Logistics business expands in first four months

THE country’s logistics sector reported steady growth in the first four months of 2022, an industry report showed yesterday.

Social logistics rose 3.6% year on year in the first four months to 106.2 trillion yuan (US$15.95 trillion), said the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing in an industry report. On a monthly basis, the growth rate of social logistics shrank 3% in April from the same period last year. In the first four months, the online retail sales of goods climbed 5.2% year on year while the business volume of the courier sector expanded 4.2% year on year.

Huayou to invest US$300M in Zimbabwe’s mine

ZHEJIANG Huayou Cobalt said Tuesday it will invest around US$300 million to develop the Arcadia hard-rock lithium mine in Zimbabwe which it recently acquired from the Australian-listed Prospect Resources.

The investment will also be used to construct a process plant with a capacity to treat around 4.5 million tons of ore and produce 400,000 tons of lithium concentrate per annum, the company said. Huayou Cobalt completed the purchase of the Arcadia lithium project, located 40 km outside the capital Harare, in April this year after acquiring a 100% stake in the mine for US$422 million.

Guangxi exports NEV parts using rail-sea transport

A FREIGHT train carrying new energy vehicle (NEV) parts departed the city of Liuzhou, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, on Tuesday. The parts will eventually be transported by sea to Indonesia.

This is the first time such parts from the region have been exported using rail-sea transport via Qinzhou port, local railway authorities said. The total shipping time for the cargo to reach Jakarta will be shortened to some 20 days, about seven days quicker than the traditional transportation mode.

Luckin Coffee posts first quarterly profit

LUCKIN Coffee, which only emerged from bankruptcy proceedings last month, reported its first quarterly profit in the three months ended March 31 as the coffee chain operator marches solidly on despite the impact of the pandemic.

Luckin Coffee logged net profit of 19.8 million yuan in the first quarter, compared to losses of 232.5 million yuan the same period last year, according to the firm’s latest earnings report released Tuesday.