China Business NOW

Lima, the capital of Peru, enters “APEC time” this week as the South American country hosts the 31st Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting. Under the theme of “Empower, Include, Grow,” senior officials, ministers and leaders from APEC's 21 member economies, which together account for almost two-thirds of world GDP and half of global trade, will tackle core ch...

Hi everyone. I’m Stephanie LI. Coming up on today’s program China unveils new tax breaks to boost property sales; Tencent logs 47% jump in Q3 profit on strong gaming growth. Here’s what you need to know about China in the past 24 hours  China is amending its tax structure on residential property transactions, effectively lowering the cost of ownership and extending fresh incentives to a wider...

Hi everyone. I’m Stephanie LI. Coming up on today’s program More than 200 Chinese A-Share companies announce Q3 cash dividends, boosted by capital market support policy; China adds two public holidays starting next year. Here’s what you need to know about China in the past 24 hours  In a significant development for China's stock market, more than 200 A-share companies had announced cash divid...

Hi everyone. I’m Stephanie LI. Coming up on today’s program PLA Air Force celebrates 75th anniversary at Airshow China 2024 with J-35A stealth fighter; China's e-commerce giants report robust sales during the “Double 11” shopping festival. Here’s what you need to know about China in the past 24 hours  Aviation enthusiasts are gearing up for China’s biggest air show which begins on T...

Hi everyone. I’m Stephanie LI. Coming up on today’s program Double 11 rides in a climax today as the shopping gala shows resilience in China’s retail sales; CIIE concludes with record of over USD80 billion in tentative deals. Here’s what you need to know about China in the past 24 hours This year's Double 11 Singles' Day shopping festival, spanning from October 8th to November 11th, marks the long...

On Tuesday, Shanghai officially entered "CIIE moment," which has become an annual feast of global trade cooperation, and the colorful billboards on the streets of Shanghai and bustling scenes at the exhibition halls put on vivid display of the strong vibrancy and attractiveness of the Chinese market.   A record high of 297 Fortune Global 500 and industrial leaders are present. Additionally, 1...

Hi everyone. I’m Stephanie LI. Coming up on today’s program China’s foreign trade edges up 5.2 percent in first 10 months; US companies embrace opportunities at China's import expo in Shanghai. Here’s what you need to know about China in the past 24 hours  China’s total goods imports and exports grew by 5.2 percent year-on-year in the first 10 months this year to reach 36.02 trillion yuan (US...

Hi everyone. I’m Stephanie LI. Coming up on today’s program Chinese Premier gave keynote speech at the 7th CIIE opening ceremony, pledging further opening up; Shenzhen drafted an action plan to push for high-quality development of the low-altitude economy. Here’s what you need to know about China in the past 24 hours  Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Tuesday pledged to further expand opening up an...

Imagine this: During the congested morning rush hour, you casually hop in a "flying taxi" to work, then enjoy a freshly brewed, drone-delivered coffee at the office, isn ’ t it like a scene in sci-fi movies?  It may soon become a reality in China, with different types of seemingly futuristic drones delivering packages and takeaway food, work commutes using winged taxis and sightseeing helicop...

China saw a boom during last week’s Qingming Festival, also known as Tomb-Sweeping Day, recording 119 million domestic passenger trips during the three-day holiday, up 11.5 percent from the same period in 2019, marked by bustling tourist attractions and surging consumption. Official data also showed domestic revenue during the period totaled 53.95 billion yuan (US$7.6 billion), up 12.7 percent fro...

China is taking the absolute centre stage this week. Executives of multinationals, representatives from international organizations and foreign institutions, as well as world-renowned scholars have flocked to the country, attending the ongoing Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2024 and the China Development Forum (CDF) 2024 that concluded on Monday, offering insights into China's development a...

There’s a gold rush in China.  But unlike the past where middle-aged Chinese were purchasing the gold metal, it’s the young who are now showing a growing appetite for this precious, yellow metal — albeit in bean form. Smaller than a fingertip and often shaped like lucky symbols like ingots or koi fish, gold beans are quickly gaining popularity among China’s Gen Z. Weighing roughly one gram an...

Chinese EV makers  are   starting  2024  with yet another round of bitter price war .  The  competition  among automakers in China that started in early 2023 has shown no signs of abating. Particularly in the new-energy vehicle sector, both traditional and emerging players keep cutting prices or launching limited-time promotions, tactics that analysts anticipate...

