36 m. ago As Chinese exporters explore home market, how are letters of credit helping?

After the United States imposed so-called reciprocal tariffs on imports from China in April, Beijing took steps to help Chinese exporters sell their products domestically. In addition to the staging of product promotion events across the country and the offering of fiscal and financial incentives, Beijing also encouraged the increased use of letters of credit (L/Cs) to help such businesses switch focus to the domestic market. What is a domestic letter of credit? A letter of credit, also known as...

Politics

36 m. ago Chinese worker requesting sick leave criticised for being weak and punished

A human resources supervisor in southeastern China triggered widespread public outrage and initiated a government investigation after verbally insulting an employee who requested sick leave for a fever, labelling her “too weak” and suggesting she seek psychiatric help. The controversy gained public attention on June 5, when a female employee – whose identity remains undisclosed – shared on social media that she had been verbally abused by her employer after asking for sick leave due to a...

Politics

8 h. ago Moutai, China’s premier liquor brand, may find austerity rules hard to swallow

China’s premier liquor distiller Kweichow Moutai – a brand that had, over decades, become synonymous with sumptuous feasts – is heeding a renewed mandate for austerity from Beijing, distancing its products from the extravagant hard-drinking lifestyle with which it had been linked in the public consciousness. Management at the company, valued at 1.86 trillion yuan (US$258.73 billion), has pledged to comply with strictures stressing thrift – guidelines that have helped to remove Moutai’s expensive...

Politics

8 h. ago China’s top baijiu maker faces sobering reality as austerity trims profits

China’s premier liquor distiller Kweichow Moutai – a brand that had, over decades, become synonymous with sumptuous feasts – is heeding a renewed mandate for austerity from Beijing, distancing its products from the extravagant hard-drinking lifestyle with which it had been linked in the public consciousness. Management at the company, valued at 1.86 trillion yuan (US$258.73 billion), has pledged to comply with strictures stressing thrift – guidelines that have helped to remove Moutai’s expensive...

Politics

16 h. ago China’s AI race heats up as SenseTime, ByteDance unveil model updates

China’s artificial intelligence (AI) market sees heightened competition, as various model providers – from SenseTime to ByteDance – step up efforts to enhance their services. Hong Kong-listed SenseTime has upgraded its Cantonese-speaking chatbot, Sensechat, with a comprehensive set of new features that include real-time audio and video-interaction capabilities, according to the company’s announcement on Thursday. Other enhancements include visual reasoning capabilities, which allow Sensechat to...

Culture

16 h. ago Nvidia CEO says Huawei has everyone ‘covered’ if US chip ban on China stays

Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang said his company’s technology remained a generation ahead of those developed by China, but warned that Huawei Technologies was in a position to expand its semiconductor business should US chip export curbs stay in place. In an interview with US broadcaster CNBC on Thursday, Huang appeared to echo recent published remarks made by Huawei founder and CEO Ren Zhengfei, who said the Chinese company’s Ascend artificial intelligence (AI) processors lagged behind...

Politics

17 h. ago WeChat Pay records fourfold rise in mainland tourist taxi payments in Hong Kong

WeChat Pay Hong Kong has recorded a fourfold increase in mainland Chinese tourist payments for taxi services in the city from last year and growing usage among locals and visitors alike, according to parent company Tencent. Vice-President of Tencent Financial Technology Daniel Hong Danyi said on Thursday that the number of transactions from mainland tourists paying for taxi fares through WeChat Pay had seen a fourfold increase year on year. “We saw that previously, many mainland tourists coming...

Economics

19 h. ago ByteDance helps jewellery firm Lao Feng Xiang push AI glasses to China’s elderly

Social media giant ByteDance is helping the 177-year-old Chinese jewellery company Lao Feng Xiang develop a new generation of smart glasses, powered by artificial intelligence (AI), that feature real-time voice navigation and translation functions. Lao Feng Xiang debuted their initial line of wearable gadgets at Wednesday’s opening of the International Exhibition of Senior Care, Rehabilitation Medicine and Healthcare, the world’s biggest senior care expo, that is being held in the company’s home...

Politics

22 h. ago Nvidia bets on European AI push amid shrinking China revenue

Nvidia is trying to woo European markets with new partnerships and a pledge to build 20 new artificial intelligence (AI) factories across the continent, as the US chip giant grapples with declining sales in China amid Washington’s tightening export controls. CEO Jensen Huang, speaking at the annual VivaTech conference in Paris on Wednesday, said the company was building the world’s first “industrial artificial intelligence cloud” for European manufacturers. The Germany-based facility, a key part...

Politics

26 h. ago Jack Ma replies to Alibaba employee’s letter lamenting ‘company disease’

Jack Ma, founder of Alibaba Group Holding, responded to the resignation letter of a long-term employee on Tuesday, a rare move for the tech veteran who stepped back from all corporate roles in 2019. In a response published on Alibaba’s internal website, Ma addressed the concerns raised by a 15-year employee, who criticised the “big company disease” afflicting the Chinese e-commerce giant in an extensive internal letter. The employee, a product development leader on the team responsible for...

