Internet giant Alibaba and leading university Peking University have joined forces to set up a new consumer index, the China Online Consumer Brand Index (CBI). Consumer expert Ashley Dudarenok highlights how the attitude of consumers has shifted in the world’s second economy over the past few years, as noted in Jing Daily.Read More →

Alvin Wang Graylin, author of Our Next Reality: Preparing for the AI-powered Metaverse, worked in both the US and China on AI and compares the strategy of both countries. While China focuses on a multipolar approach, with mainly economic targets, the US does the opposite and looks at military strategies, he tells Veronica Hylak at Hey AI.Read More →

Branding expert Ashley Dudarenok follows brands from China as they are successfully taking on their global competitors. But global brands are not sitting idle, as rivals from China march on, she says in the Jing Daily. Stories about Luckin Coffee, Anta, Li-Ning, Perfect Diary, Haier, Midea, BYD, and Labubu.Read More →

The number one mistake the West has about China is that China wants to replace the US as the leading global force, says China veteran Kaiser Kuo in an extensive interview in the Smart Cookies Episode. But that is only one of many misunderstandings.Read More →

Luxury brands have been trying to win back markets like those in China. Still, new initiatives, like Dior’s Jonathan Anderson, creative director, unveiling the Spring/Summer 2026 menswear collection, are unlikely to make a big splash among China’s consumers, says luxury brand expert Ashley Dudarenok,  in the BurdaLuxury.Read More →

The number of people avoiding marriage is growing dramatically in China, while the government hopes youngsters not only marry, but also give birth to children. But the change is more than about demographics only, says the journalist Zhang Lijia, author of “Socialism Is Great!”: A Worker’s Memoir of the New China in the Guardian.Read More →

Leading economist Arthur Kroeber, author of China’s Economy: What Everyone Needs to Know®, explains at CNBC why China can walk away from a trade agreement with the US if they do not like it, although its economy is not very bright at this stage. He does not expect to see any great push to improve consumption or the economy at large, as the leadership is happy with the current modest growth.Read More →

US retailer Target ended its promise to its consumers to get the lowest price. But under pressure of the inflation, triggered off by the trade war with China, and other challenges, Target has changed its long-standing business model. It is the end of a safety net for consumers, says retail analyst Ashley Dudarenok in Time.Read More →

China’s consumers are dramatically changing their spending habits, says business analyst Shaun Rein at CNBC. They might not spend on EVs and real estate, but they are sitting on massive savings and will spend when they see the value. Why is Legoland winning the fight for the Chinese consumer, while Starbucks is losing it? Why do they enjoy holidays in mainland China, rather than Thailand or Europe?Read More →

Many observers wrongly see the current trade war between China and the US as a Cold War 2.0, says political analyst Arthur Kroeber, author of China’s Economy: What Everyone Needs to Know® in an interview with Dwarkesh Patel. If American politicians started this war without seeing the difference from a cold war, it might be tough to bring it to an end, he adds.Read More →

China’s government and Tibet’s spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, are at loggerheads on what will happen when the latter dies, and a such for a new Dalai Lama will start. Get ready for two Dalai Lamas, predicts Ian Johnson, fellow at the Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin, and author of The Souls of China: The Return of Religion After Mao, at the ChinaFile.Read More →