The purchase of world’s largest yacht-maker Ferretti Group to a Chinese bulldozer maker Shandong Heavy might be taken a another sign of China’s drive to go global, China’s rich still have to discover the excitement of of yachting, tells Hurun founder Rupert Hoogewerf in Bloomberg. China is not a natural home market.Read More →

For many the purchasing habits of Chinese consumers are hard to gauge. Retail expert Paul French tells in The Telegraph why Chinese buy what and were. “Chinese consumers are still buying status.” But what gives status, might vary from other consumers.Read More →

Income inequality in the USA is larger than in China and Iran, says a report from the CIA, even though China has a huge income divide too. But one part it has done better than the USA: it taxed the rich, where the money is, not the poor, says business analyst Shaun Rein in Forbes. Read More →

The outstanding book Fat China: How Expanding Waistlines are Changing a Nation (China in the 21st Century)by Paul French and Matthew Crabbe on the dangerously changing food habits in China, has now also been warded the title “Outstanding academic title of 2011” by the magazine Choice, reports China Rhyming.Read More →

The Europeans, especially the Belgians and the Swiss, bring China the ideal gift for the wealthy: chocolate. Shanghai’s World Chocolate Wonderland showcases. Fine chocolate is high on the agenda of affluent shoppers, tells business analyst Shaun Rein in the Financial Times.Read More →

The end of 2011 is nearing, a good time to see what stories from our speakers triggered off most interest in the past year. Since we have a look at the stats for a whole year, we miss a few recent stories that are making waves. For example, Tricia Wang’s story about her life as a street vendor has appealed to many who are in a Christmas mood.Read More →

North-Korea’s new leader Kim Jong-un has been prepared for his new job, probably better than most observers know, says historian and research Paul French, author of the North Korea: The Paranoid Peninsula: A Modern History, Second Edition in Channel 4 news.Read More →