Politics

27 h. ago Chery’s stock to debut in third quarter in carmaker’s Hong Kong IPO

Chery Automobile, China’s second-largest automobile maker by volume, is aiming to complete its initial public offering (IPO) in Hong Kong in the third quarter of this year, said its chairman. The company, based in Wuhu city in eastern China’s Anhui province, has filed its intention to list on the Hong Kong stock exchange and use the city as its springboard for venturing into the global market, said Yin Tongyue during the 2025 Automotive Expo in the city. “We hope to have more of our...

Politics

27 h. ago Chery to debut in third quarter as carmaker uses Hong Kong as a springboard

Chery Automobile, China’s second-largest carmaker by volume, is seeking to complete its Hong Kong initial public offering (IPO) in the third quarter of this year, its chairman said. At the 2025 International Automotive & Supply Chain Expo in Hong Kong on Thursday, Yin Tongyue said the company was seeking to use the city as a launching pad into the global market. Chery, based in Wuhu in eastern Anhui province, has filed its intention to list on the Hong Kong stock exchange. “We hope to have more...

Politics

28 h. ago Japan weighs tightening rules on visa popular among Chinese nationals

Japan is considering increasing the minimum investment threshold for its business manager visa in a bid to make it harder for foreigners to obtain residence status and launch commercial operations in the country, as the scheme becomes increasingly popular with Chinese nationals. The visa, which offers relatively accessible entry for foreign entrepreneurs, permits stays of up to five years for those who either invest 5 million yen (US$34,711) or hire two full-time employees while maintaining an...

Politics

32 h. ago China’s orchard of AI, chip grads now ripe for the pickin’ as tech trade sours

When Jack Wang enrolled as an undergraduate in microelectronics at a prestigious Chinese university, the year was 2019, and China was in the early days of its trade war with the United States. Looking back, his decision to focus on the field revolving around the design and manufacture of hi-tech microchips has proved prescient. Today, it complements Beijing’s aspirations to make world-leading semiconductors amid Washington’s amped-up efforts to curtail China’s technological progress. Indeed, the...

Politics

43 h. ago China grants export permits to rare earth giant for US, Europe shipments

A top Chinese rare earth exporter, which hosted President Xi Jinping during a 2019 inspection, said it had obtained export permits for several destinations, including the United States. Investors welcomed the news, sending the company’s shares higher. JL MAG Rare-Earth said on Wednesday that it had also been granted licenses for Europe and Southeast Asia, and that it would export magnetic materials, components and motor rotors. “After the export controls imposed on medium and heavy rare earth...

Politics

44 h. ago iFlytek says using local chips in AI models extends development time by 3 months

A senior Chinese tech executive admits that using mainland-produced semiconductors could delay the development of artificial intelligence (AI) models by three months, but insisted that his company would continue to use these chips and push improved processes. Liu Qingfeng, chairman and founder of Chinese voice recognition solution provider iFlytek, said that the extended AI model development process was due to the need for additional computing resources, compared with using Nvidia chips and...

Politics

46 h. ago Hong Kong’s top court dismisses domestic helper’s forced labour challenge

Hong Kong’s top court has dismissed a judicial review of a foreign domestic helper who argued police had failed to properly investigate her complaint against her employer due to the absence of specific legislation against forced labour. The Court of Final Appeal on Wednesday, in upholding a ruling last year by the Court of Appeal, found that the city’s lack of bespoke legislation for forced labour was not necessary to provide “practical and effective” protection of the Filipina helper’s...

Events

47 h. ago How Hong Kong’s pilot disease scheme can help save HK$2.7 billion in expenses

An ongoing pilot scheme for chronic disease screening could help save HK$2.7 billion (US$344 million) in medical expenses if 200,000 people join, Hong Kong authorities have said, with hepatitis B set to be included later. The Health Bureau said on Tuesday that the project would turn into a co-care “platform” and cover more diseases after the end of the three-year pilot arrangement. The Chronic Disease Co-Care Pilot Scheme was launched in November 2023. According to a paper submitted by the...

Economics

48 h. ago China plans to turn Shenzhen into AI and aviation hub amid US sanctions

China has outlined a string of reforms to accelerate the development of hi-tech emerging industries in the city of Shenzhen, as the tech hub in southern China grapples with a barrage of US trade restrictions. The plan focuses on boosting Shenzhen’s ability to create scalable business models in industries such as artificial intelligence and aviation that can be replicated across China, by helping the city cultivate a larger talent pool, expand local companies’ access to financing, and speed up...

Politics

49 h. ago GoPro rival Insta360 eyes global expansion after strong Shanghai IPO

Insta360, the Chinese action camera maker challenging GoPro, surged 285 per cent in its trading debut on Shanghai’s Star Market after raising 1.9 billion yuan (US$264.5 million) in the city’s largest initial public offering (IPO) in 17 months. Max Richter, who co-founded the company with 34-year-old Chinese entrepreneur Liu Jingkang in 2015, said Insta360 is “committed to expanding [its] global presence and elevating brand influence to boost [its] market share worldwide”. He identified China,...

Politics