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Consumers

Consumers
News about consumer spending and shifting shopping habits from around the world with a focus on developments in Hong Kong and mainland China.
A container ship at Lianyungang port in China’s eastern province of Jiangsu on Sunday. Photo: AFP
US-China trade war

Exclusive | Trump tariffs could make China’s domestic economy stronger in long run: insider

Chinese economy is better prepared this time around compared to the last trade war with the US, an insider said.

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China property

Swire Properties bullish on mainland China despite tariff war’s pall

Consumer protection in Hong Kong

Hong Kong consumer watchdog finds 27.4% gap in air con energy efficiency

Retailing

Chinese toymaker Pop Mart’s shares jump as global expansion plans take shape

Company plans to set up offices in Greater China, the Americas, Asia-Pacific and Europe, brings in former executive to oversee some markets.

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Pop Mart’s efforts to expand internationally have been turbocharged by the breakthrough success of its original intellectual property, Labubu. Photo: Shutterstock
Japan

Fading optimism in Japan as only 13% satisfied with quality of life: survey

Experts say a deepening sense of crisis has overwhelmed young Japanese amid rising living costs, demographic strain and political inertia.

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Japan

Trump tariffs fuel calls for Japan to slash unpopular consumption tax

Rising inflation and Trump’s trade war have raised concerns about how ordinary Japanese will weather the storm.

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China GDP

‘Open door red’ to ‘summer blue’: will second quarter slam China’s GDP again?

Recent years have seen China’s economic growth decelerate in the second quarter – a pattern that threatens to continue this summer amid an intensifying trade war.

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Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen
United States

Explainer | Cars, clothing, Christmas toys: what US consumers are losing to Trump’s tariffs

Trump’s tariff pause provides temporary relief, but uncertainty may lead to US shortages of cars, toys, and electronics as shipments are halted.

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US-China trade war

China launches all-out effort to boost consumption as US trade war boils over

Local authorities roll out more supportive policies as commentators urge officials to ‘strengthen people’s confidence’.

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China consumption

China’s sci-fi industry shoots for stars as Beijing pushes ‘quality’ growth

With successes like The Three-Body Problem, the genre has never been more popular – and authorities have taken note.

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‘The Wandering Earth’
South Korea

‘I can’t go back to US sunscreens’: panicked Americans snap up items from Asia

Consumers are also stockpiling dried seaweed, hair bundles for wigs, cat food and wedding gowns.

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American consumers are snapping up South Korean sunscreen for its superior quality. Photo: Shutterstock
China property

Luxury malls in China adjust to market reality amid dip in consumer spending

Mall vacancy rates in Beijing stood at 10.6 per cent last year and 9.5 per cent in Shanghai, according to Cushman & Wakefield.

Hong Kong society

3 arrested over fraud after watching Coldplay concert in Hong Kong without tickets

Concertgoers also file 22 complaints about obstructed views, claiming they were not told about the problem in advance.

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Electric & new energy vehicles

Tesla halts importing Model S and X in China as buyers balk at tariffs

Tesla has stopped taking orders to import the US-made models to China; to persuade buyers to consider the Shanghai-made Model Y and Model 3.

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Tesla’s Model 3 on display at a showroom in Beijing. Photo: EPA-EFE
US-China trade war

China’s exporters on edge as trade war casts shadow over Canton Fair

China’s oldest and largest trade fair unlikely to be a bonanza as exporters prepare for lean times amid tariff-induced uncertainty.

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This spring’s Canton Fair, though slated to host more companies than last fall’s session, is shrouded in uncertainty amid the US-China trade war. Photo: Xinhua
China inflation

China’s consumer prices fall in March as trade war reaches fever pitch

China’s consumer prices declined 0.1 per cent at a decisive moment in protracted trade conflict with US.

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Hong Kong economy

Hong Kong consumers hit with higher prices for foreign goods as tariffs loom

Lipstick, shoes, clothes and Nintendo games now more expensive but goods from mainland China are unaffected so far.

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China’s economic stimulus

‘I’m not attracted’: why China is struggling to convince consumers to borrow

Beijing is offering easier access to credit in a bid to boost consumption, but households are reluctant to take on debt amid a global trade war.

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China has introduced a slew of measures in recent months to encourage consumers to open their wallets, but many households remain reluctant to spend amid an economic slowdown. Photo: EPA-EFE
Hong Kong property

Hong Kong’s office segment to see faster turnaround than retail: Morgan Stanley

‘We think the Hong Kong office market is not structurally impaired,’ Morgan Stanley’s Praveen Choudhary says.

China travel

Chinese tourists plan stops to smell the cherry blossoms on holiday weekend

Ching Ming Festival trip bookings were up this year compared to last, travel platforms said, with particular interest in ‘flower tourism’.

Electric & new energy vehicles

China’s lidar sensor firms Hesai, RoboSense stand to gain after fatal EV crash

Adoption of the laser-based sensors will increase as consumers demand safe self-driving systems, analysts say.

A long-range automotive lidar (light detection and ranging) sensor made by Hesai. Photo: Handout
Hong Kong economy

Hong Kong condemns US tariffs, duty-free parcel cancellation as ‘bullying’

Lawmaker Kennedy Wong also says most manufacturers in China will not absorb tariff hikes themselves.

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US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order to eliminate a duty-free exemption on small parcels from Hong Kong and mainland China. Photo: Nathan Tsui
Electric & new energy vehicles

China EVs: Tesla’s quarterly deliveries lag BYD for the second time

Output from the Shanghai Gigafactory dropped to 172,754 units in the first three months of the year from 220,876 a year earlier.

Hong Kong property

Exclusive | Hong Kong online broker rents shop in one of the world’s costliest retail strips

Futu could be paying HK$1.2 million (US$154,000) per month in rent, a steal compared to the HK$8.6 million in monthly rent that Burberry paid in 2018.

China economy

Opinion | Key to China’s success in stabilising foreign investment lies within playing

While geopolitical factors are critical, the real test for Beijing is in improving its domestic economic environment and boosting consumption.

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Chinese President Xi Jinping meets business representatives at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, on March 28. Photo: Xinhua
Electric & new energy vehicles

Top Chinese EV makers power ahead thanks to subsidies, tax incentives

BYD’s first-quarter deliveries rose 59.8 per cent to more than 1 million vehicles.

People check a BYD electric vehicle in Shanghai. Photo: Reuters
Electric & new energy vehicles

Xiaomi car crash involving self-driving feature sparks concerns in China

Company says it submitted the driving data and relevant operational information to the police and deeply regrets the tragedy.

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Electric & new energy vehicles

Tesla offers interest-free loans in China for Model Y to lift sagging sales

The delivery waiting time for the popular SUV on the mainland has been reduced to three to five weeks from six to 10 weeks.

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