A new military drone
Business & Technology
Top business and technology news for February 28, 2017. Part of the daily The China Project news roundup "Atheism and religion."
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China says it has received its largest foreign drone order: Xinhua / Reuters
Xinhua News Agency reports that China has received its largest foreign order from an undisclosed buyer for a new military drone. The Wing Loong II, which conducted its maiden flight from an airport in western China on Monday, has a wingspan of more than 65 feet, and is a medium-altitude, long-distance unmanned aerial vehicle with both reconnaissance and strike capabilities. For more on drones, high-tech tanks, and a weaponized laser that can cut through an armored vehicle, see this series of photos from Chinese exhibitors at an arms fair in Dubai. -
China’s new multibillion-dollar target market: LGBT youth / Foreign Policy (paywall)
In recent years, many technology firms have launched campaigns to support same-sex partnerships and target the “pink yuan.” In the run-up to this year’s Lunar New Year, the Chinese mobile phone brand Vivo released a supportive message urging LGBT Chinese to bring their partners home to meet their families. In 2015, ecommerce giant Alibaba ran a contest to award 10 same-sex couples free weddings in Los Angeles. LGBT Chinese spend about $300 billion annually; moreover, 56 percent of LGBT Chinese men and 62 percent of LGBT Chinese women said that the most important factor influencing their purchasing decisions is whether the company has LGBT-friendly policies and regulations, according to a 2016 report. Earlier this month, we noted that a state-owned media company had invested in the gay dating and chat app Blued.
- In China, public-private partnerships are really public-public / Bloomberg
- China capital crackdown threatens wave of overseas buyouts / Financial Times (paywall)
- China’s ‘glass king’ to complete U.S. expansion despite Trump tensions / Reuters
- China opens currency derivatives to lure overseas bond investors / Bloomberg
- China’s leaders still banking on ‘irreplaceable’ central bank chief / SCMP
- Huawei staff fear cuts as smartphone profits disappoint / Reuters
