Latest news with #business environment
Bloomberg
5 hours ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Alibaba, Meituan Vow to Cease Price War After Beijing Warnings
Meituan and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. vowed Friday to curb 'disorderly competition' and cease the price-based rivalry that's threatened to pressure margins and prompted warnings from government agencies. Shares in both companies rose more than 2% after they issued statements within minutes of each other pledging to promote a fair business environment. Rival Inc. gained more than 1% in late morning trading.
South China Morning Post
10 hours ago
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong must make the most of its impressive economic comeback
When the Hong Kong government last issued its report on the business environment – in 2021 in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic and national security law controversy – it was more of a rebuttal of the doomsday narrative popular in some Western countries. Four years later, the city has emerged stronger and become more confident of its development and future. Advertisement The message that Hong Kong is the ideal place for business and investment amid intensifying geopolitical tensions and global economic uncertainties has been amplified in a new report released on Wednesday. Titled 'Unique Strengths under 'One Country, Two Systems'', the 102-page report is loaded with data and facts that speak for themselves. For instance, InvestHK helped 1,300 mainland and overseas enterprises set up or expand their operations here from January 2023 to the first half of 2025, bringing in more than HK$160 billion (US$20.4 billion) in investment. The daily turnover on the stock market in the first half of the year was up by 120 per cent to about HK$240 billion. The 52 initial public offerings in the first seven months raised HK$130 billion, a sixfold increase from the same period last year. The local economy continues to grow and diversify, with more new strategic industries being developed. The business network is also expanding from traditional Western partners to the Middle East and Southeast Asian regions. The authorities should help more businesses open doors and cut red tape to create an even more business-friendly culture and environment. This success owes much to Beijing's firm support under the 'one country, two systems' formula of success. The city's unique edge under 'two systems', including the common law system and free market, continues to set it apart from mainland China, while 'one country' enables it to capitalise on the opportunities arising from robust national development and play the role of 'superconnector' and 'super value-adder' Despite the unreasonable move by the US Trump administration to impose trade tariffs, the city remains committed to free trade and has sought to resolve the dispute through international channels rather than retaliation. Advertisement
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
HKTDC Welcomes the 'Report on Hong Kong's Business Environment' and Continues to Actively Promote Hong Kong's Advantages
HONG KONG - July 30, 2025 (NEWMEDIAWIRE) - The Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) welcomes the release of the "Report on Hong Kong's Business Environment: Unique Strengths under 'One Country, Two Systems'" by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) today. Prof Frederick Ma, Chairman of the HKTDC, said, "This report details Hong Kong's business environment and advantages in various sectors, providing concrete analyses with cases and data on business opportunities. It will further attract global businesses to leverage Hong Kong's business platform and professional services." Prof Ma also pointed out that under 'One Country, Two Systems', Hong Kong possesses unique advantages in connecting both Hong Kong and international markets, playing a vital role as a superconnector and super value-adder. He continued, "As an international investment and financial centre, Hong Kong can provide diverse financing channels and options for infrastructure projects in the mainland and other regions, contributing to the high-quality development of the Belt and Road Initiative." The 10th Belt and Road Summit will be held from 10 to 11 September, promoting multilateral cooperation. The HKTDC will continue to align with HKSAR policies, actively promoting Hong Kong's business advantages, facilitating international trade and business activities and providing comprehensive support, especially for SMEs. Media enquiries Please contact the HKTDC's Communications & Public Affairs Department:Sam HoTel: (852) 2584 4569Email: About HKTDC The Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) is a statutory body established in 1966 to promote, assist and develop Hong Kong's trade. With over 50 offices globally, including 13 in Mainland China, the HKTDC promotes Hong Kong as a two-way global investment and business hub. The HKTDC organises international exhibitions, conferences and business missions to create business opportunities for companies, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), in the mainland and international markets. The HKTDC also provides up-to-date market insights and product information via research reports and digital news channels. For more information, please visit: Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Forbes
18-07-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Get Out Of Your Inbox: Four Tactics To Buy Back Your Time
