FAO Schwarz Heads for China

So this could be exciting news for anyone who loves toys. FAO Schwarz is looking at China as part of its expansion plans. They are opening locations in Beijing and Shanghai this year with China’s largest toy distributor, Kidsland. Kidsland also has plans to open 30 smaller FAO Schwarz locations and shops in department stores around China in the five years ahead.

You’ll also soon see FAO Schwarz airport shops coming in the US and Canada in the next number of years, with the first one opening later this year.

And for those in New York missing the glamour and fun of the company, FAO Schwarz will soon open a new, 20,000 square foot, store in Rockefeller Plaza before Christmas 2018.

 

 

 

Google Opens Third Office in China

 

Google has recently opened a third office in China in Shenzhen. While some services are still blocked in china, the group obviously still manages its business in the area. Google’s search engine has been blocked in the area since 2010 but they have been making modest gains in mending their relationships with China.

China is part of Facebook’s top four areas including Europe, Canada and Australia.

 

China’s Green Bonds

China has been the dominating figure in the “green” bonds around the globe for the last two years. This is an indication that they are trying to take on a larger role to contain climate change. By the end of November 2017, China was the leader in the green bond issuance with their 66 deals that raised $24.89 billion.

As Alban de Fay, a portfolio manager at Amundi Asset Management, said “China is one of the countries most exposed to pollution, particularly air pollution. Following the Paris 2015 United National Climate Change Conference, they have shown keenness to fight climate change.”

Learn more here.

 

China Testing Autonomous Cars

Some are reporting seeing public road tests of fully autonomous cars in China. Baidu, China’s largest search engine, has been seen on public roads in northern Beijing testing the cars. A Baidu executive said that the cars could be ready by the end of the year.

Right now, at least five Chinese or Chinese-invested companies have licences to test driverless cars on public roads in Silicon Valley.

Baidu is testing the driverless carrs on a 3km stretch of road in the city of Wuzhen. Baidu executives actually say that the terrible traffic in China is a serious obstacle to their ability to stay competitive with autonomous driving.

As the general manager of Baidu’s Intelligent Driving Group, Li Zhenyu, said “China faces unique obstacles in its efforts to achieve autonomous driving. There are many, many more challenges here.”

 

Enhancing Food Production in Asia

Rabobank, a Dutch bank, wants its $1 billion program that they’ve launched with the UN to help with food production around the world and to help farmers across Asia to increase their productivity. The “Kickstart Food” program is intended to lend money to clients and partners around the world who can help farmers to increase their knowledge and production techniques.

As Diane Boogaard, the chief executive for Asia at Rabobank told the South China Morning Post, “We want to see an increase in agricultural productivity in a sustainable manner, and to reduce food waste in all agricultural supply chains across Asia to ultimately help Asian farmers make a living.”

She continued, “The programme is not a pure charity but it is a finance programme and network to help solve the world’s shortage of food. Our target is to increase food production by 60 per cent while reducing the sector’s environmental footprint by 50 per cent by 2050.”

China Manufacturing Growth

China’s manufacturing grew at the fastest pace since 2012 in September. The PMI (Purchasing Managers’ Index) released recently rose to 52.4 in September from 51.7 in August. This was the 14th straight month of expansion for China’s manufacturing industry and the highest reading since April 2012.

China International Capital Corporation reported that, “Over the short term, we believe the resilient demand growth and disciplined balance sheet expansion … will point to further improvement in manufacturing profitability and investment returns.”

Learn more here.

$800 Million Loan Agreement Given to Green Projects

The BRICS New Development Bank (NDB) just signed $800 million loan agreements that are for three green development projects. The projects are in China’s  Fujian, Hunan and Jiangxi provinces.

As reported by China Daily, “The loan will finance the Fujian Putian Pinghai Bay Offshore Wind Power Project, the Ecological Development Project in the Green Heart Center of the Hunan Chang-Zhu-Tan City Cluster and Jiangxi Industrial Low-Carbon Restructuring and Green Development Pilot Project.”

Learn more about this large loan and the important projects that will be aided as a result.

China Venture Capital

China Reform Holdings, a government-controlled group that manages a $30billion fund, launched last year. They are trying to revitalize China’s decreasing industrial sector with venture capital-style investments. The fund is backed by several state banks which include China Postal Savings Bank and China Construction Bank.

Now, they are hoping to invest at least 2 billion dollars with the Beijing-based private equity group JD Capital. JD Capital made its first major overseas acquisition in 2015, buying Ageas’ Hong Kong insurance company for $1.4 billion.

As Shen Jianguang, the chief economist at Mizuho Securities Asia said, “It’s an experiment to see how state enterprises manage their money.”

China Launching Green Financing Platform

Together with the Asia Development Bank, China has launched a financing platform with a mission. The financing platform is being launched by ADB and the China National Investment and Guaranty Corporation (I&G), the State Development and Investment Corporation (SDIC),  China’s finance ministry and National Development and Reform Commission. This platform is intended to help support efforts by both small and medium sized organizations to cut pollution.

China has now picked five regions that will be part of the pilot government green financing program according to the cabinet.

Learn more here.

 

 

The Boom of Financial Apps

Financial apps are a booming industry, and China is one great example of this trend. These apps grew in China by 230 % during 2016, according to the analytics company App Annie. The growth was driven in large part by Alipay and WeChat Pay.

As the App Annie report said, “Apps have paved the way for fintech players, who can both complement and disrupt established banks through innovative services. Banks must keep pace with the constant introduction of new technologies and consumer expectations to ensure a best-in-class app experience. Those who fail to adapt find themselves left behind.”