. The Asian giant is one of its big markets issuers, along with Korea. According to the Japan National Tourism Organization, in 2024 China was the second largest source of tourists visiting Japan. concentrated about 19% of all demand, only behind Korea (24%). The data is also completed with the 7.3% of Hong Kong and the high weight that Taiwan also has in Japanese tourism. The flow from the Asian giant is key, however, for another reason: as remember The New York TimesChina not only moves many tourists but its tourists spend a lot in Japan. Goodbye Chinese tourists. Although the open conflict between China and Japan is recent, its effects have not taken long to be noticed in the tourism industry. TNYT assures that in December the flow of Chinese travelers already plummeted by 45% compared to the same month in 2024. And the situation does not seem to be improving in the coming months: Japan has fallen on the list of the most coveted destinations for the Chinese to enjoy their Lunar New Year holidays. There are those who already warn that Japanese hotels will welcome 60% less of Chinese. Why is it important? Beyond the percentages, this ‘puncture’ in the Chinese market represents a setback for a sector (Japanese tourism) that until recently seemed unbeatable. Despite how popular Japan continues to be in the rest of the world and the record data it is collecting, its balance of incoming tourist spending registered a drop of 2.8% during the last three months of 2025. It is not a high percentage, but it represents the first decline in more than four years. In November, Bloomberg already warned that the diplomatic row with China threatened to cost Japan’s tourism sector 1.2 billion in income. If the data were not conclusive in itself, it comes at a … Read more

NVIDIA fears that China will hinder the sale of H200 chips, so it is asking for advance payment without exchanges or returns

by

The fact that NVIDIA can market H200 chips in China It’s going around a lot these days and it’s no wonder. And after the Government’s uncertainty about whether it ends up allowing them in the country or not, the company has imposed unusually strict payment conditions for customers who want to buy these chips in China. According to information According to Reuters, the company now requires full payment up front, with no cancellation, refund or configuration changes options once the order is placed. Why it matters. NVIDIA has billions at stake in China, the world’s largest semiconductor market. Chinese technology companies have placed orders for more than 2 million H200 chips valued at about $27,000 each, well above the company’s available inventory of 700,000 units, according to account the middle. But the regulatory situation is a powder keg: the United States has just authorized the sale with a 25% tariff, while China has not yet confirmed whether it will allow imports. Regulation. The Biden administration had banned the export of chips advanced AI to China, but Donald Trump reversed that policy last month allowing H200 sales with the aforementioned 25% tariff that goes directly to the US government. However, China has not yet given the official approval. According to BloombergBeijing plans to approve some imports this quarter, but only for select commercial uses. The military, sensitive government agencies, critical infrastructure and state-owned companies would be left out for security reasons. Protection. The payment terms transfer all of NVIDIA’s financial risk to its customers, who must commit capital without certainty that Beijing will approve the imports or that they will be able to deploy the technology as planned. According to account The average, although NVIDIA has always required advance payments from Chinese customers, deposits were sometimes allowed in lieu of full payment. Now the company is especially strict due to the lack of regulatory clarity. A recent scar. NVIDIA has reason to be cautious. Last year it had to write down $5.5 billion in inventory after the Trump administration abruptly banned the sale of the H20 chip to Chinathe most powerful product that it could then offer there. Although the United States has reversed that decision, China has since banned H20 shipments. This experience explains why the company prefers to ensure collection before any unforeseen regulatory event. Overwhelming demand. Chinese tech giants like ByteDance and Alibaba see the H200 as a significant improvement. This chip, currently NVIDIA’s second most powerful, offers approximately six times the performance of the now locked H20. According to Bloombergboth Alibaba and ByteDance have privately communicated to NVIDIA their interest in ordering more than 200,000 units each. Delivery times. NVIDIA plans to fill initial orders with existing stock, with the first batch of H200 chips expected to arrive before the Lunar New Year holiday in mid-February, according to account Reuters. The company has also approached TSMC to increase H200 production to meet demand in China, with additional manufacturing planned for the second quarter of 2026. The local competition. Meanwhile, NVIDIA’s Chinese rivals are gaining ground. And just as inform Bloomberg, local manufacturers such as Huawei have developed AI processors, including the Ascend 910Calthough its performance still lags behind the H200 for large-scale training of advanced models. On the other hand, Cambricon Technologies It also plans to significantly increase its production of AI chips in 2026, thus expanding its market share and filling the gap left by NVIDIA. What’s coming now. In the coming days it will be known if China makes a final decision on H200 imports. Jensen Huang, CEO of NVIDIA, declared at CES this week that customer demand for H200 chips is “quite high” and that the company has “activated its supply chain” to increase production. Huang also noted that he doesn’t expect the Chinese government to make a formal statement about approval, but rather that “if purchase orders come in, it’s because they can make them.” Cover image | NVIDIA and Arthur Wang In Xataka | There is a new player in the race for the autonomous car and it is one that should worry Tesla a lot: NVIDIA