China seeks to achieve a GDP growth rate of around 5 percent for 2024, the latest signal that the world's second-largest economy is committed to high-quality development despite uncertainties at home and abroad. The projected goal, which remains unchanged from the previous year's growth target, is one of the key development objectives unveiled in the government work report delivered by Premier Li...

Starbucks  has long got a   t rouble . Now it ’ s official. Luckin Coffee became China ’ s dominant coffee chain last year, outpacing the nation ’ s previous leader Starbucks Corp in annual sales for the first time. The Xiamen-based company posted quarterly net revenue of 7.06 billion yuan (US$980   mil lion ), representing an increase of 91% from a year ago in a growing and increas...

For the Chinese people, the eternal theme of the Spring Festival, or Chinese New Year, remains family reunion, yet an increasing number of Chinese are choosing to integrate travel and movie-watching into their holiday traditions. The eight-day holiday saw a record number of people go on trips, more holiday goods purchases, and more quality family time spent in doing leisure activities. The growing...

Red lanterns, Chinese knots and dragon-themed decorations being seen everywhere, festive songs looping in almost every indoor area, billions of Chinese joining the world's largest human migration known as “chun yun”… As these familiar, once in a year kind of scenes unfold, we can clearly see the Spring Festival approaches. The beginning of the Year of the Dragon falls on Feb. 10, 2024, which Chine...

Aryna Sabalenka , the  25-year-old   Belarusian was serving for the match in the women ’ s singles final of the   Australian Open, up 5-2 in the second set of a contest that seemingly passed in an instant. As in most of the match, the final game was going   Sabalenka ’ s way. Leading 40-0, the defending champion had three match points.  She was ready to win . “ Jiayou, ”&n...

After years of ups and downs, especially the three-year heavy blow from the Covid pandemic, China ’ s film industry saw a fruitful year in 2023 , being  a n absolute  bright spot amid the nation ’ s uneven consumption-led economic recovery . China's film industry staged an impressive comeback in 2023, witnessing a substantial 83   percent year-on-year surge in annual box office sale...

Hong Kong film auteur Wong Kar-wai ’ s TV debut Blossoms Shanghai aired its finale  on Jan 9. Although ended more than a week ago, the fever of the TV series still lingers.  Posts about the drama alone have been read 4.3 billion times on China's micro-blogging platform Weibo.   Boasting a  stellar rating of  8.5 on Douban ,  a major Chinese media review platform ,&nbs...

Hi everyone. I’m Stephanie LI. Coming up on today ’ s program -  Retail sales  in China  bounce back last year to hit a new record ; -  Chinese stock s rebounded after  the benchmark Shanghai composite  dipp ed  below 2,800 points . Here’s what you need to know about China in the past 24 hours China's consumption in 2023 played a vital role in bolstering economic...

Hi everyone. I ’ m Stephanie LI. Coming up on today ’ s program -  China achieves 5.2% GDP growth in 2023, successfully meeting yearly target ; -  Premier Li Qiang urges global cooperation  and  vows continued opening-up at WEF . Here’s what you need to know about China in the past 24 hours China's gross domestic product expanded by 5.2 percent in 2023 - meeting the country's p...

Hi everyone. I’m Stephanie LI. Coming up on today’s program Foreign investors hike holdings of Chinese bonds by record levels; China unveils plan to boost “silver economy". Here’s what you need to know about China in the past 24 hours  Foreign investment in China is picking up as overseas investors made net purchases of Chinese onshore bonds for months, including a net purchase of $24.5 billi...

Hi everyone. I’m Stephanie LI. Coming up on today’s program China’s central bank surprises markets by leaving medium-term rate unchanged, but adds liquidity; Chinese premier arrives in Switzerland for Davos forum. Here’s what you need to know about China in the past 24 hours  The People’s Bank of China on Monday added 995 billion yuan ($138.84 billion) worth of one-year medium-term lending fa...

It all started with a furore, when the Harbin Ice and Snow World was overcrowded by incoming visitors on its opening day. Many had to spend much longer than expected time waiting to get on some of the popular amusement facilities. Angry customers asked the park for ticket refunds. That may have, like many other similar cases, turned into a complete PR disaster, damaging the park and even the city’...