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China’s private sector

China’s private sector
The latest news, analysis and opinion on China’s private sector. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.
Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen
Biomedicine: Companies

With AI able to predict disease, can we treat ageing like a ‘bug’ in the system?

AI is transforming longevity as companies like METiS TechBio and Human Longevity use algorithms to combat ageing and predict health risks.

Mainland China

The big scoop: lemon tea chain to revamp Haagen-Dazs’ struggling China business

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Biomedicine: Companies

Akeso lung cancer drug trial raises hopes in US$20b market

Biomedicine: Companies

China’s biotech boom drives surge in home-grown innovative drug approvals

Domestic firms dominate China’s drug approvals amid jump in spending and out-licensing deals as regulator speeds path to market.

Chinese biotech firms struck a record US$60 billion in cross-border licensing deals in the first quarter of 2026. Photo: Getty Images
Biomedicine: Companies

Insilico, US partner to build AI models predicting disease decades ahead

Tie-up combines Hong Kong-listed Insilico Medicine’s algorithms with Human Longevity’s genomic data to advance personalised health research.

Guangzhou

A new battlefront for KFC and its Chinese rivals: the lighter meal

Big-name fast-food chains are seeking to capitalise on a surge in demand in China for lighter meals.

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Mainland China

Baidu says AI now primary business driver despite 2% drop in first-quarter revenue

Analysts expect the company’s AI marketing services base to steadily grow to reduce declines in advertising revenue and boost profits.

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The Baidu logo is displayed at the company building in Shenzhen. Photo: Getty Images
China stock market

‘Explosive’: why China’s gold recycling industry is growing at record speed

More than half of the country’s gold recycling firms are less than three years old.

Banking & finance

China’s credit demand weak in April despite policy support, strong industry

Lending growth slows as borrowing demand from households and businesses remains weak.

China-EU relations

German firms in China more optimistic despite Iran war, trade headwinds: survey

Expectations for growth, profits and investment are all up, despite geopolitical turbulence.

German and Chinese national flags flutter on a lamppost at Tiananmen Gate in Beijing. Photo: Shutterstock
Biomedicine: Companies

China’s Hengrui seals US$15.2 billion deal with US pharmaceutical giant BMS

Company’s shares jump in Hong Kong and Shenzhen after tie-up that bolsters China’s growing drug innovation profile.

A worker checks a feeding tray at the Hengrui Biomedical Industrial Park in Lianyungang, east China’s Jiangsu province. Photo: Getty Images
Stocks

After accounting overhaul, can Wuliangye share buys restore investor confidence?

Investors welcome Wuliangye’s multibillion-yuan share purchase plan after weak earnings and industry destocking hit sentiment.

Artificial intelligence

Kimi developer Moonshot AI valued at US$20b as it navigates new IPO rules

Firm raised US$2 billion from investors including Meituan’s venture and China Mobile, taking total to US$3.9 billion in the last six months.

Britain

CK Hutchison exits UK’s largest carrier VodafoneThree in US$5.82 billion deal

Sale of 49 per cent stake marks CK Hutchison’s latest asset move, following disposal of UK Power Networks, as group builds cash war chest.

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Hong Kong-listed conglomerate CK Hutchison has agreed to exit its 49 per cent stake in the UK’s largest mobile operator VodafoneThree. Photo: CK Hutchison
Mainland China

WuXi AppTec posts record first-quarter revenue on strong global demand

Earnings top estimates as multinational pharmaceutical firms ramp up investment and partnerships in China.

WuXi AppTec’s first quarter results marked the third consecutive quarter in which revenue remained above the 12 billion yuan mark. Photo: Shutterstock
Mainland China

Turning cast-offs into cash: China’s Zhuanzhuan looks to Europe, US for growth

From phones to luxury bags, the recycling platform wants to take its ‘trash to treasure’ model global as second-hand demand accelerates.

Indonesia

Muddy yet clear-cut: how Chinese investors are turning jungle into a new capital

Chinese construction firms keen to cement trade ties with Jakarta through multimillion dollar projects to build a brand new centre of power.

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Biomedicine: Companies

How China’s ‘landmark’ drug pricing guidelines could be a boon for biotech

State Council calls for ‘value-based pricing’ for innovative drugs, a move researchers said would benefit private healthcare players.

Chinese biotech firms reached 157 agreements to out-licence early-stage drugs last year. Photo: Shutterstock
Biomedicine: Companies

Chinese drug makers take on Western dominance in US$16 billion Parkinson’s race

The future of treating brain diseases could lie in non-invasive technologies, according to Chongqing Haifu Medical Technology.

Biomedicine: Companies

China’s drug makers are speeding up – will AI be their secret weapon?

Chinese biotech firms are striking big global deals as drug makers, but could artificial intelligence take them to the next level?

United States

Chinese firms drawn to Brazil as they seek anchor for Latin America expansion

Chinese brands like Mixue, BYD, and Geely are surging into Brazil, leveraging strong trade ties and local strategies for growth.

Chinese ice cream and beverage chain Mixue opened its first Brazilian store in Sao Paulo, on April 11, 2026. Photo: Reuters
Mainland China

China’s tea-drink shops thirst for profits as price wars dry up prospects

‘I am learning a hard lesson of how involution can destroy my business,’ a Shanghai shop operator says.

Tea-drink sales grew 6.4 per cent in 2025, a sharp drop from annualised growth of more than 20 per cent over the past two decades. Photo: Shutterstock
Mainland China

Splashing out: how much would you expect to pay for LV’s latest quirky man bag?

Offbeat designs may not drive sales, but they sharpen brand identity and attract individuality-seeking buyers, analysts say.

Coffee

Chinese coffee brands need more than low prices to compete globally: analysts

Luckin, Lucky Cup, Cotti and Nowwa are expanding quickly overseas, but analysts warn success depends on consumer experience and quality.

Biomedicine: Industry Trends

Li Ka-shing’s CK Life unit eyes China fast track for cancer vaccine pipeline

Sequencio, CK Life’s new Hong Kong unit, is advancing about 20 cancer vaccine projects as China pathway offers faster route to human trials.

In China, investigator-initiated trials allow drug makers to generate human clinical data “faster” than the conventional regulatory process. Photo: Shutterstock
China manufacturing

BASF launches biggest overseas project in China with green-powered mega-site

German chemical giant opens US$10 billion Zhanjiang complex, its largest overseas investment, as Beijing courts foreign capital.

German chemicals giant BASF on Thursday put its massive production complex in Guangdong province into full operation, marking the largest single investment project wholly owned by a German enterprise in China. Photo: Xinhua
IPO

China’s Jiangsu Aidea eyes Hong Kong IPO as gateway to US, European Aids markets

Yangzhou-based drug maker views Hong Kong as a ‘good window’ for its international expansion in HIV and Aids treatments.

Biomedicine: Industry Trends

China’s obesity drug makers take on global giants as Novo Nordisk patent expires

Patent expiry of blockbuster drug opens door for Chinese drug makers to challenge multinationals in booming weight-loss market.

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