Latest news with #mainlandChina
South China Morning Post
4 days ago
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Mainland Chinese market for weight loss and diabetes drugs to soon be more crowded: report
Competition in the mainland Chinese market for diabetes and weight loss drugs is set to intensify as more than 60 late-stage drug candidates are undergoing clinical trials, according to a recent report. Advertisement Up to 20 biosimilar or generic copies will vie for market share and add pricing pressure after Denmark-based Novo Nordisk's semaglutide product loses patent protection in China next year, according to Boston-based global consultancy L.E.K. Consulting. Novo Nordisk's patent will expire in 2031 in Japan and Europe and 2032 in the US, according to its latest annual report. 'The landscape in China is expected to become even more competitive than in developed markets, where the GLP-1 category is primarily dominated by leading multinational pharmaceutical companies,' said Helen Chen, L.E.K.'s global healthcare and life sciences co-head, in a report on May 15. GLP-1 drugs mimic natural hormones, which signal the pancreas to release more insulin when blood-sugar levels are high, and also support weight loss by slowing digestion and reducing appetite. 04:12 One reporter's weight-loss journey and what a 'healthy body' means to him One reporter's weight-loss journey and what a 'healthy body' means to him Driven by sales growth of semaglutide, Novo Nordisk became the 10th largest drug company in the world in terms of revenue. London-based consultancy Evaluate said the firm's revenue rose 25 per cent to US$42.1 billion last year.
Bloomberg
26-05-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Meituan Achieves Solid Sales Growth on Global Expansion
Meituan reported better-than-expected sales in the past quarter after an aggressive push into new markets outside mainland China. Sales for the three-month period ending in March reached 86.6 billion yuan ($12.1 billion), while analysts on average expected 85.4 billion yuan. Net income totaled 10.1 billion yuan, versus the average analyst estimate of 8.63 billion yuan.
Android Authority
23-05-2025
- Android Authority
Google's next Pixel needs faster silicon, now that China is building beasts like this
Robert Triggs / Android Authority Custom mobile processor development was once reserved for the few who could absorb the huge engineering costs that accompany such an endeavor. In recent years, however, Arm's expansive IP portfolio has lowered the barrier for consumer tech companies to design bespoke processors. Google's Tensor series is perhaps the most well-known example, built in collaboration with Samsung using a healthy dose of Arm, Samsung, and Google parts. Now, it's the turn of China's giant Xiaomi, which has just announced its XRING O1 processor for its Xiaomi 15s Pro — essentially a Xiaomi 15 without Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Elite that's destined for mainland China. Xiaomi probed the custom silicon waters back in 2017 with the Surge S1, but the XRING O1 is a much more ambitious effort. I'd go as far as to call it a monster: 10 high-performance Arm CPU cores and a massive 16-core Arm GPU that should blitz through today's games — and likely tomorrow's too. Xiaomi goes all-in on performance Hadlee Simons / Android Authority Based on the raw specs at least, the XRING O1 puts other custom SoCs to shame. Samsung's Exynos, Google's Tensor, and likely even MediaTek's flagship Dimensity 9400 all appear outgunned. Qualcomm's powerhouse Snapdragon 8 Elite might even feel it nipping at its heels. To get there, Xiaomi has taken a 'cost is no issue' approach to development. Two powerhouse CPU cores flanked by four potent middle cores, all paired with large L2 caches, are a recipe for lightning-fast performance. While that might be enough CPU silicon for Apple, Xiaomi also packs in two lower-clocked middle cores and two small efficiency cores for lower-power applications, again with above-typical cache. The GPU setup is equally overkill; 16 cores are at the upper limit of what Arm would probably suggest for mobile, it verges into light-laptop territory. XRING O1 can't be small, and yet it's built on TSMC's cutting-edge second-generation 3nm process, an expensive node used by Apple and Qualcomm for their top-tier processors. Xiaomi has taken a cost-is-no-issue approach to developing the XRING O1. Xiaomi's flagship processor supports plenty of familiar bells and whistles, too. The Xiaomi 15S Pro has Bluetooth 5.4, Wi-Fi 7, 8K 24fps video recording and 4K 30fps night capture, USB 3.2 Gen 2 data speeds, and 5G data courtesy of a MediaTek-supplied T800 modem. That said, we'll have to see how well this chip performs in the real world and if all this power in a small package can avoid thermal throttling. Still, if you want to see just how gargantuan this chip is, I've created a quick comparison table against the competition. Xiaomi XRING O1 MediaTek Dimensity 9400 Google Tensor G4 Google Tensor G5 (leaked) CPU Xiaomi XRING O1 2x Cortex-X925 @ 3.9GHz 4x Cortex-A725 @ 3.4GHz 2x Cortex-A725 @ 1.9GHz 2x Cortex-A520 @ 1.8GHz MediaTek Dimensity 9400 1x Cortex-X925 @ 3.62GHz 3x Cortex-X4 @ GHz 4x Cortex-A720 @ 1.9GHz Google Tensor G4 1x Cortex-X4 @ 3.1GHz 3x Cortex-A720 @ 2.6GHz 4x Cortex-A520 @ 1.92GHz Google Tensor G5 (leaked) 1x Cortex-X4 5x Cortex-A725 2x Cortex-A520 GPU Xiaomi XRING O1 Immortalis-G925 16-core Ray-tracing MediaTek Dimensity 9400 Immortalis-G925 12-core Ray-tracing Google Tensor G4 Mali-G71 7-core No ray-tracing Google Tensor G5 (leaked) DXT-48-1536 2-core Ray-tracing NPU Xiaomi XRING O1 6-core MediaTek Dimensity 9400 890 NPU Google