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India's Somany on an expansion spree
Somany plans for huge expansion nationally as well as internationally via franchising. The Indian ceramic brand plans to open 50 to 60 new stores and is also looking forward to enter into West Asia.
Speaking about the expansion Abhishek Somany, JMD, Somany Ceramics said: "Clearly defined distribution strategy has helped Somany reach its customers and make quality products available to a wide consumer base. Our aggressive export spectrum is quite vast as we export products to Europe, Middle East, Asia and Africa."
KPMG publishes HK Budget Summary
On 1 February, Hong Kong's Financial Secretary, John Tsang Chun-wah, delivered his fifth Budget Speech to the Legislative Council. KPMG China on Thursday announced the publish of the Budget Summary, which outlines the proposed changes and comments on their implications.
KPMG welcomes the measures proposed in the latest Hong Kong budget, but urges the government to review the long standing narrow tax base structural issue to ensure it can cope with future challenges and remain competitive.
Starbucks moving forward with MoU with Tata Coffee
US-based coffee giant Starbucks on Thursday said it is moving forward with the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed with Tata Coffee and hopes to make an announcement soon even as the Indian government has notified 100 percent FDI in single brand retail.
On Tuesday, the Indian government allowed 100 percent FDI in single-brand retail, paving way for global chains to have full ownership of their India operations.
Chinese consumers in 2011
As the world prepares to bid adieu to 2011, the Chinese still have a few weeks before the year of the rabbit sprints off and the mighty dragon is ushered in. The Western world has seen a miserable year and this has been a tough year for the Chinese too.
Asian brand owners plan to invest
Brand owners in Asia-Pacific expect to boost their investment in innovation, green products and foreign expansion going forward, a study has found.
PricewaterhouseCoopers, the business services firm, polled 320 CEOs, and revealed 96 percent were optimistic about revenue prospects in the next three-to-five years, including 57 percent that were "very confident".
Indian jewellers aim at golden harvest
An unprecendent rise in prices of precious metals like gold may dissuade a section of potential buyers, but Indian jewellers and bullion traders are looking forward to handsome sales with the onset of the festive season.
The "season", which features festivals such as Durga Puja, Dussehra and Diwali besides marriages, is customarily the bonanza time for bullion traders. The shopping spree usually persists till Christmas and New Year.
Apple leads China's tablet sector
Apple has a dominant position in the Chinese tablet category, but is likely to face increased competition going forward.
Research provider Analysys International reported the iPad and iPad 2, launched locally on 6 May, took a 78.3 percent market share during the opening three months of 2011.
This could be measured against Samsung's 5.1 percent share and the 4.5 percent recorded by indigenous firm ErenEben.
Cartier, Tiffany close in on China
As China's appetite for luxury labels barrels forward, fine jewellery establishments are increasingly looking beyond the country's traditional metropolises of fashion and fortune to reach the next frontiers of luxury consumption. Cartier, which boasts a 40-year presence in Hong Kong and strongholds in Beijing and Shanghai, is just one of many high-end brands planning to aggressively expand Chinese market share in the coming months.
China leaders emphasise fighting inflation in 2011
China will ratchet up efforts to quell inflation in 2011 while pushing forward economic restructuring to help sustain robust growth, state media said on Sunday after the close of an annual policy-setting conference.
The Central Economic Work Conference, chaired by President Hu Jintao, reaffirmed a shift to a "prudent" monetary policy from the previous "appropriately loose" stance announced by the Communist Party's ruling body last week.
High-speed rail racing forward
China's development of a high-speed (HS) railway may have been late but over the past five years, the nation has accomplished what other countries have taken decades to achieve.
China's first HS rail, the 120-km inter-city line between Beijing and Tianjin, went into operation on 1 August 2008. According to the Ministry of Railways, by the end of 2009 there were 6,552 km of high-speed track in operation and an additional 10,000 km were under construction.
