Business News
Latest business news and updates
Total: 1178
Meituan Rebuts Viral “Peking University Grad Delivering Food” Clip, Urges Caution Over Credential Clickbait
Meituan has disputed a viral clip claiming a Peking University graduate was working as a food-delivery rider, saying platform records show only a brief registration and five deliveries. The company warned against using academic labels for clicks and noted it lacks mechanisms to verify riders’ education, highlighting tensions between credential narratives and the realities of China’s large gig-economy workforce.
Fed Holds Rates, Markets Slip as Middle East Strikes and China Policy Moves Add Fresh Uncertainty
The Federal Reserve kept interest rates steady, calling the current policy stance appropriate, while U.S. stock indices fell as geopolitical strikes in the Middle East pushed oil prices higher. Simultaneously, Beijing rolled out a 30-year rural land-contract extension pilot and domestic corporate and cloud-pricing shifts signalled evolving pressures in China’s economy.
Renovation Group Puts Rmb400m of Property on the Block as Risky Pivot into Semiconductors Strains Finances
Zhongtian Jingzhuang is selling up to Rmb400 million of property and operational assets to shore up liquidity after three years of worsening profits and a Rmb428 million loss in 2024. At the same time the company has been investing in early-stage semiconductor firms—a strategic pivot that is capital-intensive and so far loss-making—raising questions about execution and capital allocation.
Hawkish Powell, Middle East Shock and Oil Surge Send Markets Tumbling
The Fed maintained rates but Chair Powell’s hawkish tone, coupled with escalating Middle East tensions and a surge in oil prices, triggered a sharp global market selloff. Stocks and cryptocurrencies fell, Treasury yields and the dollar rose, and paradoxically precious metals dropped as real yields climbed. Investors now face the twin risks of prolonged restrictive U.S. policy and an oil-driven inflation shock, complicating the outlook for markets and central‑bank timing on future rate cuts.
RMB4bn Giveaway: A Chinese Supermarket’s Radical Employee‑Ownership Experiment
Yu Donglai of Pangdonglai has redistributed about RMB4 billion of company value to employees, converting his personal stake into broad dividend rights while retaining 5% ownership. The move accompanies generous working conditions and has been credited with strong sales growth and rock‑bottom turnover, presenting a high‑profile experiment in employee‑centred ownership in China’s retail sector.
Once a Poster Child of China’s Casual Dining Boom, Xibei Scrambles to Stem Losses as Founder Recedes from Spotlight
Xibei, a major Chinese casual‑dining chain, has closed roughly 30% of its outlets and reported losses exceeding RMB 600 million since September 2025. Founder Jia Guolong has retreated from the CEO role while the company pursues emergency fundraising from personal contacts and implements sharp cost cuts and workforce reductions to stabilise cash flow.
Bird’s‑Nest Brand Tightens Belt and Recasts Premium Product for Mass Market as Sales Stagnate
Yan Zhiwu reported a slight revenue decline to RMB 2.001 billion in 2025 alongside a 20.6% rise in net profit driven by cost reductions and factory upgrades. The company is pivoting from pure premium bird’s‑nest products toward lower‑priced convenience formats and peptide‑based extensions, but channel weaknesses and brand risks leave growth prospects uncertain.
Moutai Must Stop Chasing 'Easy Money' — True Globalisation Requires Cracking Mainstream Luxury Markets
A SoBiz commentary argues that Moutai's international strategy is too reliant on overseas Chinese communities and therefore risks producing only a veneer of globalisation. To win globally, baijiu makers must target mainstream, high‑end venues and make sustained investments to reshape taste and status among non‑Chinese consumers.
China’s ‘100% Coconut Water’ Crisis: Isotope Tests Spark Trust Collapse in a Mid‑Market Boom
Independent isotope tests commissioned by a Chinese newspaper found external water or industrial sugars in four mainstream products labeled “100% coconut water,” undermining the industry’s purity claim. The revelations expose structural weaknesses — tight margins, fragmented supply chains, late‑forming standards and light‑asset business models — and have already prompted stock losses, regulatory attention and a broader consumer trust crisis.
China’s Small-Flat Fever: Retail Buyers Are Snapping Up ‘Old, Small, Shabby’ Apartments—But the Risks Loom Large
A wave of retail buyers in Chinese cities is snapping up ageing, small apartments using leverage and rental yield as the investment thesis. While such purchases can produce positive cash flow today, they hinge on sustained rents, selective local policies, and sometimes speculative demolition hopes, exposing buyers and markets to sharp downside.
Wall Street Opens Lower as Tech Slips, Energy and Retail Provide Offsets
U.S. markets opened lower on March 18 as technology stocks pulled back while energy and certain retailers gained. The intraday moves underline a market balancing AI-driven enthusiasm with sector rotation and company-level earnings surprises.
US Producer Prices Edge Higher in February, Complicating the Fed’s Path to Easier Policy
US producer prices in February exceeded expectations: core PPI rose 3.9% year‑on‑year and 0.5% month‑on‑month, while headline PPI climbed 0.7% month‑on‑month (3.4% YoY). The surprise increases the risk that inflation remains persistent, complicating Federal Reserve plans to cut rates and posing wider financial and global economic implications.