Tariffs in the ongoing trade war are taxes, so it is unavoidable consumer prices will go up, says financial analyst Victor Shih, author of Factions and Finance in China: Elite Conflict and Inflation, at The Point. Some increases might be taken by the distributors, and consumers are not yet worried because the US economy is now doing very well, Shih says. But that could change in the months to come when the effects of the trade war kick in.Read More →

The unicorn Bytedance is worth US$750 billion, an international big hit on news distribution, exploiting AI in a sensational way, but hardly known to many. China veteran Ashley Dudarenok explains why is not owned by Alibaba, Tencent but independent on the market, and making a blast.Read More →

Marketing veteran Ashley Dudarenok explains on her daily vlog why thinking that China is cheap is a misconception. Picky Chinese consumers like to consume, but not necessarily what you have to offer, she tells. So, decent market research is an important starting point. Ashey Dudarenok is a speaker at theRead More →

China has changed its income tax for the first time in seven years, beneficial for the lower income groups, and less for the high earner. Financial analyst Sara Hsu discusses the purpose: more spending might be a motive, but as aging and health care costs loom, many might opt for saving, she says at CGTN.Read More →

The trade war between the US and China has up to now mainly hit headlines, nervous traders and heated political debates, but there is no doubt consumers will feel the burnt too, says financial analyst Sara Hsu to Reuters. Moving away from China is mostly not an option, she says. “It can take up to five years to move from China to another country.”Read More →

The debate is taking off on whether China would allow gambling on Hainan Island. Financial analyst Sara Hsu explains gambling would diversify the tourism industry on the island, but would also hurt the economy in nearby Macau. Two earlier efforts on Hainan were already aborted for political reasons.Read More →

E-commerce platform Douyin or Tik Tok has added new functions for both users and brands, explains e-commerce expert Ashley Dudarenok at AskleyTalks. Users can link up directly to Taobao, making it tighter linked to e-commerce leaders. And brands can get their verified accounts, more data on their visitors and more other insights.Read More →

A market of four billion users is waiting to be tapped into and William Bao Bean, managing director of the Shanghai-based SOSV, explains how his MOX is helping startups to do so. With a solid background in banking, telecom and the internet, William saw how mobile applications disrupted traditional industries, and offer new possibilities for companies to enter developing markets. Read More →

JD.com reported bad figures, after also Tencent, and according to business analyst Shaun Rein, author of The War for China’s Wallet: Profiting from the New World Order talking to Bloomberg, JD.com is in trouble because of its now obsolete technology, while competition is heating up. More established players like Tencent and Alibaba face less trouble since they can diversify easier over different industries.Read More →

Emerging markets have turned around the traditional view on the product lifecycle, as multinational knew them, argues Harry Broadman in his speech on innovation and entrepreneurship. No longer is the US the birth ground of new ideas, who then spread to emerging economy, but innovation from emerging countries conquer the world in its own right.Read More →