The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on September 13. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on September 12. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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Suning (Shenzhen: 002024) Launches Open Platform On E-Commerce Site (Chinese article)
Foreign Banks Vie For Place In New Shanghai Free Trade Zone (Chinese article)
Huawei Sees Annual Growth Rate Reaching 10 Pct For Next 5 Years (Chinese article)
ReneSola (NYSE: SOL) Announces Pricing of $70 Mln Offering (PRNewswire)
Western Union (NYSE: WU) Significantly Grows Its Reach in China (Businesswire)
There’s an interesting report out saying that up-and-coming smartphone maker Xiaomi is developing its own mobile operating system (OS), becoming the latest Chinese player to try to muscle in on a market now dominated by 3 US companies — Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL), Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) and Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT). I’ll admit there have been so many similar initiatives by both Chinese hardware and Internet companies these days that it’s hard to know which of the campaigns are genuinely new systems and which are just variants of Google’s popular and free Android OS. Read Full Post…
Local media are buzzing with word that China’s telecoms regulator has just approved 4 smartphones for use on the nation’s upcoming 4G networks, implying the long-awaited issue of 4G licenses could be imminent. But equally interesting is a separate report that says the number of newly approved phones is actually 5, and that the fifth phone was a version of Apple’s (Nasdaq: AAPL) new iPhone 5S that can operate on networks using a homegrown Chinese technology called TD. That report says Apple requested its iPhone approval be kept secret; but if true, it means we could soon see announcement of a long-awaited tie-up between the US tech giant and leading Chinese mobile carrier China Mobile (HKEx: 941; NYSE: CHL). Read Full Post…
WeChat scores a hit in HK, Taiwan but could face resistance in US
I’ve been traveling through Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macau these last few days, so thought I’d end the week with a look at Tencent’s (HKEx: 700) hugely popular WeChat mobile messaging service and the challenges it faces in its quest to go global and commercialize. I’ve been quite surprised by how widespread WeChat, known in Chinese as Weixin, has become in all 3 of these Chinese-speaking areas. But at the same time, comments from one of my industry friends also indicate Tencent could face an uphill battle winning acceptance in the US, where it could face heavy competition from rival products and skepticism due to its China connections. New media reports also indicate WeChat’s hyped new relationship with China Merchants Bank (HKEx: 3968; Shanghai: 600036) may also be running into problems, indicating the road to commercialization may not be as smooth as Tencent had hoped. Read Full Post…
China’s award of more than half of a massive new telecoms contract to domestic firms despite strong competition from global rivals sends a bad signal for Beijing’s commitment to fair trade, appearing to show that political factors play a significant role in such commercial decisions.
While it’s understandable that China wants to support its homegrown firms in their quest to become global leaders, such favoritism could easily lead to complaints by foreigners who feel they open their markets to Chinese products but don’t receive reciprocal treatment. This current case is especially sensitive, since the European Union already suspects Chinese telecoms equipment makers like Huawei, ZTE (HKEx: 763; Shenzhen: 000063) and Datang of getting unfair state support through policies like government grants and tax credits. Read Full Post…
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on August 24-26. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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Huawei, ZTE (HKEx: 763) Win Bulk Of China Mobile’s $3 Bln 4G Bonanza (English article)
Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) Invests In Renren’s (NYSE: RENN) Nuomi (PRNewswire)
Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) To Open 4th Shanghai Store Before Oct 1 Holiday – Report (Chinese article)
Electric Carmaker Tesla (Nasdaq: TSLA) Hits Roadblock In China Over Trademark (English article)
China Commerce Ministry Warns Auto Makers Over Price Monopoly (English article)
I’ve been saying for a while now that China’s booming smartphone market will undergo a major correction soon due to huge oversupply, and now we’re starting to see the first signs of stress from 2 major players. Among domestic manufacturers, media are reporting that struggling giant ZTE (HKEx: 763; Shenzhen: 000063) is preparing an overhaul of its handset business to improve its performance in China. Meantime, faded Taiwanese superstar HTC (Taipei: 2498) is also announcing its own major overhaul and making bold predictions about its plans to become a top player in China. Read Full Post…
Telecoms stalwart China Mobile (HKEx: 941; NYSE: CHL) and up-and-comer Xiaomi are creating new buzz in the sector these last few days, as speculation builds that the former may be near a long-awaited deal with Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) to finally offer the iPhone on its network. Meantime, Xiaomi is making headlines with word that it expects its revenue to double this year, following a strong reception for Hongmi, its latest smartphone that retails for just 799 yuan or about $130. Read Full Post…
As we get bombarded with a slew of quarterly reports from the likes of NetEase (Nasdaq: NTES) and Tencent (HKEx: 700) about their health in the present, I want to turn my attention to the future with a look at an interesting report on potential Chinese suitors for tumbling smartphone maker BlackBerry (Toronto: BB). The report that caught my attention mentions PC giant Lenovo (HKEx: 992) and telecoms equipment maker Huawei as 2 leading candidates to buy BlackBerry, which formally put itself up for sale earlier this week. Read Full Post…
We’ve been reading all year about how China is set to overtake the US to become the world’s largest smartphone market in 2013, and now we’re seeing some numbers that tell the story more vividly. The latest figures on China’s smartphone market show Apple’s (Nasdaq: AAPL) position slumping in the second quarter, as sales have surged for a field of domestic players cranking out millions of cheap models, many selling for less than 1,000 yuan ($160 )each. Up-and-coming smartphone maker Xiaomi entered that part of the market just 2 weeks ago with its introduction of the Hongmi, which retails for just 799 yuan. (previous post) Read Full Post…
