Companies fined

THE country’s market regulator said Friday that it fined three auto chip sales companies for driving up prices, in a move to help auto production in the world’s biggest vehicle market.

The State Administration for Market Regulations said on its website that it fined three companies 2.5 million yuan (US$388,300) each.

Higher profit

THE country’s garment industry reported higher revenue and profit in the first seven months of 2021, official data showed.

From January to July, the combined operating revenue of 12,510 major garment companies reached 779.9 billion yuan (US$120.8 billion), up 11.04 percent year on year, according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. Total profits of these companies rose 9.81 percent from a year earlier to 33.2 billion yuan in the period.

Noncash payments

THE noncash payments handled by Chinese banks maintained steady expansion in the second quarter, with mobile payments sustaining growth momentum, the central bank said.

Noncash payments, involving bank cards, online payment vehicles, commercial papers, credit transfer and other settlements, totaled 1,080.82 trillion yuan in the second quarter, up 6.25 percent year on year, according to the People’s Bank of China. Of the total, mobile payments sustained an upward trend to 117.13 trillion yuan, up 10.32 percent year on year.

Tesla car price

TESLA Inc. is raising the price of its Model Y Performance car in China by 10,000 yuan, effective immediately, the company announced on Weibo on Saturday.

The vehicle’s new price will be 387,900 yuan, according to the statement.