The “refund-only” policy in China’s e-commerce sector – where consumers can get back money for goods bought from merchants, without returning the products – is now under scrutiny, as analysts point to how the practice has been abused in the local market. China’s market regulator has directed PDD Holdings, operator of popular budget-shopping platforms Pinduoduo … Read more
China’s customs chief Yu Jianhua, who helped China fight its trade war with the US during Donald Trump’s first term in the White House, has died suddenly aged 63. Yu was suddenly taken ill on Tuesday and died despite receiving emergency treatment, the customs office said in a statement. He had made his last public … Read more
China’s top spy agency said a tip-off led investigators to crack a case of attempted smuggling of gallium – an essential component in military radar units that is subject to export controls – adding that it would continue to work to shut down theft of the country’s strategic minerals by “foreign espionage agencies”. The Ministry … Read more
Apple CEO Tim Cook met with the Chinese minister of commerce on Friday during his second visit to mainland China this year, as the US tech giant pledged to boost its investment in the country. Chinese Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao said in his meeting with Cook that the country “welcomes Apple to seize the … Read more
President Xi Jinping has issued a slew of economic-centric instructions in the past week, at a time all eyes are watching Beijing’s stimulus package aimed at shoring up China’s economy. The latest message from Xi was conveyed on Sunday in the northeastern city of Tianjin during an event to celebrate the 40th anniversary of China’s … Read more
To improve oversight of the industrial chain, government agencies will coordinate and manage the mining and refining of the ores and ensure that the products can be traced. The regulation is designed to protect and “rationally develop” rare earth resources while safeguarding the environment and securing the country’s resources, according to the document. 03:36 China … Read more
TikTok owner ByteDance has again denied that it considered divesting the US operations of its popular short video platform, in response to a report by The Washington Post on Wednesday that such a plan existed in 2022. In a brief statement on Thursday, Beijing-based ByteDance called on Chinese social media not to spread such misinformation … Read more
Hotels in China have been told not to turn away foreign guests by using a lack of government-issued credentials as an excuse, according to a newly issued joint department notice. The notice, jointly issued by the Ministry of Public Security, Ministry of Commerce and the National Immigration Administration on Friday, said a lack of “foreign-related … Read more
Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com is investing more than 6.5 billion yuan (US$900 million) with partners to bolster this year’s nationwide trade-in programme for home appliances and consumer goods, part of Beijing’s efforts to energise the country’s post-pandemic economic recovery. Most of that investment will be used to subsidise consumers for trading in their home appliances … Read more
An article published by the Beijing Daily, the official newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party’s Beijing Municipal Committee, said the measure against TikTok is tantamount to a “robbery” that would “completely destroy American national credibility, which is already flawed”. United States President Joe Biden speaks after signing into law the foreign aid bill and a … Read more
