When the chips are down: the tiny piece missing from our supply chains November 30, 2021 If you haven’t already bought your tech gifts this Christmas you may have to come up with some more primitive alternatives for your loved ones. Chronic shortages of chips, the tiny semiconductors that are essential to a myriad of technologies, as well as high labor and transport costs, mean that Christmas gifts this year such [...]
If China’s interfering with hash rate and mining pools, then Bitcoin just proved its resilience November 26, 2021 Jason Deane gathers his thoughts of the week as fingers point towards China's continued disdain for crypto
Beijing asks Didi to delist in New York over data security concerns November 26, 2021 Chinese regulators have pressured top executives of ride hailing giant Didi to pull together a plan to delist from the New York Stock Exchange over data security fears, according to reports. Beijing’s Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) – the body that has cracked down on the likes of Ant Group and Alibaba in the last [...]
The boring predictability of our rule of law will ensure Britain’s success November 26, 2021 Power doesn’t disappear overnight. In the immortal words of Paul Simon, it slip slides away. In Helmand, Afghanistan I realised things were falling apart when people stopped coming to the government to resolve disputes. They turned to the Taliban instead. That was 15 years before the end. Subtly, almost unnoticed, here was proof that people [...]
UK overhauls development investment body to challenge influence of Chinese loans November 25, 2021 Foreign secretary Liz Truss has revamped the UK’s development investment arm in a bid to offer emerging economies an alternative source of private capital to Chinese loans that can counter Beijing’s influence and avoid “bad and unsustainable debt.” Truss launched British International Investment (BII) this morning at the London Stock Exchange, a body that will [...]
Peng Shuai: What we know, the IOC and the Olympic Games November 24, 2021 The curious case of Peng Shuai gets curiouser and curiouser as the days roll by. From initial allegations, to a prolonged period away from public view, to a court-side appearance, to a video call with International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach. It’s almost unbelievable. The timeline began on 2 November, when Peng accused a [...]
Asia sales and Covid-19 unlocking boost luxury retailer Mulberry November 24, 2021 The Covid-19 unlocking and booming sales in Asia have boosted luxury fashion retailer Mulberry, reveal new figures released today. Income at the London-listed retailer climbed 34 per cent to over £65m, up from £48.9m in the same period last year. Profits jumped to £10.2m, largely driven by the sale of shop leases in France. UK [...]
China hands out new fines to tech giants in anti-monopoly crackdown November 20, 2021 Chinese tech giants including Alibaba Group and Tencent Holdings have been fined for failing to report corporate acquisitions, adding to an anti-monopoly crackdown by the ruling Communist Party. The companies failed to report 43 acquisitions that occurred up to eight years ago under rules on “operating concentration”, according to the State Administration for Market Regulation. [...]
Alibaba shares slide five per cent as earnings fall short of forecasts November 18, 2021 Alibaba shares tumbled five per cent after the company’s third quarter financials disappointed investors. In results released today, Chinese tech giant Alibaba revealed that revenue for the three months to October 2021 was $31.1bn (£23bn), up by 29 per cent compared to a year prior, but a far cry from analyst predictions of $32.1bn Net [...]
Cryptocurrency slump tempered by trend of ‘buy the dip!’ November 17, 2021 Bitcoin continues to hover around the $60k mark, down two per cent over the past 24 hours at time of writing and 10 per cent over the past seven days.