The Chinese blogs are alive with the sound of class resentment, triggered by the so-called “pro rich” proposals that Zhang Yin – once China’s richest woman – presented to the National People’s Congress last week. They certainly sound self-serving – especially the one to drop the income tax rate on China’s top earners. But what…
All posts in Business and Trade
If at first you don’t succeed … get subsidized.
I have a friend from Hunan who tells me that in the small town where she was raised – children who don’t devote themselves sufficiently to their schoolwork will likely be told something along the lines of: Continue like that, and you’re going to end up a rubbish picker. That is to say: memorize those…
Inkstone Workshop, Anhui
All this talk about the rising price of Chinese manufacturing and the threat it poses to the proliferation of cheap consumer goods worldwide, well, it’s kinda got me down. China has long been capable of better, and I’m not just talking about computer chips, either. So, in the spirit of fair and balanced reporting, I…
… until the twenty dollar DVD players come home.
I’m buried in a long project at the moment, but when I peak out from beneath the words I can’t help but notice that – quite suddenly – more than a few people are worried about the effect that Chinese inflation will have on US consumer prices – and demand, and the future of China-based…
Chinese Off-Shoring
Managing the Dragon has an interesting and provocative post on off-shoring of production by a Chinese state-owned textile manufacturer. Anecdotally, I’ve heard that this is a growing phenomenon, but it’s interesting to read an account from somebody directly involved with it: The manager I spoke with had no reservations about the off-shoring. As he saw…
Back in Scrap
A couple of emails from readers wondering when I’ll next blog about scrap. Soon, I promise. In the meantime, how about a photo of a scrap motor processing venture up Jiangsu-way? I’m not going to name the company here, but I will say that they are likely China’s largest importer of ferrous scrap, and –…
No Tears for Huawei
So Huawei and its hired guns at Bain Capital won’t be able to acquire that controlling stake in 3Com, a leading US telecom equipment manufacturer, after all. Count me as surprised: I really figured that China was due for a “make-up call” after what (many characterized as) protectionist sentiments scuttled CNOOC’s proposed acquisition of UNOCAL,…
Best Buy in China
North American companies have been entering the Chinese market for so long that rarely – if ever – do they warrant coverage beyond a one or two paragraph slug in the back of the Wall Street Journal, anymore. The problems, the strategies, and the narrative remains – with some variation – largely the same. And…
In Honor of Oscar Season … The Dumbest Use of Nationalism by a State-Owned Newspaper
[Title updated at the request of two messages in my inbox.] Say you’re a new Chinese stock market investor. You’ve done well with your job over the last couple of years. You’ve scrimped and saved. With the help of your parents, you made the down payment on that new condo in Minhang District, and –…
Price Controls on Potato Chips? Please?
Earlier in the week Beijing announced that it was going to start imposing price controls on key commodities in advance of Chinese New Year. Today, they laid down the law. According to Xinhua, it goes something like this: feel free to raise your prices, but make sure to send us an application for the price…