Top 8 Business News for July 14, 2023
1
Chinese car companies welcome “technology export”
German “Auto Weekly” disclosed on the 9th that German car company Audi plans to purchase electric platform licenses from Chinese car companies to shorten the development time of models.
In response to this, Audi China said on the 11th, “As we all know, the Chinese auto market is undergoing the greatest period of change in history. Audi will join hands with all parties to formulate strategic guidelines and create a successful future together.”
According to Audi’s official public data, from January to March 2023, Audi’s sales in China were 136,400 vehicles, a year-on-year decrease of 16%.
According to the CarExpert website, Audi has fallen behind Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Chinese companies in the global electric car race.
In order to maintain its market position and brand competitiveness, Audi must complete the new energy transformation as soon as possible.
However, the long development cycle and high cost of new energy vehicles make it easy for car companies to miss market opportunities.
Buying platform technology from a Chinese company is a shortcut for Audi.
2
Foxconn pulls out of India
According to media reports, on July 10, Foxconn issued a statement stating that it had withdrawn from a semiconductor joint venture worth US$19.5 billion (about 141 billion yuan) with India’s Vedanta Group (Vedanta).
According to the statement, in order to explore more diversified development opportunities, according to the agreement between the two parties, Hon Hai will no longer participate in the operation of the joint venture between the two parties.
In February 2022, Foxconn announced on its official website that it had signed a memorandum of understanding on the Indian semiconductor manufacturing industry with Vedanta to establish a joint venture to produce semiconductors in India.
In September of the same year, the two parties signed an agreement to establish a semiconductor and display manufacturing plant.
Reuters mentioned that Vedanta India’s latest annual report stated that as of March 31, 2023, its net debt was 452.6 billion rupees, and its net debt more than doubled.
India announced a $10 billion chip industry incentive plan in December 2021, which will provide eligible companies with financial support of up to 50% of the project cost.
But the project has not made significant progress.
Concerns over delays in approving incentives from the Indian government also contributed to Foxconn’s decision to exit the joint venture.
As one of the world’s largest electronics manufacturers, whether Foxconn builds a factory in India or withdraws, it is of symbolic significance.
3
The battle for traffic begins
The rise of the new platform Threads
The number of Threads registered exceeded 100 million in 5 days, surpassing ChatGPT and becoming the fastest growing application in history.
As a social media platform for Twitter, Threads’ overall function is similar to Twitter’s interface. Users can post tweets, share copywriting, images, videos, and interact with other users’ posts by liking, forwarding, and replying.
If the user originally has an Instagram account, he can also import the original follow list with one click.
Threads’ traffic has risen astonishingly, but in contrast, Twitter’s platform traffic has experienced a shocking decline.
In the first two days of Threads’ launch, Twitter’s web traffic dropped 5 percent compared with the previous week, according to web data agency Similarweb.
Twitter’s web traffic is down 11% compared to the same period in 2022, the company said.
Where there is traffic, there are business opportunities. With a series of internationally renowned brands such as Calvin Klein, Kith, Allbirds, SHEIN and Uniqlo entering Threads.
Many cross-border sellers are also considering building it into a new social media marketing matrix.
As far as we know, Threads has no plans to launch in EU countries.
4
In the first half of the year, German exhibitions performed well
The performance of German exhibitions in the first half of 2023 is outstanding. According to the data of the German Exhibition Industry Association (AUMA), from January to June 2023, the number of visitors to German exhibitions is close to 7 million.
AUMA preliminarily predicts that the exhibition will remain full of vitality in the second half of 2023. The number of exhibitors in the whole year will reach up to 180,000, and the number of visitors will reach 13 million, gradually returning to the level before the new crown epidemic.
The short summer break ended at the end of August, followed by Gamescom in Cologne, Caravan Salon in Dusseldorf, IFA in Berlin, etc. , and another 125 exhibitions will be held before the end of 2023.
In the first half of 2023, a total of 200 professional exhibitions will be held, with more than 115,000 companies participating and 6.8 million visitors.
Compared with the first half of 2022, the number of exhibitors will increase by a quarter, and the number of visitors will increase by about one-third.
5
Demand for bicycles soars in Hungary
Budapest, the capital of Hungary, has opened up many bicycle lanes to encourage people to commute by bicycle. Bicycle market demand increased and sales increased.
In 2021, the demand for finished vehicles will increase by about 30% compared with 2020, and sales will increase by 10% to 15%.
The epidemic has caused problems in the supply chain, and the ensuing shortage of containers and soaring freight rates have led to a shortage of bicycle components in 2021, affecting the production of finished vehicles in Hungary.
Some new Eastern European brands have entered the market with good location, from Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania, Bulgaria, and these brands have fast supply and short delivery time.
In order to expand their layout, bicycle manufacturers also went to Hungary to invest and set up factories.
In addition, the Hungarian government introduced a plan to subsidize the purchase of electric bicycles, which has attracted public attention.
6
Layoffs in various industries in Vietnam
According to the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs of Vietnam, the labor force in Vietnam’s textile industry will face a major crisis in 2023.
From January to May 2023, about 70,000 textile industry employees across Vietnam will lose their jobs, and another 66,600 employees will have their working hours cut.
In Vietnam, a total of 510,000 employees in various industries will be affected by layoffs in 2023. Among them, the textile industry has the largest number of unemployed, followed by the footwear and leather industry, and the electronics industry.
Large-scale layoffs mainly occurred in industrial parks and special economic zones in key provinces and cities, such as Binh Duong, Dong Nai, Bac Giang, Bac Ninh, and Hai Duong, as well as Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.
In the first five months of 2023, a total of more than 8,600 enterprises were forced to lay off employees, of which foreign-funded enterprises and private enterprises accounted for 27% and 72% respectively.
Statistics show that the unemployment rate of unskilled labor is high, accounting for 68% of the total.
7
Harvest failure due to high temperature
Indian tomato prices soar 400%
Indian cuisine is unthinkable without the ubiquitous tomato.
According to Indian government data, the price of tomatoes in New Delhi this week was 138 rupees (about 12 yuan) per kilogram, five times the 27 rupees (about 2.3 yuan) in January.
Tomato prices have soared more than 400 percent in India as hot weather and heavy rains caused crop failures, and the gourmet staple is disappearing from the menu of ordinary Indian households.
Some McDonald’s restaurants across India have also suspended tomato additions to burgers, citing supply shortages.
High temperatures have swept India and other parts of Asia in recent weeks.
The Indian government has warned that India will be one of the worst affected countries.
8
Does Aspartame Cause Cancer?
The WHO announced
Aspartame is one of the most common artificial sweeteners in the world.
According to my country’s “Standards for the Use of Food Additives” (GB2760-2014), aspartame can be used as a sweetener in foods such as bread, pastries, biscuits, beverages, and condiments.
The WHO official website reported on the 14th that the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) of the Food and Agriculture Organization released the results of the assessment of the health effects of aspartame on the same day.
Citing “limited evidence” of carcinogenicity in humans, IARC classified aspartame as possibly carcinogenic to humans (IARC Group 2B), and JECFA reaffirmed the acceptable daily intake of 40 mg/kg body weight.
Assuming no intake from other food sources, a can of a sugar-free soft drink containing 200 or 300 mg of aspartame would require a 70 kg adult to consume more than 9-14 cans per day to exceed the acceptable daily intake .
