A Brand War

A Brand War

China Financial Weekly

Issue No. 24， 2018

New York Fashion Week， one of the worlds top four fashion weeks， has always been a showcase for foreign fashion brands. But that all changed in 2018， with the emergence of Bosideng on the runway headed for take-off into the blue skies of the global market.

As a well-known down jacket brand in China， Bosideng has accompanied several generations of the Chinese through many cold winters. In recent years， although it has the lions share in the domestic down jacket market， foreign brands still pose an unprecedented pressure as more brand-chasing young men prefer foreign brands.

Bosidengs case reflects the challenge Chinese enterprises face in global competition. When each brand begins to go global， their brand names are always overshadowed by foreign ones.

Since 2012， China has stressed the importance of brand building for Chinese companies. In fact， to emphasize the importance of brand building， May 10 was designated as the annual Chinese Brands Day beginning in 2017.

In May 2018， the 2018 Internet+ China Brand Development Report jointly released by the Communication University of China and JD.com pointed out that Chinese consumers are now paying more attention to high-tech and environmentally friendly products. However， Chinese enterprises still have a long way to go to build high-tech and fashionable brands that domestic consumers really identify with.

Over the next 10 years， Chinese brands will usher in a new wave of globalization. Meanwhile， an era of more domestic enterprises annual sales income exceeding RMB100 billion is foreseeable.

Consumption Upgrade： the Secret of Retail

Oriental Outlook

Issue No. 45， 2018

If you ask any ordinary Chinese about the biggest changes they have experienced in their lives over the past 40 years， they may probably show you a bunch of basic necessities. Undoubtedly， the transformation in the consumer market is a direct reflection of the transformation in peoples lives.

The past 40 years have opened up unprecedented space for the development of the Chinese market. The consumer market has continued to expand， and the total amount of retail sales of consumer goods has increased from RMB 155.9 billion in 1978 to RMB 36，626.2 billion in 2017， with an average annual growth of more than 15 percent.

Household consumption has always been a major contributor to Chinas consumer goods market. The material and cultural demands constantly aroused by peoples pursuit of a better life continue to propel the rise of Chinas total consumption and the reform of the retail industry.

For the last 40 years， from supply and marketing cooperatives to department stores， from brick-and-mortar shops to online retail， and to the integration of online and offline retail， as well as smart retail in the near future， consumption in China has been escalating. The retail industry has brought and will continue to introduce to the Chinese public more choices of quality goods and services.

SOEs in Poverty Alleviation

Minsheng Weekly

Issue No. 21， 2018

As the pillar of Chinas economy， SOEs are now plagued with their own developmental problems such as further reform and upgrading. But despite those challenges， they undertake lots of social responsibilities， such as in the area of poverty alleviation.

Statistics show that in 2017 alone， SOEs invested RMB 1.93 billion in 246 poor counties， helped the locals bring in a total of RMB 5.73 billion， organized 1，591 programs， and provided skill training for 35，000 local cadres and technological personnel. Besides that， they also bought farm produce worth RMB 230 million.

On October 17， 2018 a forum on SOEs poverty alleviation was held in Beijing. Xu Fushun， deputy chairman and Party committee member of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council（SASAC）， said at the opening that SASAC would stay firm to giving real help in poverty reduction and would pay more attention to the performance evaluation， supervision and guidance of its efforts in this regard.

In recent years， a large number of poverty alleviation officials sent by central enterprises have been stationed in remote， underdeveloped areas. They have made great contributions to poverty alleviation in those regions.

Medicare Reform at the Grassroots Level

Insight China

Issue No. 33， 2018

Medical reform is a worldwide challenge. But its even more challenging for China since it has the largest population in the world. When almost the whole population is covered by the national healthcare system， ensuring basic services at the grassroots level is particularly important. In this respect， raising the professional skills of medical practitioners at the county level to a level that patients with critical diseases do not need to be transferred to a higher-level hospital for treatment is the major task lying ahead.

From 2012 to the present day， the comprehensive reform in public hospitals at county level has undergone three phases. The number of pilot counties has increased from 311 to 1，063. The reform of medical services， health insurance， and the medicine industry has been advanced in a coordinated manner. All county-level public hospitals are required to phase out surcharges on prescribed medicine.

On September 27， the National Health Commission held a conference in Yuncheng City， Shanxi Province， to discuss the comprehensive reforms of county-level public hospitals. At the conference， hospital representatives from several provinces shared their experiences in medicare reform. The process of making medical reforms takes time， but great strides in the right direction are being made.