Ginni Saraswati is an entrepreneur, award-winning media personality, CEO of Ginni Media and cofounder of Metro Podcast Studio. CEOs regularly report that time management is their greatest challenge. Take, for example, email, which can be a time-sucker and not nearly as productive as we think. A 2016 Harvard study found that email usage was regularly to blame for workflow interruptions and extended workdays. In today's hyper-connected business environment, the average executive spends approximately 28% of their workweek managing emails. This digital deluge doesn't just consume time; it fragments attention, disrupts strategic thinking and creates a perpetual cycle of reactivity rather than proactivity. The Email Blackhole How do we get sucked into navigating so much email traffic? One reason is that CEOs are endlessly copied on email threads. Teams often feel email is the easiest way to keep leadership in the loop. Leaders feel pressure to respond because it signals recognition, and ignoring an email can give the impression that they're either ignoring, not reading or being rude. When the majority of issues covered in emails don't directly involve the recipient, it's easy to get drawn into the operational weeds. It should also be noted that bad habits can start from leadership, and emails from the CEO sent at night, on weekends or on holidays can set unhealthy norms and spark a chain of unnecessary communication. From there, it becomes easy for everyone in an organization to fall into bad communication habits. The Myth Of Inbox Zero While productivity gurus champion "inbox zero" as the gold standard, this pursuit often comes at a considerable cost. The relentless pressure to clear the inbox can lead to an unhealthy relationship with work communications and diminished presence in other areas of your business and personal life. This obsession has created unrealistic expectations, making people feel like they're on call both in and outside of the workplace. It's time to start questioning whether this standard really serves us, or if it perpetuates the type of workplace culture that inevitably leads to burnout. Email As A Strategic Tool, Not A Default Channel One critical shift involves recognizing when email is the appropriate medium for communication and when it isn't. We've normalized using email for everything from quick confirmations to delicate negotiations. This creates a mountain of inefficiency, especially when there are simpler ways to handle things. Before starting what might turn into a lengthy email thread, ask yourself, "Is a call better in this case?" The trend to cut back on meetings might also have pushed us too far. We've turned so many meetings into emails that now it's the emails that have become the problem. Some reverse engineering might be in order. It's time to recognize that some email threads could have been a single five-minute meeting instead. Setting Boundaries And Managing Expectations Establishing clear parameters around email availability has become increasingly important. Many executives have found success incorporating status indicators into their email signatures. For example, "I check email twice daily at 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. For urgent matters, please contact..." However, such boundaries are only effective when consistently enforced. The internal commitment must match the external communication—a disconnect that many leaders struggle with. The real challenge is to honor the boundaries we create for ourselves. Over time, firm boundary habits will stick, sending a message to your team and your personal connections that you mean what you say. Four Practical Tactics For Email Management There are several proven strategies for maintaining control over your inbox, rather than letting it control you: 1. Implement email-free zones. Designate specific times, particularly during high-cognitive performance hours, when email notifications are turned off. 2. Utilize the "NNTR" technique. Adding "no need to reply" to appropriate messages eliminates unnecessary back-and-forth exchanges. 3. Leverage AI and delegation. Digital tools like email assistants can filter, prioritize and even draft responses to routine communications, freeing up time for more strategic tasks. 4. Practice intentional batching. Process emails in dedicated blocks rather than continuous monitoring, allowing for deeper focus during non-email periods. The True Measure Of Success As business pressure mounts and AI capabilities expand, the temptation to remain continuously connected grows stronger. Yet the difference between successful, not-enough-hours-in-the-day executives and truly exceptional leaders with ample downtime often lies in their ability to protect their attention. As Warren Buffett once said, "The difference between successful people and really successful people is that really successful people say no to almost everything." The most effective email management strategy is minimizing the inbox's centrality to daily operations. Thinking more strategically about how we communicate allows us to work with more intention, carve out time for rest and reclaim significant portions of the workday for the deep thinking and strategic planning that truly drive business growth. Greater productivity comes not through doing more, but through focusing attention on what genuinely matters. Forbes Business Council is the foremost growth and networking organization for business owners and leaders. Do I qualify?
South China Morning Post
18-07-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Economists call for reform as China's famed marketisation index drops
Chinese economists have called for more pro-market reforms to tackle economic imbalances and vicious intra-industry competition, as a new report has revealed a decline in a major index tracking the country's marketisation. In a new assessment from the National Economic Research Institute, a Beijing-based think tank, China's overall level of marketisation – measured by five criteria, including government-market relations – stood at 5.62 out of 10 in 2023, slipping by 0.1 from 2019 and by 0.4 from 2021, the index's four-year peak. The index, typically published every two years, is one of the country's most influential non-governmental benchmarks. The institute has tracked China's level of marketisation and business environment through government data and surveys for decades, with a change to its baseline year for measurement in 2019. Speaking at an online forum late last month, Wang Xiaolu – the institute's deputy director and a lead researcher – called it a 'pretty significant change', and said action should be taken to reverse the trend. While the Covid-19 pandemic caused some distortions, Wang said, it also saw the state play a smaller role in economic policy in some cases and cannot be said to be the main reason for the decline. Out of the five subindexes the institute measures, government-market relations - the proportion of resources allocated by the market and reduction of government intervention in enterprises – saw the biggest deterioration since 2019, with a drop of 0.38.
