Trade

  • Korea Customs Service: Last year, the value of overseas shopping in Korea increased by 1.4% year-on-year to US$4.725 billion. Overseas online shopping orders increased by 8.8% year-on-year to 96.12 million. The amount of overseas online shopping from China was US$1.712 billion (36.2%), accounting for the first time last year and ranking first; the order volume was 55.417 million (57.7%), ranking first since 2020.
  • Drewry: In February, about 4.1% of the world’s container fleet was idle, with a capacity equivalent to 1.067 million 20-foot standard containers, double that of the same period last year. There were 1.07 million containers idle in December last year, the highest level of idle capacity since August 2020.
  • India: Steel imports from Russia rise to 8-year high.
  • Britain announced an export ban on all items used by Russia in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, as well as a ban on the import of Russian steel products.
  • General Statistics Office of Vietnam: According to data released on February 28, the country’s exports in February increased by 11.0% year-on-year, rising sharply to US$25.88 billion, down 8% year-on-year in the previous month. In February, Vietnam’s industrial output increased by 3.6% year-on-year, while imports fell by 6.7% year-on-year, recording a trade surplus of US$2.3 billion.

Industry

  • International Energy Agency: By 2027, solar power generation is expected to surpass coal-fired power generation and become the main power generation method. An important reason is that the installation cost of solar power has dropped significantly. It is estimated that solar energy will account for almost 60% of new electric facilities in the next five years.
  • Apple: Starting March 1, battery replacement services for some iPhone, iPad and Mac models officially increase in price. The out-of-warranty battery service fee for all models prior to iPhone 14  increase by 169 yuan; the out-of-warranty battery service fee for MacBook Air models increase by 290 yuan, and the out-of-warranty battery service fee for all MacBook and MacBook Pro models increase by 480 yuan; The out-of-warranty battery service fee for 12.9-inch iPad Pro, 11-inch iPad Pro and other iPad models increase by 149 yuan.

Industry China

  • The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology recently announced that in 2022, the output of China’s lithium-ion battery industry increase by more than 130% year-on-year, and the total output value of the industry exceed 1.2 trillion yuan. In 2022, the national output of lithium-ion batteries  reach 750 GWh, a year-on-year increase of more than 130%, of which the output of energy storage lithium batteries exceed 100 GWh.
  • Shanghai Stock Exchange: As influenza A enters a high-incidence period, the demand for the recommended anti-influenza virus drug “oseltamivir phosphate磷酸奥司他韦” is strong.

China

  • According to the official website of the National Bureau of Statistics, according to preliminary calculations, in 2022, the annual GDP was 121,020.7 billion yuan, an increase of 3.0% over the previous year; the per capita GDP was 85,698 yuan, an increase of 3.0% over the previous year. For the whole year, the final consumption expenditure drove the GDP growth by 1.0%, the gross capital formation drove the GDP growth by 1.5%, and the net exports of goods and services drove the GDP growth by 0.5%.
  • According to data released by the Ministry of Commerce of China, the actual use of foreign capital nationwide in January was 127.69 billion yuan (RMB, the same below), a year-on-year increase of 14.5%. In terms of industries, the actual use of foreign capital in China’s manufacturing industry in January increased by 40.4% year-on-year; the actual use of foreign capital in high-tech industries increased by 62.8% year-on-year, of which the high-tech manufacturing industry increased by 74.5%, and the high-tech service industry increased by 59.6%.
  • Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Li Jiachao: Since the overall risk of the current epidemic in Hong Kong is controllable, the “mask order口罩令” in all places is lifted from March 1, and there is no need to wear masks indoors, outdoors and when taking public transportation.
  • Shenzhen City, Guangdong Province: The first batch of salable talent housing in 2023 issue a placement notice. Lowered the age limit for unmarried people to purchase a house for talents, from 35 to 30 years old; relaxed the household registration requirements for joint applicants, the main applicant is a Shenzhen household, and children and spouses who are not Shenzhen households can apply under certain conditions as a co-applicant.
  • Ministry of Finance: In January, a total of 33.223 billion yuan of lottery tickets were sold nationwide, a year-on-year increase of 7.8%. Among them, the sales of welfare lottery institutions were 10.841 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 22.4%; the sales of sports lottery institutions were 22.382 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 32.9%.
  • Zhejiang Daily: In Ningbo Xiangshan Huangbi’ao Colorful Coastline Plaza（宁波象山黄避岙斑斓海岸线广场）, about 2340.1 tons of carbon sequestration a year in the local Xihu Port （西沪港）was sold today at a price of 106 yuan/ton. This is the first blue carbon transaction in the country in the form of an auction. Domestic blue carbon trading is still in its infancy, and there are only 5 cases so far. (PS. Carbon sink碳汇 refers to the process, activity or mechanism that absorbs carbon dioxide in the atmosphere through measures such as afforestation and vegetation restoration, thereby reducing the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.)

