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Background advertising makes Alipay, Hisense, and TikTok popular

China's companies are more present at the UEFA European Championship, Euro 2020, than ever before. They are appearing as official partners like Alibaba – or as tournament sponsors like TikTok. The advertising presence gets the companies visibility for their global business and, at the same time, supports China's ambitions to host a World Cup itself one day. And since Chinese fans also like to watch the Euro at night, the advertising serves the country's own market as well.

By Christiane Kuehl

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LinkedIn blocks user profiles with 'problematic content'

The "wrong" title of an academic paper is reason enough for the online professional network LinkedIn to make a user's profile invisible in China. The company defends itself as a strong supporter of freedom of expression but submits to pressure from Beijing. The case of a Swedish LinkedIn user shows how determined the People's Republic is to ban unpleasant topics from discourse.

By Marcel Grzanna

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BBK – the world's largest smartphone manufacturer

What is the name of the worldwide largest smartphone manufacturer? Samsung, Apple, Huawei? Wrong. The Chinese company BBK Electronics is virtually unknown to consumers, but it produces one out of four mobile phones worldwide. They are sold through a whole range of brands, including Oppo and Vivo.

By Redaktion Table

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The Unification of the Social Credit Systems is approaching

China is lagging behind its original schedule in introducing a nationwide Social Credit System. The system consists of scattered field trials that mainly regulate the economic exchange of companies. Currently, political control of individuals is not the focus, but that may change quite quickly as of now. The population is welcoming the introduction rather than criticizing it.

By Frank Sieren

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Chinese desert Bordeaux

China's viticulture is growing, first and foremost in Ningxia, western China. By 2023, China wants to have as many grape-growing areas as the traditional growing country Germany. Chinese wines are winning more and more international awards. This also impacts European exports: The more China grows itself, the less it has to import. As early as 2020, 25 percent less was imported, even though consumption remained almost the same. For Germany, China is one of the five most important markets.

By Frank Sieren

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DiDi's defiant IPO in New York

DiDi is the top dog in the Chinese market for ride services. However, just before its planned IPO, the authorities put the company through the mill. Defiantly, DiDi is expanding its international presence. Its base, however, remains its home country. Here, the company wants to profit from increased mobility and urbanization.

By Ning Wang

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'China is becoming more powerful, but the CCP is going through nightmares'

In a few days, the Chinese Communist Party will celebrate its centenary. In an interview, sinologist Klaus Muehlhahn explains the success story, which for a long time was not a success – and its effects up to the present day: Historical ruptures continue to determine the actions of the leadership around Xi Jinping. Michael Radunski spoke with Muehlhahn.

By Michael Radunski

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Tencent vs. Bytedance: top dog and home advantage

The tone in China's fiercely competitive technology sector is getting rougher. The struggle for dominance and pluralism in the Chinese network world is shifting to the corporate level – the conflicts between Bytedance and the Internet giant Tencent are an exemplary lesson in the distribution battles.

By Christiane Kuehl

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Allegations of forced labor at Silk Road construction sites

The G7 wants to establish a new global infrastructure initiative. The Western states are also focusing on human rights. This is intended to set them apart from China. Beijing's New Silk Road is all too often based on the exploitation of Chinese workers. The problem is that cheap labor is a competitive advantage for China that the G7 initiative can hardly make up for.

By Nico Beckert

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Investment in the EU falls to ten-year low

According to a joint study by the research institute Merics and the Rhodium Group, mergers and acquisitions by Chinese companies in the EU continue to decline. This is partly because of the Chinese state. Foreign acquisitions are no longer as desirable as they were five years ago. But EU countries, for their part, are also increasingly wary and call for closer scrutiny of deals. The political climate is doing its bit to scare off investors.

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