326 Archives | Week In China

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Back Issue

WiC 326 (May 27, 2016)

Going for the Germans

M&A, Talking Point Midea in multi-billion dollar bid for next-generation robot maker Kuka

According to the Chinese zodiac, 2016 is the year of the monkey. But you could be forgiven for thinking that it is dedicated to robots ...

Siege mentality

Telecoms How Ren’s iron rules of business warfare have helped Huawei’s rapid…

The founder of the telecoms and tech giant Huawei has always been notoriously low-profile and media shy. So this month it was something of a surprise ...

Call for the doctor

Chinese Character Aston Villa, just relegated, set for groundbreaking Chinese takeover

A defeat by Manchester United last month confirmed the demotion of Aston Villa from the English Premier League (the club finished bottom of the table). ...

Turning Japanese

China Consumer Should Muji beware of its Chinese lookalike?

Japanese retailer Muji got its start as the own-label brand for the supermarket chain Seiyu. Initially it offered grocery items along with a handful of ...

Strait talking demanded

Cross Strait Beijing wants Taiwan’s new president to clarify her stance on ‘1992…

Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan arrived at Taipei’s zoo as gifts from mainland China in 2008, when Ma Ying-jeou had just become Taiwan’s president. The two ...

For sale:a $95,000 barrel

Agriculture Signs of life in fine wine market as Palmer prepares for…

Two weeks ago we wondered whether Alibaba’s new ‘Day of Wine’ in September could turn out to be wonderful for winemakers (see WiC324), especially ...

Rise of the machine

Internet & Tech The changing faces of Chinese-made robots

When we first wrote about China’s robot makers seven years ago, we gave the amateur enthusiasts like Wu Yulu most of the attention because of their ...

China Consumer Bawang wins libel case but is it too late to revive…

Bawang is China’s biggest domestic shampoo brand, although its cheerleaders thinned out in 2010 when it began a six-year lossmaking streak. This ...

Closing credits

Society Why a film producer kowtowed to cinema bosses on social media

Although he’s hailed as one of the most influential figures in modern Chinese cinema, Wu Tianming won’t be familiar to most WiC readers. When Zhang ...

Brush Strokes Mountain fortress

Shanzhai translates literally as ‘mountain fortress’ – the name for a remote stronghold used by bandits to stockpile contraband and ...

Death in detention

Society Fatality in police custody draws national attention

You know a police force has a credibility problem when the public sides with a man accused of visiting a prostitute on his wedding anniversary, rather ...

The write stuff

Planet China This column reported last week how a Chinese couple in Jiangxi’s…

This column reported last week how a Chinese couple in Jiangxi’s Nanchang spent their wedding night handwriting the Chinese Communist Party’s ...

Making light of it

Sino-File “Media should not over-interpret”

The somewhat cryptic response from Hanergy Group when it announced last Friday that founder Li Hejun had resigned from Hong Kong-listed Hanergy Thin ...

A tortured case

Cartoons A tortured case

An extraordinary legal battle between two Chinese companies has just been decided in London’s high court. We first reported on the messy spat between ...

University accommodation

And Finally Vancouverites shocked as Chinese ‘student’ spends $24 million on mansion

“What do you think of Asian investment in Vancouver?” a young Canadian couple were asked. “I am totally opposed, totally. I don’t think ...