On September 16, a netizen posted a video on Bilibili interviewing local security guards and cleaners, revealing that their daily wage was only 55 to 64 yuan, and used supermarket purchasing power to satirize the low human rights advantage of cheap labor in China, triggering discussion among netizens.
The Saudi Central Bank withdrew from the mBridge project in May 2025 after completing a proof of concept. The project had previously been seen as a potential pathway for Saudi Arabia to promote oil trade with reduced reliance on the U.S. dollar. Despite its withdrawal, some media outlets continued to list Saudi Arabia as a participant as late as August 2026.
On September 19, videos posted by netizens showed that the bottom of the foundation piles of an expressway bridge pier in Luodian County, Qiannan Buyei and Miao Autonomous Prefecture, Guizhou Province, were severely hollowed out, with multiple load-bearing steel bars exposed and heavily rusted, sparking public concern over the safety of transportation infrastructure.
On September 18, in the semi-finals of the men's basketball tournament at the Nagoya Asian Games, the Chinese men's basketball team lost 77 to 97 to the Japanese team, setting a record for the largest margin of defeat against Japan. Because the match coincided with the September 18 incident anniversary, Chinese media heavily hyped nationalist sentiment before the game. The crushing defeat and videos of Chinese fans crying at the scene were widely circulated afterward, triggering strong discontent and emotional venting among domestic netizens.
Public commentary points out that Chinese tech companies process data at a low cost by exploiting domestic labor, thereby enabling the distillation and application of foreign artificial intelligence models, which has sparked concerns over technological ethics and labor rights.
On September 17, the Financial Times reported that the EU has asked China to restrict exports of hybrid vehicles to Europe, setting a 15% market share cap. EU officials warned that if Beijing fails to cooperate voluntarily, the EU will take mandatory restrictive measures aimed at protecting domestic European industries from shocks.
On September 18, the Apple iPhone 18 Pro officially went on sale. Previously, Apple's official Chinese website had marked the release date as 'next Friday the 18th' instead of 'September 18,' which was accused of being an attempt to avoid the anniversary of the September 18 Incident. On the day of release, the comment sections of relevant media reports saw a large number of boycotting remarks such as 'never forget national humiliation' and 'firmly refuse to buy.'
US President Trump announced, effective immediately, a ban on CNN, MSNBC, Politico, and other media outlets accused of long-standing fake news reporting from entering the White House, and specifically criticized Politico for accepting huge government subscription contracts during the Biden administration.
On September 15, the Wall Street Journal reported that China's blueberry industry, driven by illegal propagation of foreign protected varieties and bank credit, achieved a surge in production, leading to overcapacity and price wars. A breeding company’s investigation found that a nursery in Yunnan was obtaining cuttings of protected varieties through illegal channels.
On September 15, a blogger posted a video comparing the hourly wages of cleaners in Germany with the treatment of cleaners in China. The video satirized the idea that the so-called purchasing power advantage of the RMB is actually built upon cheap labor, sparking discussions among netizens regarding labor value and social security.
On September 16, Ningde Times' stock price fell for two consecutive days, the decline widened to 5%, breaking below the 300 yuan threshold, down 35% from the May 7 peak, hitting a near‑year low, with total market value approaching 1.4 trillion yuan.
On September 15, military media "Navy News" disclosed satellite images showing that Shanghai Hudong Zhonghua Shipyard is building a vessel suspected to be the world's first unmanned submarine mother ship, which features a dock, lift cradle and hangar, and is estimated to be able to carry about four large unmanned submarines.
On September 15, Apple released the official version of iOS 17, which includes a new alarm feature that supports compensatory leave (tiaoxiu). Wenzhou state media "Temperature News" called this an "epic update," sparking widespread ridicule from netizens who accused Apple of compromising with China's compensatory leave system and keeping pace with the regression of the times.
On September 14, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists released an investigative report, pointing out that the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China's London branch, under directives from headquarters, tied commercial business to national strategy, provided financing to sensitive enterprises, and bypassed compliance procedures to assist Huawei in transferring huge sums of money, reflecting the operational logic of Chinese state-owned banks where profit serves political objectives.
On September 5, a blogger posted a video claiming that the domestically produced C919 offered the worst flight experience they had ever had. The video was filmed in late August 2025 on China Eastern Airlines flight MU9199 from Shanghai Hongqiao to Guangzhou. The blogger stated that dizziness occurred shortly after takeoff and noted that for ordinary passengers, comfort is ultimately what matters most.