Steps unveiled to spur new forms of consumption

CHINA on Monday issued guidelines to boost new types of consumption, including online shopping and payments, in a bid to support the recovery of the economy.

New forms of consumption have played an important role in driving China’s economic recovery, but the development is hampered by inadequate infrastructure, weak service capacity and lagging regulations, the State Council said. China’s retail sales rose 0.5 percent in August from a year earlier, snapping a seven-month downturn, but still trailing behind expansion in exports and investment, as the economy steadily recovers from a coronavirus-induced slump.

Huawei to cut more jobs, investment in Australia

THE Australian operation of Huawei Technologies Co. said it would continue to cut staff numbers and investment in the country amid strained relations between China and Australia.

In 2018, Australia banned Huawei from supplying equipment for a 5G mobile network, citing “national security” risks, a move Huawei criticized as being politically motivated. “In simple terms, the 5G ban on Huawei has cost us 1,000 high-tech and high-wage jobs from the economy,” Jeremy Mitchell, Huawei’s chief corporate affairs officer for Australia, said in an emailed statement yesterday. “We have gone from 1,200 staff to fewer than 200 and by next year it will be lower still.”

ZTO Express set to raise US$1.3b from HK listing

U.S.-LISTED ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc. is set to raise nearly US$1.3 billion ahead of its market debut in Hong Kong on Sept. 29.

The Chinese courier, which is backed by Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., is guiding investors that it will price its stock sale at 218 Hong Kong dollars each, the equivalent of US$28.12. That represents a nearly 2 percent discount to ZTO Express’ closing price in New York on Monday.

Sequoia raises US$2.2b in new yuan fund

INVESTOR Sequoia Capital China is raising at least 15 billion yuan (US$2.2 billion) in a new yuan-denominated fund, people with knowledge of the matter said, building a war chest as the world’s second-largest economy recovers from a virus-induced slump.

The fund, Sequoia China’s sixth, is likely to be the largest of its kind for the company and is expected to focus on sectors ranging from industrial technology, health care and consumer to media, said one of the people.