Research & Analysis

After years of extraordinary growth, has fast fashion peaked in China? By Xin En Lee and Suzanne Edwards In November, property consultancy CBRE reported that landlords in second-tier city retail properties were courting China’s main fast fashion brands to drive foot traffic, going so far as to waive a flat rent rate in exchange for […]

By E.J. Thomas After two days and 19 rounds of bidding, China’s Wanxiang Group outbid Richard Li’s Hybrid Tech Holdings LLC by putting $149.2 million on the table for the assets of Fisker Automotive Holdings Inc. in a Delaware bankruptcy court. The deal was approved on February 18, but is still subject to clearance under […]

The PSA Peugeot Citroen board announced on February 18 that it approved a deal that will give China Dongfeng Motor Co. a 14 percent share and two seats on its board in exchange for $1.1 billion. Peugeot also announced that it has entered into the same agreement with the French government. As a result, the […]

Danone, the world’s biggest yogurt maker, announced on February 12 that it has agreed to pay $663 million to increase its stake in China Mengniu Dairy Co., China’s largest milk producer, from 4 to 9.9 percent. Mengniu also announced in the same statement that state-owned food processer COFCO Group, Danone, and Arla Foods—whose combined shares […]

On a quest to help Chinese factories cut costs and reduce energy use, an entrepreneur works the assembly line. By Christina Nelson Taryn Sullivan has worked every job in a Chinese factory. After years of traveling to China to source and develop products for American companies, the founder and CEO of Efficiency Exchange wanted a […]

Hong Kong-listed Brightoil Petroleum Holdings Ltd. reached an agreement on February 18 with Texas-based Anadarko Petroleum Corp. to purchase 40 percent and 29 percent interests in two offshore blocks located in the Bohai Bay for $1.08 billion. The two blocks produced an average of 32,000 barrels of oil per day in 2013, according to a […]

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., China’s largest e-commerce company, has offered $1.58 billion for full control of digital mapping firm AutoNavi Holdings Ltd. AutoNavi holds a 31 percent share of China’s mobile map app market along with a rare mapping license from the Chinese government. Alibaba purchased a 28 percent stake in the company for $294 […]

By E.J. Thomas Google Inc. announced on January 29 that it has reached an agreement to sell Motorola’s smartphone hardware business, Motorola Mobility, to Lenovo Group Ltd. for $2.91 billion. The deal includes $660 million in cash, a three-year promissory note worth $1.41 billion, and $750 million in Lenovo ordinary stock, which will give Google […]