Spain fears a major collapse during the August 2026 eclipse, so it is already starting to design emergency plans

by

Spain has activated the machinery to prepare for one of the most anticipated natural phenomena with the greatest logistical impact: the total eclipse that we will experience next August 12, 2026. A phenomenon that will cross the north of the country and that will make Spain the focus of all lovers of these phenomena that nature gives us, and it is logical, since it is the first total solar eclipse visible from continental Europe since 1999. The challenge of having thousands of people gathered together looking at the sky, and also added to the large number of tourists who will arrive in the country, makes the Government has asked the autonomous communities to prepare security and mobility plans. Something that can be similar, for example, to the organization of a soccer World Cup, but concentrated in a few hours. In order to manage the logistics of this important date, the central government activated an inter-ministerial commission that recently had a second meeting with the regional representatives. The objective is to be able to have a joint response to the massive influx of visitors mainly to the north of Spain. And it is no wonder, since in experience we have in mind the ‘Great American Eclipse‘ of 2024 where thousands of people ended up collapsing parks and roads, even where the eclipse was partial. And we want to avoid as much as possible that this ends up being chaos in Spain. The estimate. We are not talking about a few thousand people interested in these phenomena, but the Government proposes that millions of people can move to follow the strip of totality that will diagonally cross 13 autonomies and at least 27 provinces from Galicia to Aragon, passing through Castilla y León, Cantabria, Navarra and La Rioja. The eclipse will occur just at sunset, with the Sun going completely dark for a few minutes while the Moon blocks its disk, peaking at 20:28. The zone of total darkness will also cross a part of northern Portugal, the extreme west of Iceland and an unpopulated strip of Greenland, but Spain will be the only country where it can be observed with full guarantees and from inhabited places. And in the case of Spain in particular, the truth is that it is something historic, since It will be the first to be seen from the Iberian Peninsula in more than a century. What is requested. The central government wants to anticipate problems that may arise, such as an emergency, which is likely when we talk about a mass of people at a specific point. But in addition to this, contingency plans must also be prepared on roads due to the large number of trips that can occur in a very short period of time. The problem here is that we are in a country that is not centralized in a single administration, and that is why the cooperation of all the autonomous communities is essential. The Ministry of Science emphasize which, in addition to guaranteeing safety and mobility, seeks to promote correct scientific dissemination and avoid risks such as the use of non-approved solar glasses, an aspect highlighted by Cigudosa to prevent damage or fraud in eye protection during observation. The problems. Among those they want to address is undoubtedly the possibility of having accidents on roads, kilometer-long traffic jams and blocked access to cities. This adds to the possible overload of the infrastructures of emptied Spain, since many observation points are located in rural areas or coastal areas with limited resources. This means that it can be very easy for secondary roads to collapse, mobile coverage towers to be saturated, and for there to not be enough fuel or food for all the spectators of this historic event in our country. Although we must also highlight the possibility of a greater number of forest fires due to bad human practices and precisely at a time of maximum risk. Those that are to come. The 2026 eclipse is just the starting signal for a ‘trio of eclipses’ that can be seen from Spain. The specific agenda we have is the following: August 12, 2026: the great northern eclipse, at sunset, which is total. August 2, 2027: Just one year later, another total eclipse will cross the southern tip of Spain. It will be visible from Cádiz, Málaga, Ceuta and Melilla. Unlike the first, this one will be in the morning and will be one of the longest of the century, with a total that will exceed 4 and a half minutes in the Strait. January 26, 2028: an annular eclipse (where the Moon does not completely cover the Sun, leaving a bright circle) will cross the south of the peninsula, visible from areas such as Seville or Granada. In this way, the Government has the task of preparing for three different events in a range of three years that will attract a large number of national and international curious people. In Xataka | Between 2026 and 2028 Spain will become an eclipse paradise. And we have new maps to know where they will look best

Log In

Forgot password?

Forgot password?

Enter your account data and we will send you a link to reset your password.

Your password reset link appears to be invalid or expired.

Log in

Privacy Policy

Add to Collection

No Collections

Here you'll find all collections you've created before.