Latest Posts
How Alibaba’s Taobao adjusted to tight-fisted consumers – Ashley Dudarenok
China’s consumers are adjusting their purchasing habits and big players are adjusting their strategies to the search for cheaper products. Marketing expert Ashley Dudarenok looks at the changed strategy of Alibaba’s Taobao for the Double 12 festival, she says at marketing-interactive.Read More →
Why China and Japan need closer ties – Zhang Lijia
Relations between China and Japan have been tense since the end of World War II, and the annual remembrance of the rape of Nanking, this year 86 years ago, marks those tensions. Author Zhang Lijia argues that nowadays both countries need better relations, she argues in the South China Morning Post. “An amicable Sino-Japanese relationship is vital for regional stability and prosperity. If the two remain hostile, it will play into the US’ hands,” she writes.Read More →
How China’s internet platforms differ from those in the West – Sharon Gai
China’s platforms like Shein, Temu, and TikTok can conquer Western markets, but Western retail apps fail to do the same in China. E-commerce expert Sharon Gai gives some reason for that difference in the Australian network ABC.Read More →
Who are my ‘underground’ historians – Ian Johnson
China veteran and Pulitzer prize winner Ian Johnson discusses his newest book Sparks: China’s Underground Historians and their Battle for the Future with Bao Pu at City Lights Live. First question: who are the underground historians? And how do they survive in China’s system and challenge the state’s efforts to whitewash its history.Read More →
Why investors need different options, including China – Jim Rogers
Investors need to keep their options open, in case things go wrong, to have an alternative, including China, says Singapore-based American investor Jim Rogers at the Nomad Capitalist. “You hope you do not need it, but you need to have the option,” he says.Read More →
What can Asian startups learn from China? – William Bao Bean
VC William Bao Bean, managing director of Orbit Startups explains how Asian companies can learn from the example from Chinese companies. Not by simply copying the China models, but by learning the lessons and applying them in a new situation, he tells the Future Investment Initiative Hong Kong.Read More →
Why low-cost platforms are logical winners – Sharon Gai
Shein, Temu and TikTok have become winning platforms on the internet, and for a good reason, says e-commerce expert Sharon Gai at the Rest of the World. “Globally you have an economic slowdown, so a lot of consumers are also spending less per platform,” Read More →
Sharon Gai joins China Speakers Bureau
The China Speakers Bureau is happy to announce Sharon Gai is joining its stable of high-profile speakers. Sharon Gai is based in San Francisco and has worked at top management positions in Alibaba and other e-commerce companies.Read More →
Continued stress on China’s fiscal system – Arthur Kroeber
Rating agencies have been lowering China’s rating. Renowned economist Arthur Kroeber, author of China’s Economy: What Everyone Needs to Know®, does not see an acute financial problem for the country, but costs for financing its debts will constrain its economic growth, not only for the quarters to come but for the next few years, he tells CNBC.Read More →
Trading down is the name of the current game – Shaun Rein
China’s consumers are becoming more cost-sensitive, and that means a profound change in the country’s retail, says business analyst Shaun Rein at CNBC. “The name of the game for Chinese youth in 2024 is trading down. Instead of Starbucks, youth are buying Luckin coffee,” Rein says.Read More →
The mixed legacy of ‘old friend’ Kissinger – Ian Johnson
The death of US diplomat Henry Kissinger has triggered different qualifications, varying from an old China friend to a war criminal. Kissenger does have a mixed legacy when it comes to China-US relations, says China veteran Ian Johnson at NBC.Read More →
How tech transfers can curb carbon emissions in food production – William Bao Bean
VC William Bao Bean, managing director of Orbit startups, explains how tech transfers can limit – for example – carbon emissions in food production at COMEUP 2023. His 20-year experience in China helps other Asian startups to avoid mistakes China has made.Read More →