A delivery guy just became China’s third-richest man
Business & Technology
Top business and technology news for March 1, 2017. Part of the daily The China Project news roundup "The tax haven of Tibet."
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A delivery man just became one of the richest people in China / Bloomberg
China’s largest parcel delivery company, S.F. Express, was listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange last week, making its founder, Wang Wei 王卫, into the country’s third-richest man with a net worth of $26.5 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. The country’s courier industry has been booming since the government removed restrictions on private delivery services in 2009. Wang is one of several package delivery billionaires — another recent entrant to the club is the founder of ZTO Express, which debuted on the New York Stock Exchange in October. The growth of the the delivery business has been dramatic because of the popularity of ecommerce in China. In the past decade, the average price of delivering a package dropped 57 percent to 12.8 yuan ($1.86) due to the decrease of operational costs and greater competition. In the U.S., the average cost of delivering a package is $10. -
One startup builds $1 billion business out of 15-cent bike rides / Bloomberg
Streets in some Chinese cities are being taken over by smartphone-linked bikes for rent as the popularity of bike-sharing services increases. Mobike and Ofo are two of the biggest players in what some see as a bubble. Ofo has just raised $450 million of funding, and Mobike raised $300 million a month earlier.
- Xiaomi launches its own chip, with an assist from Beijing / WSJ (paywall)
- China’s theft of U.S. trade secrets under scrutiny / Science Magazine
- China’s manufacturing PMI hits three-month high as Xi vows to curb financial risks / SCMP
- Minister: China to cut 500,000 heavy industry jobs / Washington Post
- China releases first strategy on cyberspace cooperation / Xinhua