Tensor G4 3rd-gen TPU Google Tensor G5 (leaked) 4h-gen TPU Manufacturing Xiaomi XRING O1 TSMC 3nm MediaTek Dimensity 9400 TSMC 3nm Google Tensor G4 Samsung 4nm Google Tensor G5 (leaked) TSMC 3nm This is all great news for Xiaomi fans and shows that off-the-shelf SoC design doesn't have to come with performance compromises. But that latter point has me concerned for the upcoming Google Pixel 10 series. As we know, Google's next-gen Tensor G5 processor isn't going to be anywhere near this powerful. But if Xiaomi can deliver such a high-end chip on its first real try, what's Google's excuse five generations in? As we already know, Tensor G5 will reprise the same Cortex-X4 CPU core that Arm announced in 2023, while Xiaomi has adopted not one, but two of the latest Cortex-X925. Sure, Google plans to tweak its middle cores and move to a perhaps slightly more powerful Imagination Technologies DXT graphics chip, but that will not suddenly transform the Pixel into a gaming powerhouse. Android 16 additions suggest there's still room for better performance. Google seems content to focus on other areas: better image processing, smarter machine learning, and AI-powered cameras. All of that matters — particularly for the Pixel, where software smarts are core to the experience. However, if Google wants us to take real advantage of Android 16's desktop mode, play PC games on our phones, or even just keep things running smoothly for seven years of updates, Pixel needs more horsepower to match the competition. Google has different priorities Robert Triggs / Android Authority I'm not calling for a total rethink of the Tensor strategy. I'm perfectly happy with the performance of the Pixel 9 Pro XL for my daily tasks and it's AI and imaging focus provides plenty of perks. It's yet to be seen if Xiaomi's XRING O1 can match Google's software integration and feature depth. Even so, raw performance still matters. I don't want to pay $1,100 for a Pixel 10 Pro XL only to see it outperformed by a phone costing hundreds less. This is already arguably the case when we compare Google's latest against phones like the $900 OnePlus 13, and will only become a bigger issue next year as the flagship performance divide grows again and mid-range rivals become even more powerful. Google needs to improve Tensor's performance profile — maybe not drastically, but noticeably — to stay in the flagship race. The XRING O1 proves it's not about access to IP or manufacturing partners. It's about choices. Right now, Google's are holding it back. If Xiaomi can build this beast, Google can surely give Tensor a fraction more oomph. Of course, we also know that costs remain a concern for Google. While it continues refining Tensor to serve both its flagship and A-series phones profitably, Xiaomi reportedly spent 13.5 billion yuan ($1.9 billion) developing the XRING O1. That colossal sum helps explain the chip's ambitious specifications — and signals Xiaomi's intent to reduce dependence on US-based firms like Qualcomm. It's also a stepping stone toward scaling its custom silicon across more product tiers and furthering China's goal of tech sovereignty. That said, specs alone won't guarantee success. For the XRING O1 to truly compete, Xiaomi must deliver on long-term software support, robust system and driver optimization, and meaningful features powered by AI and computational photography. These are areas where Google, despite lagging on raw power, still leads much of the Android field. Still, the XRING O1 is a bold, promising move — and a clear message to Google, Samsung, MediaTek, and even Qualcomm that the silicon status quo is no longer safe from disruption.
Bloomberg
15-05-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Ex-Goldman Banker Leads China's Push to Revive Hong Kong Finance
The crowd was taken aback as China's point person for financial matters in Hong Kong laid out plans to re-energize the city's markets. Qi Bin's proposals on topics including corporate governance weren't shocking on their face, but the regulators and other policymakers gathered at the Grand Hyatt ballroom in January had rarely heard a mainland Chinese official give such detailed prescriptions on how the city's finance sector should be run.
Reuters
06-05-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Hong Kong launches new measures to attract more tech, bio listings
May 6 (Reuters) - Hong Kong launched a scheme on Tuesday to offer smoother listings for tech companies on its stock exchange, as it looks to capitalize on Chinese companies' growing appetite to raise funds offshore. The new "technology enterprises channel" will make new listings easier for specialist technology and biotechnology firms, the bourse operator and Hong Kong's Securities and Futures Commission said in a joint statement. Under the scheme, the exchange, a unit of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing, ( opens new tab will provide guidance on the eligibility and suitability for listing for prospective companies. Applicants can confidentially file for initial public offerings, as disclosures of their operational strategies may pose heightened risk compared to other industries, the statement said. It also allows tech firms to list with a weighted voting rights (WVR) structure, which allows companies to hold shares that carry extra voting rights, provided they meet certain requirements. Hong Kong is the main destination for mainland Chinese firms looking to raise capital offshore, and bankers have said that mainland firms, mainly those in the tech sector, are accelerating plans to raise money offshore. Hong Kong authorities had first announced the technology enterprises channel in February.
