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This is no time to ease back on pace of reform

2012-08-17 11:11

Fears of a prolonged economic slowdown in China have now become all pervasive, and fresh data appear to buttress them.

New tax rules a boon for foreign investors

2012-08-17 11:11

Double taxation is an extremely complex matter, but companies will now have a clearer idea of where they stand.

Next step on the way to going green

2012-08-17 11:11

As a Briton living in Shanghai and working on sustainable urban infrastructure projects in Asia and around the world, the passing of the Olympic torch from Beijing to London resonates strongly, not least because it underscores the efforts that both countries have made in driving sustainable development at their Games.

A ruling in Luxembourg that gives cheer to China

2012-08-10 10:43

A recent ruling by the European Court of Justice will be a great fillip for companies exporting goods from countries like China to the European Union.

China's companies bigger but not necessarily better

2012-08-10 10:43

With 79 companies in the Fortune 500 list for 2012 published last month, China was the second most represented country in the rankings.

Bonfires of the vanities

2012-08-10 10:43

The recent purchase of the AMC cinema chain in the United States by Chinese movie-theater giant Wanda Group has set off a debate over the wave of outbound Chinese investments. They are being referred to as "vanity purchases", suggesting that some of these investments were driven by ego rather than economics.

Slow to get on Chinese bandwagon

2012-08-10 10:43

It is surprising that Western brand producers remain reluctant to make use of Chinese Olympian superstars.

China retail market booming and evolving

2012-08-03 11:08

Accounting for roughly 14 percent of the economy, how retailing progresses is gravely important to the entire economy, and to China's growth prospects.

Finance-hub plans premature

2012-08-03 11:08

China's goal of creating an international financial center is highly desirable, but it is also necessary to analyze realistically what is required to accomplish it.

Getting the give-and-take of M&As right

2012-08-03 11:08

'Invest in Europe" is the cry at the moment. As bad news on the euro debt crisis keeps flowing in, many Chinese entrepreneurs and business experts believe Europe's going cheap.

Simply happy, in anyone's language

2012-08-03 11:08

Thirty-five years or so ago the conservative British newspaper The Daily Telegraph, when it was rather more staid than it is today, had an advertising slogan that vaunted the reliability, and in a sense the predictability, of its contents: "Times change. Values don't." Since those Cold War days the world has changed a lot more than the author of that slogan could possibly have imagined.

An adolescent with many lessons to learn

2012-07-27 12:14

Developed countries have struggled to regain growth following the global financial crisis and during the European debt crisis, while China has been widely held up as a potential superpower.

The modern scourge that afflicts China

2012-07-27 12:14

Growing up in the late 1950s in the countryside in southern England, I recall a time when food was scarce as the country continued to recover from World War II. For most of the time between 1939 and 1945, German submarines had surrounded Britain, sinking many of the ships bringing US food across the Atlantic. As Britain did not grow enough food to feed itself, the government imposed rationing, which continued until the 1950s. As a child I became used to eating, and enjoying, salads that my mother made from wildflowers and leaves, and she cooked nettles. When I was young we often saw folk whose clothes hung from their thin bodies. In England in the 1960s and 1970s fat people were rare, and everyone noticed them.

How much bang for the Olympic buck?

2012-07-27 12:14

Being one of the official sponsors of the Olympic Games appears at first glance to be the perfect marketing opportunity. The Games are sponsored officially by only 11 multinational companies which pay almost $1 billion (825 million euros) for worldwide marketing rights. This agreement involves rights to sponsorship of both the summer and the winter Games, over a four-year cycle. Seems like an ideal platform to build a corporate brand image. Or is it?

EU needs more of an Asian presence

2012-07-27 12:14

When the Association of Southeast Asian Nations held its forum in Cambodia during July 9-13, the European Union attended. This was the first time it did so since ASEAN was established nearly 45 years ago - in some ways it is odd that it has taken so long for the EU to participate.

How about apology as foreign policy?

2012-07-20 12:19

Apologies make news. Recently, in a carefully orchestrated statement, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told Pakistani Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar that "we are sorry for the losses suffered by the Pakistani military", adding "we are committed to working closely with Pakistan and Afghanistan to prevent this from ever happening again".

Culture is potent ingredient in overseas acquisitions

2012-07-20 12:19

Any Silicon Valley entrepreneur would no doubt instantly feel at home stepping into the workspace of my Internet startup. From the scattered laptops, bean bags, movie posters, down to the pizza boxes, the place speaks of an entrepreneurial culture that is distinctively Californian, except that our company is located just outside downtown Beijing.

Journey may matter more than destination

2012-07-20 12:19

There is still a long way to go before the renminbi becomes an international currency.

Threats aplenty, but China need not give up on its strength

2012-07-20 12:19

In China, double-digit growth over the past few years has transformed the country into the manufacturing hub of the world. However, as the country becomes more interconnected with global economies, it is also more susceptible to a worldwide economic slowdown.

China has no choice but nuclear power

2012-07-13 12:31

This month the first of Japan's 50 nuclear reactors came back on line more than a year after the Fukushima disaster, as the government continued to walk the tightrope between fierce industry lobbying and fervent public opposition.

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