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 →

Financial analyst  Victor Shih dives into China’s fiscal policies. Most of the country’s expenditure has traditionally been only for a marginal percentage on consumption, but on government investments. So, while consumption has gone down, the way to push the economy ahead is not to encourage consumption, but government spending, he argues. He turns against the current government policy of austerity at local governments; it should move in the opposite direction, he argues at the Asia Society, Northern California chapter.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 →

China’s technology, design, and culture are part of a fusion that reshapes the country, says innovation expert Ashley Dudarenok in an analysis by the state-owned China Daily. “It’s a holistic shift, where tech meets culture, design, and daily life, and this wave is just starting,” according to Ashley DudarenokRead 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 →

Ask Chinese consumers what their leading platform is for purchases, both domestically and internationally, and they will point at the Xiaohongshu, or Little Red Book, as it is called in English. It offers a lead against competitors like Douyin and is a leading source for travellers, although only available in Chinese. “Xiaohongshu wants you deep in niche rabbit holes with people who care about the same weird stuff you do. “This isn’t just a slogan change,” says branding expert Ashley Dudarenok in Campaign Asia, “it’s Xiaohongshu cementing its moat against rivals like Douyin.”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 →