Company

  • Chen Jiaxin, Chief Commercial Officer of AirAsia: China is the largest and most potential market for AirAsia. Before the epidemic, the revenue of the Chinese market accounted for 20% of the AirAsia Group, and the proportion of the Thai subsidiary was even greater. It is planned that in the fourth quarter of 2023, the waypoints will be restored to 16 cities, the weekly flight volume will exceed 340, and more than 40 routes will be operated.
  • The Elec: Apple, LG Display, and Samsung Display are negotiating the supply price of OLED panels for the iPad scheduled to be released next year. The 11-inch model is about $270, and the 13-inch model is about $350. The current supply price of 10-inch low-end IT product OLED panels is around US$100-150. Due to the two-tandem method with two OLED light-emitting layers and high-end technologies such as LTPO TFT, the price will inevitably be expensive.
  • Yicai: It is reported that Byte’s VR manufacturer Pico has a sales target of about 500,000 units in 2023. Among them, the domestic C-end sales target is 350,000 units, and the B-end market is 150,000 units. Compared with last year’s target of 1 million units, it has shrunk by about 50%. According to insiders, in terms of user activity, Pico’s recent daily activity is around 70,000, and its weekly activity is around 100,000. This year’s weekly activity target is also maintained at around 100,000.
  • Dong Mingzhu: After holding Gree Titanium, Gree Electric has taken a step forward in research on new energy. After launching the solar storage air conditioner, Gree has begun to study the application of energy storage technology to refrigerators.
  • The Information: It is reported that Musk has contacted artificial intelligence researchers in recent weeks to discuss the establishment of a new research laboratory to develop a replacement for ChatGPT. To lead the effort, Musk has been recruiting Igor Babuschkin, who recently left Alphabet’s DeepMind artificial intelligence unit.
  • Latin American e-commerce platform Mercado Libre announced its financial report. For the full year of 2022, revenue is US$10.537 billion, an increase of 49% from US$7.069 billion in the same period of the previous year; operating profit is US$1.034 billion, an increase of 134.5% from US$441 million in the same period of the previous year; net profit is US$482 million , an increase of 480% from $83 million in the same period last year.
  • United Parcels (UPS) announced its financial report. The company’s net profit attributable to ordinary shareholders for the 2022 fiscal year was US$11.548 billion, a year-on-year decrease of 10.41%, and its operating income was US$100.338 billion, a year-on-year increase of 3.14%. The company’s net profit attributable to ordinary shareholders in the fourth quarter was US$3.453 billion, an increase of 11.64% year-on-year, and operating income was US$27.033 billion, a year-on-year decrease of 2.66%.
  • A Frenchman has won a jackpot of 102 million euros in the latest EuroMillions draw. If he fails to accept the award by April 4, he will lose the huge fortune. The 100 million euros is the ninth-largest jackpot in the history of the EuroMillions lottery in France.

World

  • Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare: The number of newborns in Japan was 799,700 in 2022, a decrease of 43,000 from the previous year. It is the first time since statistics began in 1899 that it fell below 800,000, setting a record low and decreasing for seven consecutive years. The number of deaths in 2022 was 1.582 million, an increase of 130,000 from the previous year, the highest number since World War II.
  • The 10-year government bond yields of major European economies rose sharply. The yield on 10-year British government bonds rose to a new high since October 24, at 3.846%. The French 10-year government bond yield hit a new high since April 2012, reaching 3.146%. The Spanish 10-year government bond yield rose to a new high since February 2014, at 3.704%. The Italian 10-year government bond yield continued to rise to a new high since January 3, at 4.549%.
  • ONS: UK grocery inflation hits record high of 17.1%. Markets such as milk, eggs and margarine saw the fastest price increases, industry said. British households will see their annual shopping bills rise by £811 if costs are not reduced.
  • France: The consumer price index rose 6% year-on-year in January, and the accelerated rise in food prices and energy prices was an important reason for the rise in the consumer price index. Consumer prices in France rose 0.8% month-on-month on a seasonally adjusted basis, the data showed.
  • World Bank: The two major earthquakes on February 6 caused direct losses of about US$34.2 billion to Turkey, equivalent to 4% of Turkey’s 2021 gross domestic product (GDP).
  • On the 28th, data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed that the current account surplus in the fourth quarter expanded to 14.1 billion Australian dollars.
  • According to data released by the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Resources of South Korea, retail sales in January increased by 4% year-on-year. The total sales of 25 large offline and online retailers in South Korea last month were 14.7 trillion won, of which online sales increased by 9.1% year-on-year. Reached 7.2 trillion won, accounting for nearly 49% of total sales.